Who is this article for?

Users responsible for managing documents.

Document Manager permissions are required.

This article explains whether it's possible to convert an uncontrolled document into a controlled one, and surrounding considerations.

Converting documents

It's not possible to convert an uncontrolled document to a controlled document, as they follow different rules:

• Uncontrolled documents are permanently published without approval, review, or revision control, and can only be updated by replacing or removing the file.
• Controlled documents go through a full Document Control lifecycle before going live. They require approvers, reviewers, check-out before editing, and automatically maintain a complete revision history.

Due to these inherent differences, documents cannot be converted between types, as the system cannot retroactively create missing approval groups, revision numbers, or check-out history.

To achieve the same result, you can create a new document with the same content - making sure you don't mark it as uncontrolled.

Important

Once the new controlled document is live and published, remember to remove the original uncontrolled document to avoid users accessing two versions of the same content.

Tip

If you often convert documents from informal to formal, store them in a dedicated folder that supports both types. This keeps your Documents Tree organised and helps track items pending a controlled version.