Checking Documents In and Out from the Document Library

One of the features provided by Windows SharePoint Services is basic document management. Checking out and checking in documents lets others know what documents you are working on so that they don’t work on them at the same time. When using check-in, you can also enter comments about what you’ve changed that others can then view.

In the following exercise, you will change the comments in a document to reflect that this is the final version of the document.

USE the practice file  Oakchest.docx in the practice file folder for this chapter. The practice file is located in the Documents\Microsoft Press\SBS_WSSv3\Chapter 05 folder.

OPEN the SharePoint site from which you’d like to check in or check out a document. If prompted, type your user name and password, and then click OK.

BE SURE TO verify that you have sufficient permissions to modify the properties of a document in the document library. If in doubt, see the Appendix on page 435.

1. On the Quick Launch, click Oak Furniture. The Oak Furniture document library appears.

2. Move your mouse over the document you would like to check out, such as  OakChest.docx.

3. An arrow appears to the right of the document name. Click the arrow.

A menu of options available for working with the document appears.

4. Click Check Out. A dialog box appears informing you that the document will be placed in the local drafts folder.

5. Click OK.

6. Move your mouse over  OakChest.docx. When an arrow appears to the right of the file name, click the arrow.

7. Click Check in. The Check In page appears.

8. Click Check In Document.

9. In the Check In comments box, type This is the final version of this document.

Click OK to return to the Oak Furniture document library.

CLOSE the browser.