A reviewer's decision is Approve (the artwork can be printed as it is) or Reject (it needs changes). Each decision is recorded with the reviewer, the time and the exact file, and the shop is emailed.
Approve or reject#
- On the proof page, choose Approve or Reject in the header. Both work only on the version the link asks about: switch back to it if you are looking at another one.
- Check Your name and Your email. They are filled in when the page already knows you.
- Add a General comment if you like, such as what must change. Comments you pinned on the artwork are part of the review anyway.
- To approve, tick the confirmation: "I have checked the artwork, including its text, colours, dimensions and barcodes, and approve it for production." When the version has comments, the dialog says how many, with Read them, since approving means it is printed as it is.
- Choose Approve or Reject (or press ⌘ Enter or Ctrl Enter).
The dialog thanks you, says how many other reviewers still have to decide, and shows the overall status. Your decision and your name then appear under Reviewers on the History tab.
How a link's status is set#
Only approvers count:
- Rejected as soon as any approver rejected;
- Approved when every approver approved;
- Pending otherwise, for example while an invited reviewer hasn't decided yet.
People who only commented never hold up an approval. Anyone who decides becomes an approver of the link, so on a link without invited reviewers the first approval approves it.
While a link isn't approved, a reviewer can change their mind: deciding again replaces their earlier decision. A rejected link stays open, because a corrected version is usually on its way.
The dashboard combines the links of the latest version: Approved when any link is approved, else Rejected when any link is rejected (see How approvals work).
An approved version locks#
Once any link of a version is approved, decisions close on every link of that version: the Simple, Advanced and 3D links alike. The Approve and Reject buttons disappear and a strip says the artwork is approved and the decision is final (on the other links: that another reviewer already approved it and decisions are closed). Reviewers can still read the proof and add comments.
Decisions also close on every link of a version once a newer version is uploaded (see Artwork versions).
Two reviewers deciding at the same moment are handled one after the other: once one of them approved, the other is told that the version is already approved.
Reset to pending#
A team member can put a link back to pending, for example after an approval by accident, by the wrong person, or when a revised file is coming.
- Open the link while signed in: Open proof on the Approvals page.
- Choose ⋯ → Reset to pending…, or Reset to pending under Reviewers on the History tab.
- Give a Reason if you like. It is kept in the history.
- Choose Reset to pending.
What a reset does:
- every decision on that link is cleared and its status is Pending again;
- reviewers who became approvers only by deciding go back to being viewers; invited reviewers stay approvers;
- comments stay as they are;
- the history records "Reset to pending (was approved)" with your name, the reason, the status before and the decisions it cleared.
A reset is per link. If a version is locked because its Advanced link was approved, reset that link to open decisions on the others. Reviewers can then decide again. The API has the same reset (see Approvals API).
Note: Reviewers can't undo their own approval
An approval is final for the reviewer. If they approved by mistake, they ask you, and a team member resets it.