---
url: https://docs.revis.io/live-sessions/start-a-live-review-session.md
description: >-
  Review together in real time by opening the same review; everyone who's synced
  sees the same frame as anyone plays, pauses, or scrubs.
---

# Start or join a live review session

Open a review and ask others to open it too: you're in a live session. Everyone who's synced follows whoever plays, pauses, scrubs, or opens another item. There's no start button.

::: info Before you start

* **Who:** anyone who can open the review, including guests on a share link.
* **Where:** the web app's player. The desktop app joins the session for a review stored in revis.io's cloud while you're signed in, but shares less (see [What stays in step during a live session](/live-sessions/what-is-shared-in-a-live-session)).
* **You need:** a review. Project members need access to its project; guests need its share link, and its password if it has one.
  :::

## Start a session

1. Open the review in the player.
2. Send the others a way in: project members can use the address in your browser's address bar, and guests need the review's share link (see [Share a review with external guests](/sharing/share-a-review)).
3. When someone joins, check the avatars at the top right of the player: they show who's in the session.

## Join a session

1. Open the review, or the share link you were sent.
2. If you're asked for a password or to confirm your email, do that first.
3. The player opens on the group's frame unless the share link has **Start unsynced** on. To follow the group, select **Sync playback** (the link icon at the top right).

## See who's in the session

Avatars with initials appear once two or more people are in. They show up to three people, then a count such as "+2". Select them to list everyone, and type in **Filter by name...** to find someone. Being marked **host** doesn't give anyone control over other people.

Guests appear under the name they gave when they confirmed their email. On an **Open access** link, or before they confirm, they appear as "Anonymous".

## Agree who controls playback

Anyone in the session can play, pause, scrub, or change items, and everyone who's synced follows. Agree on one person to control playback.

To look around on your own without moving everyone, select **Unsync playback** (the link icon at the top right; in the desktop app, in the menu bar once two or more people are in). Select **Sync playback** to jump back to where the group is. Guests on a link with **Start unsynced** begin unsynced.

## Limits

* A session ends when the last person leaves, or 24 hours after it started. To start a new one, reload the review.
* revis.io doesn't say when your connection to the session drops. If the link icon disappears and doesn't come back within a minute, reload the review.
* Someone with the review open in two browser tabs appears twice.