External Document File Sharing in leafplanner
A secure, controlled way to share documents externally with individuals outside of your account.
leafplanner provides a secure, controlled way to share documents externally with individuals outside of your account, such as advisors, firms, or family members. This feature ensures that sensitive files can be shared without requiring the recipient to be added as a member of your account, while maintaining strict access and activity controls.
Enabling Document Sharing
External document sharing can be enabled or disabled at the account level by an administrator in Account Settings. If this feature is not available in your account, please check with your administrator.
How Document Sharing Works
1. Initiating a Share
From the Document Table, click on the three-dot menu next to a file and select Share. A modal will appear where you can configure sharing details, including:
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Recipient’s email address (required)
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Link type: single-use or unlimited-use (required)
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Download permissions: allow or restrict downloading
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Expiration date: set when the link will no longer be valid
Once all required fields are complete, clicking Share sends an email to the recipient containing the secure link.
2. Recipient Experience
The recipient receives an email notification that a secure document has been shared with them. The email includes a link to the unique share page. Before accessing the file, the recipient must verify their identity by entering a one-time password (OTP) sent to their email. Once verified, they will be directed to the document’s share page with access consistent with the permissions you set.
Tracking and Managing Shared Links
To monitor what has been shared, navigate to the Document Detail Page and review the Shared Links Table. Here, you can:
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View all active and expired share links
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Edit sharing settings
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Delete or reset a link
Additionally, all actions are logged in the Activity Log (accessible from the left-hand navigation menu). This log displays who created links and when. More granular activity event logging will be available in upcoming releases.
Important: Internal vs. External Sharing
It’s important to distinguish between tag-based internal sharing (account-to-account) and external document sharing. These are separate functionalities:
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Tag Sharing:
Enables internal collaboration between accounts and the ability to tag resources to share with another associated leafplanner account. -
Document Sharing: Provides controlled, secure access for individuals outside of your Leafplanner environment.
External sharing settings are configured only at the document level, within the sharing menu.
Why This Matters
External document sharing is a critical feature for families, advisors, and firms who require a safe, auditable way to distribute sensitive files beyond their leafplanner account. Whether sharing with legal counsel, accountants, or relatives, this functionality ensures that information remains accessible yet protected, with granular controls around use, access, and expiration.
Learn More
If you’d like more information about document sharing or would like to see it in action, please schedule a demo.
If you are an existing client and need support, visit leafplanner.com/support.