Knowledge Base

Knowledge Base: the complete guide collection

The Smart Way Knowledge Base is a corporate library for instructions, policies, templates, media files and external resources. Administrators manage sources, access, versions, content currency and usage statistics. Resources can be made available to everyone in the company or restricted by job title and department. The Knowledge Base articles are divided into short guides on specific topics. Guides for employees and managers 1. Search, categories, filters and favourites — how to find the material you need by text, category, type, tags or last updated date. 2. Viewing materials, downloading and feedback — how to open a file or external link, copy a link to a material, download it when permitted, rate it and report outdated information. Guides for administrators 1. Enabling the module and configuring access — who can see the Knowledge Base, how to disable employee access and how to restrict individual materials by department or job title. 2. Creating and publishing a material — how to add a new file, select a file from the File Manager or add a link to an external resource. 3. Editing, versions, statuses and deletion — how to update a published material, prepare a new version, unpublish, archive, restore or delete it. 4. Categories and tags — how to create a clear structure, reorder categories, and rename or merge tags. 5. Related materials and content reviews — how to connect materials and handle readers’ reports of outdated information. 6. Usage analytics and the action log — how to analyse views, searches, feedback, popular materials and administrative events. 7. Troubleshooting common problems — what to check if a material cannot be found, published or opened, or if it is unavailable to the employees who need it. Roles and access levels | User | What they can do | | ---------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Employee | Search for, open and view published materials available to them. Employees can add materials to their favourites, download permitted files and leave feedback. | | Manager | Has the same read-only access to permitted materials as an employee. The manager role does not provide administrative access to the Knowledge Base. | | Knowledge Base administrator | Uses the Manage knowledge base menu to create and edit materials and manage access, categories, tags, versions, analytics and the action log. | Administrators can see all their company’s materials in the management section. Employees can see a material only when the company has enabled the Knowledge Base module, the material has the Published status and the employee has permission to view it. If the company does not have an active Academy subscription, the system prevents users from adding and opening documents. Key concepts - Material — an individual Knowledge Base card containing a title, description, category, tags, access settings and a source. Selecting the card opens the file preview window. - File — a document or media file from the File Manager. The same file can be used in both a training course and the Knowledge Base without creating a copy. - External link — the HTTPS address of a resource that opens in a new browser tab. - Draft — a material that readers cannot see yet. - Published — a material that is available to its permitted audience. - Archived — a material hidden from readers and available to an administrator only for viewing, restoring or permanent deletion. - Current version — the version of the file that readers can see. - Candidate version — a prepared replacement that does not change the current material until an administrator selects Publish new version. Recommended initial setup 1. Check that employees have access to the module. 2. Create a small, clear category structure. 3. Agree naming and tagging conventions. 4. Add a test material as a draft. 5. Configure the audience and the content review date. 6. Check the file in preview mode. 7. Publish the material and open it using the account of an employee who has permission to view it. 8. After launch, regularly review outdated-content reports, searches with no results and the most popular materials.

How to find materials in the Knowledge Base

The Knowledge base section shows only published materials that an employee can access based on their department and job title. You can find the materials you need by entering text in the search field or by using categories and filters. Where to open the Knowledge Base? 1. Sign in to your Smart Way LMS account. 2. Select Knowledge base from the main menu. 3. On the main page, you will see the search field, Filters and Favourites buttons, the category tree and the Recently updated section. If Knowledge base does not appear in the menu, your company administrator has disabled the module. How to search by text? 1. Enter keywords in the search field. 2. Select Search or press Enter. 3. Review the Search results section. The search checks the title, short description, category, tags and indexed content of text-based files. Matching words are highlighted in the text excerpt shown in the results. For more accurate results: - use two to four meaningful words instead of a long sentence; - begin with the name of the process, document or product; - try a synonym if your first query returns no results; - add a category or type filter if there are too many results. To clear the search field, select its clear icon (x). How to use categories? Categories are shown in a separate directory. The number next to a category name indicates how many materials in that category are available to you. 1. Select the arrow next to a category to show or hide its subcategories. 2. Select a category name to show all materials in that category. 3. Select All to load materials from every category. On a narrow screen, you can collapse the tree using the button in the Categories heading. A category describes the main topic of a material. Each material has one main category, so use tags for any additional characteristics. Available filters Select Filters to open the additional options. | Filter | What it does | | ---------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Type | Lets you choose File or External link. | | Sort | Changes the order in which results are displayed. | | Tags | Shows materials with the selected tags. The tag list has its own search field. | | Updated during | Shows materials updated within the selected date range. | The available sorting options are: - Relevance — the best option for a text search; - Recently updated — shows the most recently updated materials first; - Popularity — shows materials with the most reader activity first. You can combine filters. For example, you could find all files tagged security that were updated during the previous quarter. How to reset the search criteria? - Reset filters clears the category, type, tags, date range, sorting and favourites mode, but does not clear the text entered in the search field. - Clear all clears both the text query and every active filter. - The cross icon next to the tags clears only the selected tags. How favourites work? Favourites are your personal list for quick access. To add a material: 1. Find it in the list. 2. Select the star icon on the right. You can also add a material by selecting Add to favourites on its viewing page. To show only saved materials, select Favourites. Select it again to turn off the filter and show the full list rather than favourites only. If a material is unpublished or archived, or your access to it is restricted, it will no longer appear in your favourites. Adding a material to your favourites does not grant any additional access. How to read a result card? The card shows: - the material type; - the title; - a matching text excerpt when you have performed a search; - the category path; - the file name and size, when available; - the updated date; - up to two tags and the number of additional tags. A file opens on a separate Knowledge Base page. An external link opens in a new browser tab. If there are many materials, Back and Next buttons appear at the bottom of the list so you can move between pages. Quick checklist - Enter a short, meaningful query. - Select a category if necessary. - Add a type, tags or updated date range. - Use Relevance sorting for text searches. - Save frequently used materials to Favourites. - If nothing is found, clear the filters and try different filter settings.

