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Administrator Guide
Last Updated: 2023-06-23
Concept: Managing Files and Folders in Drive

Concept: Managing Files and Folders in Drive

This table summarizes the primary actions that you can do with files and folders in Drive, if:
  • You have the appropriate permissions.
  • You selected to manage that file type when setting up Drive.
  • Drive supports the action for that file type.
  • The application (such as Workday Slides or Workday Worksheets) is available on the tenant.
Action
Notes
Upload files
Convert files to Worksheets workbooks
Select
Add New
Upload
, or drag one or more files into the Drive page.
Drive automatically converts uploaded spreadsheet-type files to workbooks if all these conditions exist:
  • Worksheets is enabled in the tenant.
  • You're in the
    Worksheets
     security domain.
  • The file has the type XLS, XLSX, CSV, or HTML.
To upload media (video and packaged content) files, you must have already signed the Workday Media Cloud Terms and Conditions order form, and you must be in the
Manage: Media
 security domain.
Drive automatically scans items for viruses when you upload them. Virus scanning doesn't apply to files added to Drive from integrations, or to media files.
The maximum upload file size is 30 MB.
Create a Worksheets workbook
From Drive, select
Add New
Workbook
 to create a new blank workbook.
From a Workday report, select
Export to Worksheets
 to export Workday report data to create a new workbook.
You can do this action if both of these conditions exist:
  • Worksheets is enabled in the tenant.
  • You're in the
    Worksheets
     security domain.
Create a Workday Slides presentation
You can select
Add New
Presentation
 if both of these conditions exist:
  • Slides is enabled in the tenant.
  • You're in the
    Slides
     security domain.
Create a discovery board
You can select
Add New
Discovery Board
 if this condition exists:
  • You're in the
    Discovery Boards: Create
     security domain.
Create a notification template
You can select
Add New
Notification Template
 if both of these conditions exist:
  • Notification Designer is enabled in the tenant.
  • You're in the
    Notification Designer
     security domain.
Create a Workday Docs document template
You can select
Add New
Document Template
 if both of these conditions exist:
  • Workday Docs is enabled in the tenant.
  • You're in the
    Docs
     and
    Document Library
     security domains.
Download an item
Download options depend on whether download is enabled for that particular item type:
  • For supported item types, select the item and then click
    Download
    .
  • For item types such as workbooks, Slides presentations, and notification templates, open the item and select
    File
    Download As
     and select from the available file types.
  • For item types that don't have a viewer or previewer, when you double-click the item name you can download it.
Filter the display of items
Select one of the views along the left side of the home page to see items in those categories, or click the
Filter
 button at the top right for additional filtering options. Note that the
My Files
 view is merely a filter that shows items you own, in a flat list that doesn't show the folder structure; we don't recommend using this view for managing Drive items.
Share an item using a link (URL)
You can share an item with many users at once by giving them a link, which you generate in the
Share
 dialog.
Users can access shared files only if they are in the
Drive
 domain or the
View Drive File and Media
 domain. Additionally, for each item that you want to share, make sure the recipient is in any other required domains for the item type. Example: If you want to share a Worksheets workbook, the person you're sharing with must be in the
Worksheets
 domain.
  1. Select a file in Drive, and click
    Share
    .
  2. Enable the
    Link Sharing
     option if it isn't already enabled. The ability to use link sharing is a tenant setting. If you don't see the option, check with your administrator to ensure that it's enabled.
  3. Select the permission level. Everyone who accesses the file using the link will have this level of access to the file.
  4. Click
    Copy Link
    . Give this URL to people you want to share the file with.
When using link sharing, consider:
  • Drive supports link sharing for all Drive file types except discovery boards. You can't share folders using a link.
  • Sharing an item using a link causes the item to be shared with the
    All Users
     security group. Any user with access to the related application can access the item if they have the URL.
  • Unlike sharing with individual users, when you share a file using a link, Workday doesn't send notifications. You might want to notify people that you shared an item with them; for example, if you shared a Worksheets workbook with a group you can email them a link to it.
  • In Drive, files that you share using a link display a
    Link
     icon next to the
    Who Has Access
     avatars. You can open the
    Share
     dialog by clicking the icon or an avatar.
  • If someone shares a file with you by sending you a link, the shared file doesn't display in Drive or in search results. The file displays in Drive, or in search results, only if they shared it with you using the
    Share With Individuals
     area in the
    Share
     dialog.
  • If you change the permission level for the item later, the level of access updates immediately. Example: You originally set the Edit permission level and gave the link to Cara, who is now editing the file. If you change the link sharing permission level to View, Cara's permission changes immediately and she can no longer edit the file.
  • Individual file sharing settings in the
    Share with Individuals
     area of the
    Share
     dialog remain active if you turn off link sharing.
  • If you use link sharing for an item, and you also share it with individual users or groups, the person gets the highest of the possible permission levels. Example: You share a file with Bibi individually and give her View access. You also use link sharing and you set the permission level to Edit. Bibi has Edit permission for the file. If you later turn off link sharing, Bibi continues to have the View permission that you specified for her individually.
