Approve or unapprove a component

You can let other Inspire users know if a component is in a state of completion by giving it an approved state. You can also set an unapproved state to let other users know the component is still in draft form. You can set this state if you are an administrator, if you have permissions to update the component, or if special permissions are required, you have been added to the Content Browser's can_approve module property.

The state of approval is shown by an icon before the name of the component.

You can be required to attach your electronic signature when approving a component. If authenticated, the component may be locked with a green system lock.
An administrator can control if a system lock is placed on the component after a user approves it. By default, this optional feature is set to false, and a lock is not placed on a component after approval.
When you approve a component, if an electronic signature isn't required, then you see a green check mark. The component may be locked with a green system lock.
An administrator can control if a system lock is placed on the component after a user approves it. By default, this optional feature is set to false, and a lock is not placed on a component after approval.
A component has a state of unapproved (also known as the draft state) if it has a blue pencil icon. When you create a new topic, components are given this draft state by default.

The following locks are used in Inspire:

The blue open lock is used when a component isn't being edited by another user, in use by Inspire, or approved.
The blue closed lock is used when a component is being edited by another user.
The user avatar icon is used when you're editing a component or you have closed the component but have unsaved changes.
The red system lock is used when a component is in review or sent to translation and an administrator has configured components to be locked.
The green system lock is used when a component has been approved and an administrator has configured components to be locked upon approval.

Components can also be approved if they are in a review. After a coordinator resolves all changes in a review and selects Complete Review, they can choose to approve components in the review. This can change a component's state to Approved and may lock it.

An administrator can control if a system lock is placed on the component after a user approves it. By default, this optional feature is set to false, and a lock is not placed on a component after approval.

If a component in the review has the Review option selected, and has a Review Scope of In Review, Inspire can approve it. This is true even if the component has a Type of Binary.
If a component in the review has a Review Scope of In Review, but does not have the Review option selected, it remains unchanged.
If a component in the review has a Review Scope of Context Only, it remains unchanged.

For more information, read Approving review components.

Before you approve a component

By default, any administrator or most users can mark a component as Approved and set the system lock.

To approve a component, you must have at least one of the following roles or permissions:

Be an administrator.
You must be added to the Content Browser's can_approve module property.
You must have permissions to update the component.

Otherwise, you see the Approve option is greyed out and unavailable.

If necessary, an administrator can limit the number of users or roles who can approve a component.

If a user is an administrator or has been added to the Content Browser's can_approve module property, that user can approve components in the following places:
- Content Browser — from the right-click menu, the Options menu, and the Selected components panel
- Projects — from the right-click menu, the Options menu, and the Selected components panel
If a user is an administrator or has been added to the can_approve module property, that user can approve components regardless of whether you require electronic signatures.
If a user is not an administrator or has not been added to the can_approve module property, that user cannot approve components.

A user that has been added to the can_approve module property can approve components, but not unapprove them unless:

The user is an administrator.
The user has been added to the Content Browser's can_unapprove module property.

A content owner or administrator can set permissions to deny access to components or folders. If your permissions to content has been blocked and you are not an administrator, you cannot use the Approve or Unapprove options in a project's Content pane.

Electronic signatures

You can now require a user to attach their electronic signature when approving a component. This is helpful if you must comply with the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) current thinking regarding the scope and application of part 11 of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations; Electronic Records; Electronic Signatures (21 CFR Part 11).

Enable the feature in one of the following way:
1. Administrators can follow the steps in Require electronic signatures.
2. Contact your Vasont customer support representative to enable the electronic signature feature. To contact support, send email to: GlobalLinkCCMS-Support@TransPerfect.com.
In the Components browser, when you use the Options menu, you see an Approve... option (with an ellipsis) indicating that another screen opens for you to enter your full name and password as a proof of an e-signature.
1. If no electronic signature is required, you only see an Approve option (no ellipsis).
In the Components browser, when you Unapprove a component, it returns to the Draft state, but the information about any previously attached e-signatures for approval remains part of the component's history.

If an electronic signature is required to approve a component, you must enter your Full name.

Do not include underscores or email addresses. You must use the name as it appears in your user profile. For example: Jane Doe.

If you click Cancel on this screen, the review is marked as Completed and you cannot return to approve components or attach a signature.

If you are asked to authenticate your account, after , you must enter your Password.

Notes:

You don't have to re-enter your user name. Inspire displays your account's email address for you.
You must use the same password that you log in to Inspire with.
If the name and password are validated, you see the approval as an electronic signature icon.
After you sign a component to approve it, your signature is attached to the component's history. Even if you Unapprove the component, it returns to the Draft state but the information about any previously attached e-signatures for approval remains part of the component's history.

Approve referenced components

If a component contains many referenced components, such as in a map, you can select the component and see a list of all referenced components. From this list you can approve a few or all referenced components at the same time.

You can access this feature from the Options menu.
This feature is available in the Components browser only. It isn't available in a project.
If an electronic signature is required, you can sign once for all selected referenced components.
If an electronic signature is not required, you see the approved checkmark in front of all selected referenced components in the Components Browser.

Unapprove a component

To edit an approved component, you must unlock it by opening the right-click or

Options menu and selecting Unapprove.

To unlock a component, you must have at least one of the following roles or permissions:

Be an administrator.
Non-admins must be added to the Content Browser's can_unapprove module property.

Otherwise, you see the Unapprove option as greyed out and unavailable.

If a user is an administrator or has been added to the Content Browser's can_unapprove module property, that user can unapprove components in the following places:

Content Browser — from the right-click menu, the Options menu, and the Selected components panel
Projects — from the right-click menu, the Options menu, and the Selected components panel

After you Unapprove the component, it returns to the Draft state.

The system lock is removed.
Any previously attached e-signatures for approval remains part of the component's history.

Best practices

When selecting a component to approve or unapprove, you can verify you're selecting the correct one by looking in two places:

Components browser. You can look in the following columns:
- State
  - Draft
  - Approved (no signature required)
  - Approved (with a signature attached)
- eSigned Date. Hidden by default.
- eSigned By. Hidden by default.
  To show these columns:
  1. Select any column heading.
  2. Click the menu arrow.
  3. Select Columns.
  4. Select the checkbox for eSigned Date and eSigned By.
Content details pane. You can see the first few sections of the topic at a glance and scroll to see the rest of the topic.
If the pane isn't open, to expand it, click the down arrow in the pane's title bar.
If you think the preview isn't showing the latest version, click Refresh .

When using the approval state, keep the following issues in mind:

Before you approve a component, do all of the following to prevent seeing errors:
- Remove all tracked changes or comments. Follow the steps in: Work in the Oxygen editor.
- Validate the component's XML and correct any errors. Follow the steps in: Validate XML in the editor or Validate XML from the Component tab.
- Make sure the component is unlocked before approving.
After you sign a component to approve it, your signature is attached to the component's history. Even if you or another user then Unapprove the component, it returns to the Draft state but the information about any previously attached e-signatures for approval remains part of the component's history.
- For more information read: View a component's history