How to view materials, download files and leave feedback

On a material page in the Smart Way LMS, you can view its content, check its description and review date, copy a link, add the material to your favourites, download it when an administrator has permitted this, or report outdated information to the administrators. What appears at the top of the page? After opening a material, you will see: - the file type or an external-link indicator; - the material title; - the category; - the current version number; - the Current until date, if specified; - Add to favourites, Copy link, Download or Open link buttons. The copy button creates a permanent link to the material. Share it only with colleagues who have access to that material. The link does not bypass access permissions: a user without permission will see a message saying that the material is unavailable. Which materials open in preview mode? The viewing method depends on the format: | Format | What the reader sees | | ------------------------------------------------------------ | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other supported office documents | An embedded read-only view with the option to display the document in full screen. | | PDF | An embedded PDF viewer. | | Image | The image on the material page. | | Audio | An embedded audio player. | | Video | An embedded video player. | | Text files and Markdown | A text preview. | | External link | A message explaining that the resource will open in a new browser tab. | Documents in the Knowledge Base open in read-only mode and cannot be edited. How to download a file? The Download button appears only when an administrator has permitted the file to be downloaded. 1. Open the material. 2. Select Download. 3. Wait for the browser to prepare the file. 4. The document is downloaded. If the button is not shown, this is not an error: downloading is disabled for that material. View the file in the embedded window, or contact the assigned administrator if your work requires a local copy. What should I do if the preview does not open? If you see the message We could not open the preview: 1. Select Try again. 2. Check your internet connection. 3. Refresh the page. 4. If the Download button is available, open the original file locally. Where can I find the description and administrative details? The About this material section shows: - a short description; - the full category path; - tags; - the assigned administrator; - the updated date; - the next content review date. If you have questions about the content, contact the assigned administrator. This is the person responsible for reviewing that material. How do I open related materials? The Related materials section can contain up to five recommended resources. - A related file opens in the Knowledge Base. - A related external link opens in a new browser tab. The list already reflects your permissions. Materials that are unpublished or unavailable to you will not open from this section. How do I rate the material? In the Was this material helpful? section, select: - Yes if the material helped you complete a task; - No if the material did not answer your question or was unclear. One current rating is stored for each material, regardless of its version. Publishing a new version does not reset your rating. Selecting a different answer updates it, and administrators can see the total number of helpful and unhelpful ratings in analytics. Ratings are anonymous: administrators cannot see who submitted them. How do I report outdated content? 1. Select Report outdated content. 2. Briefly describe the problem in the What needs to be updated? field. A comment is optional, but it helps the administrators find the issue more quickly. 3. Select Send. 4. Wait for the system to confirm that your report has been sent to the administrators. A useful comment includes specific details, such as the section title, an outdated step, a new person responsible, an incorrect date or a changed process. Do not include passwords, tokens, personal data or other confidential information. A report does not change the material automatically. An administrator reviews it, updates the content when necessary and marks the issue as resolved. What if the material suddenly becomes unavailable? This may happen because: - the material was unpublished or archived; - an administrator changed the access permissions; - your department or job title was changed in your employee profile; - employee access to the module was disabled; - the material was deleted. A copied link or an entry in your favourites does not preserve access after any of these changes.

