> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.brieftech.ai/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.brieftech.ai/how-to-guides/index/reorder-documents-add-structure.md).

# Reorder documents and add structure

Reorder documents in the Document Index — move them between sections, drag multiple rows, and use the ⋮ menu for family, detach and volume actions.

In the <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-320692e120077fab01f6944df1edd4eec4881a4c%2Ftab-index.svg?alt=media" alt="Index tab" data-size="line"> tab, switch to **Edit** mode, then grab any document row (⠿) and drag it.

1. Grab any document row — anywhere along the row, or using the handle (⠿) — and drag it to reposition it.
2. Drop it in place. Serial numbers renumber automatically, and changes save instantly.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Reorder in Edit mode, not Preview.** The toolbar's Edit/Preview toggle — <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-6646858009b6553c36fb5e1b7dbb8255e69ea8b2%2Fchip-edit-mode.svg?alt=media" alt="Edit" data-size="line"> <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-6fa665239290710351c4bd5664b5462cc2c59fea%2Fchip-preview-mode.svg?alt=media" alt="Preview" data-size="line"> — switches between them, and Preview mode shows how the final bundle will look. Rows can still be dragged in Preview, but the move is applied to the Edit list rather than the one on screen.
{% endhint %}

You can drag a document into a different heading section — drop it above or below any row, including rows under a different heading, and it moves there.

**What keeps your order, and what resets it.** A manual order is saved with the matter: it survives reloading the page, applying a bundle or index preset, and generating the bundle — the bundle is built from the order you see. Two things change it. Re-running **Generate index headings** rebuilds the whole index from your folders, discarding every manual position along with the current headings — so do your reordering *after* you have settled on headings, not before. And documents uploaded later are added to the **end** of the index, beneath the last heading, rather than into the section their folder matches — drag them into place, or re-generate the headings and reorder again.

You can also drag a document onto a heading in the left-hand tree panel to move it into that section — useful when the target heading is far from the row you're dragging. The documents land at the **top** of that section, directly beneath the heading. Attachments are the exception: an attached row stays with its parent, so dropping one on a heading **doesn't move it into that section**, and gives you no message. Move the parent instead — its attachments follow.

To add, rename, move, sort, or delete headings, see [Manage headings in the Document Index](/how-to-guides/index/manage-index-headings.md).

## Move multiple documents at once

In the Document Index.

You can drag several documents to a new position in one operation.

1. Tick the checkboxes on the rows you want to move. You can also hold **Shift** and click to select a range, or hold **Cmd/Ctrl** and click a row to toggle it in or out of the selection.
2. Drag any one of the selected rows — anywhere along the row, or by its handle (⠿).
3. All selected rows move together and are dropped at the target position.

{% hint style="info" %}
**Drag blocked?** If you try to drag a row that is **not** in your current selection while other rows are checked, the drag is blocked. Either include that row in your selection first, or click <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-b3a4df0a461cd73a57ca9d6a7d37ee674fb1b660%2Fbtn-clear-selection.svg?alt=media" alt="Clear selection" data-size="line"> to clear it and drag just that row.
{% endhint %}

## More ways to reorder and restructure

In the Document Index.

Each document row has a <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-896be0453c84eed7cbf284c995163cff1a307633%2Ficon-more-actions.svg?alt=media" alt="More actions" data-size="line"> menu. Hover the **Description** cell and click the <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-896be0453c84eed7cbf284c995163cff1a307633%2Ficon-more-actions.svg?alt=media" alt="More actions" data-size="line"> that appears at its bottom-right, or right-click anywhere on the row, to open it. Right-clicking a row you haven't already ticked replaces your whole selection with just that row, so when you have several rows selected, open the menu with the <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-896be0453c84eed7cbf284c995163cff1a307633%2Ficon-more-actions.svg?alt=media" alt="More actions" data-size="line"> button instead. Alongside dragging, it offers:

* <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-6870408e299e922963a54984ce9f832628410e98%2Fbtn-select-family.svg?alt=media" alt="Select family" data-size="line"> / <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-18ece9bb8565966374e92977d5a2a546701c335f%2Fbtn-deselect-family.svg?alt=media" alt="Deselect family" data-size="line"> — available on any member of a family (the parent or one of its attachments); selects the parent and all its attached rows together so you can act on them as one group. You don't need this just to keep attachments with their parent — when you move a parent row, its attachments move with it automatically. Take care when dragging a family you have selected this way: dropping it on a row outside the family offers to detach every attachment in it — see [Detach attachments by dragging them out](#detach-attachments-by-dragging-them-out).
* <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-0a27a210cd986d1c5bc81f9bf8d9457819b9a90b%2Fbtn-detach-from-parent.svg?alt=media" alt="Detach from parent" data-size="line"> — on an attached (child) row, permanently promotes it out of its family into a standalone document. BriefTech asks you to confirm first, because this can't be undone: once detached, a row can't be grouped back to its parent. You can also detach by dragging — see below.
* <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-9ebb5d58e0a1e18dc82e4522d033e358c6d9e08f%2Fbtn-push-to-next-volume.svg?alt=media" alt="Push to Next Volume" data-size="line"> and <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-77d1a26a82a52aca44f92ed1fbd34c0d2a4adb4a%2Fbtn-split-to-next-volume.svg?alt=media" alt="Split to Next Volume…" data-size="line"> — move a document (or a page range) into the next bundle volume; see [Split a bundle into volumes](/how-to-guides/index/split-into-volumes.md).
* <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-90da621e711c159473a3aaa69c98360b51a5fafc%2Fbtn-configure-bundle-overrides.svg?alt=media" alt="Configure Bundle Overrides" data-size="line">, and <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-38c06d24e77f7f1503a3c189caaab5f5ed4b53ab%2Fbtn-reset-volume-placement.svg?alt=media" alt="Reset Volume Placement" data-size="line"> when a volume override is set — per-document volume settings; see [Split a bundle into volumes](/how-to-guides/index/split-into-volumes.md).

