Share links: send a customer one secure link
Every quote, invoice, job, receipt or file you send becomes one unguessable, no-login link. Here's how they're created, what the customer can do with them, and how to expire or revoke one.
Shop operations11 in this section
A share link is the one thing you hand a customer so they can see a quote, pay an invoice, track their install, or open a file you sent — with no account and no password. When you send a quote, invoice, job, receipt or document, Service VIN mints a single unguessable link (a long random token, not your customer's name or a guessable number) and delivers it by text and/or email. The customer taps it and lands on a branded page — your logo, your colour, your shop name. That page is the customer portal; the share link is just the key to it.
The five kinds of link and what the customer can do
Each page is read-only except for the action it's meant for — a quote link can be approved but can't be edited, an invoice link can be paid but shows no other customer's data. The customer only ever sees the one record you shared. Search engines are told not to index these pages, and every action (approve, pay) is re-checked on the server against the token, so a copied or forwarded link still can't do anything it shouldn't.
Create and send a link
- 1
Open the record
Go to the quote, invoice, job or document and click Send to customer (documents call it Share). There's no separate "make a link" screen — sending is what mints it.
- 2
Pick the channels
Tick Text (SMS) and/or Email. Service VIN uses the phone and email on the customer's record and your own message-template wording. At least one channel is required.
- 3
Send — and copy if you need to
The link is always shown after sending, with a Copy button, even if a channel bounced (no phone on file, texting not enabled yet). So a failed text is never a dead end — copy the URL and paste it into your own message.
You can see when they opened it
Under a sent quote or invoice, the Customer links panel lists every link with a live/greyed dot, when it was sent, when it expires, and its open telemetry — opened 3× (last 2h ago) or not opened yet. A green dot means the link is still live. It's the quiet signal for a follow-up: "opened twice, no reply" is your cue to call.
One link per record stays live. Each time you send (or re-send) the same quote, invoice or job, Service VIN revokes the previous link and mints a fresh token — so an old screenshot of a link a customer forwarded months ago stops working, and only the newest link is ever valid. That's also how you resend: just click Send to customer again. Links expire on their own after 30 days; past that the page shows "This link isn't available," and you re-send to issue a new one.
Expire or revoke a link early
- 1
Revoke
In the Customer links panel, click Revoke on any active link. Access is cut off immediately — the customer's page goes to "This link isn't available" on their next tap. Use it when you sent to the wrong person or a quote shouldn't be actioned any more.
- 2
Just let it lapse
Do nothing and the link expires 30 days after it was sent. Deleting the underlying document also revokes its live links automatically.
- 3
Re-issue
Changed your mind? Send to customer again mints a brand-new link and delivers it — the revoked one stays revoked.
Revoking is a manager action
Creating, revoking and re-sending links all require the manager permission (Ask Dash or an owner can grant it on the Team page). Techs can open records but the Copy / Revoke / Send controls are hidden for them.
Troubleshooting
The customer says the link says "This link isn't available."
Why: It was revoked, it expired (30-day limit), or you re-sent and they tapped the older link.
Fix: Open the record, click Send to customer to mint a fresh link, and have them use the newest text/email.
I can't send a quote — it says it's already been accepted/declined/expired.
Why: A share link is only offered while the customer can still act. An accepted or lapsed quote would be a dead-end link.
Fix: For a lapsed price, use Extend validity on the quote, then Send again. For accepted/declined, the quote is already resolved.
Send worked but the text never arrived (email did, or neither).
Why: A delivery gate: no phone on file, the customer opted out of texts, or texting isn't enabled for the shop yet.
Fix: The result panel names the exact reason per channel. Copy the shown link and send it yourself, and check Settings → Messaging if texting is the issue.
The Copy link and Revoke buttons aren't there for me.
Why: Managing links needs the manager permission; techs see the record read-only.
Fix: Ask an owner or manager to send/revoke, or to upgrade your role on the Team page.
Common questions
Does the customer need to log in or create an account?
No. The link is the only credential — they tap it and they're in. That's the whole point: zero friction between "here's your quote" and "approved."
How long does a link last?
30 days from when it was sent. After that it expires on its own and the page shows "This link isn't available." Send to customer again to issue a fresh one.
A customer says they lost the link — can I just resend the same one?
Click Send to customer again. It mints a new link and revokes the old one, so what lands in their text/email is always the working one.
Is it safe if someone forwards the link?
The token is unguessable and the page is read-only apart from its intended action, so forwarding only lets someone view that one record. If that's still not what you want, Revoke it — access ends immediately.
Can I send a link if the customer has no phone number?
Yes — untick Text and use Email, or send on either channel and copy the link from the result to paste wherever you like. The link is minted regardless of whether a channel delivered.