Exports & Downloads

Docwize enables you to export grids and documents. Once the relevant files have been selected for export, you can select from different download options: a ZIP file of the documents, an Excel sheet that lists them, or both.

When you want to export documents for download, select the relevant documents and click the Export button in the Doc Grid. The export is prepared in the background, and the finished file waits for you in the Downloads app.

What you can do in Exports & Downloads

• Export documents from the Doc Grid
• Configure download and bundle options
• Choose the folders and file names of a ZIP, and group the rows of the Excel sheet
• See what an export contains: the ZIP folders and the Excel sheet
• Save a grid, or an Analytics list, straight to Excel without starting an export
• Find your finished exports in the Downloads app
• Download an exported file
• Share a finished export with a colleague
• Share an export with a link, so someone without a Docwize sign-in can download it

Export Options

Clicking Export in the Doc Grid toolbar opens the Export Options dialog. The dialog is divided into four sections.

Export Options dialog

The Filename format, Excel Grouping Columns and Zip Folder Structure fields offer the same list of fields: document fields, such as Doc Number, and custom fields, shown as Template - Field. A custom field is listed when its template applies to the document type or the status of a document you can open. Calculated, Linked Column and Custom Field Reference fields store no value for each document, so they are not in the list. An export that names one of them is not started.

General

Field	Description
Download Filename	The filename assigned to the export. A default name is auto-generated based on the current view and date, but users can edit it.
Download Description	An optional description for the export.

Document Options

Field	Description
Filename format - For ZIP and Download	Builds the file name of each document in the export from the fields users choose, and from any text they type. The example below the field shows the result for the first document in the list. The file names apply to files in a ZIP archive, and to Download Links.
Include Annotations	When checked, annotations added to documents are included in the export.
Convert to PDF	When checked, documents are converted to PDF format on export.

Excel Options

Field	Description
Hyperlink Security	Controls who can access hyperlinks embedded in the exported Excel file. Options: Apply User Security (links respect existing Docwize permissions), Public Within Organisation (links accessible to anyone in the organisation), Public (No sign-in) (links accessible without signing in).
Link Type	Controls the type of hyperlinks embedded in the Excel export. Options: No Links, Preview Links (links open the document preview), Download Links (links trigger a download). When Include Zipped Files is checked, each row's link points to the file inside the ZIP instead.
Excel Grouping Columns	Optional. Selects one or more fields by which the rows of the exported Excel file are grouped.

ZIP Package

Zip Folder Structure set to Folders (Use Doc Folder Structure)

Field	Description
Include Zipped Files	When checked, the exported documents are packaged into a ZIP archive.
Zip Folder Structure	Appears when Include Zipped Files is checked. Choose Folders (Use Doc Folder Structure) to use the folder structure of the documents, or choose fields to group the files into folders by their values. If Include Zipped Files is unchecked, the folder structure is not used, even if it was chosen before.

Footer actions

Button	Description
Set as Default	Saves the current export settings as the default for this Dataview. The button appears only when the dialog is opened from a Dataview, and the user has the Dataview Settings permission.
Start Export	Initiates the export with the configured settings.

What an export contains

The examples below come from one export of the four documents in a folder, with these options:

Option	Setting
Include Zipped Files	Checked
Zip Folder Structure	Folders (Use Doc Folder Structure), then Type
Filename format - For ZIP and Download	Doc Number
Excel Grouping Columns	Type

The ZIP file

Each document is placed in its Docwize folder, and then in a folder for its type. Each file is named by its Doc Number. The Excel sheet is at the top level of the ZIP, as index.xlsx.

