**Source URL:** https://quality.veevavault.help/en/lr/42152/index.md # Working with Multi-Document Change Control (Quality) Multi-Document Change Control allows you to use the _Document Change Request_ and _Document Change Control_ objects to execute document release and obsolescence in a programmatic, controlled manner.
## Process Overview If your organization follows the suggested configurations, changing documents under change control will follow a process similar to this one: 1. Users log change requests against individual documents by creating [_Document Change Requests_](/en/lr/825586/) object records. 2. A Change Manager creates a _Document Change Control_ record and adds one or more documents to its _Change Authorization_ section. The Change Manager can also choose to include change requests (none, some, or all) for each document included in the change control. [CrossLinks](/en/lr/23139/) are not supported types of documents for routing via Multi-Document Change Controls. 3. A document control user specifies whether each document needs revision or should be made obsolete. The user or Change Manager then routes the change control for document impact assessment. 4. During the impact assessment, assessors review _Change Authorizations_ and approve or reject them. Approving a _Change Authorization_ adds the document to the appropriate section. 5. Document Authors edit individual documents included in the change control. If necessary, these users send the documents through a review workflow. Either through a Document Author's action or through a workflow, each document moves into its lifecycle's _Pending Change Control Approval_ state. 6. When all documents enter the _Pending Change Control Approval_ state, Vault automatically moves the _Document Change Control_ record into the _Ready for Approval_ state. 7. The Change Manager initiates an approval workflow on the _Document Change Control_ record. Generally, this workflow involves various reviews. At the end of the review process, the change control moves into the _Approved_ state. When the _Document Change Control_ record enters _Approved_ state, the following actions occur automatically: * All related _Document Change Request_ records enter the _Completed_ state. In this state, they automatically become inactive. When this occurs, Vault releases the related documents from any [change control restrictions][3]. * Vault automatically updates various fields on the related documents with values from the _Document Change Control_ record. Depending on the action occurring (release or obsolescence) and your configuration, Vault may update _Proposed Effective Date_, _Proposed Obsolescence Date_, and _Obsolescence Approved_. * Scheduled jobs automatically move the change control's documents into the appropriate document lifecycle state: _Issued for Training_, the lifecycle _Steady_ state, or the lifecycle _Obsolete_ state.
## About Governed Documents Governed documents are any documents related to an active status _Document Change Control_ record through the document fields _Release Change Control_ and _Obsolete Change Control_. These fields may not be visible to you, but they control whether documents appear in the _Documents to be Made Effective_ or _Documents to be Made Obsolete_ sections of the _Document Change Control_ detail page. When [configured](/en/lr/37406/#doc-status-wf), the documents in these sections are replicated with additional details and capabilities in the **Docs to be made Effective with Workflows** and **Docs to be made Obsolete with Workflows** [sections][2]. ### Criteria for Documents to be Made Effective Documents must meet the following criteria for you add them to a change control as documents for release: * Cannot be in their lifecycle's _Steady_ state * Cannot be governed by an existing active _Document Change Control_ record; if a document is attached to an inactive record, Vault automatically unlinks it from the inactive record when you attach it to an active record. ### Criteria for Documents to be Made Obsolete {#obsolete-criteria} Documents must meet the following criteria for you add them to a change control as documents for obsolescence: * Latest version must be in their lifecycle's _Steady_ state * Cannot be governed by an existing active _Document Change Control_ record; if a document is attached to an inactive record, Vault automatically unlinks it from the inactive record when you attach it to an active record. ### Documents to be Made Effective/Obsolete with Workflows Sections {#effective-obsolete-with-workflows} When configured by an Admin, you can see the status of included documents and start workflows on them directly from the DCC record details page. These sections duplicate the information already available within the **Documents to be made Effective** and **Documents to be made Obsolete** sections, with additional details and capabilities. * **Documents to be Made Effective with Workflows** displays documents with the current _Document Change Control_ identified in the document's _Release Change Control_ field. * **Documents to be Made Obsolete with Workflows** displays documents with the current _Document Change Control_ identified in the document's _Obsolete Change Control_ field. You can select documents with the checkboxes on the left side of the section, then start workflows on the selected documents by clicking **Start Workflow** and then selecting the workflow you wish to start. Only multi-document workflows that are valid for all of the selected documents will be available. Select all documents in the section by clicking the checkbox at the top of the document list. The _Workflow_ column of the section displays the workflow, if any, that a given document is currently associated with.
