---
title: "Collaboration Features"
description: "Powerful features that enable teamwork and communication"
---

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

# Collaboration Features

The application includes powerful collaboration features that make it easy to work with your team, share work with clients, and maintain control over your projects. These features work together to create a seamless collaboration experience.

## Overview

Collaboration features help you:

- **Control Access**: Manage who can view and edit your work
- **Track Changes**: See what changed and when
- **Maintain History**: Keep complete version history
- **Enable Discussion**: Comment and discuss directly on work
- **Share Externally**: Send work to clients without requiring accounts
- **Get Approvals**: Collect feedback and sign-offs
- **Maintain Security**: Keep sensitive work protected

<pre class="mermaid">{`
flowchart TB
  SOW[Statement of Work] -->|secured by| Access[Access Control]
  SOW -->|versioned with| Version[Versioning]
  Version -->|differences shown by| Changes[Change Management]
  SOW -->|discussed via| Comments[Commenting]
  SOW -->|shared through| Email[Email Distribution]

  Access -->|controls who sees| SOW
  Comments -->|notify via| Email
  Changes -->|included in| Email

  style SOW fill:#e8f5e9
  style Access fill:#e1f5ff
  style Version fill:#fff4e6
  style Changes fill:#ffe6f0
  style Comments fill:#f3e5f5
  style Email fill:#fff9c4
`}</pre>

## Core Collaboration Features

### Automated Acceptance Testing

Link repository tests to your SOW's acceptance tests, run selected checks, and review each run's results and evidence with your team. Project defaults and SOW overrides control the approved repository and environments; repeated runs preserve the earlier results.

[Learn more about Automated Acceptance Testing →](/features/automated-testing/)

### Access Control

**Manage who can view and edit your work**

Access control lets you grant different levels of permissions to team members, clients, and external collaborators. From full owner access to read-only viewing, you have fine-grained control over who can do what.

**Key capabilities**:
- Five access levels (Owner, Editor, Approver, Viewer, Follower)
- Organization-level and resource-level access
- Temporary access with expiration dates
- Inherited access from parents to children
- Complete audit trail of access changes

**Use access control to**:
- Share projects with your team
- Give clients approval rights
- Grant temporary access to contractors
- Maintain security and compliance
- Track who has access to sensitive work

[Learn more about Access Control →](/features/access-control/)

### Versioning

**Track changes and maintain history of your work**

Every change to your statements of work is automatically versioned, creating a complete history you can browse, compare, and restore. Never lose work or wonder what changed.

**Key capabilities**:
- Automatic version creation on save
- Sequential version numbering (v1, v2, v3...)
- Complete snapshots of all content
- Version comparison (side-by-side or inline)
- Restore previous versions if needed

**Use versioning to**:
- Track how requirements evolved
- Revert mistaken changes
- Compare what changed between reviews
- Show clients the history
- Maintain compliance records

[Learn more about Versioning →](/features/versioning/)

### Change Management

**See exactly what changed between versions**

Change management provides detailed visibility into the differences between any two versions of your work. See precisely what was added, modified, or removed with color-coded highlighting.

**Key capabilities**:
- Side-by-side and inline diff views
- Change summaries and detailed logs
- Impact analysis for each change
- Change annotations and context
- Change tracking by user and date

**Use change management to**:
- Review what changed before approval
- Communicate updates to stakeholders
- Assess impact of scope changes
- Document decision rationale
- Support change control processes

[Learn more about Change Management →](/features/change-management/)

### Commenting

**Discuss and collaborate directly on your work**

Comments enable real-time collaboration by letting you discuss work where it happens. Ask questions, provide feedback, and document decisions directly on work items, criteria, and tests.

**Key capabilities**:
- Comment on SOWs, items, criteria, and tests
- Threaded conversations with replies
- @ mentions to notify specific people
- Mark comments as addressed or resolved
- Filter, search, and export comments

**Use commenting to**:
- Ask clarifying questions
- Provide feedback and suggestions
- Document decisions and rationale
- Coordinate across team members
- Track discussions over time

[Learn more about Commenting →](/features/commenting/)

### Email Distribution

**Share work with stakeholders via email**

Email distribution lets you send statements of work to clients and stakeholders for review and approval—without requiring them to create accounts. They receive secure links to view, comment, and approve your work.

**Key capabilities**:
- Send to multiple recipients at once
- Customizable subject lines and messages
- Secure, time-limited access links
- No account required for recipients
- Track who viewed and approved

**Use email distribution to**:
- Share SOWs with clients for approval
- Send progress updates to stakeholders
- Request feedback from external experts
- Get formal sign-offs
- Maintain professional communication

[Learn more about Email Distribution →](/features/email-distribution/)

## How Features Work Together

### Scenario: Client Project Workflow

**Setting up the project**:

1. **Create project** for your client
2. **Use Access Control** to add your team as Editors
3. **Create Statement of Work** with requirements
4. **Use Commenting** to discuss approach with team
5. **Create Version v1** when ready for initial review

**Sharing with client**:

6. **Use Email Distribution** to send v1 to client contact
7. **Client views** via secure link (no account needed)
8. **Client uses Comments** to ask questions
9. **You reply** to comments, make changes
10. **Create Version v2** with client feedback incorporated

