Unable to reply to comment with "Edit by Anyone" Publish Option toggled on

Hello!

Please help me settle a debate: If a sheet is set to publish and it's set to editable by anyone, can a viewer reply to an email to post a comment? OR do they have to always access the publish link directly to respond to the comment?

Someone's "Viewer" collaborator on an asset is receiving a "Your recent reply couldn't be posted to Smartsheet" bounce back message when they are trying to reply to the emailed comment. I think it's because they have to go directly to the published link to reply to the comment since they have View only access. Can someone help me confirm or deny?

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Sheets

functionality

Permission Problem

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Accepted answers

AngB789

Published Sheets:
- If a sheet is published and set to "Editable by anyone", that only applies to interactions through the published link.
- It does not change the permissions of collaborators added directly to the sheet.

Viewer Permissions:
- A Viewer collaborator (added via sharing, not via the published link) can see comments but cannot reply or post new comments.
- If they try to reply to a comment via email (which Smartsheet allows for Editors and Admins), they’ll get a bounce-back error like the one you described:
  “Your recent reply couldn't be posted to Smartsheet.”

Email Replies to Comments:
- Only users with commenting permissions (Editor or higher) can reply to comment notification emails.
- Viewers must use the published link (if it's editable) to interact — but even then, commenting might not be supported unless they’re authenticated and have the right permissions.

All comments

AngB789

Published Sheets:
- If a sheet is published and set to "Editable by anyone", that only applies to interactions through the published link.
- It does not change the permissions of collaborators added directly to the sheet.

Viewer Permissions:
- A Viewer collaborator (added via sharing, not via the published link) can see comments but cannot reply or post new comments.
- If they try to reply to a comment via email (which Smartsheet allows for Editors and Admins), they’ll get a bounce-back error like the one you described:
  “Your recent reply couldn't be posted to Smartsheet.”

Email Replies to Comments:
- Only users with commenting permissions (Editor or higher) can reply to comment notification emails.
- Viewers must use the published link (if it's editable) to interact — but even then, commenting might not be supported unless they’re authenticated and have the right permissions.

Emily Miller

Thank you for resolving the debate!

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