How to enable the Knowledge Base and configure access to materials

The Knowledge Base in Smart Way LMS has two access levels: access to the module for all employees and access to a specific material. A material is available to employees only when the Knowledge Base module is enabled in the company settings, the material has the Published status and the user meets the viewing access conditions for that material. Who can manage the Knowledge Base? The Manage knowledge base menu is available only to administrators. They can work with their company's materials regardless of whether the module is enabled for employees. Employees and managers can only view materials added by an administrator. They cannot create, publish or edit materials. The manager role does not provide administrative access to the company's materials. How to enable or disable the Knowledge Base for employees? 1. Open Settings. 2. Go to Company. 3. Find the Knowledge base for employees setting. 4. Turn the switch on or off. 5. Wait for the setting to be saved. When the module is enabled, users can see Knowledge base in the menu and open the materials available to them. When the setting is disabled: - Knowledge base disappears from the employee menu; - material pages become unavailable to employees and managers; - administrators can view and manage Knowledge Base content; - materials, categories, tags, access settings and version history are not deleted; - after the module is re-enabled, published content becomes available again in line with the configured permissions. Disabling the module is useful for temporarily closing the reader-facing area, but it does not replace archiving individual materials that are no longer relevant. How an Academy subscription affects the Knowledge Base? With an active Academy subscription, users can open permitted internal documents and administrators can create new materials. If the Academy subscription is inactive: - the list, search and existing material access rules remain unchanged; - the system blocks documents from being opened; - the Add material button is disabled; - administrators can open and edit existing materials. How to configure access to a material? The material editor has an Access section with two modes. Entire company The material is visible to all company employees who have access to the module. Use this mode for general policies, platform instructions, company templates and materials that do not contain restricted information. Restricted access The material is visible to employees in the selected departments or job titles. 1. Select Restricted access. 2. In the department field, add the required teams. 3. In the job title field, add the required job titles. 4. Save the draft or publish the material. In restricted access mode, you must select at least one department or one job title. An empty list is an error. How departments and job titles are combined? If both lists are completed, OR logic applies between them. Example: - the Sales department is selected; - the Regional Manager job title is selected. The material will be visible to all employees in the Sales department and all employees with the Regional Manager job title, even if they work in another department. Do not select a department and job title together if you need 'only this job title in this department' logic: the current mode does not create this intersection. What determines whether access works correctly? Access rules use values from the employee's profile. Before publishing, check: - whether the department is completed; - whether the current job title is specified; - whether the same name has been entered in different ways; - whether employee access to the module is enabled. Changing a department or job title may immediately remove access to the list, search, material page, preview, download, favourites and use of the material by the assistant. How to verify access? After publishing, check access with at least two accounts: 1. A user from the target department or with the target job title should be able to find and open the material. 2. A user outside the configured audience should not see the material in the category or search, or be able to open it through a direct link. 3. If downloads are permitted, check the Download button. 4. If access is restricted, check the department and job title separately. An administrator is not suitable for testing reader restrictions because they have unrestricted access to materials within their company. Common configuration errors - Restricted access is selected, but no team or job title has been added. - Department AND job title logic is expected, although the system uses department OR job title. - The required field is not completed in the employee's profile. - The material remains a draft or has been unpublished. - Employee access to the module is disabled. - Access was checked only with an administrator account.

How to create and publish a material in the Knowledge Base

In the Smart Way LMS Knowledge Base, you can create a material from a new file, an existing file in File Manager or an external HTTPS link. Before publishing, you need to provide a title and description, select an active category, set a review date and configure access. Before you begin Check that: - you have access to the Manage knowledge base menu; - your company has an active Academy subscription; - the required active category has been created; - there is a File Manager folder for the new file; - you have decided who should be able to see the material; - the external link begins with https://; - the document has a clear title and does not contain unnecessary or confidential information. How to open the editor? 1. Select Manage knowledge base from the main menu. 2. Open the Materials tab. 3. Select Add material. 4. Choose a source in the Publishing and access editor. If the Academy subscription is inactive, the system will not open the material creation editor. How to upload a new file? 1. Under Material source, select Upload a new file. 2. Select a File Manager folder. 3. If necessary, search for the folder by name or path. 4. Select Upload a new file and choose a file from your device. 5. Check the name of the selected file. 6. Save the draft or publish the material. 7. Wait for the file upload and security check to finish. The file will become a standard File Manager item only after it passes the antivirus check. The system will reject an empty file, an unsupported file type, an extension that does not match the content, a file that exceeds the company's limit or malicious content. If the upload is interrupted, do not create a duplicate straight away. Open the same draft and follow the system prompt to select the file again or continue the upload. How to choose a file from File Manager? 1. Select Choose from File Manager. 2. Open the file list. 3. Use the search field to find the file by name. 4. Select the required file. 5. Check its name, type and size. 6. If necessary, select Preview file. This uses the same file, not a copy. You can use it in a training course and the Knowledge Base at the same time. A file cannot be linked to two different Knowledge Base materials. If the system displays This file is already used in the knowledge base, open the existing material instead of creating a duplicate. How to add an external link? 1. Select Add an external link. 2. Enter the full address in the HTTPS link field. 3. Check that the address begins with https:// and opens in a browser. 4. Complete the title, description, category, tags, review date and access settings. The external resource opens in a new tab. Smart Way LMS does not copy arbitrary content from an external page into the Knowledge Base, so search quality depends on the title, description, category and tags you provide. After creating the material, you cannot freely change the source type from a file to an external link or vice versa. Create a separate material if you need a different source type. How to complete the material details? | Field | Recommendation | | ------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Title | Give the document a concise title that makes its purpose clear. Avoid titles such as File 1 or New instructions. | | Short description | In 1–3 sentences, explain who the material is for and what task it helps them complete. A description is not required for publication, but is recommended. | | Category | Select one active category that best describes the main topic. | | Tags | Add up to 10 additional tags. Each tag can contain up to 50 characters. | | Review by | Set the date of the next content review. For a new material, the system suggests a date approximately one year ahead. | | Access | Configure either Entire company or Restricted access. | | Allow download | Enable this only if employees are allowed to save the original file. | The responsible administrator is assigned automatically when the material is created. You cannot change them manually in the standard editor. Detailed document access rules are provided in the guide 'How to enable the Knowledge Base and configure access'. How to add related materials? Save the draft first. You can then use the Related materials section to find and add up to five published resources, change their order or remove those you no longer need. Related materials do not replace categories or tags. Use them as a direct continuation of a workflow: policy → template → instructions. How to save a draft? Select Save draft if: - the material details are not yet complete; - you need to check the file; - the audience has not yet been agreed; - related materials need to be added later. The draft is visible to administrators, but readers cannot find it through search or categories, or open it through a direct link. How to publish a material? Before selecting Publish, check that: - the source is selected and the file has passed the security check; - a title and short description have been provided; - an active category is selected; - the review date has been set; - a department or job title has been selected for restricted access; - downloading the original file has been deliberately allowed or disabled. After successful publication, the material becomes available to the permitted audience immediately. Text extraction and the creation of search and vector indexes may continue in the background for some time. Until processing is complete, searching the file's content and using the material with the assistant may not work. How to carry out the final check? 1. Open the material in preview mode. 2. Check the title, description, category, tags and date. 3. Make sure the file is readable or the external link opens. 4. Check the download button against the access policy. 5. Sign in as a member of the target audience. 6. Find the material using search and its category. 7. Confirm that a user outside the target audience cannot see the material.

