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GitHub Copilot edited this page May 12, 2026 · 1 revision

Collaboration

mdedit.io supports lightweight real-time collaboration via shared document permalinks — no account or separate invite system required.

How It Works

  1. Open a document and choose Share in the menu
  2. Enable sharing — a permanent permalink is generated
  3. Send the link to collaborators
  4. Everyone with the link can view and edit the document simultaneously
  5. Changes are synchronized in real time via WebSocket

Sharing a Document

Open the Share menu (top right of the editor):

  • Copy link — copies the permalink to the clipboard
  • The document is now publicly accessible at that URL

Documents are private by default. Sharing is always an explicit action. You can disable sharing at any time to make the document private again.

Password Protection

Shared documents can be protected with a password:

  1. Open the Share menu after enabling sharing
  2. Click the key icon to open the permissions dialog
  3. Enable "Password protection" and set a password
  4. Save — collaborators will need to enter the password to access the document

The password is stored server-side as a bcrypt hash. It can be changed or removed at any time via the same dialog.

Presence

When multiple people edit a shared document:

  • Each collaborator gets a randomly assigned display name (changeable)
  • Active collaborators appear as avatars in the editor header (up to 5 visible, then "+N")
  • Clicking an avatar jumps to that collaborator's current position in the editor
  • Presence times out after 5 minutes of inactivity

Shared Document Exports

Shared documents support direct export without opening the editor:

Export URL
View document https://mdedit.io/:id
Raw Markdown https://mdedit.io/:id/raw
PDF download https://mdedit.io/:id/pdf
DOCX download https://mdedit.io/:id/docx

Replace :id with the UUID from your permalink.

Privacy Model

  • Documents are private by default (not accessible without the session cookie that created them)
  • Only explicitly shared documents are accessible via permalink
  • Sharing can be revoked at any time
  • Password protection adds an additional access layer

Limitations

  • One link per document — there is no separate read-only vs. edit link; access level is controlled via the permissions dialog
  • No revision history UI yet — snapshots are taken automatically but not yet exposed in the interface
  • No access log — there is no log of who accessed a shared document

See Also

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