The documents and folders you store in OneDrive for work or school are private until you decide to share them. Similarly, in a site library, you may want to share specific documents or folders with people who don't otherwise have access to the site. When you share documents and folders, you can decide whether to let people edit or just view them.
Share a document or folder
-
Go to OneDrive for work or school or the site library that has the document or folder you want to share.
-
Select the ellipses (...) next to the document or folder to open its document callout, and then select Share.
-
In the Share dialog box, type names or email addresses of people you want to share the document or folder with.
-
Select a permission setting for all people the document or folder is being shared with.
-
If you want, type a message to be included with an email that’s sent to all invitees. The email includes a link to the shared document.
-
When ready, select Send. A notification will be sent to all recipients informing them of the document or folder being shared, along with any message you included.
Frequently asked questions
How do I create a sharable link to a document or folder?
In OneDrive for work or school, you can create a shareable link that you can give out to others:
-
After opening the Share dialog box and setting permissions (see share a document or folder), select Copy link. The default setting will allow anyone within your organization access to the document or folder with the permissions you set.
-
To access the link settings, select the settings icon to the right of Copy link.
-
In the Link settings, you can select who the link will work for, change the permissions level, and set a date for your link to expire.
How do I share a document with everyone in my organization?
In OneDrive for work or school, there are two ways to share a document with everyone:
-
Use the Share dialog box. Follow the same steps described above for share a document or folder, but type Everyone in the name field.
-
Create a “Shared with Everyone” folder (or one with a similar name) and place documents in that folder as you create them. To create a folder, click + New > New Folder. You can share the folder with people after you've create it.
The Share dialog box lets you select “Everyone except external users.” If your organization allows external sharing, sharing with “Everyone” includes external users: people outside of your organization who have previously been invited to share documents as guests, either by you or by others in your organization.
If you have a Shared with Everyone folder that was provisioned for you, everyone gets permission to edit documents that you put in the Shared with Everyone folder, unless you change the permission setting or unless your OneDrive for work or school was created before June 2014. If your OneDrive for work or school was created before that date, the Shared with Everyone folder started with View-only permissions. You can change the permission setting any time by following the instructions for sharing a folder earlier in this article.
How do people find documents I’ve shared with everyone?
Documents you share with everyone won't appear in their Shared with Me view in OneDrive for work or school. Why not? Consider that depending on the size of your organization, there might be hundreds if not thousands of documents that are shared with everyone. Also, you may not want to send a share invitation email to everyone in your organization.
Instead, people can find these documents by:
-
Following a link you send them directly in an email.
You can generate or retrieve any document’s web URL by selecting the elipsis (...) to the right of the document, then select Copy link.
-
Using the Search box located at the top of the page.
In this example, Adele Vance searches on the keyword “International marketing” to find any relevant documents shared with her in her organization.
How do I see who I'm sharing a document with?
-
Select the ellipsis (...) next to the document you’re interested in, then select Manage access.
The names of the people with whom you're sharing the document with, the number of people with access, and their permissions will be listed. You can scroll the list to see all names or use the search field to find a specific person.
Tip: If the library you're working in has a Sharing column, you can select the text to open the Manage access dialog box.
-
The groups you're sharing with will appear under the groups tab. Select the Groups tab at the top of the list to see all the groups at your organization that have access to the documentation and their permissions.
-
If any sharable links have been generated for the document, they will appear under the links tab. Select the Links tab at the top of the list to see all the links generated for the document, who has access, and the level of permissions.
How do I stop sharing a document or folder?
To make a document or folder private again, you can stop sharing it. To stop sharing with an individual or group:
-
Access the Manage access dialog box (Refer to How do I see who I'm sharing a document with for how to access).
-
In the Manage access dialog box, select the permissions for the person you want to stop sharing with.
-
Select the Remove direct access from the list of permissions.
To deactivate a share link:
-
Access the Manage access dialog box (Refer to How do I see who I'm sharing a document with for how to access).
-
In the Manage access dialog box, select the links tab.
-
Select the Remove link icon to delete the link.
-
Select Remove when asked to confirm.
To stop sharing all together:
-
Access the Manage access dialog box (Refer to How do I see who I'm sharing a document with for how to access).
-
In the Manage access dialog box, select Stop sharing.
-
Select Stop Sharing when asked to confirm.
Note: Selecting Stop sharing will remove ALL shares to the selected document or file, including to individuals, groups, and will deactivate any generated share links.
