Configuring Public Links

Note: The classic M-Files Desktop in M-Files January '24 Update and later no longer refer to public links. Instead, these links have the name visitor link for anyone. This means that user interface uses the new name "visitor link for anyone", but the links still use the configuration of public links. The classic M-Files Web still uses the term "public link".

Important information

A public link created by a user will work as long as these requirements are met:

The user's account is enabled.
The user has at least read permissions to the document.

For security reasons, the link will stop working if either requirement is not met. To share documents with a large number of people without access to M-Files, consider these alternative sharing methods:

M-Files Hubshare offers more control and security.
Anonymous vault access lets users access a vault without credentials.

Before you start to configure public links, make sure that these prerequisites are completed:

To enable or disable public links for all vaults on an M-Files Server, see Configuring public links for M-Files Server. When you have configured public links for M-Files Server, you can configure vault-specific public link settings.

To configure visitor links for anyone for the classic M-Files Desktop and public links for the classic M-Files Web, see Configuring visitor links for anyone for the classic M-Files Desktop and public links for the classic M-Files Web. To only configure public links for the classic M-Files Web, see Configuring public links for the classic M-Files Web.

Configuring public links for M-Files Server

To configure public links for M-Files Server:

Add or edit this registry setting on the M-Files Server computer:


Key	HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Motive\M-Files\`<version>`\Server\MFServer
Value name	EnableSharedPublicLinks
Value type	REG_DWORD
Description	Enables or disables the public link feature on the server. When disabled, visitor links for anyone and public links cannot be created with clients or APIs, and previously shared visitor links for anyone and public links no longer operate. If you disable this feature, make sure that you also specify the same settings for the necessary clients. For instructions, see Configuring visitor links for anyone for the classic M-Files Desktop and public links for the classic M-Files Web or Configuring public links for the classic M-Files Web.
Default value	1
Valid values	1	The Create Visitor Link for Anyone option is enabled.
Valid values	0	The Create Visitor Link for Anyone option is disabled.

Use Windows Task Manager to restart the MFServer service:
1. Right-click the taskbar and select Task Manager.
  Result:The Task Manager window is opened.
2. Open the Services tab.
3. Right-click the MFServer service and select Restart.

Configuring visitor links for anyone for the classic M-Files Desktop and public links for the classic M-Files Web

Before you start, make sure that notifications are enabled on the server and in the vault. Otherwise, passcodes to open M-Files links cannot be sent.

To configure visitor links for anyone for the classic M-Files Desktop and public links for the classic M-Files Web:

Expand the Custom Vault Data section in Configurations.
Expand Namespace Registry > Configuration.
Click Add Namespace and expand the new namespace node.
In Storage Type, select MFConfigurationValue.
In Namespace, enter this value: M-Files.Core.Sharing.PublicLinks.Settings
Enter values for Group, Namespace Label, and Namespace Description.
In the navigation area, expand Named Values > <namespace group name> > <namespace label> and click Configuration.
The namespace group name and label are the ones that you set in step 6. For example, Named Values > Sharing Settings > Public Link Sharing Settings.

To disable or enable the Visitor Link for Anyone feature in the classic M-Files Desktop and the Share Public Link feature in the classic M-Files Web:

Click Add Named Value and expand the new named value node.
In Name, enter Enabled.
Do one of these steps:
- To disable the features, in Value, enter this value:
```
false
```
  Note: If you disable the features, make sure that you also add the corresponding registry setting for M-Files Server. For instructions, see Configuring public links for M-Files Server.
  or
- To enable the features, in Value, enter this value:
```
true
```
  Note: The features are enabled by default.

To specify whether the visitor links for anyone and public links can point to the latest version of the shared files or only to the specific, shared version:

Click Add Named Value and expand the new named value node.
In Name, enter this value: AllowSharingLatestVersion
Do one of these steps:
- To allow links to point to the latest version of the shared file, in Value, enter this value:
```
true
```
  or
- To set links to always point to the specific, shared file version, in Value, enter this value:
```
false
```
  Note: Visitor links for anyone and public links normally always point to the specific version that the user has shared.

To specify the default expiration time for public links in the classic M-Files Web:

Do the steps from 1 to 7, but use this value in Namespace: M-Files.Core.Client.Settings
Click Add Named Value and expand the new named value node.
In Name, enter this value: DefaultExpireInDays
In Value, enter the expiration time in days. For example:
```
10
```
In the example, the expiration time for public links is 10 days if the user does not change it in the Share Public Link dialog.

After you have configured the features, restart the vault so that the changes are taken into use:

Restart the vault.

Configuring public links for the classic M-Files Web

To configure public links for the classic M-Files Web in the Advanced Vault Settings section in M-Files Admin:

In M-Files Admin, go to the Advanced Vault Settings section.
1. Open M-Files Admin.
2. In the left-side tree view, expand an M-Files server connection.
3. Expand Document Vaults.
4. Expand a vault.
5. Click Configurations.
6. In the navigation area, click Advanced Vault Settings.
7. Open the Configuration tab.
  Result:The advanced vault settings are shown.
In the navigation area, expand Client > Classic Web > Sharing.
Do the necessary changes.
Note: If you set Enable Sharing to No, make sure that you also add the related registry setting for M-Files Server. For instructions, see Configuring public links for M-Files Server.
Click Save.