Adding and Managing Documents and Links

Learn how to upload, organize, and delete records

As part of responding to public records requests, you can upload documents to NextRequest. Documents can be uploaded in response to a particular request or proactively uploaded to a general public index before any request has been made for it. You can also post links to previously posted documents or external sites. This document does not cover how to release documents and/or links to the public. For information on releasing documents and links click here.

This help document covers everything you need to know about managing documents and links in NextRequest. Click on a link in the list to jump to that section:

• How to add a document to a request
• How to add a document through the email bridge
• How to add a link to a request
• How to upload a document outside of a request
• How to edit document and link information
• How to organize documents and link into folders
• How to search for a document or link
• How to delete a document or link

For information about how to change the visibility of a document, including releasing the document to the requester and/or the public, click here.

For information about view and search options for an individual document click here.

 

 

How to Add a Document to a Request

You can add a document to any request. At the time you add the document you can choose to either release it immediately, or to keep it under internal review to be released at a later date.

 

Steps for adding a document to a request:

1. Sign in to your account
2. Navigate to the request that you want to upload the document to
3. Click the Add Document icon ()
4. In the menu that appears, you can either click the box to browse for files OR drag and drop your file(s) into the box.
5. If you choose to browse your computer for files, select the file(s) you would like to upload
6. (Optional) Enter the name of a new or existing folder that you would like the documents to be stored in
7. (Optional) Add a Description and Document Date:
   • Description: a description of the document. Include any keywords that will help when searching for the document.
   • Document Date: the date that the document was created/last updated
8. If you would like to release the document now, you can change the visibility setting from Staff Only to either Requester + Staff or Public . If you would like the document to only be visible to internal staff don't change the visibility at this time. Note that the document will need to be released at a later date in order to be visible to the requester.
   • (Optional) If you do decide to release the document to the requester/public right away, you have the option to attach a message with any information or updates you'd like to send to the requester. This message will appear as an internal message on the timeline and will come as a separate notification in the requester's inbox.
9. Click the SAVE button

 

How to add a document through the email bridge

You can now add documents to requests by attaching them to a response to an email notification from that request. In the same way that you can respond to internal/external messages through the "email bridge", you can now attach non-image files to those message responses to upload them to the request.

Steps for attaching documents to notification responses via the email bridge

1. Find a notification in your email inbox pertaining to the request you'd like to upload a document to
   
   • NOTE: If you respond to an external message notification in this way and attach a document, your response will be another external message (to the requester) and your document will also be released to the requester. Respond to internal message notifications to upload your document to the Staff Only section.
   • NOTE: The notification must say "Attach a non-image file and/or reply ABOVE THIS LINE with a message, and it will be sent to staff on this request" in order for the email bridge to work.
2. Open the notification, click Reply
3. (Optional) type a message that will be added to the timeline as an internal message
4. Click the attach icon in your email to find a document to attach to the email
   • NOTE: This feature does not support image files (jpeg). The file must be a non-image file fo this to work.
5. Wait a couple of minutes and you'll then see your document added to the Staff Only section of the request!

 

How to Add a Link to a Request

You can add a link to any request. At the time you add the link you can choose to either release it immediately, or to keep it under internal review to be released at a later date.

 

Steps for adding a link to a request:

1. Sign in to your account
2. Navigate to the request that you want to add the link
3. Click the Add Document icon ()
4. In the menu that appears, click the Link tab
5. Paste the URL of the link you want to attach into the first box
6. (Optional) Enter the name of a new or existing folder that you would like the link to be stored in
7. (Optional) Click the Edit icon () and add a Description and Document Date:
   • Description: a description of the link. Include any keywords that will help when searching for the link.
   • Document Date: the date that the website was created/last updated
8. If you would like to release the link now, you can change the visibility setting from Staff Only to either Requester + Staff or Public . If you would like the link to only be visible to internal staff, don't change the visibility at this time. Note that the link will need to be released at a later date in order to be visible to the requester.
9. Click the SAVE button

 

 

How to Upload a Document Outside of a Request

You can proactively upload a document to the NextRequest portal before a request has been made for it. Visitors to your NextRequest portal can then locate it in the document index and download a copy without having to request it. Like documents that have been uploaded to a request, documents that have been uploaded to the document index can be released to the public or retracted, as well as organized into folders.

 

Steps for uploading a document outside of a request:

1. Sign into your account
2. Click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the screen
3. Click the Upload Documents button in the upper right hand corner
4. Click into the window and select the document(s) from your computer you would like to upload, or drag and drop the files into the window. Click Save once they are done uploading
5. If you would like to release the document now, you can change the visibility setting from Staff Only to Public. If you would like the link to only be visible to internal staff, don't change the visibility at this time. Note that the link will need to be released at a later date in order to be visible to the public.
6. Click the SAVE button

 

 

Steps for releasing a document/link uploaded outside of a request

1. Sign into your account
2. Click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the screen
3. Locate the document/link in the index using the Keyword Search and Date Filters
4. Click on the name of the document/link in the list
5. Click the Release icon () in the top right
6. Click OK in the pop-up menu to confirm

 

 

How to Edit Document and Link Information

You can edit a document or link’s name, description, and date at any time after it has been added to a request. How you will edit the document or link information depends on if you are navigating to the document or link from a request that it has been added to or from the documents index

 

Steps for editing document or link information from a request

1. Sign into your account
2. Go to the request that the document/link has been uploaded to. If additional information has been previously entered for the document/link you will see an Information icon () next to its name. Click the icon to see the additional information.
3. Click the Edit icon () next to the document/link name
4. Edit the document/link information:
   1. Name: this is the name of the document/link as it will appear in the documents list on the request and in the documents index
   2. Description: a description of the document/link
   3. Document Date: the date that the document/link was created/last updated
5. Click the SAVE button

