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Proofing and Proofing Tool FAQs
Proofing and Proofing Tool FAQs
Andrew Naisawald avatar
Written by Andrew Naisawald
Updated over a week ago

Uploading Proofs

What file types can we upload as proofs?

  • You may upload image files (.JPEG, .TIFF, .PNG), Microsoft Office files (eg., Word, PPT), PDFs, and Video files (.mp4) into Hive.

How can I upload a file to the proof?

  • You can upload the file by clicking on "Upload File"

  • You can also upload a proof by dragging the file to the Approval app!

Are there file upload limits?

  • There is no file upload limit, although your bandwidth may limit upload speed.

Can I upload multiple proofs?

  • Yes, it's possible to add more than one proof to an action card in a simultaneous upload. You can either upload multiple documents as one proof, or upload the documents as individual files.

Can you review the proof at the same time as someone else? Can you see who else has the file open?

  • Yes, concurrent reviews of the file are supported for collaborative reviews. Their comments will appear live during your review.

How do you replace a proof?

  • If you mistakenly uploaded a proof, you can upload the correct file and it will become the latest file on top and ready for review/routing or you can use the trash can icon to delete the proof.

When overriding a round in progress, is the previous proof version kept?

  • Yes. When uploading a new proof while the round is in progress, the previous version is pushed back to the show previous file versions section, and the new file uploaded is now the current version.

Where can I see who’s uploaded the PDF?

  • Hovering over the name of the proof on the action card, provides the name of the person that uploaded the proof as well as the timestamp for when it was uploaded.

Is it possible to lock a proof?

Yes, all admins as well as the user who uploaded the proof are able to lock it. To do it, you need to click "Lock proof" on the bottom right-hand corner of the image.

Is it possible to lock a Round?

Yes, the Admins and the Project Owner can decide to lock the Round once it gets completed.

To do it, you'll need to enable "Lock proofing rounds once complete" under Approval rounds.

Once the Round is locked, the user will not be able to:

  • Delete round

  • Apply template

  • Change "Move to next stage when"

Navigating in Hive’s Proofing Tool

Can you change the location of the Comments Panel? Can I see the Page Thumbnail Panel and Comments Panel at the same time?

  • The Comments Panel is locked on the right-hand side and will capture the name of the user and timestamp of when their comment was added.

  • Yes, you can see thumbnails and comments at the same time by opening the Thumbnails icon on the left-hand side of the tooling tool.

Can we attach files to the pdf to reference something?

  • Yes, you may. Use the paperclip icon under the 'Insert' tab on the top bar.

  • Pro Tip: Once you click the paperclip icon, then click on the proof to designate the location on the proof where you want the file to be located.

If you close out of the files, does it automatically save your markups?

  • When adding a comment on the file (eg., shape), it is automatically saved.

  • If you add or edit the text in the comment from the Comments Panel, you need to click on Save for this comment. This also applies to replies to comments made from the Comments Panel.

Can I search for text on image files?

  • You are able to search for text within the file from the search bar at the top right corner. Image search is dependent on the image type (live text vs. flattened file).

Can I compare proof versions side-by-side?

  • Yes, you can!

  • Click in the '+' icon on the upper right-hand side of the proofing tool, Then you'll be able to select which file from those uploaded to the action card you'd like to compare. You can compare up to 3 files side by side

When you compare documents can you view them on 2 separate screens?

  • Currently, when comparing proof versions they aren’t able to open in separate screens. However, Hive can be opened in different tabs of the web browser and then moved to the 2 different screens.

Can the old version appear on the left side, and the new one on the right side?

  • Yes, this is possible when comparing proof versions by selecting in the file dropdown on the left side the old version, opening the File Compare tool and selecting the new version for the proof viewed on the right side.

What does the 'Show Callouts' button mean?

  • This button allows the callout comment style (i.e., the box and arrow style annotation) to be displayed on the proof and comments panel or not. All callouts in the proof will not appear on the proof or in the comments panel when unchecked.


Can you use keyboard shortcuts in the Proofing Tool?

  • Absolutely! There are a lot of shortcuts you can use to manage comments and open comment tools

Commenting and Reviewing in the Hive Proofing Tool

How do I add comments, annotations, markups to a document in the Hive Proofing Tool?

  • Use the Annotation, Shapes, Insert, and Measure tabs to view the available comment types. Select which one you'd like to you and then where on the proof you want to apply the annotation.

What is the easiest way to delete a comment?

  • The easiest way to delete a comment is to select the comment and click on the trash can icon under it on the proof. This action deletes the comments from the proof and the Comments Panel. Or on select the comment in the comments panel and click on the three dots icon to open the dropdown to see the delete comment option.

  • To bulk delete comments in a certain file area, you can also use the Eraser Tool.

Can you move/delete multiple comments at the same time?

