| Minimum Software Version | 8.18.10 |
| Solution(s) | Cases International ✓ Cases US ✓ Institutions ⨉ Counsel ✓ |
Explains the difference between documents and files in Opus 2, including how metadata, versions, and publishing fit into the document lifecycle.
The Opus 2 Platform distinguishes between three closely related concepts: documents, metadata, and files. Understanding the difference between these helps you manage versions, metadata, and review workflows more effectively.
The Opus 2 Platform is designed to support workflows that range from simple document storage to complex review, sharing, and version-controlled document lifecycles. To support these use cases, Opus 2 follows a model commonly used in review and discovery tools, which distinguishes between:
- Documents – Conceptual entities representing a single piece of content
- Metadata – Information describing a document
- Files – Electronic representations used to view the document
For simple workflows, these distinctions may not be obvious because a document often has only one associated file. In more complex workflows, however, understanding the difference becomes important.
What is a document?
A document is a container representing a single conceptual item, such as a letter, report, spreadsheet, audio file, or video. It holds:
- Document-level metadata (both original and user-applied)
- One or more electronic files that represent different versions of the document
Documents can be:
- Organised into folders or collections
- Tagged and enriched with metadata
- Shared with specific users or groups
- Updated as new versions become available
What is a file?
A file is an electronic file uploaded to the Opus 2 Platform. Files are:
- Uploaded and ingested
- Converted and processed (including OCR where applicable)
- Immutable once ingested — their content cannot be modified directly
Files have immutable properties such as:
- File type
- File size
- Creation date
- Whether readable text exists
- Duration (for media files)
Files are immutable once ingested and their content cannot be modified directly. However, administrative actions such as reprocessing, retranscoding, exporting, downloading, and deleting files may be available depending on permissions.
How documents and files relate
In many cases, one document is associated with one file. In more complex scenarios, a document may have multiple files, such as:
- An original electronic document
- A scanned version of the same document
- An OCR-processed version
- A stamped or court-presented version
These files form a linear sequence of versions for the same document.
Key terminology
Ingestion: The process that prepares a file for use in Opus 2, including text extraction, metadata extraction, OCR (if required), and thumbnail generation.
Publishing: The act of creating a document from a file, making the file the first (and initially only) version of that document.
Versions: The ordered sequence of files associated with a document.
Replacement: Adding a new file to an existing document makes it the primary version shown when the document is viewed.
Files not yet associated with documents
Opus 2 also supports workflows where files are uploaded without immediately creating documents. This allows:
- Support teams to ingest and validate files
- Review teams to work without disruption
- Files to be published only when they are ready for use
Related links
Related documentation
Opus 2 has help information accessible within the application; click the question mark and then select Documentation in the upper-right area of the platform. You can also access the documentation at: Opus 2 Support.
How to contact us
To contact us about the documentation, or if you have any other questions or issues about Opus 2 solutions, contact Opus 2 Platform Support by emailing Opus 2 Platform Support.