# Anonymous and guest viewers

Anonymous readers never receive an API token, so anything that needs a live, authenticated render cannot run for them. They get the stored preview image instead.

This matters most on public spaces and published sites, where a lot of your readers may never sign in.

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## When this matters

* Public Confluence spaces.
* Sites published with Capable Sites.
* Diagnosing a diagram that works for you and not for a customer.

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## The detail

| **Thing**              | **What happens**                                               |
| ---------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Text diagrams          | The stored preview image, rendered when the diagram was saved. |
| draw.io and Excalidraw | The stored preview image.                                      |
| Editing                | Not available. Anonymous readers cannot open the editor.       |
| A brand new diagram    | May show nothing until its preview has been written.           |

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## A few things that catch people out

* If a diagram looks fine to you and blank to an anonymous reader, the preview is the first thing to check.
* Previews are attachments, so they inherit the page's permissions exactly.
* Published sites have their own behaviour, covered in [Integrations](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/integrations.html).

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## Related

[Scopes and permissionsWhat the app asks for, and why.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/scopes-and-permissions.html)

[AI and your diagram dataWhat is sent, when, and how to stop it.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/ai-and-your-diagram-data.html)

[ExamplesWorking diagrams you can copy.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/examples.html)

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_Ask us the awkward questions. They have answers._