Use shared inboxes for external collaboration
There are several ways you can support collaboration between your AoC shared inbox members and outside users (users who are not members of your AoC organization).
For few or occasional submissions to a shared inbox
To fill the need for occasional collaboration with a few outside users, shared inbox members with Add users permission can send submission links to outside users. Using the link, an outside user can send a digital package of files and folders to the shared inbox.
AoC delivers the submission link in an email notification. When the outside user clicks the link in the email, AoC presents a portal page. The portal allows them use Aspera high-speed transfer technology to submit packages to that shared inbox. The packages they send appear in the shared inbox packages listing, available to all members with Receive permission. The packages listing displays the sender of such a package as "Anonymous Sender" unless the sender enters their name and email in the fields on the portal page.
The outside user can continue to use the submission link until the link expires. For user procedure, including setting link expiration, see Request a package to a shared inbox.
Note that outside users need to download and install IBM Aspera Connect, the same free software program that AoC members install to enable web-based transfers using Aspera technology. For more information, see Aspera Connect transfer client.
In this scenario, the outside user does not become a member of your Aspera on Cloud organization, workspace, application, or shared inbox. You do not see these outside users listed in your org member or shared inbox member listing. You cannot filter for these users in the activity portal in the Admin app or in the Activity app itself.
Ongoing collaborations and enhanced security for shared inboxes
For increased security, visibility, and monitoring, you can allow your outside users to become limited members of your AoC organization and of the specific shared inbox.
A limited user is a member of a shared inbox only. A limited member is not a member of your organization, of any workspace, or of the Packages app (see User roles and types). Limited users appear in the AoC organization user listing; org admins can readily filter for them in these member listings, and filter for them by user type in the organization user listing.
AoC tracks packages submitted by limited users by sender name, so you can readily identify packages they send. You can also monitor the activity of limited users in the Activity console of the Admin app and in the AoC Activity app (if supported in your AoC subscription edition).
- The first method is perhaps most appropriate for ongoing collaboration with a few individuals. Add a user to the shared inbox and give them Send only permission. If you wish, you can configure an expiration to their permission, after which they can no longer send to the shared inbox. When the permission expires, AoC removes them from the shared inbox member list, but not from the org user listing. There are three user types that can add members to a shared inbox: administrators, workspace managers, and shared inbox members with Add users permission.
- The second method is more useful when you have numerous external users with whom you need ongoing collaboration. Send the outside users a self-registration link to the shared inbox. This link allows the outside users to join the shared inbox as long as they meet the approval criteria that you configure. You can send the same generic self-registration link to as many outside users as required. Configuring self-registration accelerates and simplifies the task of enabling outside users to collaborate using a shared inbox. For an admin procedure to configure self-registration links, see Allow self-registration for a shared inbox.