Co-Editing with Microsoft Office on Egnyte Mobile Apps

Co-editing with Microsoft Office on mobile integrates Egnyte Mobile Apps with Microsoft Office applications (such as Copilot 365, Word, Excel, or PowerPoint). This feature enables multiple users to edit the same document simultaneously using the Office software, facilitating seamless collaboration.

Requirements

The following requirements must be met to enable collaborative authoring with Microsoft Office on mobile devices:

1. Supported Device: A device running a supported version of iOS or Android, either on a phone or tablet.
2. Latest Egnyte Mobile App: The most recent version of the Egnyte iOS or Android app (for additional details, refer to the latest Egnyte installers in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store).
3. Microsoft Office Business License: An Office 365 account with a valid license (Example:  Business, Business Premium, E3, E4, or E5) is necessary to edit or modify files.
4. Latest Microsoft Office Apps: The latest version of Microsoft Office apps (such as Copilot 365, Word, Excel, or PowerPoint) must be installed on the device and the user needs to be logged in.
5. Microsoft Office Desktop Enabled: Microsoft Office Desktop and Mobile integration must be enabled in the Egnyte Apps & Integrations page by the Egnyte domain administrator.
   

Starting Co-Editing Session from Egnyte Mobile App (iOS and Android)

When a document is compatible with collaborative co-editing and Microsoft Office Integration has been configured for the domain, a Co-edit button will appear in the document preview or within the context menu (three dots) as Co-edit in [Word] [Excel] [PowerPoint].

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Selecting the Co-edit option initiates document checkout and starts a collaboration session. The user is redirected to the relevant Microsoft application where the document can be edited. 

     

 

During Co-Editing Session & Saving Back to Egnyte

If another user opens the document first, a Co-Edit icon (two people) will appear, indicating that the document is already open and being edited by someone else.

If the file is being co-edited by other users, their cursors and names will be visible in the document.

Once editing is complete, the Done (iOS) or Tick (Android) button can be tapped to exit the editing mode.

To return to Egnyte on iOS, the Back to Egnyte button should be selected. On Android devices, the native application switcher must be used to return to the Egnyte app.

Sharing Co-Editing Session 

Other users with correct permissions can also join the collaboration session from the Egnyte App to edit the document simultaneously by using Egnyte direct links.

Copying the direct link allows it to be shared with domain users who have Editor permissions for the folder where the file is located. When accessed, the File Preview will display a blue Co-Edit button, which, when clicked, enables participation in the co-editing session.

Limitations & Known issues

• Co-editing with Microsoft Office on Mobile isn’t supported for the iOS Egnyte for Intune app
• Multi-domain co-editing isn’t supported on mobile
• Co-editing is only available when the device is connected to the Internet 
• Co-editing cannot be launched from Offline Tab files
• While starting/joining a collaborative session, the Egnyte app will be moved to the background and should not be closed as it may cause some problems with document editing
• Although all updates made to the document, sheet, or presentation are synced to the cloud, it may take some time before they can be seen in the preview screen in the Egnyte app. The Egnyte app shows a reminder about it in the preview mode.
  
• Egnyte storage should add automatically in the relevant Microsoft app (after Microsoft Office Desktop and Mobile integration is enabled by the domain administrator) but in case it fails to appear in the iOS version of the App, users are advised to add it manually as described below:
  1. Go to the Device (Example: iPhone) Settings.
  2. Find the relevant Microsoft app in the list of apps (Example: Excel/PowerPoint/Word/Microsoft365) and tap on it.
  3. Tap Reset at the bottom of the screen.
     
  4. On the next screen, enable all the toggles.
     
  5. Leave device Settings and go to the relevant Microsoft app (Example: Word).
  6. The app will be signed out, and the data will be removed.
  7. Sign in to the Microsoft app.
     
  8. Tap on the Avatar icon (left upper corner).
     
  9. Select Storage Accounts.
     
  10. Egnyte storage should be visible, activate it.
      
      

      Users need to repeat the above steps for all the Microsoft apps they want to use with Egnyte storage on mobile, for example both Word and Excel.