Comment on files, mention people, and add pins

Leave file feedback, call a person's attention to it, and place comments on an image or PDF page.

File comments keep feedback with the work. Access, role, and inherited file settings decide who can use comments, mentions, versions, history, and pins.

Choose what you want to do

Add a comment or reply
Pin feedback to an image or PDF
Show comments from one version
Understand notifications
Find a missing comment or notification

What do you need before you start?

You need access to the file.
Comments must be enabled through the workspace, account, folder, and file settings that apply to the file.
A client must have access to the file's folder.
The person you want to mention must appear in the mention list.

How do you add a comment or reply?

Open the file viewer.
Open the comments panel.
Write the comment.
Type @ and choose a person when you need to mention them.
Send the comment.

Open a comment to reply to it. Replies stay in one level below the first comment. You can also add a thumbs-up reaction.

The person who wrote a comment or reply can edit or delete it. Adding a mention while editing an old comment does not send a new mention notice. Send a new comment when the person needs a notice.

How do you pin feedback to an image or PDF?

On a desktop browser, team members and clients who can comment can add pins to images and PDF pages:

Open an image or PDF in the file viewer.
Choose Add Pin.
Select the exact place on the image or PDF page.
Write the pinned comment and mention a person if needed.
Send the comment.

A PDF pin stays with its page and position as you zoom or resize the viewer. Each pin also stays with the file version where it was added. Switch to that version to see the pin in the right place.

Pins use one number sequence for the whole version. Numbers do not restart on each PDF page. A page may show pins 2 and 5 when other pins are on different pages.

Select a pin to open its comment. Select the pin icon on a comment to return to that location. On a PDF, the viewer moves to the correct page and pin. Use the Hide or Show pin control to change whether the current version's pins appear.

On a phone, team members and clients can view pins and move between a pin and its comment. Adding pins and changing pin visibility are available on desktop. Videos do not support visual pins.

How do you show comments from one version?

Open the comments panel and select View this version only. The list then shows comments and replies tied to the version you are viewing.

The choice stays on while you move between versions of the same file. It follows the selected version each time. Opening another file resets the choice.

Who gets a notification?

Notification rules depend on who writes and where they write:

An @mention can send an in-app notice and email to the mentioned person.
A client's new top-level comment can notify team members who have access to the account.
A team member's new top-level comment can notify the uploader and people already in the discussion.
A reply can notify the first comment's author and other people in that reply thread.
A thumbs-up can send an in-app notice to the comment author.

Sydnee removes the writer from their own recipient list. Email may be grouped and sent after a short delay. The person's access and notification settings are checked before delivery.

How does muting work?

Use the bell in the comments panel to Mute notifications for this file. Muting stops normal comment, reply, reaction, and new-version notices for you. A direct @mention can still notify you.

Muting affects your notices. It does not turn off comments for everyone.

What does your client see?

An allowed client sees the comments and pins on the file versions they can open. On desktop, the client can also add image and PDF pins when comments are enabled. On a phone, the client can view pins and move between a pin and its comment.

Edit history is not shown to portal users. A comment or mention never gives access to a hidden file.

How do you fix a missing comment or notification?

A comment is missing: confirm you opened the same file and version where it was added. Then check your access to the file and whether comments are enabled at the workspace, account, folder, or file level. A deleted comment or reply no longer appears.

A notification is missing:

Check that the person was chosen from the @mention list.
Check their account and file access.
Check whether comments are enabled.
Check the person's email and in-app notification settings.
Check whether they muted the file. Remember that a direct mention can still break through a mute.
If the mention was added by editing an old comment, send a new comment instead.