Use the canvas header menu

The canvas header menu contains whole-canvas actions: rename, export, print, save as template, version history, PIN management, page resizing, project movement, backup and restore, desktop opening, image download, and support. Use it when the action applies to the canvas as a whole, not one element or one page.

The menu changes with the canvas format, your permission, the device you are using, and the workspace plan or settings. If an action is not in the menu, check whether it applies to this canvas and whether your account can perform it.

Header menu actions

Export to PDF

Use Export to PDF when someone needs a static copy of a page canvas. This is common after a workshop, design review, client presentation, training session, or decision meeting. It creates a high-resolution PDF for offline review, archive, print, or handoff.

Before exporting, check page order in the slide rail or overview, unfold pages that should appear, fold pages that should stay out, choose the page range and quality, and wait for media uploads to finish. See Export a canvas to PDF for the full workflow, including selected pages, quality settings, clickable file links, email delivery, Inbox download, and access caveats.

Export to PDF is for page canvases. Freeform whiteboards do not have a fixed page sequence, so they are not a good fit for page-based PDF output. If the work needs a reliable PDF, create it as a page canvas.

Print

Use Print when you need browser or system print output from a page canvas. Printing depends on page structure, loaded media, browser print behavior, and device settings.

If printed output looks wrong, check Page size, background contrast, folded pages, browser scale settings, and whether images finished loading. For repeated handouts, export to PDF first when that produces a more predictable result.

Save as template

Use Save as template after a canvas has become a reusable format. Clean the canvas first: remove private content, delete one-off comments, replace real customer data with examples, check page names, and ensure locked objects are intentional.

Save as template is a page-canvas workflow. If you do not see it, check whether you have edit access, whether the canvas is a page canvas, and whether your workspace lets you create templates. For template workflow details, see Use canvas templates.

Version History and Backup & Restore

Use Version History when you need to inspect earlier canvas states. Use Backup & Restore when the available workspace feature supports recovery or restoration workflows.

These actions are most useful when content was changed unexpectedly, deleted, or damaged during collaboration. They are restricted because recovery tools can expose or alter significant canvas state. Guests do not get these controls.

Version history is most useful when the canvas changed in a way that is hard to undo manually: a large layout shift, an accidental deletion, or a review page that needs to return to an earlier state.

If the problem is a missing project or access issue rather than a content change, start with Troubleshoot canvas issues instead.

Manage Canvas PIN

Use Manage Canvas PIN when the workspace supports PIN protection and the canvas needs an additional entry check. A PIN is about access protection, not editing permission. Someone can enter the correct PIN and still have only view or comment access depending on their role.

If a collaborator cannot enter because of a PIN or password error, confirm they have the current link, the right PIN, and canvas permission. Password failures keep guests in the entry flow instead of loading the full editor.

For setup, permission, guest-entry, and troubleshooting details, see Use a Canvas PIN or passcode.

Resize all canvas pages

Use Resize all canvas pages when a page canvas needs a consistent page size across the whole file. This is useful before export, print, presentation, or when a template was built at the wrong dimensions. See Page size before changing every page.

This action is page-canvas specific. Freeform whiteboards grow as a board and do not use the same all-pages resize model.

Move or copy to another project

Use Move to another project when the canvas belongs somewhere else. Use Copy to another project when another project needs its own version while the original should remain.

Moving changes organization and can affect how people find the canvas. Copying can create duplicate work and duplicate decisions if both versions stay active. Use clear naming after a copy so collaborators know which version is current.

If move or copy is unavailable, check whether you can edit the canvas and whether you have access to the destination project. If the destination project is not listed, ask a project or workspace admin to confirm your project access. See Add an existing canvas to a project for the project-side workflow.

Open in Desktop App

Use Open in Desktop App when you prefer ALLO desktop behavior or the browser is not the best surface for the current work. The action appears only when desktop opening is supported and you are not already in a context where it does not apply.

If the desktop app does not open, confirm it is installed, updated, and allowed by your operating system or browser. See Open canvases in the desktop app for the desktop handoff path.

Download all images

Use Download all images when the team needs local copies of images from the canvas. This is different from PDF export. It extracts image assets rather than producing a page-based document. Use Export a canvas to PDF when the output should preserve the page flow in one PDF.

Image download requires permission to download those images. If an image is still uploading, wait until it finishes. If a download policy blocks the file, export the canvas to PDF or ask a workspace member with download permission to help.

Header menu versus other menus

Use the header menu for whole-canvas actions. Use the Page menu for one page. Use the Element menu for one object. Use Share a canvas for access. Use Comments and mentions for feedback.

If you are looking for an action and cannot find it, first ask what it applies to: the canvas, a page, an element, a comment, a project, or a collaborator.

What can go wrong

If Export to PDF, Print, or Resize all canvas pages is missing, check whether the canvas is a freeform whiteboard. Those are page-canvas workflows.

If header actions are unavailable, check whether you can edit the canvas, whether the action is desktop-only or page-canvas-only, and whether your workspace plan includes that workflow.

If export fails, do not keep retrying the same export blindly. Check page count, selected page range, quality setting, media loading, very large files, network stability, and browser behavior. Use Fix a failed canvas export.

If a moved canvas is missing, check the destination project, search, quick access, and whether collaborators still have access through the new location.