  • You can't use link sharing to share files with implementer users.
Share an item with security groups
You can share an item with groups of users by typing the security group names in the
Share
 dialog. You enable group sharing for each Drive item type in the
Configure Group Sharing in Drive
 task.
Users can access shared files only if they are in the
Drive
 domain or the
View Drive File and Media
 domain. Additionally, for each item that you want to share, make sure the recipient is in any other required domains for the item type. Example: If you want to share a Worksheets workbook, the person you're sharing with must be in the
Worksheets
 domain.
  1. Select an item in Drive, and click
    Share
    .
  2. In the
    Share with Groups
     area, select a permission level for the item in the
    Permissions
     drop-down menu.
  3. In the
    Share with Groups
     area, type the names of the groups that you want to share the item with.
  4. (Optional) If you're the item owner, you can click
    Advanced
     to select whether or not to let editors share the file, and whether to let commenters and viewers copy or print/download the item. For media (video) files, you can enable or disable the ability for owners to allow copy or download, using the appropriate setting in the
    Edit Tenant Setup - System
     task.
These special considerations apply for folder sharing:
  • All users you give folder edit access to can add, remove, and change permission for contributors.
  • All users you share the folder with can download, copy, and print files in the folder.
When sharing with security groups, consider:
  • Drive supports sharing with security groups for all Drive item types, including folders.
  • Unlike sharing with individual users, when you share an item with a group, Workday doesn't send notifications. You might want to notify people that you shared an item with them; for example, if you shared a Worksheets workbook with a group you can email them a link to it.
  • You can view and manage which groups have access (and the level of access) to a group-shared file in the
    Who Has Access
     tab of the
    Share
     dialog.
  • If you gain or lose membership in a group, you automatically gain or lose access to items that someone shared with that group. These will display in your Drive.
  • If you use link sharing for an item, and you also share an item with a group, the group member gets the highest of the possible permission levels. Example: You share a file with the Managers group, which Bibi is a member of, and give the group View access; you also use link sharing and you set the permission level to Edit. Bibi has Edit permission for the file. If you later turn off link sharing, Bibi continues to have the View permission that you specified for the Managers group.
  • In general, groups that you share files with can see any data in the files, except:
    • For discovery boards, row level security applies and groups see only the data they have access to.
    • For workbooks, you can hide content, but if you allow users to copy the workbook, they can unhide the content after copying the workbook.
Share an item with individual users
You can share items in Drive with individual users. Sharing with individual users enables you to set a specific permission level for the person.
Users can access shared files only if they are in the
Drive
 domain or the
View Drive File and Media
 domain. Additionally, for each item that you want to share, make sure the recipient is in any other required domains for the item type. Example: If you want to share a Worksheets workbook, the person you're sharing with must be in the
Worksheets
 domain.
  1. Select a file in Drive, and click
    Share
    .
  2. In the
    Share with Individuals
     area, select a permission level for the item in the
    Permissions
     drop-down.
  3. In the
    Share with Individuals
     area, enter the names of the users that you want to share the item with.
  4. (Optional) Type a message for the users you're sharing with. The message displays in the Workday notification that the users receive after you click
    OK
    .
  5. (Optional) If you're the item owner, you can click
    Advanced
     to assign more specific sharing settings for editors, commenters, and viewers. The following options aren't applicable to folders:
    • All users you give folder edit access to can add, remove, and change permission for contributors.
    • All users you share the folder with can download, copy, and print files in the folder.
When sharing with individual users, consider:
  • Drive supports sharing files with individual users for all Drive file types. You can also share folders with individual users.
  • If you use link sharing for an item, and you also share an item with individual users or groups, the person gets the highest of the possible permission levels. Example: You share a file with Bibi individually and give her View access; you also use link sharing and you set the permission level to Edit. Bibi has Edit permission for the file. If you later turn off link sharing, Bibi continues to have the View permission that you specified for her individually.
  • If you change the permission level for the item later, the level of access updates immediately. Example: You originally gave Can Edit permission to Cara, who is now editing the file. If you change the permission level to View, Cara's permission changes immediately and she can no longer edit the file.
  • When you share an item, the user receives a Workday notification and an email (if you enabled email notifications).
  • In general, users that you share files with can see any data in the files, except:
    • For discovery boards, security applies and users see only the data that they have access to.
    • For workbooks, you can hide content, but if you let users copy the workbook, they can unhide the content after copying the workbook.
Edit a file
Double-click a filename to open and edit it.
For videos:
  1. Double-click the file to open the
    View Media
     page.
  2. Click
    Edit Media
    .
The
Edit Media
 button displays for videos (but not packaged content) if these conditions exist:
  • You're in the
    Manage: Media
     security domain.
  • You're the owner of the video or the owner gave you edit permission.
Move an item
Right-click the item name and select
Move
; then navigate to the location where you want to put the file.