How to edit materials and manage versions and statuses

In Smart Way LMS, each material has its own status and file history. Changing the description does not create a new file version, and a prepared file replacement does not replace the current version until an administrator publishes it. How to find a material to edit? 1. Open Manage knowledge base. 2. On the Materials tab, enter the title in the search field. 3. If necessary, open the additional filters and use them to search by: - status; - type; - category; - tags; - access; - administrator; - update period; - review required; - sort order. 4. Select the material title or the edit icon. A side panel containing the editable details will open. How to change the description, category, tags or access? 1. Open the material. 2. Update the required fields. 3. Select Save changes. Access changes to a published material take effect immediately. Before saving, check that a team which uses the document in its work will not lose access. If another administrator has already changed the material, the system may report a conflict. Do not overwrite the data without checking it: select Load the current version, review the changes and repeat your edits. How to replace a file and create a new version? For a File material: 1. Open the material editor. 2. Under the source settings, select 'Upload a new file' or 'Choose from File Manager'. 3. Save your changes. 4. Preview the new version. 5. When everything is ready, select Publish new version. Until the new version is published, users will continue to see the previous version, which remains current. After publication, the new file becomes current immediately, while full indexing finishes in the background. If you selected the wrong file, select Cancel file replacement. The current published version will not change. How to use version history? The Version history section shows the following for each version: - number; - file name; - creation date; - Current label; - Awaiting publication label; - Preview button; - Restore button, if the action is available. Restoring a historical version does not switch the material immediately. The system creates a new candidate version based on the selected file. Preview it, then select Publish new version separately. You cannot restore: - the current version; - a candidate version that has already been prepared; - an external-link version; - an older version if another active replacement already exists. What do the material statuses mean? | Status | Visibility | Main available actions | | ----------- | ----------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Draft | Users cannot see the material. | Edit, save and publish. A draft that has never been published can be deleted. | | Published | Available to the permitted audience. | Change details, prepare a new version, unpublish or archive. | | Archived | Hidden from users, search and the AI assistant. | Preview, restore as a draft or delete permanently. Other editing actions are blocked. | How to unpublish or archive a material? Unpublish Use this when you need to hide a material temporarily, revise it and publish it again. After confirmation, the material: - becomes a draft; - is no longer visible to readers, in search or in AI assistant responses; - retains its history and editor data. Archive Use this when a material should no longer be used, but its history needs to be retained. After archiving, the material is unavailable to readers. The form cannot be edited while the material is archived. If there is an unfinished file replacement, cancel it first. Restore An archived material is restored as a draft. It does not become available to users automatically: check the fields, access and version, then publish it. How to delete a draft? The Delete draft button is available only for a material that has never been published. After deletion: - the material record disappears; - the file remains in File Manager; - the action must be confirmed. Archive a material that has already been published. How to delete a material permanently? Permanent deletion is available only from the archive. 1. Open the archived material. 2. Select Delete permanently. 3. Review the dependencies in the confirmation window: - versions; - related materials; - favourites; - feedback; - usage events; - shared files. 4. Enter the exact material title to protect against accidental deletion. 5. Confirm the deletion. This action cannot be undone. Shared files used in File Manager or courses are retained; only the Knowledge Base material and its associated data are deleted. What file processing states are there? The following states may appear next to a material: - Uploaded — the file is waiting to be processed; - Extracting text; - Processing; - Indexed; - Indexing failed. The Published status and Indexed state are not the same. For a short time after a material is added, it may only be available in search by its title and metadata while the system prepares content search and data for the AI assistant.

