Qbox has an add-on collaboration feature called Client Portal that can be enabled by the Account Owner from the web dashboard using this link.
Account Owners and Team Members can set up working spaces in Qbox to collaborate on files with their Clients. These working spaces are called Clients in Qbox. Each Client in Qbox can be used to share folders and files between the Account Owner, their Team Members, and the individual listed when adding the Client.
Please note: that files and folders added to the ‘Client Portal’ will not be synced down to the Qbox Client (Explorer) software on your computer.
To add a Client
Click the ‘People’ tab at the top, then the ‘My Clients’ subtab, and select the ‘+ Add’ button.
You’ll be presented with the Add New Client window. Here you can type the Client name and enter their email address. Both are required fields for creating a client. You’ll also see a check box that you can use to send an invite to this user as soon as you click the ‘Add’ button and add the Client to your Qbox Client List.
Note: Upon clicking Add, if you get an error saying the account already exists, this could mean they have a regular Qbox account with access to a Sync folder. This error is by design in this current version of Qbox as we encourage you to use your Sync folder for file management. If you have a need to use the Client Portal for a user with an existing regular Qbox account, please reach out to CoralTree support or you can look at our Basil practice management software.
Once added to the ‘My Clients’ tab, you can Edit the Client name and email address, Delete the Client and all their files from the list, and Send or re-Send the invitation email from the 3-dot Actions menu.
Client Folders/Files
After you have created the Client on the ‘People’ tab, you can navigate to the ‘Files’ tab and then the ‘Client Folders’ sub-tab to see that the client is now listed here as well.
Clicking on the Client’s name on the ‘Client Folders’ sub-tab will open that particular Client’s Portal.
Here you’ll be able to upload or download documents for sharing. Most available actions in the current folder can be found in the ‘Actions’ menu to the upper right.
Creating a New Folder
Once inside any of the locations above you can start creating new folders to organize your client files. To do so, click on the ‘Actions’ button in the top right. A drop-down menu will appear where you can select ‘New Folder’. A pop-up window will appear allowing you to type a name for this new folder. Enter the name you desire and then click ‘Add’. The pop-up will disappear and you will see your newly created folder on the screen.
Creating a New File
Qbox gives you the ability to create and edit documents directly in the cloud from your web browser in the following formats: Word (.docx), Excel (.xlsx), and PowerPoint (.pptx).
To create a new file in Qbox with the document editor:
Navigate inside the folder where you would like the document to reside.Click the ‘Actions’ button at the top right and select ‘New File’ from the drop-down menu.
A pop-up window will appear asking you for key information about this new file.
Choose the type of file: Document (Word Document), Excel (Spreadsheet), or PowerPoint (Presentation)
When finished, click the ‘Add’ button in the lower right corner and you will be taken to the document editor. Make sure to ‘SAVE’ the document at the top right before closing with the ‘Close File’ button at the top left.
*The document editor (powered by Zoho) allows you to create and edit documents in the cloud from any supported browser. This editor has many of the same features that you come to expect when working with a program such as Microsoft Word or Excel but it is all in the cloud.
Working on Files
Word, Excel, and PowerPoint documents can be directly edited in the cloud by clicking on the file. Edits are done using the integrated Zoho editor, which is offered at no additional charge. These documents can be edited only by the Account owner and Team Members. Client users do not have permission to edit documents. Before a document can be edited, it needs to be 'locked' by the user so another user cannot edit the document simultaneously. Use the Save button to save the edits periodically, use the Close button to close, and release the file lock when done with edits.
Uploading Files
You most likely already have files located on your local hard drive that you’ve created while working with your clients and internal staff. You can upload certain file types from your PC to Qbox provided they are a supported file type: Word (.doc,.docx), Excel (.xls, .xlsx, .csv), Powerpoint (.ppt, .pptx), PDF (.pdf), Zip (.zip), QuickBooks Desktop (.qbb, .qba, .qbj) and some image types (.jpg, .jpeg, .png, .tif, .tiff, .heic).
To upload a file:
Click the ‘Actions’ button at the top right and select ‘Upload Folder(s) / File(s)’ from the drop-down menu.
You can drag and drop your files to the area outlined by the dotted lines or you can click on the text inside the box and it will open a Windows File Explorer window for you to navigate and select the files you wish to upload.
Next, click ‘Upload’ in the lower right corner and your files will be copied from your local hard drive and into Qbox.
Uploading Folders
You may have a folder on your computer that already contains all the subfolders and files that you and your client or team members have been working on. You can upload that entire folder at one time and it will be copied in Qbox with the same structure.
To upload a folder:
Navigate to the location where you would like the folder and its contents to reside.Click the ‘Actions’ button at the top right and select ‘Upload Folder(s) / File(s)’ from the drop-down menu.
Click the text in the box to open a Windows File Explorer window and navigate to the folder you wish to upload.
Select that folder and then click ‘Upload’.
A pop-up window will appear at the top of the screen asking if you want to allow your files to be uploaded. Click the ‘Upload’ button to proceed.
Your files will be copied from your local hard drive, into Qbox, and you will see a summary on the screen.
Click ‘Done’ and you’ll be back at your Qbox location with your newly uploaded folder and its contents.