> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.stage3.app/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# How Sharing Works

> Learn how to share processes and manage access permissions

## Sharing Made Simple

Sharing in Stage3 lets you control who can see and work with your processes. You can share with specific people, entire teams, or everyone in your workspace.

Think of sharing like giving someone the keys to a room. You decide who gets keys and what they can do once inside.

## Who Can Share What

Your ability to share depends on your role and your relationship to the process:

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="Members" icon="user">
    Cannot share processes. Can only view what's shared with them.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Administrators" icon="user-shield">
    Can share processes they created or have edit access to.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Owners" icon="crown">
    Can share any process in the workspace, regardless of who created it.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

<Note>
  You can only share processes you have permission to edit. If you can't edit a process, you can't share it either.
</Note>

## Three Permission Levels

When you share a process, you choose what level of access to grant:

### View Permission

**What They Can Do**

* Read the process
* See all content and attachments
* Use the process as reference
* Search within the process

**What They Cannot Do**

* Edit any content
* Share with others
* Delete the process
* Leave comments

**Best For**

* Team members who just need to reference the process
* New employees learning procedures
* Contractors with read-only access

<Tip>
  View permission is the safest option when you're not sure. You can always upgrade someone's access later.
</Tip>

### Comment Permission

**What They Can Do**

* Everything View permission allows
* Leave comments and feedback
* Reply to comments
* Tag other users

**What They Cannot Do**

* Edit the process content
* Share with others
* Delete the process

**Best For**

* Team members providing feedback
* Stakeholders reviewing processes
* People involved in process improvement

<Info>
  Comment permission is great for collaboration without risking accidental edits to the main content.
</Info>

### Edit Permission

**What They Can Do**

* Everything Comment permission allows
* Edit process content
* Share with others (Administrators and Owners only)

**What They Cannot Do**

* Delete the process (only the creator can do this)
* Transfer ownership

**Best For**

* Process co-owners
* Team members maintaining the process
* Subject matter experts contributing content

<Warning>
  Be careful with Edit permission. Multiple editors can cause conflicts if you're not coordinating changes.
</Warning>

## How to Share a Process

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the process">
    Navigate to the process you want to share. Make sure you have permission to edit it.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click the Share button">
    Look for the "Share" button in the top of the process page. It usually looks like a share icon or the word "Share".
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose who to share with">
    * **Specific users**: Type names or email addresses
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the permission level">
    Choose View, Comment, or Edit based on what you want them to be able to do.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Click Share">
    The selected people will receive a notification and can access the process immediately.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Finding What's Shared with You

There are several ways to see processes others have shared with you:

**Notifications**

* Check your notification bell
* New shares appear as notifications
* Click to go directly to the process

**Dashboard**

* Recently shared items appear on your dashboard in the `Shared Resources` section
* See sharing activity in the feed

## Managing Shared Access

If you shared a process, you can change or remove access at any time:

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Change permission levels">
    1. Open the process
    2. Click "Share" or "Manage Access"
    3. Find the person whose access you want to change
    4. Click their current permission level
    5. Select a new level (View, Comment, or Edit)
    6. Changes take effect immediately
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Remove access completely">
    1. Open the process
    2. Click "Share" or "Manage Access"
    3. Find the person you want to remove
    4. Click the "X" or "Remove" button next to their name
    5. Confirm removal
    6. They lose access immediately
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="See who has access">
    1. Open any process
    2. Click "Share" or "Manage Access"
    3. View the complete list of people and teams with access
    4. See what permission level each has
    5. See when access was granted
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Set expiration dates">
    1. When sharing, click "Advanced options"
    2. Set an expiration date
    3. Access automatically revokes on that date
    4. Useful for temporary consultants or time-limited projects
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Sharing Best Practices

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Start Restrictive" icon="lock">
    Begin with View permission and upgrade only if needed. It's easier to give more access than to take it away.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Share Purposefully" icon="target">
    Only share with people who actually need access. Too much sharing creates noise and confusion.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Review Regularly" icon="rotate">
    Every few months, review who has access to your important processes. Remove people who no longer need it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Use Teams" icon="users">
    Share with teams instead of individuals when possible. It's easier to manage and keeps access consistent.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Understanding Inheritance

When you organize processes in folders, sharing works with inheritance:

**Folder Sharing**

* Share an entire folder at once
* Everyone gets access to all processes inside
* New processes added to the folder are automatically shared
* Subfolders inherit the parent folder's permissions

**Process-Level Override**

* Individual processes can have different permissions
* More restrictive than the folder they're in
* Useful for sensitive content in otherwise public folders

<Info>
  If a folder is shared with View permission, you can still share individual processes inside it with Edit permission to specific people.
</Info>

## Sharing Notifications

When you share a process, several things happen:

**The Recipient Gets**

* A notification in their notification center
* An email (if they have email notifications enabled)
* The process appears in their "Shared with Me" section
* Access takes effect immediately

**You Can Include**

* A personal message explaining the share
* Context about what you want them to do
* Links to related processes

<Tip>
  Always add a message when sharing. A quick note like "Please review this by Friday" helps the recipient understand what you need.
</Tip>

## Sharing Limitations and Rules

Some important rules to know:

**Cannot Share If**

* You don't have edit access to the process
* The process owner has disabled sharing
* Your role doesn't allow sharing

**Sharing Caps**

* Some workspaces limit how many people you can share with
* Check with your Owner if you hit a limit

**External Sharing**

* By default, you cannot share outside your workspace
* Owners can enable guest access for external sharing
* External guests have limited permissions

<Warning>
  Never share login credentials to allow someone to access processes. Instead, ask your Owner to invite them properly.
</Warning>

## Troubleshooting Sharing Issues

<AccordionGroup>
  <Accordion title="Can't find the Share button">
    This means you don't have permission to share this process. You need Edit access to share. Contact the process owner or your workspace Owner.
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Someone can't access after I shared">
    Check that:

    * They're logged into the correct workspace
    * The sharing actually completed (check the access list)
    * They've checked their "Shared with Me" section
    * Their role allows viewing shared content
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Shared process not showing in search">
    This can happen if:

    * The process is still indexing (wait a few minutes)
    * Search filters are excluding it
    * The process is archived or deleted
  </Accordion>

  <Accordion title="Can't change someone's permission level">
    You can only change permissions if you're the process owner or a workspace Owner. If you shared as an Administrator, you can only change permissions for people you shared with.
  </Accordion>
</AccordionGroup>

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Role Capabilities" icon="list-check" href="/getting-started/role-capabilities">
    See all capabilities available to your role
  </Card>
</CardGroup>