Copy an item
When you copy a file in the Drive user interface, the default destination is the location of the original file. You can navigate to a different location from the Copy dialog. When you're copying an item from within one of the integrating applications, such as copying a workbook from the Worksheets user interface or a presentation from Slides, the default destination might vary from what you see in Drive.
Rename an item
Right-click the item name and select
Rename
.
For video files:
  1. Double-click the file to open the
    View Media
     page.
  2. Click
    Edit Media
    .
  3. Click the pencil (Rename) icon to rename the file.
The
Edit Media
 button displays for videos (but not packaged content) if these conditions exist:
  • You're in the
    Manage: Media
     security domain.
  • You're the owner of the video or the owner gave you edit permission.
Renaming an item in Drive updates the file name:
  • In Drive.
  • When someone opens the item using a shared link or directly in Drive.
In a Help article, if you attached a Drive file or added a link from a Drive file and then rename the file, the file continues to open correctly after being renamed. We recommend that you update the value in the
Text
 field to match the renamed file. Example:
  1. In an article, use
    Insert Link
     to link to a file in Drive, or use
    Insert Media or File
    Select from Drive
     to attach the Drive file
    2022 Results
     to an article. In the
    Text
     field, type
    2022 Results
    .
  2. Rename the file in Drive to
    2023 Results
    .
  3. Navigate to the article in the Help Article Workspace, select to
    Edit
     the article, and update the value in the
    Text
     field to
    2023 Results
    .
Replace an item
Select the item and click
Replace
; then navigate to the replacement file.
The replace action preserves sharing permissions and the link to the file. When a user selects a link that previously opened the original file, it opens the replacement file instead.
Drive currently doesn't support these files for replacement:
  • Discovery boards
  • Document templates
  • Media files (ZIP, SCORM, and video/audio files)
  • Notification templates
  • Slides presentations
  • Worksheets workbooks and templates
As you use the new feature, consider:
  • Drive doesn't save the original, replaced file after it's replaced.
  • For file types that Drive automatically converts to Workday files, such as converting XLSX or CSV files to Worksheets workbooks, the conversion does not occur for the new replaced files.
  • The replacement file type must be the same as the original file type.
  • You can rename a file during the replace action.
  • You can't undo the replace action.
  • In a Help article, if you used
    Insert Media or File
    Select from Drive
     to attach a Drive file to the article, Drive doesn't replace the attached file with the new file. An attached file is a
    copy
     of the original Drive file. You need to edit the article and insert the replaced file into the article instead of the original.
  • In a Help article, if you used
    Insert Link
     to add a link to a Drive file, the file continues to open correctly after being replaced. If you changed the name of the file when replacing it, we recommend that you update the value in the
    Text
     field to correspond to the replaced file's name.
Remove to the
Trash
 folder and recover from the trash
From the Drive Home page, right-click the file or folder and select
Remove
 to move it to the
Trash
 folder. After you move an item to the trash, no other users can access it even if you previously shared it with them.
To restore an item, from the Drive Home page select the
Trash
 icon. Select the row containing the item and then click the
Restore
 icon. Workday places restored items in the Drive Home view.
If you remove an item that someone shared with you, you remove yourself from the list of shared users. The item disappears from your file view and it doesn't display in the
Trash
.
Permanently delete items
You can permanently delete up to 1,000 Drive items that a specified user owns. Access the
Drive Permanent File Delete
 task.
Transfer ownership of individual files or folders
Make sure that you already shared the item with the person you want to transfer ownership to. Then select to
Share
 the item, and select
Transfer Ownership
 in the permissions drop-down list for that user.
When you transfer ownership:
  • Your permission level changes to Can Edit.
  • The new owner has the ability to remove your access.
  • If the transferred item is a Worksheets workbook:
    • You won't be able to edit any protected ranges.
    • Worksheets cancels any existing live data update schedules; the new owner must create a new schedule.
Some products that integrate with Drive don't allow ownership transfers.
Only individual users (not groups) can own items in Drive.
Transfer ownership of up to 1,000 files and folders from 1 user to another
Access the
Transfer Ownership of Drive Items
 task.
Customize the navigation pane
Click the
Settings
 icon to:
  • Assign a default (home page) view for Drive by dragging the item to the top of the list. The new default view displays when you sign in to Workday and navigate to Drive. If you open an item and then return to Drive, Drive shows the last used view.
  • Reorder the standard filters in the navigation pane by dragging them to the desired position, or hide items by dragging them into the
    Hidden Menu Items
     list.
  • Add one or more folders to the navigation pane for quick access, by clicking the
    Add Folder
     link. You can add up to 10 folders in the visible list of filters, and up to 100 folders total, including items in the
    Hidden Menu Items
     list.
Navigate to a user profile from a Drive item
Click the link on the:
  • Info dialog
    Owner
    ,
    Created By
    , and
    Last Modified
     fields.
  • Share dialog
    Who Has Access
     field.
The user information displays as regular text when the applicable user is the same as the user viewing the item.
Collapse or expand the right pane
Click the arrow icon on the right pane divider.