How to work in a team in NVivo

There are different strategies for teamwork available in NVivo listed below. To start, all team members should have an NVivo license for the same version, as NVivo is not backwards compatible.

With the latest versions NVivo 15 NVivo 14 cross-platform collaboration is possible, and project files do not need to be converted between Mac and Windows, when using Collaboration Cloud (see below). For all previous versions (NVivo R1/2020, NVivo 12 and older) sharing NVivo projects between Windows and Mac is not recommended, as project files have to be converted, which can lead to file corruption. All team members should either use Windows or Mac. Please read this article for more information.

Here are the three options for teamwork in NVivo:

1. NVivo Collaboration Server
   A server-based solution, only for Windows. Allow several people to work on the same project file at the same time. All data is stored on the local server. Collaboration Server
2. Collaboration Cloud
   Add-on for NVivo designed to facilitate teamwork. It is a 12-months subscription service connected to the myNVivo profile. Each user needs a valid NVivo license and a seat in the Collaboration Cloud subscription. NVivo Collaboration Cloud FAQs
3. Share a project file manually
   Create a Master Project file and share copies of it with your team members, and then merge those into one file.

1. NVivo Collaboration Server

NVivo Collaboration Server 15 is a separate application installed on a server at your institution. It allows multiple users in the network, on their local NVivo installations (Windows only), to work on the same project at the same time. Users see other users' changes in real time.

Please find more information about setup here.

2. Collaboration Cloud

Collaboration Cloud is an add-on module for NVivo designed to facilitate teamwork. It is a yearly subscription service. All team members have to be added to the subscription by the purchaser/license admin in the myLumivero Portal. All members with a seat under the same subscription are then able to collaborate in NVivo. Assign a license/seat to a new user in the myLumivero portal

NVivo 15 or 14 and Collaboration Cloud for simultaneous work on one project file

The Collaboration Cloud with NVivo 15 or NVivo 14 is an add-on module allowing teams to collaborate in real-time on NVivo projects. Projects are uploaded by the Project Manager to a secure place in the cloud and team members clone the cloud project onto their computers from where they can work on the cloud project. It is also possible for team members to work on the project off-line and it will be synced with the cloud project when they next have a connection to the Internet.

With NVivo 15 or 14, you can share and manage projects from within the NVivo application. NVivo 15 or 14 desktop application allows team members to work cross-platform (with both Windows and Mac) on a single project and their local changes are automatically synchronized to the shared common project file. All users require internet connection for synchronizing their changes.

NOTE Both NVivo 15 and NVivo 14 users can collaborate on the same shared cloud project.

Watch this Video Tutorial on NVivo Collaboration Cloud (subscription setup and workflow)

Subscription setup and workflow

As a Project Owner:

The project owner is the person who creates the project and uploads it to the cloud. They will need to have a subscription for Collaboration Cloud:

• Firstly, you need to purchase Collaboration cloud seats for all the team members including yourself.
• Before sharing the cloud project, ensure that collaborators are assigned seats in the collaboration cloud subscription via myLumivero portal.
• You need to use the same email address that was used to purchase Collaboration Cloud when you log into NVivo 15.

As a Collaborator:

• You must ensure that your project owner has assigned you a Collaboration Cloud seat via myLumivero portal and provided access to the cloud project via Manage Team option in the NVivo application. For more information, see Manage Team.
• Before accessing a shared project, make sure that you are logged into NVivo with the correct email and the project owner's name is selected under Account Name in the NVivo Welcome screen. For more information, see Access and update shared projects.

Upload as Cloud project

• PREREQUISITES: 
  You need to use the same email address that was used to purchase Collaboration Cloud when you log into NVivo 15.
• Ensure you are logged in with the correct email address and that you have selected the correct Account Name in the Account section of the NVivo welcome page; otherwise, you may encounter "Cannot verify account subscription" error.

You can upload and manage shared projects using the NVivo Collaboration cloud feature.

• Open or create new project that you want to share and collaborate with team members.
• If you have made any changes make sure that you have saved the project first.
• From the Share tab, click Upload Project.

A progress bar will appear. Once the project is uploaded, the Manage Team button is activated.

NOTE With the NVivo Mac Release 14.24.0 and later, both Windows and Mac users can create a project and upload it to the cloud.

Find the full workflow description here.

NVivo R1/2020 and Collaboration Cloud  (legacy) to share project files

If you are using the previous version NVivo R1/2020 and Collaboration Cloud it basically works as a sharepoint, where the workspace manager uploads the master project file, adds collaborators and they can download the file, add their changes and upload it again to the Collaboration Cloud. The workspace owner then collects the project files of the team members and merges them in NVivo. NVivo R1/2020 and Collaboration Cloud is compatible with both NVivo Mac and NVivo Windows but it is not possible to work cross-platform on a project.

Collaboration Cloud is accessed from NVivo Windows and NVivo Mac (Release 1). Only project files created in Release 1 are compatible, and it is not possible to work cross-platform (with both Windows and Mac) on single projects. All users require internet connections.

Find the full workflow description here.

3. Share a project file

If you want to work in a team, you can also share your project file manually with another NVivo user just by saving a copy on e.g. a USB stick (or sending it via email). After every team member has added their part of the work the project files have to be merged in NVivo (more info).

The person receiving the project file should make sure not to access the file directly from the USB-stick but instead, store it as on a local drive first. Also, you should work in the same version of NVivo and use the same platform (either Mac or Windows).
Before sharing the project file, it is important to check where your imported files are stored. Usually, when you import files into NVivo the software creates a copy of these files in the NVivo project. However, when you are working with larger files (e.g. audio or video), those might be stored outside NVivo and you would have to share them too with the correct file path (right-click on a file - properties, to find out).

User profiles help to review work of team members

In order to review the work from different users, the first requirement would be that everyone in the team works from the correct user profile at all times (File - Options - User Profile).
Then you can e.g. review the coding by different users by using the coding stripes (coding stripes - selected items - users), or by using a coding query (setting: coded by any – [name] - user):

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You can also run a coding comparison query in NVivo. Please find more about teamwork and user profiles here.