**Getting approval**:

11. **Use Change Management** to show client what changed
12. **Email Distribution** sends v2 with change summary
13. **Client reviews** differences using built-in comparison
14. **Client approves** via secure link
15. **Access Control** logs approval for compliance

**Tracking history**:

16. **Versioning** maintains complete history (v1, v2...)
17. **Comments** document all discussions
18. **Change Management** shows evolution of requirements
19. **Access Control** audit log shows who did what
20. **Email Distribution** history shows all communications

### Scenario: Team Collaboration

**Working with your team**:

1. **Access Control**: Organization members get automatic access
2. **Commenting**: Team discusses requirements inline
3. **Versioning**: Save checkpoint before major changes
4. **Change Management**: Review teammate's changes
5. **Email Distribution**: Send progress updates to stakeholders

**Benefits**:
- Everyone works in the same place
- No email back-and-forth
- Complete history maintained
- Clear communication
- Easy approval process

### Scenario: External Stakeholder Review

**Sharing with external reviewers**:

1. **Access Control**: Grant Viewer access to external expert
2. **Email Distribution**: Send notification they've been added
3. **Commenting**: Expert adds feedback directly
4. **Versioning**: Save version after incorporating feedback
5. **Access Control**: Revoke access when review complete

**Benefits**:
- Controlled external access
- Feedback in context
- No account required (via email)
- Temporary access (auto-expires)
- Full audit trail

## Integration Patterns

### Access + Email

**Control who sees what**:
- Grant access to specific versions
- Send emails only to authorized recipients
- Recipients see only what they have access to
- Access expires automatically

### Versioning + Change Management

**Complete change tracking**:
- Every version captures full state
- Compare any two versions
- See detailed differences
- Annotate why changes were made

### Commenting + Email

**Unified communication**:
- Comments trigger email notifications
- Email recipients can reply via comments
- All discussion preserved in one place
- No lost email threads

### All Features Together

**Powerful collaboration**:

```
1. Create work (SOW, items, criteria)
2. Comment with team to refine
3. Version when ready for review
4. Show changes via change management
5. Email to client with secure link
6. Client comments directly
7. Version with client feedback
8. Show what changed
9. Client approves
10. Access control logs approval
11. Complete audit trail maintained
```

## Best Practices

### Security and Access

**Do**:
- Use Access Control for internal team
- Use Email Distribution for external stakeholders
- Set expiration dates for temporary access
- Review access regularly
- Grant minimum necessary permissions

**Don't**:
- Give everyone Owner access
- Share credentials
- Grant permanent external access
- Forget to revoke departing users
- Skip access reviews

### Communication

**Do**:
- Use comments for work discussions
- Use email for formal notifications
- Mention people with @username
- Mark comments as addressed
- Keep discussions in context

**Don't**:
- Mix personal and work communication
- Use external email for discussions
- Let open comments accumulate
- Forget to respond to mentions
- Lose context in long threads

### Version Control

**Do**:
- Create versions before major changes
- Add meaningful version notes
- Use change management to communicate updates
- Compare versions before approval
- Preserve all history

**Don't**:
- Create versions for tiny changes
- Delete old versions (you can't)
- Forget version notes
- Skip change comparisons
- Lose track of what changed

### Client Interaction

**Do**:
- Use professional email templates
- Provide clear instructions
- Set realistic deadlines
- Follow up appropriately
- Track engagement

**Don't**:
- Send without context
- Overwhelm with detail
- Forget to follow up
- Spam with reminders
- Ignore non-responders

## Getting Started

### Enable Collaboration

**For new projects**:

1. **Set up access**:
   - Assign project to your organization
   - Team gets automatic access
   - Grant specific access as needed

2. **Start versioning**:
   - Versions created automatically
   - Create manual versions at milestones
   - Use version notes consistently

3. **Enable commenting**:
   - Comments available by default
   - Encourage team to discuss inline
   - Mark comments as addressed

4. **Configure email**:
   - Set up email templates
   - Configure notification preferences
   - Test with team first

### Train Your Team

**Key concepts to teach**:
- How to use comments effectively
- When to create versions
- How to compare changes
- How to use @ mentions
- When to distribute via email

**Establish practices**:
- Comment etiquette
- Version numbering conventions
- Change approval process
- Email communication standards

## Troubleshooting

### Common Issues

**Can't access a resource**:
- Check Access Control settings
- Verify you're in correct organization
- Confirm access hasn't expired
- Request access from owner

**Not receiving notifications**:
- Check notification preferences
- Verify email address
- Check spam folder
- Enable browser notifications

**Comments not showing**:
- Check filter settings
- Verify you have access
- Refresh the page
- Clear browser cache

**Email not delivered**:
- Verify email address
- Check recipient's spam folder
- Confirm no typos
- Try resending

## Related Documentation

- **Core Concepts**
- **Quickstart Guide**
- **Users and Access**
- **Organizations**

## Explore Features

- **Automated Acceptance Testing**
- **Access Control**
- **Versioning**
- **Change Management**
- **Commenting**
- **Email Distribution**

Source: https://docs.testandaccept.com/features/index.mdx