> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://academy.shade.inc/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://academy.shade.inc/guides/setup-and-migration/your-first-week-in-shade.md).

# Your first week in Shade

Set up drives, templates, and permissions for a small team in the order that saves you rework later.

**Outcome:** a workspace your team can start uploading to, with a drive structure, reusable templates, and permissions you won't have to unwind later.

**Who it's for:** workspace admins setting up Shade for a team of roughly 2 to 20 people.

**Time:** about an hour of setup, spread over your first few days.

## Before you start

* You're a workspace admin. If you signed up yourself, you already are.
* Skim [Guests vs Workspace Members](https://academy.shade.inc/sharing-and-collaboration/guests-vs-workspace-members). Most setup decisions come down to who should be a member and who should be a guest.

## Steps

{% stepper %}
{% step %}

### Decide what a drive is for your team

A drive is the unit that permissions, metadata fields, and automations attach to, so choose what a drive represents before you create several. Common choices:

* **One drive per client**, for agencies and production companies with outside clients. See [Set up an agency workspace](/guides/setup-and-migration/set-up-an-agency-workspace.md).
* **One drive per team or department**, for in-house teams, for example Video, Photo, and Brand.
* **One drive per large project**, for long productions such as a series or a feature.

Also create a shared **Archive** drive for finished work and B-roll that everyone can browse.

[Setting Up Workspaces and Drives](https://academy.shade.inc/workspaces-and-drives/setting-up-workspaces-and-drives) has example layouts for each size of team.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Build one template drive

Create a drive named something like `[Template] Project Drive`. When it asks you to **Start with a template**, choose the starter closest to your work (**Video Production**, **Commercial Photography**, or **Marketing Agency**), or start blank.

Then set it up the way every future drive should look:

* Add the metadata fields you want everywhere, such as Status, Client, and Shot type. [Design a metadata schema that scales](/guides/custom-objects-and-metadata/design-a-metadata-schema-that-scales.md) covers how to choose them.
* Add the views your team will use, for example "Needs review" or "Selects".
* Leave it empty of files.

From now on, create new drives by right-clicking the template drive and choosing **Duplicate Drive**. The copy gets the same metadata fields and views. See [Drive Templates](https://academy.shade.inc/workspaces-and-drives/drive-templates).

{% hint style="warning" %}
Changes to the template drive don't flow into drives you already duplicated from it. Get the fields roughly right before you make many copies.
{% endhint %}
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Save your folder structure as a folder template

Duplicating a drive copies its fields and views, but not its folders. For the folders, create your standard project structure once (for example `01_Footage`, `02_Audio`, `03_Graphics`, `04_Exports`) inside a parent folder. Then right-click the parent folder and choose **Save folder as template**.

Turn on **Save to Workspace** so the template is available in every drive. To use it, right-click where the new folder should go, hover over **Create new folder**, and pick the template. See [Folder Templates](https://academy.shade.inc/workspaces-and-drives/folder-templates).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Set default access before you invite anyone

Every drive has a **default inheritance** level, which is the access workspace members get without being added to the drive individually. Set it before you invite people:

* For drives the whole team works in, set the default to **Edit** or **View**.
* For sensitive drives, set the default to **None** and add people to the drive one at a time.

New drives start at **Full Access** unless you change **Default Access for New Drives** in **Settings > Members**, under **Drive Inheritance**. Lower it now if most new drives shouldn't be open to everyone.

Start restrictive and widen access later. Taking access away after people have it is harder. See [Designing Your Permission Hierarchy](https://academy.shade.inc/sharing-and-collaboration/designing-your-permission-hierarchy) and the [Permissions Table](https://academy.shade.inc/sharing-and-collaboration/permissions-table).
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Invite your team

Invite the people who work in Shade every day as **workspace members**. They take paid seats and can mount drives on their computers.

* Make only one or two people **admins**. Admins control every drive and every setting.
* Invite outside editors you work with long-term as **contractors**. Contractors are managed like members but don't receive default drive access. See [Work with freelancers](/guides/review-and-client-delivery/work-with-freelancers.md).
* Don't invite clients as members. Share with them through links or guest access instead. See [The client review loop](/guides/review-and-client-delivery/the-client-review-loop.md).
  {% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Get everyone's desktop app working

Ask each member to install the [desktop app](https://academy.shade.inc/getting-started/quickstart), mount the drives they work in, and point their cache at a fast SSD. On macOS, drives mount under `/Volumes`. [Edit remotely over ShadeFS](/guides/editing-integrations/edit-remotely-over-shadefs.md) covers cache sizing and offline pinning.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Move your media in

For a few hundred gigabytes, drag folders into the web or desktop app. For larger moves:

* From Dropbox or Google Drive, follow [Migrate from Dropbox or Google Drive](/guides/setup-and-migration/migrate-from-dropbox-or-google-drive.md).
* From S3, a NAS, or anything else Rclone can read, follow [Mass migrating data to Shade via Rclone](/guides/setup-and-migration/mass-migrating-data-to-shade-via-rclone.md).

Once files land, Shade generates proxies, transcripts, and AI search data for them in the background. Large libraries can take a while to finish.
{% endstep %}

{% step %}

### Add one automation

Pick the most repetitive thing your team does by hand and automate it. A good first one: send every new upload into a "To review" collection. See [Your first automation](/guides/automations/your-first-automation.md).
{% endstep %}
{% endstepper %}

## Variations

* **Solo or two-person team:** skip the template drive. Use your default drive plus one drive per project, and set up permissions only when you invite someone.
* **Over about 50 people, or several departments:** you may need more than one workspace, plus SSO. See [Roll out Shade company-wide](/guides/setup-and-migration/roll-out-shade-company-wide.md).

## Related guides

* [Set up an agency workspace](/guides/setup-and-migration/set-up-an-agency-workspace.md)
* [Design a metadata schema that scales](/guides/custom-objects-and-metadata/design-a-metadata-schema-that-scales.md)
* [Your first automation](/guides/automations/your-first-automation.md)


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