### Restrictions on Documents Under Change Control {#restrictions} If a document is currently governed by a change control, you cannot add it to _Documents to be Made Effective_ or _Documents to be Made_ Obsolete on any other change control. There are no other restrictions on documents under change control, unless configured by your Admins. ### Viewing Documents Under Change Control When a document is governed by a change control, Vault displays a banner stating which change control the document is currently governed under. Only users with at least one of the following permissions can see this banner, as users lacking these permissions can't update the document: * Edit Document * Edit Fields * Annotate * Version ## Working with Change Requests {#change-requests} Vault users can [create](/en/lr/825586/) _Document Change Requests_ for documents which are governed by the DCC process as described here, as well as those which are not governed by DCC. The basic process for creating a _Document Change Request_ is the same for both types, subject to your organization's requirements and Vault configuration. ### Auto-Linking Document Change Requests {#auto-linking-dcrs} When [enabled](/en/lr/37406/#dcc-object) by an Admin, the **Link Available Document Change Requests** action updates the _Document Change Control_ record to include _Document Change Request_ records which target: * Documents to be made effective or obsolete, via their _Release DCC_ (`release_change_control__v`) or _Obsolete Change Control_ (`obsolete_change_control__v`) document field values. * Documents associated with a DCC-related _Change Authorization_ record via their _Change Authorization DCC_ (`change_authorization_change_control__v`) document field value. A _Document Change Request_ record must be active and considered to be in-scope for this feature, based on its _Exclude from DCC Auto-Linking_ checkbox. When the checkbox is selected, Vault does not link the _Document Change Request_ record. The _Link Available Document Change Requests_ action may only be available in specific states or may occur automatically based on your Vault's configuration. ### Including & Excluding Change Requests Each _Document Change Control_ detail page displays an _Associated Change Requests_ section. This section automatically filters to show change requests on documents linked to the change control through the _Documents to be Made Effective_, _Documents to be Made Obsolete_, and _Change Authorization_ sections. As a Change Manager, you should review the _Associated Change Request_ records. If you choose to remove a change request, Vault changes its status to _Active_. Change requests listed in _Associated Change Requests_ are in _Accepted_ status. See [details for creating change controls][4]. ## Creating Document Change Controls {#create-dcc} To create and set up a change control: 1. Navigate to the custom **Document Change Control** tab or to **Document Change Controls** in **Business Admin**. Custom tabs may be labeled differently in your Vault. 2. Click **Create**. 3. Add basic details like **Description**, **Reason**, and **Urgency**. 4. Optional: Select a **Proposed Implementation Date** for the change control. When approval occurs, this date will cascade down to the documents and the scheduled job will use it to determine when to implement. 5. Click **Save**. 6. From the record details page, add documents. Find the [**Change Authorization**][6] section and click **Add**. In the selection dialog, select the checkbox next to a document to add it to the change control and click **Close** when finished. The document list is limited to documents that are not currently in an active _Document Change Control_ or another active _Change Authorization_. Repeat this process in the [**Documents to be made Obsolete**][1] section. You should have no more than 100 total documents in your _Document Change Control_. 7. Optional: Click **Add Related Documents** in the _Change Authorization, Documents to be made Effective with Workflows,_ and _Documents to be made Obsolete with Workflows_ sections to add one or more related documents. Your Admin must [configure this action](/en/lr/37406/#add-related-documents). 8. For each _Change Authorization_ record on the control, perform the **Edit** action. In the **Revise or Obsolete** field, choose the type of change for the associated document. 9. Optional: From the record details page, add _Document Change Request_ records. Find the **Associated Change Requests** section and click **Add**. In the dialog, select a change request to the change control and click **Close** when finished. The change requests that you select should be related to the documents associated with the change control. **Note**: This may occur [automatically][5] based on your Vault's configuration. ## Authorizing Changes {#authorizing-changes} To route documents within the _Document Change Control_, assessors provide verdicts for its _Change Authorizations_. Depending on your organization's processes, these verdicts may be provided as part of a workflow or via a user action on the authorizations in the _Change Authorization_ section of the control. Upon choosing a verdict, Vault routes documents automatically based on the value of the _Revise or Obsolete_ field: * **Needs Revision**: When approved, Vault automatically adds the associated document to the Documents to be Made Effective section of the control and creates a new document version. * **Make Obsolete**: When approved, Vault automatically adds the associated document to the Documents to be Made Obsolete section of the control. By default, Vault takes no action when a _Change Authorization_ is rejected, but this behavior may differ depending on your Vault's configuration. ## Approving Change Controls {#approve-dcc} Before you can approve a change control, every document in _Documents to be Made Effective_ should be in its lifecycle's _Pending Change Control Approval_ state. When this happens, Vault moves the _Document Change Control_ record to _Ready for Approval_ state. If your change control only includes documents to be made obsolete (no documents to release), you will need to manually move the _Document Change Control_ record into _Ready for Approval_ state. To approve a change control: 1. Use the approval workflow configured by your Vault's Admins. You can start a workflow on the _Document Change Control_ record from the **Workflow Actions** menu in the record details page. Depending on your Admin's configuration, this action may be in the **All Actions** menu. 2. Open the multi-document viewer by choosing **View All Related Documents** in the **All Actions** menu. 3. From the multi-document viewer, click **Complete** to approve the change control. You may need to provide an eSignature at this point. This signature may apply to all governed documents, if the workflow uses the _Cascade eSignatures_ system action, so be sure to carefully read all instructions provided with the task dialog. ## Related Permissions See [Configuring Multi-Document Change Control](/en/lr/37406/#related-permissions) for the permissions required to use this feature. [1]: #obsolete-criteria [2]: #effective-obsolete-with-workflows [3]: #restrictions [4]: #create-dcc [5]: #auto-linking-dcrs [6]: #authorizing-changes