Convert email attachments to shares automatically when composing an email

DRACOON for Outlook version 5.5 or later

Send secure download links instead of large file attachments and use automatic conversion of email attachments to shares with DRACOON for Outlook.

Switch automatic conversion of attachments on/off

The automatic conversion of email attachments to shares is enabled by default. If you do not want to use the function (that is, send attachments as you normally would), or you want to enable it for individual attachments only when needed, you can turn the feature on or off as follows:

• In the Outlook ribbon, in the DRACOON group, click Options, and then click Convert attachments automatically to shares to turn the feature on or off.
   

Automatically send attachments as shares

1. Add an attachment as usual to a new email message (e.g. via the Attach file command in Outlook or by drag and drop).
2. DRACOON for Outlook automatically replaces the attachment with a share link, which is inserted into the message.
   You can move the link to anywhere in your email text.
3. Send the email.
4. If you are saving an attachment in DRACOON for the first time, it is not yet known where in DRACOON the file should be stored.
   In this case, DRACOON displays a corresponding message and then opens the settings for shares.
5. Click the Browse button to set a future default location.
   
6. Select the data room or folder in which attachments will be saved by default in the future.
   If you want to create a new folder, click .
7. Click OK to save the selection as a new default.
8. The attachment is uploaded to the selected location in DRACOON.
9. The draft share link in the email message is replaced with the final share link.

• For future save processes, steps 4-7 are skipped because attachments are immediately uploaded to the specified default location. Thus, in the future, you will be able to send attachments fully automatically as shares without having to make a single setting.
• You can specify a minimum size for automatic conversion under Settings > General. Attachments that are smaller than the specified minimum size will then never be converted automatically and will always be sent as a regular attachment.

If you have turned off automatic attachment conversion, you can manually convert an attachment to a share if needed (only under Outlook 2016 or later):
Click the arrow to the right of the attachment and then Convert to share.

Password protection

By default, a share can be used by anyone who knows the share link.
If you want to restrict a share to a specific group of users, you can protect it with a password. The user of the share must then first enter the password before it is possible to download the shared file.

Default password or different password for each share

• Under Settings > Shares, you can specify a default password that is used for all download shares. Advantage: You will not be asked for a password for each share. Disadvantage: Lower security because the password is the same for all shares.
• Alternatively, you can choose to be prompted for a password each time you share. To do so, set the Ask every time option under Settings > Shares.

Setting and forwarding password

• In the Share password field, enter any password that complies with the password policy.
• You can also click the dice button next to it to generate a random secure password.
• After setting the password, click the button on the far right of the password field to copy the password to the clipboard.
• You must give the recipients the password so they can use the share. You should not include it in the email together with the share link for reasons of increased security; instead, send it to the recipient another way, such as via chat. For example, when chatting with the recipient, press Ctrl+V to paste and send the copied password. Alternatively, the password can be transmitted automatically via SMS if this is enabled in your DRACOON.

If you choose an encrypted data room as the location for an attachment, the share must be password protected (shares in encrypted data rooms must always be password protected).

Option: Ask for storage location, password, and share settings each time instead of using defaults

When attachments are stored in DRACOON, they are always saved by default to the default location (data room or folder) that you specified in the share settings. In addition, a default password that may have been set will be activated as well as any default share settings (e.g. an expiration date that applies to all shares). This allows for the quick sending of attachments as shares without annoying dialog boxes appearing.

However, if you use a number of data rooms and select the appropriate room or folder for every uploaded attachment or want to specify a different password and share settings for each share (for example, an expiration date), change the following setting:

1. In the ribbon, in the DRACOON group, click Options, and then click Settings.
2. In the left navigation pane, click Shares, and then select Ask every time.
3. When you send an email, a dialog box will appear before each upload of shared attachments in which you can explicitly set preferences for all email attachments to be uploaded, which may differ from the default settings.

Advanced share settings

You can activate the following settings for download shares:

• Notify on download: You will receive a notification email every time someone downloads the shared file.
• Limit number of downloads: Specifies that the file can only be downloaded x times via this share. This restriction applies to the mutual downloads of all users of the share. Once the limit has been reached, no further downloading is possible.
• Share expires on: Specifies that the download share is temporary. The date determines the last day on which the share can be used. Afterward, the share is automatically deleted. If you do not specify an expiration date here, the share remains active until you manually delete it, for example, under Shares.
• Delete uploaded files from server after expiration of shares not only causes the share to be deleted but also causes the shared file itself to be deleted from DRACOON. This is useful for files that you only want to store in DRACOON temporarily as long as the share exists.