 

Steps for editing document or link information from the documents index

1. Sign into your account
2. Click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the screen
3. Locate the document/link in the index using the Keyword Search and Date Filters
4. Click on the name of the document/link in the list
5. Click the Edit icon () next to the Description or Document Date
6. Edit the document/link information:
   1. Name: this is the name of the document/link as it will appear in the documents list on the request and in the documents index
   2. Description: a description of the document/link
   3. Document Date: the date that the document/link was created/last updated
7. Click the SAVE button

 

 

How to organize documents and links into folders

You can use folders to organize documents and links and make them easier to manage and locate. Folders created on a request page will automatically appear on the documents index as well. Likewise, changes made to a documents folder on the documents index will be applied to the request page as well. A few things to be aware of about how folders work on the request page:

• A folder can only be created by uploading or moving a document or link into it. It is not possible to create an empty folder. If all documents and links are deleted from a folder the folder will disappear
• When a requester uploads a document to their request it is automatically placed in a folder called “Requester uploads”
• Separate folders are maintained for Staff Only, Requester Only, and Published documents and links. If a document or link is in the Staff Only section and in a folder, when it is released to the requester or published, a new folder with the same name will be created in the relevant section.

For information about how to add a document or link to a folder when adding it to a request click here.

 

Steps for organizing documents and links into folders from a request page

Legacy page:

1. Sign in to your account and go to the request with the documents/links you want to organize.
2. Click the Folder icon () next to the document/link you want to move into a folder
3. Click the folder drop-down menu
4. Select an existing folder or type in the name of a new folder in the box. If you would like to move a document/link out of all folders select the option “no folder.”
5. Click the SAVE button

New Request page: 

1. Click on the Documents section in the request
2. Locate the files you want to organize in the list and click on the check box(es) to select the files
3. Click on the Folder icon in the document toolbar
4. Select or create the folder you wish to move the documents into
5. Save

Steps for organizing documents and links into folders from the documents index

1. Sign in to your account and click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the page
2. Locate the document you want to move into a folder and click on it
3. Click any of the Edit icons () in the lefthand bar
4. Type the name of the Folder you want to move the document or link into the Folder field
   
   • Note: Updating a document's folder here will also place the document into that folder on the request page for that document
5. Click the SAVE button

 

 

How to search for a document or link

NextRequest adds all documents and links that have been uploaded to the portal to a documents index that can be searched separately from requests. Requesters who go to the documents index will only see documents and links that have been published or released specifically to their accounts. Staff who go to the documents index (while signed in) will see documents and links that are released and under review.

 

Steps for searching for a document/link

1. Sign into your account
2. Click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the screen
3. Locate the document/link using any of the following options:
   • Search by Keyword
   • Filter by Upload Date
   • Filter by Document Date
   • Filter by Folder: the folder list contains all folders that documents have been organized into on their associated request pages
   • Sort the list by document name, description, number of downloads, document date, upload date, request that the document was uploaded to, and whether the document was released

 

 

How to delete a document or link

If you decide that a document or link should not be available on your portal to either requesters or staff you can delete it. If you delete a document or link it will no longer be available and cannot be restored. We strongly recommend retracting a document or link and/or keeping it unpublished rather than deleting it entirely. A document or link that is not published is only visible to staff who have access to the request it has been uploaded to. If the document or link was uploaded directly to the documents index then it is visible to all internal staff. For more information about how to retract a document or link click here.

The steps for deleting a document or link are different depending on whether it was uploaded to a request or to the documents index. You can also delete all documents and link in a folder or in the entire request at once. Documents and links can only be retracted when the request is open. For information about reopening a closed request click here.

 

Steps for deleting a single document/link uploaded to a request

Legacy page:

1. Sign in to your account and go to the request with the document/link you want to delete
2. Locate the document/link in the list in the Documents section
3. Click the View icon () next to the document/link to open the Document View
4. Click the Delete icon () in the upper right corner
5. Click OK

New request page: 

1. Go to the Documents section on the request
2. locate the file you wish to delete in the list, you can filter by document name by typing into the filter at the top of the list
3. Check the box next to the document
4. Click the Trashcan icon in the document toolbar
5. Confirm Delete

Steps for deleting all documents/links in a folder

Legacy page:

1. Sign in to your account and go to the request with the documents/links you want to delete
2. Click the Show/Hide icon () next to the folder
3. Click the Delete icon () which appears next to the folder name
4. Click OK

New Request page:

1. Go to the Documents section on the request
2. locate and click on the folder you wish to delete in the list, you can filter by folder name by typing into the filter at the top of the list on the right
3. Check the box at the top of the document list to select all files in the folder, if there are more than 25 files you wish to delete click on the link to select all files from the list
4. Click the Trashcan icon in the document toolbar
5. Confirm Delete

Steps for deleting all documents/links uploaded to a request

Legacy page:

1. Sign in to your account and go to the request with the documents/links you want to delete
2. Locate the Documents list
3. Click the Delete icon () next to the word ‘All’
4. Click OK

New request page: 

1. Go to the Documents section on the request
2. Check the box at the top of the document list to select all files in the request, if there are more than 25 files you wish to delete click on the link to select all ### files from the list
3. Click the Trashcan icon in the document toolbar
4. Confirm Delete

Steps for deleting a document/link uploaded outside of a request

1. Sign into your account
2. Click the DOCUMENTS link at the top of the screen
3. Locate the document/link in the index using the Keyword Search and Date Filters
4. Click on the name of the document/link in the list
5. Click the Delete icon () in the top right
6. Click OK