# Share a read-only snapshot > Send a frozen copy of a desk that anyone can read in a web browser, and let them add it to their own PlexiDesk workspace if you choose. Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-snapshot-and-viewer Section: People and sharing > Share and collaborate Plans: All plans Updated: 2026-10-10 A snapshot is a frozen copy of a desk as it is right now. Anyone with the link can read it in a web browser, with no account and nothing to install. It does not change when you keep working on the desk, so it is a good way to hand over a record: what a plan looked like when it was agreed, or a desk to attach to an email. You can also let the people you send it to add it to their own PlexiDesk workspace, where they get a copy of their own to work on. ## Before you start - **Every plan.** Snapshots are included on Free, Pro and Team. - **To send the snapshot by email from PlexiDesk, sign in before you create it.** See [Create an account and sign in](https://plexiidesk.com/help). - **Everything on the desk goes in the snapshot.** Look over the desk before you share it. - **Anyone who has the link can open it.** Send it only to the people you mean to. ## Create a snapshot link 1. Open the desk. 2. Click the desk's name in the header, then click **Share…** under **This desk**. You can also right-click the desk in **All desks** and click **Create public link**. 3. Under **Who can open this desk?**, click **Anyone with the link**. 4. Under **What do they get?**, click **A snapshot they can read**. 5. Choose how long the link lasts from **Link expires**: **Never** (the default), **48 hours**, **7 days** or **30 days**. 6. Leave **Let them add it to their own workspace** ticked if people may keep a copy, or untick it to make the snapshot read only. It is ticked when the sheet opens. 7. Click **Create a snapshot they can read**. 8. Click **Copy** beside the link, and paste it wherever you like. > **Tip:** > Changing the expiry, the tick box or the choice clears the link on screen. Click **Create a snapshot they can read** again for a link with the new settings. Links you made earlier keep working, and are listed under **Links to this desk**. ## Send the snapshot by email 1. After you create the link, type the person's email address in the box under it. 2. Click **Send**, or press `Enter`. PlexiDesk emails them the link, and the sheet confirms, for example **Sent to** the address, then **It is also in their Shared with me.** If they already have a PlexiDesk account with that address, the snapshot also appears on their **Shared** page and in their **Inbox**. See [Rooms and desks shared with you](https://plexiidesk.com/help/shared-with-me). You can send the same link to several people, one address at a time. ## What the recipient sees The link opens a page in their web browser. Nobody needs to sign in to read it. - At the top: **Shared by** and a two-word name, such as gentle-otter, with how long ago it was shared. The page does not show your account name. - The number of views, and a label: **Can be added to workspace**, or **View only** if you unticked the box. - The desk's name and description, then everything on the desk as a set of cards. Notes and pages show their text, tables show their columns and first 20 rows, links show the address they open, and colours and images show as themselves. For a room, the page shows the room's name and a card for each desk in it. If the link has expired or you have stopped it, the page says **Can't load this share**, and asks them to ask the person who shared it for a new one. ## Add it to a workspace When you leave **Let them add it to their own workspace** ticked, the page shows **Want this in your own workspace?** under the snapshot. This is what the recipient does: 1. Click **Add to my workspace**. 2. Fill in **Email**, an optional **Display handle**, and a **Password** of at least 8 characters, then click **Sign up & add**. Someone who already has an account clicks **Already have one? Log in** instead, then **Log in & add**. 3. The page says **Added to your workspace**. Click **Download PlexiDesk**, install it, and sign in with the same email address. 4. In PlexiDesk, open **Shared** in the side menu and click **Add to my workspace** on the snapshot's card. They get their own copy, in a room called **Shared with me**, and can change it however they like. Their changes do not reach you, and later changes on your desk do not reach them. See [Rooms and desks shared with you](https://plexiidesk.com/help/shared-with-me). ## Manage your snapshot links Every snapshot you make of a desk is listed in its share sheet, under **Links to this desk**. To see the list, open the share sheet and click **Anyone with the link**. Each row reads **Snapshot**, then **can be added to a workspace** or **read only**, then the number of views. Beside each row: - **Copy this link** copies the link again. - **Stop this link working** turns the link off, so it no longer opens. ## Choose the right kind of link | | A snapshot they can read | A live view they can watch | A desk they can use | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Changes when you edit the desk | No | Yes | No | | People can change it | No | No | Yes, their own copy | | Recipients can add it to their own PlexiDesk workspace | If you allow it | No | No | | Link can expire | Yes | No, you stop it | Yes | See [Publish a live view of a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-live-web-view) and [Share a desk anyone can use](https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-public-desk-link). ## Common questions **Does the snapshot change when I edit the desk?** No. It shows the desk exactly as it was when you clicked **Create a snapshot they can read**. To share a newer version, create a new snapshot and send that link. **Can people edit the snapshot?** Not on the page. If you let them add it to their own workspace, they can edit their own copy in PlexiDesk. **Someone cannot find Add to my workspace. Why?** You unticked **Let them add it to their own workspace** when you made the link, so the page shows **View only**. Create a new snapshot with the box ticked and send them that link. **The sheet says "Sign in to invite people by email."** Sign in to PlexiDesk, create the snapshot again, and send the new link. **Can I share a widget, document or file as a snapshot?** Yes, from the item itself. See [Share a widget, document or file](https://plexiidesk.com/help). ## Related tasks - [Sharing and invites](https://plexiidesk.com/help/sharing-and-invites) - [Rooms and desks shared with you](https://plexiidesk.com/help/shared-with-me) - [Share a widget, document or file](https://plexiidesk.com/help) - [Publish a live view of a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-live-web-view) - [Share a desk anyone can use](https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-public-desk-link)