Multiple Users and Permissions

Information

PSPDFKit Server has been deprecated and replaced by PSPDFKit Document Engine. All PSPDFKit Server and PSPDFKit for Web Server-Backed licenses will work as before and be supported until 15 May 2024 (we will contact you about license migration). To start using Document Engine, refer to the migration guide. With Document Engine, you’ll have access to robust new capabilities (read the blog for more information).

If you need multiple people to annotate independent copies of the same document, you don’t need to upload the document multiple times. Instead, you can restrict users’ access to specific content using Collaboration Permissions.

You declare different layer names in the JWT used for authentication to create different perspectives of the same document.

  1. Your service provides your web application with JWTs for authentication for two different users. Both tokens reference the same document and layer but have different permissions. The first token allows its user to create annotations and view their own annotations. The second token allows its user to create annotations and view all annotations in the layer.

  2. The first user creates an annotation in the layer, which is saved in the database by PSPDFKit Server.

  3. The annotation ID is returned to both Web SDK instances: Both the first and second user can see the newly created annotation.

  4. The second user creates an annotation.

  5. The annotation ID is returned only to the second Web SDK instance, because the first user doesn’t have permission to view annotations of other users.