Documents

What's Covered

This video walks through the Documents area of Our Cat Herder — how to manage files and folders, control access, and work with the Meetings Archive.

Access and Permissions

• Admins can see all files and folders
• Other users only see files and folders they have been granted access to
• Permissions are set at the folder level — you cannot permission individual files
• Files at the top level of Documents are accessible to everyone on the portal
• To restrict access to a file, place it inside a folder and set permissions on that folder
• To set folder permissions, click the three dots under Actions and select Access Members, then tick who should have access
• You can apply permissions to all sub-folders within a folder as well

Meetings Archive (System Managed Folder)

The Meetings Archive is a special system-managed folder (marked SMF) that is auto-generated based on your meetings. As you create meetings and meeting types, Cat Herder automatically creates a folder structure:

• A folder for each meeting type
• A sub-folder for each individual meeting
• Within each meeting folder: Meeting Attachments, Action Tracker, Meeting Agenda, Meeting Minutes, and Closed Actions

You can jump between a meeting and its archive folder using the folder icon on the meeting page, and the meeting button within the archive folder.

Meeting Archive Permissions

The Meetings Archive folder is automatically permissioned based on who is invited to each meeting. You do not need to manually set access — invitees will have access to the relevant meeting folder. A user who is only invited to one board meeting will only see that specific meeting's folder within the archive.

You can also manually grant access to someone who is not invited to the meeting but needs the documentation. However, the best approach is to manage meeting archive access through the meetings themselves.

Creating Folders and Uploading Files

• Navigate to where you want the folder or file, then click Create Folder or Upload File
• When uploading, you can optionally notify members who have access to the folder
• Only members with folder access will appear in the notify list

Downloading Files and Folders

To download, tick the checkbox next to the file(s) you want — this activates the Download button.

• Single file — downloads immediately
• Up to 5 files — downloads immediately
• More than 5 files, or a folder — generates a background job. You will receive an email with a link to download a zip file. This may take a few minutes depending on the size.
• A mix of files and folders — also generates a background job and email link

Managing Files

• Edit the file name
• Open to view it
• Delete to remove it
• Copy Link to share a direct link with other board members
• Download the file
• Replace with an updated version
• Cut and paste to move a file to a different folder — tick the file, click the cut icon, navigate to the destination, and paste

Reordering and Moving

• Use Reorder Folders/Files mode to drag items up and down to change their display order (saves automatically)
• With reorder mode off, dragging a file onto a folder will move it into that folder (with a confirmation prompt)
• To move a file back up the folder tree, use cut and paste and navigate up

Using Documents Elsewhere in Cat Herder

Throughout Cat Herder (in meetings, decisions, discussions, etc.) you can attach files by dragging and dropping, or by using Choose Internal File to browse and select from your Documents area. Regular users will only see files and folders they have access to.

Can't Access a File?

If a member reports they cannot access a file or folder, check that they have been granted access via the folder's Access Members setting. This is a common issue when onboarding new members or sharing links to files in restricted folders.

Even if a user has a direct link (e.g. copied via Copy Link or shared in a Discussion), they will not be able to access it unless they have permission on the containing folder. Attempting to access a restricted folder URL will redirect them to the top level of Documents.