How to manage Knowledge Base categories and tags

In Smart Way LMS, categories provide the navigation menu and tags help refine search results. Each material has one category and can have up to 10 tags. How to design an effective Knowledge Base structure? Start with real employee queries. Good categories answer the question 'where should I look for this material?' For example: - Customer service; - Products; - Company policies; - Onboarding; - Document templates. Do not create a separate category for every file. Too much detail makes navigation more difficult. Categories are independent of File Manager folders. A folder determines where a file is stored, while a category determines its place in the Knowledge Base structure. How to create a category? 1. Open Manage knowledge base. 2. Go to the Categories tab. 3. Select Add category. 4. Enter a name. 5. In the Parent category field, select: - Top level; - or an existing category. 6. Leave Active category enabled if materials need to be published in it. 7. Select Save. The structure can have no more than three levels. Third-level categories are not shown in the Parent category field because fourth-level categories are not supported. How to change a category? 1. Find the required row on the Categories tab. 2. Select the edit icon. 3. Change the name, parent category or active status. 4. Select Save. Changing the parent category moves its entire nested structure. Before saving, make sure the new path will be clear to users. Materials remain linked to a category after it is renamed or moved. The new path is used in navigation and search. How to change the category display order? You can drag categories in the table to change their display order. Categories can only be reordered among neighbouring categories at the same level: - root categories among other root categories; - child categories within the same parent section. To move a category to another position in the structure, press and hold the three-line icon, then drag the category to the required position. To move a category to another branch, open the editor and change the Parent category. What is an inactive category? An inactive category: - is unavailable for new publications; - helps you prepare the structure safely for deletion; - does not automatically delete materials. Before deactivating a category, check which materials use it and move them if necessary. How to delete a category? A category can only be deleted when: - it is inactive; - it contains no materials; - it has no child categories. Follow this safe sequence: 1. Move or archive the materials. 2. Move or delete the child categories. 3. Disable Active category. 4. Select Delete. 5. Confirm the action. If the button is unavailable, the hint will explain which dependency remains. How to add tags to a material? In the material editor: 1. Open the Tags field. 2. Find an existing tag or enter a new name. 3. Select the tag from the list or create the suggested one. 4. Add up to 10 tags. 5. Save the material. Each tag can contain up to 50 characters. Do not use empty values, line breaks, control characters or names consisting only of special characters. Use tags consistently and do not create duplicates. For example, create one workplace safety tag rather than also creating workplace-safety, as the system will treat them as different tags. How to manage tags across the company? The Categories tab contains a Tag management section. How to rename a tag 1. Select the tag. 2. Change the Tag name field. 3. Select Rename. The name will be updated in every company material that uses the tag. How to merge duplicate tags? 1. Select the unwanted tag. 2. In the Merge into tag field, select the correct target tag. 3. Select Merge. 4. Confirm the action. All materials associated with the source tag will be moved to the target tag. Use merging instead of editing dozens of materials manually. How to delete a tag? A tag can only be deleted when it is not used by any material. If a non-zero material count is shown next to the tag, remove it from those materials or merge it into another tag first. Recommendations - Use a category for the main topic and tags for a role, process, product or document type. - Do not duplicate the full category path with tags. - Check for duplicate and rarely used tags once a month. - Before renaming or merging tags in bulk, check search results for those tags. - Do not change the structure purely for visual appeal: first assess how it will affect users' familiar navigation paths.

How to manage related materials and keep content up to date

In Smart Way LMS, related materials help readers move to the next resource that complements the current one. Content reviews give administrators a systematic way to check information and respond to user feedback. When to add related materials? Add resources that directly continue the user's journey. For example: - policy → step-by-step instructions; - instructions → template; - process description → request form; - general material → rules for a specific role; - new procedure version → supporting materials. Do not use this section as a random list of popular documents. Categories and tags already provide broader topic-based navigation. How to add a related material? 1. Open the material in Manage knowledge base. 2. Go to the Related materials section. 3. Enter at least two characters of the title in the search field. 4. Select the required published material. 5. Repeat for any other resources. 6. Save your changes. You can add up to five materials. A material cannot be related to itself. How to change the order or remove a relationship? - Press and hold the three-line icon with the left mouse button, then drag the row to the required position. - Alternatively, use the move up and move down buttons. - To remove a relationship, select the remove button beside the relevant row. Order matters: place the resource that readers are most likely to need after the current material first. If another administrator changes the list at the same time, the system will show the current order. Review it and repeat your change. What does the related material status mean? The editor may show one of the following statuses: - Available; - Not published; - Archived; - Restricted access. A user only sees a related material if it is published and available to them. The section may therefore look different for employees with different permissions. An archived material is available to administrators in view-only mode, so its saved list of relationships cannot be changed. Restore the material as a draft first. How to use the review date? The Review by field is required for publication. For a new material, the system suggests a date approximately one year ahead, but the administrator should choose a realistic period. Recommended intervals: | Material type | When to review | | --------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- | | Frequently changing policy or procedure | After 1–3 months or immediately after a regulatory change. | | Working instructions | After 3–6 months or when the process changes. | | Template or form | When the related process changes; at least once a year. | | Stable reference information | Once a year. | The date does not update the material automatically. It shows when the administrator should review the content and, once the date has passed, provides a reminder that a review is needed. How can a user report outdated content? On the material page, the user selects Report outdated content, adds a comment if necessary and submits it. The material receives a Needs review label in the administration list. The number shows how many reports remain open. How to process an outdated-content report? 1. Open Manage knowledge base. 2. Enable the Needs review filter to show the relevant materials. 3. Open the material. 4. In the Outdated content reports section, review: - the author's name and email address, if available; - the comment; - the version number; - the report date. 5. Check the document with the process owner. 6. Update the description or file if the feedback is valid. 7. Select Mark as resolved for the individual report. Resolved reports remain in the history and can be expanded in the editor. When to select 'Confirm as current'? Use Confirm as current when an administrator has reviewed the current version and confirmed that it remains correct. Do not use this action simply to remove the label. First: 1. compare the document content with the current process it describes; 2. review all open comments; 3. publish a new version if necessary; 4. only then confirm that the material is current. How often to review materials? - Filter by Needs review every week to find potentially outdated materials. - Review materials with the nearest review dates every month. - When a policy, product or responsible person changes, update the material without waiting for the scheduled date. - After an update, check related materials as they may also refer to an outdated process.

