whiteboard trouble: 2 people can't use the same whiteboard

[Zoommisc]

I'm taking a language class from a teacher in Japan (I'm in the States). I'm the host ( I have the pro plan) and so far only she can write on the whiteboard. If I share my whiteboard, she can't see the tools and vice versa. Even if I make her the co-host, only one of us can see the tools and use the whiteboard all during our class time. On line it says that all participants should be able to use the whiteboard. I checked and the "disable annotation for others' is not selected, so the annotation ability should be on.

Can you please help me? Thank you.

[jrmagno]

Hello, 

The first step I recommend is to check the version mismatch of your Zoom Workplace App. Make sure that both of your Zoom Workplace app are in the latest version. 

Please note that 

Zoom now has two versions of the whiteboard feature:

• Classic Whiteboard (used during Screen Sharing)

• New Zoom Whiteboard (cloud-based, persistent, can be opened from the Whiteboards tab)

If you’re sharing the whiteboard through Share Screen → Whiteboard, that’s the classic one.
If you’re opening it from Whiteboards → New Whiteboard, that’s the new one.

These behave differently.

If you’re using the Share Screen → Whiteboard method:

1. Start the meeting.

2. Click Share Screen → Whiteboard → Share.

3. Once the board is visible, click More (⋯) on the toolbar.

4. Make sure “Disable Annotation for Others” is unchecked.

If you’re using the new cloud-based Zoom Whiteboard:

1. Open Zoom → Click Whiteboards tab.

2. Create or open your shared whiteboard.

3. Click the Share button (top-right).

4. Under Permissions, make sure:

   • Your teacher’s email or meeting participants are added.

   • Access level is set to “Can edit”, not “View only”.

5. Once both of you are in the board, both should see the full toolbar.

And lastly double check the settings in your web portal

1. Go to Zoom web portal 

2. Under Meeting → In Meeting (Basic), confirm:

   • ✅ “Annotation” is enabled.

   • ✅ “Whiteboard” is enabled.

3. Under Whiteboard (New) (separate section near bottom):

   • Make sure Collaborators can edit and share is enabled.

4. If your teacher still can’t see tools, ask her to:

   • Hover her mouse over the shared whiteboard until a toolbar appears.

   • Click View Options → Annotate (top of her Zoom window).
     → The annotation tools should now appear.