Sharing Files with OneDrive

You can use OneDrive to share photos, Microsoft Office documents, other files, and entire folders with people. The files and folders you store in OneDrive are private until you decide to share them and you can see who a OneDrive file is shared with or stop sharing at any time.

  1. Go to the OneDrive website and sign in with your Microsoft account or your work or school account.

  2. Note: For OneDrive for Business users not using Office 365, try Share documents or folders in SharePoint Server.

  3. Pick the file or folder you want to share by selecting the circle in the upper corner of the item. You can also pick multiple items to share them together.

  4. Select Share at the top of the page.

Select Share at the top of the page.

4-.Select Anyone with the link can edit to customize the link options.

5-Set the options you want on your link, then select Apply when you're done.

  • Allow editing - When you share items with this type of link, people can edit files, and can add or delete files in a shared folder. Recipients can forward the link, change the list of people sharing the files or folder, and change permissions for recipients. If you're sharing a folder, people with Edit permissions can copy, move, edit, rename, share, and delete anything in the folder.

    Unchecking this box means that people can view, copy or download your items without signing in. They can also forward the link to other people. However, they cannot make change to the version on your OneDrive.

  • Set expiration date - The link will only work until the date you set. After that, the link will be invalid, and you will need to create a new link for users requiring access to your file or folder.

Set the options you want on your link, then select Apply when you're done.

6-Additional options

OneDrive users also have the option to restrict the level of access (anyone with the link, only people within your organization, only people with existing access to the file, or only individuals you specify). Also, if you opt to disable editing, you can also opt to prevent viewers from downloading the file.

  • Anyone gives access to anyone who receives this link, whether they receive it directly from you or forwarded from someone else. This may include people outside of your organization.

  • People in <Your Organization> gives anyone in your organization who has the link access to the file, whether they receive it directly from you or forwarded from someone else.

  • People with existing access can be used by people who already have access to the document or folder. It does not change the permissions on the item. Use this if you just want to send a link to somebody who already has access. 

  • Specific people gives access only to the people you specify, although other people may already have access. If people forward the sharing invitation, only people who already have access to the item will be able to use the link.

Note: If a sharing option has been greyed out, your organization's admins may have restricted them. For example, they may choose to disable the Anyone option to prevent usable links being forwarded to others.

By default, Allow editing is turned on. If you want people to only view your files, uncheck the check box. This can be further restricted by selecting the option to Block download, which means they cannot save a local copy.

7-Once you're back at the main Share box, select Copy Link to copy the link to your clipboard.

Once you're back at the main Share box, select Copy Link to copy the link to your clipboard.

Note: "https://1drv.ms” is the shortened URL for OneDrive. 

8-Paste the link in an email message or wherever else you’re sharing the link.

Tip: You can also generate sharing links through the OneDrive desktop app for Windows 7, Windows 10, and Mac. All you need to do is right-click the file or folder in your OneDrive folder on your computer, and select Share a OneDrive link. This will copy a link to your clipboard that you can paste into an email, website, blog post, and so forth.

However, these links are set by default to Edit permission. If you only want someone to have View permission, you'll need to use the OneDrive website to generate the link (or modify the one you just created).

Sharing folders

When you share folders with Edit permissions, people you share with can add the shared folders to their own OneDrive. This lets them keep the folder alongside their own folders and items, easily move items between folders, and more easily work on it offline. Any updates they make sync with the shared folder, so everyone with access to the folder is up to date.