How to use Knowledge Base analytics and the action log

The Knowledge Base statistics section has two tabs for different tasks. Usage shows how employees use materials: what they view, download and search for, and the feedback they leave. The Action log helps you check who changed a material, setting or access permission, when they did so and how the action ended. To check who has confirmed that they have read a document, open the separate Acknowledgements tab. Who can view these reports? Administrators see all company data. Managers can view Usage and Acknowledgements only for the departments available to them. The Action log is available to Administrators with the relevant Knowledge Base permissions. The Manager role does not grant access to this log. An employee's permission to read Knowledge Base materials does not give them access to reports. How do you select data in Usage? 1. Open Reports and statistics → Knowledge Base statistics and select Usage. 2. Expand Filters. To view data for a particular material, start typing its title and select it from the suggestions. 3. Set the period and any other conditions you need. The report updates automatically when you change a filter. You can combine filters for the period, material, category, material type, current status, audience and action type. For example, choose the Onboarding category to review how all its materials are used, or select one document to check its downloads. The page address retains your filter choices. Returning to that link opens the report with the same filters. You will see only the data you have permission to access. What do the figures mean? | Name | Meaning | | ---------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Unique users | The number of different users whose actions appear in the selected data. Each person counts once. | | Views; Preview opens | The number of material page views and preview opens. If the same user repeats the same kind of action for the same material within 30 minutes, the corresponding figure does not increase. | | Downloads | The number of recorded downloads. If the same user downloads the same material again within 60 seconds, it does not count as another download. | | Searches; Searches without results | The number of all recorded searches and those that found no materials. Total searches = searches with results + searches without results. | | Favourite adds | The number of saved favourites currently held. This figure does not depend on the selected period. | | Assistant citations | The number of times the assistant used a material as a source for an answer during the selected period. | | Helpful / Not helpful ratings | The number of saved material ratings currently held. This figure does not depend on the selected period. | | Outdated content reports | The number of saved reports of outdated material created during the selected period. | When comparing periods, pay attention to favourites and ratings. These show the current state, so changing the dates does not limit them to actions within that period. How do you read the materials table? The table lets you compare figures for individual materials. Interactions shows the number of recorded actions involving a material. One person may open several materials and count towards Unique users for each of them. Adding those figures across the rows may therefore count the same person more than once. Use the report’s overall Unique users figure for the total number of people. How can you use searches without results? The table of searches without results helps you understand what employees could not find. Search query text is kept for up to 90 days, and some of it may be hidden. Text for an older period may no longer be available even if searches took place. Start with the most frequent queries. Check whether the material exists, whether it is published and whether the employees who need it can access it. Compare the search terms with the material's title, description, category and tags. If a file was added recently, check whether the system has finished preparing it for search (indexing). Sometimes updating an existing material's title or tags is enough to help employees find it using familiar search terms. How do you export Usage to Excel? Check your filters and select Export to Excel. The file includes all records matching those conditions, including data on other pages of the table. The materials sheet has one row per material. A separate sheet contains the available summaries of searches without results. The sheets may have different row counts because they describe different data. You can export a period of up to 366 days, with no future dates. The availability of older data depends on how long analytics data is retained. What do the columns on the materials sheet mean? | Name | Meaning | | ---------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Title; Type; Category; Current status | The material's title, type (file or link), category and current publication status. | | Views; Previews; Unique users; Downloads | Figures for the individual material. The counting rules are the same as in the web report and are explained above. | | Added to favorites | The number of saved favourites currently held for this material. | | RAG citations | The number of times the assistant used the material as a source for an answer during the selected period. | | Helpful; Not helpful | The number of saved ratings of each kind currently held for the material. | | Outdated content reports | The number of saved reports of outdated material created during the selected period. | What do the columns on the no-result queries sheet mean? | Name | Meaning | | -------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | | Redacted query | The search query text. Some text may be hidden. | | Count | The number of times that search without results was recorded. | | Last seen | The date the query was last recorded. | How do you find an event in the Action log? 1. Open Reports and statistics → Knowledge Base statistics and select Action log. 2. Expand Filters and choose the period you want to check. 3. Select an actor, category, event type or result to narrow the search. 4. If you are looking for actions involving a particular material, start typing its title and select it from the suggestions. Filters apply automatically when you select their values. How do event filters work together? Events are arranged in groups: Key changes, Materials, Access, Categories and tags, Uploads and previews, and Exports. Filters in different fields work together. For example, selecting a material and an event type shows only events of that type for that material. If you select several types in one field, the results include events of any of those types. To find out who unpublished a document, select the material and the relevant event type. To check an access change, a failed upload or an export request, choose the relevant group, period and result. How do you understand what happened? Check the event type and result in each record. The log can contain successful actions, failures and attempts. A record of an attempt does not confirm that the action succeeded. An operation may have several stages, with a separate event for each. Review records relating to that operation that occurred close together in time. Compare their types and results before treating them as duplicates. The log has no separate metric cards. The number beside the page controls shows the total number of events matching your filters. Each event counts separately, so this is not the number of different Administrators or materials changed. How do you export the Action log to Excel? Check your filters and select Export to Excel. The file includes all matching events, including those beyond the page you have open. The Action log sheet contains the events. The Parameters sheet lists the period, actor's name, selected event types, result and export time. A single export can cover up to 366 days and contain no more than 100,000 events. If there are too many records, shorten the period or add filters. What do the log columns in Excel mean? | Name | Meaning | | ----------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Time | The date and time the system recorded the event. | | Actor | The name of the person who performed the action, if available. | | Event type | The action recorded by the system. | | Entity type | What the action involved, such as a material, category or version. | | Result | How the action ended: successful, failed, attempted or another available result. | On the Parameters sheet, End (exclusive) marks the moment at which the reporting period ends. Events recorded at that exact moment are excluded from the report. What should you look for during a regular review? - Review frequent searches without results to find out which materials employees need or struggle to find. - Compare popular materials with your team's needs. A high view count alone does not explain whether a document is useful. - Check the content of materials with Not helpful ratings or outdated content reports. - In the Action log, look for failed operations and access changes whose causes need checking. - Use Excel for more detailed analysis or to share data with colleagues. Related LMS platform resources - How do you check document acknowledgements? - How do you acknowledge a Knowledge Base document? - employee training system for organisations FAQ Does a view confirm that an employee has acknowledged a material? No. A view shows that the user opened the material. Check confirmed acknowledgements in the separate Acknowledgements report. Why do favourites stay the same when you select a different period? The figure shows the current number of saved favourites, regardless of the dates you choose. Can a Manager open the Action log? No. Managers can view Usage and Acknowledgements for their departments. The Action log requires the relevant Knowledge Base administration permissions. Do several events for one operation mean that records are duplicated? Not necessarily. The system may record different stages of an operation separately. Compare the event types and results to understand what happened.