You can also reorder the documents in a section by sorting them — see [Sort documents in the Document Index](/how-to-guides/index/sort-documents-in-index.md).

## Undo and redo

In the Document Index.

The <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-320692e120077fab01f6944df1edd4eec4881a4c%2Ftab-index.svg?alt=media" alt="Index tab" data-size="line"> toolbar has <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-e224b43782bc59354f7f8596ec3940b34ff34628%2Ficon-undo.svg?alt=media" alt="Undo" data-size="line"> and <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-2c4c3023d6623095cf4db60d564205da2ebc82ce%2Ficon-redo.svg?alt=media" alt="Redo" data-size="line"> buttons that step backwards and forwards through the structural changes you make to the index. Each is **greyed out — not hidden** — when there is nothing to undo or redo. You can also press **Ctrl/Cmd + Z** to undo and **Ctrl/Cmd + Y** to redo — see [Keyboard shortcuts](/reference/keyboard-shortcuts.md).

Undo and redo cover the edits you make to the index's rows and headings:

* reordering documents, and moving them between sections or into a heading;
* adding, renaming, indenting, outdenting, or moving a heading up or down;
* sorting documents within a section or across the whole index.

They do **not** cover generating headings from your folder structure — that is a separate action, with its own warning, that cannot be undone (see [Manage headings in the Document Index](/how-to-guides/index/manage-index-headings.md)).

Undo keeps up to your last 50 changes to the index — as you make new changes, the oldest drop off. Leaving the Document Index or reloading it clears the history, so undo does not carry your changes over once you navigate away and come back.

## Detach attachments by dragging them out

In the Document Index.

Dragging an attached (child) row onto a row outside its own family detaches it — the same permanent change as the <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-0a27a210cd986d1c5bc81f9bf8d9457819b9a90b%2Fbtn-detach-from-parent.svg?alt=media" alt="Detach from parent" data-size="line"> menu action, so BriefTech asks you to confirm first. This is the only way to detach several attachments at once.

1. In **Edit** mode, drag one or more child rows and drop them on a row that is **not** their parent and **not** one of their siblings.
2. Confirm the **Detach from parent** prompt. It warns that the attachments become standalone documents and cannot be grouped back again. When more than one attachment is being detached it also says how many — a count of the attachments leaving their parents, not of every row the drag moves.
3. Click **Detach** to go ahead — the rows lose their parent and land where you dropped them. Click <img src="https://2262431129-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FlnHu06wl3NH457iwjBmr%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-bbff6c32497cde9d3297b45db292f7a2bddd04d6%2Fbtn-cancel.svg?alt=media" alt="Cancel" data-size="line"> and nothing moves at all: the whole drag is abandoned, including any other rows you were dragging alongside them.

This also fires when you drag a **whole family** — a parent and its attachments together, which is exactly what **Select family** gives you. Dropping that selection on a row outside the family offers to detach every attachment in it, and confirming breaks the family permanently.

{% hint style="warning" %}
**Dropping a child row inside its own family — onto its parent, or onto one of its siblings — is an ordinary reorder and never prompts.** The prompt appears whenever the row you drop onto belongs to a different family, or to none. So even a small nudge past the last attachment in the family will ask you to detach.
{% endhint %}

## Collapse a document's attachments

In the Document Index.

When a document has attached files (for example, files unpacked from a ZIP or email), its attachments appear as child rows beneath it in **Edit** mode.

1. Hover the parent row to reveal the **chevron** in the gutter at the left — it's hidden until you hover the row.
2. Click the chevron to collapse the group — the attached rows hide and a **+N** badge on the parent's serial number shows how many are tucked away.
3. Click the chevron again (tooltip *Expand (N attached)*) to show them.

Collapsing is a view convenience only; it does not change document order or the generated bundle.

## What you've built

You now have a Document Index whose documents sit in the order you want — dragged into place, moved between sections, or rearranged several at a time — with that manual order saved to the matter and carried through to the generated bundle.

## Related

<table data-view="cards"><thead><tr><th></th><th></th><th data-hidden data-card-target data-type="content-ref"></th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>From Document Index to court bundle</strong></td><td>How the index and the bundle share one source of truth.</td><td><a href="/concepts/index-and-court-bundle.md">From Document Index to court bundle</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Manage headings in the Document Index</strong></td><td>Add, rename, move, sort, indent, and delete headings in the Document Index, or generate them automatically from your folder structure.</td><td><a href="/how-to-guides/index/manage-index-headings.md">Manage headings in the Document Index</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Document Index presets</strong></td><td>The built-in Document Index presets and what each configures.</td><td><a href="/reference/index-presets.md">Document Index presets</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Prepare a List of Documents for Disclosure</strong></td><td>A guided, end-to-end walkthrough — take a set of documents from upload to a finished disclosure package: a ZIP archive containing a Word index, an Excel index, and every document renamed by serial number, date, and description.</td><td><a href="/get-started/prepare-disclosure-list.md">Prepare a List of Documents for Disclosure</a></td></tr><tr><td><strong>Add or edit sub-index entries</strong></td><td>Add, edit, or remove the sub-index entries that appear beneath a document in the Document Index.</td><td><a href="/how-to-guides/index/add-edit-sub-index-entries.md">Add or edit sub-index entries</a></td></tr></tbody></table>


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