  • Yes, you can select multiple comments at the same time maintaining the CONTROL key and clicking on the relevant comments, and: (1) Press the DELETE key to delete all the selected comments, (2) Drag them to move their location at the same time

Can you edit your markups after you’ve saved them but, before you’ve completed your review?

  • Yes, you may edit and delete your own markups. Remember to select Save after making edits.

Are previous reviewers’ comments locked so they cannot be accidentally deleted?

  • No, Hive is a very collaborative tool allowing prior comments and markups can be deleted or edited by other team members.

  • A best practice would be to instruct users not to delete comments, but add a reply or apply a status such as “Canceled” if the comment no longer applies.

Can you group multiple comments? Can you apply one comment to all the selections?

  • Yes, you can select multiple comments at the same time maintaining the CONTROL key and clicking on the relevant comments.

  • When doing so the Group option (button with the circle with 3 dots) will appear to group the selected comments. If comments are grouped, these will appear under one single comment in the Comments Panel, with the copy of the one selected first.

Can you change (and save) the thickness/opacity of the freehand and shape tools?

  • Yes, you can change these. There is a drop-down menu on the markup tools, and your last selection in terms of color, thickness, opacity is remembered the next time you open the proofing tool.

  • Or after a comment has already been applied, highlight it on the proof and select the painter's palette icon (style guide) that allows you to update the color, border, and fill of select annotations.

Can you set a default color for text highlights? When a color is set, is it for all the tools?

  • When selecting a color for one of the comment tools, this setting will be saved for you in the Proofing Tool across all the proofs.

  • You can set one color for each type of comment tool.

Does Hive have an insert text tool? What about strikethrough and replace?

  • Insert text and strikethrough tools are available. The replace tool is not yet available in Hive’s proofing tool, but the strikethrough tool may be used for this purpose by adding the new copy in the comment.

Can you draw a straight line in Hive?

  • Yes, once you select the line tool, it is applied by pressing down and dragging to create the line.

Can we create custom stamps?

  • The Hive proofing tool includes a library of existing stamps under the ‘Insert’ tab where there is also the option to add a ‘custom’ stamp displaying the user’s name, time stamp, and/or custom text.

Is it possible to turn on a ruler and drag a guide over to measure?

  • The Measurement Tools are available under the Measure tab and can be used to measure and serve as a ruler. For alignment purposes, you can use the Line Tool.

Can you sort comments by name?

  • Yes, you can use the Sort by' option on the right side of the comments panel to sort the comments by Author.

  • In addition to Author, you can also sort the comments by Position (i.e., position on the proof pages), Time, Status, or Type.

  • In the MP4 proof, you can also sort by Created Date, Modified Date, Status, Author, Type, Color, Frame, and Timecode.

If reviewing comments, can we apply statuses for each?

  • Yes, click on the comment in the comments panel. The statuses can be applied, for the status icon to the right-hand side of the commenter’s name.

  • Comments can then be sorted by status in the ‘Sort By’ option or filtered on status using the ‘Search Comments’ box.

Is there an undo function, for example, if I delete a comment by mistake?

  • Yes, you can undo any action (eg., add/delete comment) by pressing CONTROL + Z or using the back arrow to the right of the annotations icons.

  • You can undo as many as you need as long as you don’t close out the proof.

Do I need to download and re-upload a proof when reviewing a file?

  • No, you can perform your review directly in Hive’s proofing tool by clicking on the file visual on the action card to open the file in the proofing tool. The proofing tool is online, so you can add your comments directly in the file.

Is there an option to auto-compare?

  • The auto-compare option is currently not available in Hive’s Proofing tool.

Can you import comments from one version to another?

  • Yes, you may transfer all callouts (the box and arrow style annotation), select comments, or all comments to a new version of the proof.

  • To do so, Open the file you would like to copy them into first, then use the '+' button on the upper right side to add the file with the comments so the proof versions are side-by-side. Next, click the arrow button for transfer comments.

If I need to add or remove a page of my proof but still need to transfer over comments, how could I do this?

  • First transfer over the comments from the older version to the file that will be the new version before a page is added or removed. The page numbers need to match in order for the comments to transfer over cleanly.

  • Then, once the comments are transferred over you can add or remove pages to that file to create the new version.

Curious about how to share a link to the Proofing review session with your external stakeholders?

  1. In the proofing window, find the Share button for your proof.

  2. Check out the proof Access type:

  • Restricted: allows you to send the proof to a certain email address. Specify the email address in the Invite field and the external stakeholder will receive an email to view the proof.

  • Anyone with the link: allows anyone to view/comment on the proof. Simply copy the share link and send it out to your external stakeholders.

On their end, they'll be able to see the following:


If you need your stakeholder to approve the shared proof, add them to the Approval round as an external approver with their email address:


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