ZIP file
├── Quality Documents/
│   ├── Policy/
│   │   ├── DOCS-REV-021.pdf
│   │   └── DOCS-REV-024.pdf
│   └── Procedure/
│       ├── DOCS-REV-022.pdf
│       └── DOCS-REV-023.pdf
└── index.xlsx

The ZIP contents

The Excel sheet

The sheet has one row for each document. The rows are grouped by Type, and the type is written on every row of its group. The group column is the first column. The Download column follows it: each row's link names the file in the ZIP. The headings are field names, such as Doc Number and Rev Number. The sheet has 13 columns, and the table shows six of them.

index.xlsx, six of its 13 columns

The same rows as text:

Type	Doc Number	Description	Date	Rev Number	Folders
Policy	DOCS-REV-021	Quality Manual	2026-09-23 09:43:22	1	Quality Documents
Policy	DOCS-REV-024	Supplier Evaluation Policy	2026-09-23 09:43:23	1	Quality Documents
Procedure	DOCS-REV-022	Document Control Procedure	2026-09-23 09:43:22	1	Quality Documents
Procedure	DOCS-REV-023	Site Safety Procedure	2026-09-23 09:43:22	1	Quality Documents

An Excel-only export

With Include Zipped Files unchecked and no Excel Grouping Columns chosen, the export is one Excel file. It has one row for each document and no group column. With Preview Links chosen, the first column is View: each row's link opens the document in the Docwize preview. In this example the sheet has 19 columns, from View, ID, Date and Description to Doc Number, Rev Number, Doc Type and Type.

Other ways to export to Excel

Two Excel exports do not use the Export Options dialog. Neither adds a row to the Downloads homepage.

Where	What it saves
Export to Excel in the more options menu (⋮) of a grid toolbar	The grid as you see it: the columns it shows, under the headings it shows. A column hidden with the column chooser is left out. See Export the grid to Excel.
Export to Excel in a drill-down list in the Analytics tab	The listed workflow items, one row for each. The first two columns are Preview, which opens the document, and Workflow, which opens the workflow item in the Inbox. The last column is ID. A few lines above the headings give the date range and the scope of the list.

The Downloads app

Every export you start is listed in the Downloads app. Open it from the Downloads tile on the homepage. An export is prepared in the background, so you can carry on working and come back for the file when it is ready. The newest export is at the top of the list.

The Downloads app

Column	Description
Actions	Download (cloud icon) saves the exported file. It can be clicked once the status is Completed. Share With Docwize User (person icon) gives a colleague their own copy of the export. Make Public or Make Private (globe icon) switches Is Public: its tooltip names what a click does. The share icon copies the export's link. See How to share an export with a link.
Created At	The date and time the export was started.
Download Filename	The name given to the export in Download Filename in the Export Options dialog.
Description	The description given to the export, if any.
Status	Completed when the file is ready to download.
Size (MB)	The size of the exported file.
Error	Why the export failed, if it did.
Is Public	Whether the file can be downloaded without signing in.

How to export documents

Step	Description
1	In the Doc Grid, tick the documents you want to export.
2	Click Export, then choose Selected (n) to export the ticked documents, or All to export every document in the grid.
3	Set the options in the Export Options dialog. Each option is described in Export Options.
4	Click Start Export. The dialog closes, and the export is prepared in the background.

Here is an example of exporting documents:

Example: Exporting Documents

How to download an export

Step	Description
1	Click the Downloads tile on the homepage.
2	Find your export. The newest export is at the top.
3	When its Status reads Completed, click Download (cloud icon) on its row. Your browser saves the file.

Example: Exporting and Downloading

How to share an export with a colleague

Sharing is useful when a colleague needs the same set of files, for example a package of documents for a meeting. They get the finished file without having to export the documents again. Only a finished export can be shared.

Step	Description
1	In the Downloads app, click Share With Docwize User (person icon) on the row of the export.
2	In Select Users, choose each colleague by their email address.
3	Click Share. A message confirms how many users it was shared with.

Share With Docwize User dialog

Each colleague finds their own copy of the export in their Downloads app. Their copy is not public.

How to share an export with a link

Share an export with someone who has no Docwize account, or who is not signed in. Anyone with the link of a public export can download it.

Step	Description
1	In the Downloads app, click Make Public (globe icon) on the row of the export. Is Public changes to Yes, and the tooltip now reads Make Private.
2	Click the share icon on the row. The link is copied to your clipboard. It looks like <your Docwize address>/public/<organisation>/<code>.
3	Paste the link where the other person can see it. Opening it downloads the file, with no sign-in.

To stop sharing, click Make Private (globe icon). Is Public changes to No, and the old link stops working. While an export is private, the share icon copies a link to the Downloads app in your organisation, which only people who can sign in can use.