Send a link to a SharePoint or OneDrive file
After reviewing the “We” vs “Me” post in this article, you should be familiar with the plan’s edict that all shared files and folders should be stored in SharePoint, not in your OneDrive. Since the documents you will be sharing with others will already be contained in shared libraries, you won’t have to share them. If a fellow staff member needs access to the document(s) you are working on, they can access them directly through SharePoint. If they don’t have access to the library, then they should reach out to their supervisor and/or administrator to obtain access.
Now, having said that, there will be some exceptions to this rule. This post will explain.
Article Index:
Initial Setup:
Sending/Receiving files:
IMPORTANT!
You may NOT send a link to a SharePoint file to someone outside of your organization. If you must send a file outside, then download the file and email it.
If you feel led to sharing a document from your OneDrive folder, please review the plan as outlined in the “We” vs “Me” article.
SharePoint and OneDrive work basically the same way when it comes to sending a link to a file. The process outlined in this post describes the process to send a link to a SharePoint file, but you can follow the same steps when working with a OneDrive file.
The plan describes in this article allows for two different ways to share an item from a SherePoint library: People with existing access and People in your organization with the link. You must decide which option to use before you send the link. These tables explain the options and their ramifications.
Best practices dictate using the People with existing access option.
People with existing access
This is the best practice
It provides a link to the document, but relies on the recipient to already have access to it. Those who do not already have access, and those outside your organization can not use this link.
* The item will NOT show up in the recipient’s “Shared with me” list.
People in your organization with the link
Be very careful with this option, as it gives access to the item to the recipient, even if they don’t currently have access to it. This link can be forwarded only to people in your organization. Use this option when you are comfortable with someone in your organization being able to pass the link around to others in your organization. External users can not use this link.
* Because this option can give the recipient more access then they “should have”, you can prevent the recipient from editing the item. You can also prevent the user from downloading the item. If the user is prevented from downloading the item, then they can only view it in a browser.
* The item will show up in the recipient’s “Shared with me” list.
Steps to share an item from a SharePoint library
Log into O365, click the App launcher, then select OneDrive
Click the App launcher icon (
), then click OneDrive (
)
Locate the desired file or folder you wish to share
Select the sharing options
Click the menu icon (
), then select Share
Click to determine who can access the item
A popup window will appear. Click the “>” to select who can access the link
Select who can access the item
From the resulting list, select who can access the item from the link you are sending.
People with existing access
This is the best practices option.
People in your organization with the link
Be very careful with this option
Select the recipient
Start typing the recipient’s name, and select it from the list
Press Enter, and then click the Send button
FAQs:
Can I send a link from my shortcut of the file in “My files”
Yes. You can access the SharePoint file from your shortcuts or from the “Shared libraries” list.
I want to send a link to a SharePoint folder
You can send links to files or folders. The process is the same.
If you have questions about this, please let us know and we will be happy to assist you.
Take care,
