Hi guys.
There are two issues regarding the prototype-link.
-
When I share the prototype-link with clients, they still have to request viewing access. This shouldn’t happen, as the purpose of sharing a prototype-link is to allow them to view part of the designs. Anyone with the prototype-link should be able to view it without needing additional permissions. 
-
Now, when I grant them view access, they can also access the working file, which shouldn’t be the case!! They should only be able to view the prototype through the prototype-link and not have access to the working file. However, right now they can navigate from the prototype to the working file. 
Please provide a better solution here. 
Yes, I’m aware of the workaround of creating another file for the prototype/presentation, but this is not the best solution?
Hey @Serkan_Zararsiz, thank you for reaching out and sharing your feedback!
- “When I share the prototype-link with clients, they still have to request viewing access.”.
I do understand your feedback, you’ve to invite the users to the file beforehand so that they don’t need to request viewing access. You’re right there should be an easier step to avoid back and forth.
- " when I grant them view access, they can also access the working file"
It is possible to share a prototype without allowing users to open the file with “Open in editor”.
Could you change the file sharing setting to “Only invited people” in the file?
Please make sure users have no explicit or inherited file permissions from the team or project level. If there are any unwanted users in the file share modal, remove those users.
And also please open the prototype in presentation mode, click the Share button from the prototype page, and invite the desired user to view the prototype.
Let me know if this works for you!
Dear @Gayani_S
Thanks for reaching out! 
Regarding issue 2:
It’s still not working. My settings were already set to “only invited people.” As soon as I grant permission, they can access the working file through the “Open in editor” link. I believe there needs to be a separation:
- A) I can grant access to the prototype link (so they can only view the prototype without the ‘Open in editor’ link).
- B) I can grant access to both the prototype and the working file (including an ‘open in editor’ link).
At Accenture Song (100k+ employees), we really struggle with clients accidentally accessing working files. Currently, we create a new presentation file each time, copy/paste the prototype artboards into it, and share only that. However, this method causes issues when linking components, updating the library, and making minor but significant changes to the prototype. We have to constantly double-check and copy/paste everything again.
The easiest and most reliable solution would be to separate the prototype link from the working file link when only prototype view access is granted!
Hey @Serkan_Zararsiz, thanks for getting back!
If you’ve checked all these steps and users are still able to access the file then there might be a potential bug.
- Changed the file sharing setting to “Only invited people” in the file
- Checked that there are no explicit or inherited file permissions from the team or project level
- Opened the prototype in presentation mode, and selected the Share button from the prototype page.
We do take your feedback serious, I’ll make sure to pass your feedback internally to the teams. Before that I’d like out support team to take a look at your issue. As I’ve mentioned before It should be possible to share a prototype without allowing users to open the file with “Open in editor”.
I’ve created a support ticket on your behalf. Your ticket number is #1137662, for reference. Someone from support should be in touch with your soon.
Our support team usually takes up to 24 hours to reply back to emails - tends to be quicker than that in normal circumstances. However, please be aware that we are facing increased contact volume so there might be a delay.
Appreciate your patience in the meantime!
Hey there, I’m sharing the resolution of your support ticket to help any community members who might encounter a similar issue.
The issue resulted from a restriction set at the Organization level, where public link sharing is banned.
Due to the Organization’s settings, the user will need to invite the external people to their prototypes as viewers and ensure they are not invited to the main file to ensure they can only access the prototype.
Sharing the link to clients will allow them to request access to the whole file and not just the prototype link. The fact that public links are banned in their Organization is what is causing them not to be able to share public links with their the external users.
The way around this is to invite the external user to the Prototype (not the main file) so they can only access the prototype.
Thanks @Gayani_S
I am sure there will be a better solution for this in the future. All the colleagues I asked didn’t know about it and were very surprised. Probably, some changes are needed to better understand the difference.
I have one follow up question: If I directly invite a client using their email address, can they access the prototype view without logging in? Or do they still have to create an account, even though I have invited them?
Thanks
Serkan 