Knowledge Base: troubleshooting common problems

Start by checking the material status, access to the module, the audience and the file source. Most problems are not caused by search itself: either the material is not published or the user does not have permission to view it. What to do if the Knowledge Base is missing from the menu? Check: 1. Whether Knowledge base for employees is enabled under Settings → Company. 2. Whether signing in to Smart Way again resolves the problem. Administrators always see Knowledge base in the menu and can manage materials even when employee access is disabled. What to do if a document or the Add material button does not open? If the list and search work but an internal document or the new material form does not open, check whether the Academy subscription is active. This is expected behaviour when the subscription is inactive: the system displays a message explaining that a subscription is required and blocks materials from being opened or added. Existing materials can still be edited and deleted under Manage knowledge base. What to check if search does not find a material? For users, check that: - the material has the Published status; - the module is available and shown in the menu; - the query is not restricted by unnecessary filters; - the correct category is selected; - the Favourites filter is disabled if the material is not in the user's favourites. Administrators should also check: - whether indexing has the Uploaded, Extracting text, Processing or Indexing failed state; - whether employees in the required department or with the required job title have access to the material; - whether the title, description and tags contain the words the user enters; - whether the file type has been identified correctly. A new material may be found by its title and metadata immediately, but searching the text within the file will only work after indexing is complete. Why can an administrator access a material when an employee cannot? This is expected if: - the material is a draft or has been archived; - the module is disabled for employees; - restricted access is configured; - the department or job title in the employee's profile differs from the material's access settings; - the department or job title name does not match the selected value. Test access using a reader account. Administrators have broader access and their accounts do not reproduce standard restrictions. Why can a material not be published? Check the required conditions: - a source is selected; - the title is completed; - the short description is completed; - an active category is selected; - a Review by date is set; - a department or job title is selected for Restricted access; - an external link uses HTTPS; - the file has been transferred successfully and passed the security check; - there is no other unfinished candidate version. If another administrator has already changed the material, load the current version of the page and repeat your changes. Why is a new file not uploading? Possible causes: | Message or situation | What to do | | ---------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Empty file | Select a non-empty file. | | No folder selected | Select a File Manager folder. | | Unsupported type | Save the material in a supported format or add it as an external HTTPS link. | | Extension does not match the content | Do not rename the extension manually; export the file correctly from the application in which it was created. | | File is too large | Reduce the file size or check the company limit. | | Insufficient space | Free up space or increase the file storage allowance. | | Security check failed | Do not submit the same suspicious file again; check its source and prepare a safe copy. | | Security-checking service is temporarily unavailable | Try again later. | | Transfer was interrupted | Open the same draft and select the same file again if prompted by the system. | What to do if the file is already used in the Knowledge Base? One File Manager file cannot be linked to two different Knowledge Base materials. Select Open material in the conflict message, then: - update the existing material details; - add the required tags or related materials; - publish a new version if necessary. The same file can also be used in a training course at the same time — this is not a conflict. What to do if the document preview does not open? 1. Select Retry. 2. Refresh the page. 3. Check the network connection. 4. If permitted, select Download. 5. For an Office document, try again later if the system reports that the preview is temporarily unavailable. An unsupported-preview message does not mean that the file is damaged. Some formats can only be downloaded and are not designed for previewing. If the Download button is not available, an administrator has disabled this option. What to do if a material cannot be archived or its file replaced? - If there is an Awaiting publication version, publish it or select Cancel file replacement. - If the material is already archived, it is available in view-only mode. Select Restore to return it to draft status. - If an older version cannot be restored, check whether an active candidate version already exists. Why can a category or tag not be deleted? A category cannot be deleted if it: - is active; - contains materials; - has child categories. A tag cannot be deleted if it is used by any materials. Remove it from those materials or merge it into another tag. Why are analytics or the action log empty? Check: - the reporting period; - active filters; - the material ID; - the category; - the metric or event types; - whether there were any actual interactions or administrative actions during the period. In the action log, select Clear filters. In analytics, select a short current period and then select Apply. An export will not be generated if the period is in the future, exceeds 366 days or falls outside the available retention period. When to contact support? Contact technical support if: - the error recurs after refreshing the page; - access settings and status have been checked, but the material is still unavailable; - a safe file repeatedly fails to upload because the security system rejects it; - the indexing state does not change for a long time; - an export is not generated for a valid short period; - previewing does not work for several different materials. Provide support with: - the material title and ID; - the time of the error; - the user's role; - their department and job title, without unnecessary personal data; - the exact error message; - the steps to reproduce the problem; - a screenshot without passwords, tokens or confidential content.

