How to force a copy of a Google Doc when sharing

Have you ever shared a Google Doc with someone and instructed them to make a copy so they wouldn’t mess with your original (only to have them go right ahead and mess with that original)? 

Here’s an easy way to force someone to make a copy of a Google Doc, Google Sheet, or Google Slide deck by hacking the URL!

First things first:

Before you can use this trick to force a new copy, you'll need to adjust the sharing permissions of your document.

If your document is destined for someone at your school with a school Google account, you can set your permissions to "Anyone in this group with a link". If your document is destined for someone outside of the school, you'll need to set your permissions to “anyone with the link."

Keep in mind that the "Anyone in this group with a link" option is inherently more secure, as only those with a Google account associated with your school would be able to access the document (and only if they have the link).

Note: You could share it individually, but that usually prompts a notification (plus, the recipient will see it in Google Drive and could still ignore your instructions).

Then, just a few more clicks:

1. Open the Google Doc that you want to use.
2. Click on the URL and look at the end of the link
3. Replace the word EDIT with the word COPY in the link.
4. Hit Return/Enter.
   
   
   
5. Now you can copy and paste this new link (ending with /copy) wherever you need–in an email, on your website, presentation, or LMS.

What does the recipient see?

Once the recipient clicks on your link, they'll be brought to a page that looks like this:

Once they click "Make a copy", they'll have their own copy of the document in their own 'My Drive'!