Box for Office

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Box for Office includes Box functionality for key Office products such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook-in a single app.

Using Box with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Open Files From Box

Once in the Open menu, you can open a file from Box in one of two ways:

  1. Click on a recently accessed file.
  2. Choose a recently opened folder to navigate or open a file browser directly to pick a file.

From the file picker, you have the following options:

  • Navigate up and down the folder hierarchy.
  • Search for files anywhere in your Box account.
  • Open the file from Box (triggering a download).
Note:  Microsoft Office files will lock automatically when you open them from Box for Office. They automatically unlock once you close the file.
 

Saving Files to Box

If you previously opened a file from Box or previously saved a file as a Box file, you can use Controls, or the normal Save menu to save a new version of that file.

If you opened a file from the local desktop or other non-Box source, you can always save it to Box by using the Save As menu, which provides options to browse to a Box folder and save your file.

Note:  When you save a file to Box, future saves go straight to Box as new versions of that file.

Generating Box Shared Links

The Share menu option is only available when there is an open and active file.  Click Enable sharing for this file and when on this page, you have the following options:

  • Share a Link: Create a shared link for the file and copy it for use elsewhere. If the file was not already stored on Box, you are prompted to upload the file to Box on the spot.
  • Change the shared link access level.
  • Advanced:
    • Set an expiration date for a link (enterprise accounts only)
    • Allow downloading
  • Email link: Send the link using your system default e-mail client.

Ribbon Options

Right from the ribbon at the top of your Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files, you'll see the following additional options to Share your file using Box or Upload your file to Box.

Box and Office Online

Creating Microsoft Files through Box and Office Online

To create a new Microsoft file in Box using Office Online:
  1. Navigate to the Box folder you want to contain the new file.
  2. Click New from the Box menu and select the type of Microsoft file you want to create.
  3. When prompted, name your file.
  4. If you do not have Box Edit installed, Box will create your file and automatically open it in Microsoft Office Online. If you do have Box Edit, your file will open in your default desktop application.

Note:  Office Online auto-saves any changes you make in your documents so you don't need to manually save anything.

Editing Microsoft Files through Box and Office Online

There are two ways you can edit Microsoft files in Box using the Office Online editor:
  1. Through a file's context menu.
  2. Through a file's preview page.
 
Note:  Office Online supports editing for .xlsx, .pptx, and .docx files. Any 97 - 2003 files (.xls, .ppt, .doc) cannot be edited with Office Online. As a workaround, you can use "Save as" to convert the file to one of the supported file types for use with Office Online editing. Additionally, the following file size limits apply when editing files with Box and Office Online:
  • PowerPoint: 300MB
  • Word: Document must contain less than 100 million characters and load in less than 60 seconds
 
To edit a Microsoft file through its preview page:
  1. Navigate to the folder containing the Microsoft file you wish to edit.
  2. Click on your Microsoft file to open its preview page.
  3. Click on the Open button and select the option to open the file with Office Online editor.
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Any edits you make automatically save back to Box.
 
Note:  If the Hide Collaborators folder setting is enabled, the option to open with office online will become greyed out and say it's "unavailable for this file". This is due to real-time co-authoring discussed below.
 
To edit a Microsoft file through its context menu:
  1. Navigate to the folder containing the Microsoft file you wish to edit.
  2. Hover over your Microsoft file and click the More Options drop-down menu in the file's right-hand icon list or right-click on the file.
  3. Select Open with... followed by PowerPoint Online, Word Online or Excel Online, depending on the type of file you are editing.
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Real-time Co-Authoring

Box for Office Online now supports real-time co-authoring. Multiple people can edit a single document simultaneously, and all changes will be automatically saved back to Box. When multiple people are editing a document, their names will appear in the upper right corner. Your collaborator's text cursor will appear in a unique color, and their name will be displayed next to it.

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