Sharing Native Prototypes & Workspace Documents

Topics Covered in This Sketch Tutorial:

Sharing a Prototype with Others, Workspace Documents

Exercise Preview

Exercise Overview

In this exercise, you'll master the essential workflow of sharing Sketch documents and prototypes with stakeholders—whether you're presenting to clients, collaborating with developers, conducting user testing, or gathering feedback from team members. This collaborative capability transforms Sketch from a design tool into a powerful communication platform that bridges the gap between design and implementation.

Sharing a Prototype with Others

The process of sharing prototypes has become increasingly streamlined as remote collaboration has become the industry standard. Here's how to get your designs into the hands of stakeholders quickly and professionally:

1. In Sketch, go to File > Open Local Document.
2. Navigate into Desktop > Class Files > Sketch Class > Pulse and double–click on Prototyping Done.sketch to open it.
3. Access your account settings by going into the Sketch menu and choosing Preferences.
4. Click on the Account tab to verify your workspace connection.
5. If you're not already signed into Workspaces, click Get Started and sign in to establish your cloud connection.
6. Once authenticated, close the Preferences window to return to your workspace.

7. Locate the Collaborate button in the top right of the Toolbar—this is your gateway to cloud-based sharing.

   

8. Click Save to Workspace to begin the upload process.

   Professional Tip: Saving to Workspace functions identically to File > Save As with the To a Workspace tab selected, but the Collaborate button provides faster access during iterative design sessions.

   Font Management: This particular design uses Arial, a standard system font that displays consistently across platforms. However, when working with custom typography, you'll need to embed fonts for accurate rendering. Navigate to File > Document Settings, select the Fonts tab, and change each font's setting to Embedded. This ensures your design intent is preserved regardless of the viewer's system fonts.

9. With your settings configured properly, click Save to initiate the upload.

10. Once the upload completes, click the ••• portion of the Collaborate button and select Share Document. Note that this option only appears after the file has finished uploading.

    

11. Your default web browser will launch automatically. If you're not already logged into your Sketch account, complete the authentication process now.

12. The Document Settings dialog provides granular control over collaboration permissions—a critical consideration for client work and intellectual property protection:

    • Navigate to the Sharing tab to configure access levels.
    • Click the permissions dropdown (likely displaying No Access initially) and select Inspect. This grants viewers the ability to examine design specifications without editing capabilities.
    • Enable the Enable comments option to facilitate structured feedback collection.
13. Click Done to apply your sharing settings.
14. If the system displays Processing document, allow the conversion to complete—this process optimizes your design for web viewing.
15. Upon completion, you'll see three distinct views: Prototypes, Screens, and Symbols. Click Prototype to experience the interactive version.
16. Test the prototype's functionality by clicking Shop New Collection—it should behave identically to the Sketch preview.
17. Click View Artboard at the bottom right to examine individual screens in detail.
18. The Activity panel on the right side enables contextual commenting—essential for design reviews and stakeholder feedback. If this panel isn't visible, click the button in the top right corner.
19. Switch to the Inspector view at the top right to access the developer-focused features.
20. Click on any design element to reveal its specifications: typography details, color values, dimensions, and spacing measurements.
21. The Inspector's hover-to-copy functionality streamlines the developer handoff process—simply hover over any property (like a hex color value) and click to copy it to your clipboard.
22. Select any element and hover over adjacent elements to display precise spacing measurements—invaluable for accurate implementation.

23. Keep this browser tab active as we'll return to observe real-time updates in the next section.

Making Changes

One of Sketch's most powerful collaborative features is real-time synchronization. When you update a design, stakeholders see changes immediately without needing to download new files or refresh links manually.

1. In your Sketch document, navigate to the Autumn Collection artboard and double-click the text New Autumn Attire. Change this to New Fall Fashion to reflect updated messaging.
2. Save your changes using File > Save or the standard keyboard shortcut.
3. Return to your browser tab with the Sketch website. If you've closed it, click the ••• portion of the Collaborate button in Sketch and select View in Browser to reopen it.

4. To view the document overview, click the Prototyping Done filename at the top of the webpage.

   The right sidebar now displays an Updates panel showing your revision history. Click on the most recent version to see your changes reflected immediately.

   Live Update Process

   1

   Edit Content

   Make changes directly in your Sketch document, such as modifying text or design elements

   2

   Save Changes

   Use File > Save to push updates to the workspace and sync with the cloud version

   3

   View Updates

   Collaborators can see changes in real-time through the web browser interface Updates panel

Deleting a Workspace Document

Workspace management becomes increasingly important as project volume grows. Here's how to maintain a clean, organized workspace by removing outdated or unnecessary documents:

1. Click the button in the top left corner, then select All Documents to view your complete workspace inventory.

2. Hover over the document you wish to remove—a button will appear, providing access to document management options.

3. Select Delete from the dropdown menu and confirm the deletion. Note that this action is permanent and will revoke access for all shared stakeholders.