How do you check document acknowledgements?

Use the Acknowledgements report to check which employees have confirmed that they have read a particular version of a document and which have not. How do you open the report and find the employees you need? 1. Open Reports and statistics → Knowledge Base statistics, then select the Acknowledgements tab. 2. Find the document, open its details and select the version you want to check. 3. To find a particular employee, use the search field. For a more specific selection, expand Filters and choose a department, job title or acknowledgement status. Filters apply automatically once you select the values. Administrators can see all company data. Managers can check only employees in the departments they have access to. What do the figures in the report mean? | Name | Meaning | | --------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Version | The document version whose acknowledgements are shown. | | Active audience with access | The number of active employees who currently have access to the document and are within your reporting permissions. | | Acknowledged | The number of employees in that audience who have acknowledged the selected version. | | Not acknowledged | The number of employees in that audience who have not confirmed that they have read the selected version. Calculated as the active audience minus acknowledged employees. | | Acknowledgement rate | The proportion of the active audience who have acknowledged the document. Formula: Acknowledged ÷ active audience × 100%. The rate is undefined if the audience is empty. | Not acknowledged means that the employee has not selected the Acknowledged button. It does not mean that they have not read the document. The document totals cover the full audience available to you. For example, a document is available to 20 employees, and 15 have acknowledged it. The acknowledgement rate is 75%. Filtering the list to only the 5 employees without confirmation does not change the overall rate to 0%: it still reflects the full audience available to you. What happens when the document is updated? An acknowledgement is saved for the version the employee confirmed. Acknowledging an earlier version does not count as acknowledging a new revision. If the document is a learning-path task that is still unfinished, the current published version must be acknowledged. Tasks that are already complete retain their result. Updating the document also leaves the path’s deadline unchanged. How do you download the report in Excel? Open the document’s details, select a version and set the employee filters. Select Export to Excel. The Acknowledgements sheet contains all employees who match the filters. The Filters sheet records the document, selected version, document audience totals and applied employee filters. Its totals relate to the full document audience available to you, so they may differ from the number of exported rows. What do the Excel columns mean? | Name | Meaning | | ------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Employee; Department; Job title | The employee’s name, departments and job titles. | | Status | Shows whether the employee has acknowledged the selected version: Acknowledged or Not acknowledged. | | Acknowledged at | The date the acknowledgement was recorded. If there is no confirmation, the cell is empty. | Related LMS platform resources - How do you acknowledge a Knowledge Base document? - How do you use Knowledge Base analytics and the action log? - How do you manage document versions? - employee training FAQ Does an older confirmation cover the new version? No. An acknowledgement belongs to a particular document version. Check confirmations for the version you selected in the report. Why do totals stay unchanged after filtering employees? They are calculated for the full document audience available to you. The detail filters change only the employee list.

How do you acknowledge a Knowledge Base document?

To acknowledge a Knowledge Base document, read it and select I have read this material. The system saves your acknowledgement for that particular published version. Opening, reading or downloading the file without taking this action does not create an acknowledgement record. How do you acknowledge the document? 1. Open a document you can access in Academy → Knowledge Base or from a learning path task. 2. Read the document and check which version you are viewing. 3. Find and select I have read this material in the document information area. This area appears before the usefulness feedback section. 4. Wait for the Acknowledgement confirmed message and check the confirmation date in the acknowledgement area. 5. If you opened the document from a learning path, return to the path and check the relevant task’s status. On a phone, the information blocks adjust to the screen width. Scroll down the document page to the acknowledgement area to find the confirmation button. What changes when a new document version is published? Your previous acknowledgement stays with the version you read. It does not confirm that you have read the new version’s content. If the document is part of a learning path, what you need to do depends on the task’s status: - If the task is unfinished, you need to acknowledge the current published version of the document to complete it. - If the task is already complete, it keeps the earlier acknowledgement and the version used to complete it. Updating the document does not restart the learning path’s deadline period. You do not need to acknowledge the same version again just because you opened the document another way. For example, if you have already acknowledged it in the Knowledge Base, opening it from a learning path does not itself require a second acknowledgement. Where do you check whether your acknowledgement was saved? Reopen the document and check its acknowledgement status. Administrators and managers with the relevant access can open Knowledge Base statistics → Acknowledgements. This report lets them check which employees acknowledged a document and which version they confirmed. Related LMS platform resources - How do you check document acknowledgements? - How do you complete a learning path? - Why is a course or learning-path task unavailable? - How do you manage document versions? - employee onboarding FAQ Does downloading a document count as acknowledgement? No. To save your acknowledgement, select I have read this material on the document page. Does updating a document undo a completed learning path task? No. The completed task keeps the acknowledgement for the document version used to complete it.