This article explains why Virtual Cabinet does not have an auto save feature for documents being edited, and what users should do to avoid losing work.
Why There Is No Auto Save
Saving an edited document in Virtual Cabinet involves copying the local version of the file back into the File Store and recording a new version in the audit log. This only happens when the user actively saves the document back into Virtual Cabinet. There is no background auto save process within Virtual Cabinet itself.
While a document is checked out for editing, users can make as many changes as they like to their local copy before saving back.
Recommended Practice While Editing
To reduce the risk of losing work, users should regularly save the file locally using the application's normal save function (for example Ctrl+S in Word or Excel) while it is checked out. This ensures that:
- The local copy reflects all changes made so far, so nothing is missed when the document is saved back to Virtual Cabinet as a new version.
- If the system crashes, the local copy will still contain the most recent work, even if it has not yet been saved back to Virtual Cabinet.
If a user has not been saving locally, they are reliant on Office's auto recovery feature in the event of a crash. Auto recovery may restore some data, but there is no guarantee it will recover everything.
Checking Who Has a File Checked Out
To check who currently has a file checked out for editing, or who has previously edited it:
- Highlight the file in Virtual Cabinet.
- Click View Audit on the ribbon, or right-click the file and select View Audit.