Sharing and collaborating on files

Choosing the right storage location makes sharing and collaboration easier.

Files stored in Teams and SharePoint are available to people who already have access to those spaces.

Files stored in OneDrive are private until you choose to share them.

You can share files from OneDrive, Teams, or SharePoint.

Select the file and choose Share, or open the file in Word, Excel or PowerPoint and select Share.

When sharing a file, choose who should be able to access it:

• People you choose – specific people you select.
• People in UWE Bristol – all staff and students.
• Anyone with the link – people outside UWE Bristol can access the file. They may need a Microsoft account to view it.

Use the most restrictive option that meets your needs.

When possible, send a link to a file rather than attaching a copy to an email.

Benefits include:

• Everyone works from the latest version.
• Changes are visible to all collaborators.
• Fewer duplicated files.
• Reduced email storage and attachment sizes.

When composing an email in Outlook, you can choose files from OneDrive or Teams using Attach File. Outlook will try to check whether recipients already have access to the file.

Before sharing a file:

• Check that recipients genuinely need access.
• Avoid creating unnecessary sharing links.
• Consider adding people to a Team rather than sharing multiple individual files.
• Be cautious when approving access requests.
• Regularly review who can access your files.

Sharing with external users

Files can be shared with people outside UWE Bristol using appropriate sharing links. These links expire automatically after 12 months or less if you reduce them.

It's good practice to regularly check which files you have shared with others.
This helps you identify files that may be shared more widely than intended.

Check who has access to a file

To review sharing permissions for a file:

1. Open the file.
2. Select Share.
3. Select Manage access.
4. Review the people and links that have access.

Check all links

To check which types of links you have created and applied to your files, you can generate a report from OneDrive:

1. Go to https://onedrive.com/ and log in with your UWE Bristol account.
2. On the Settings menu, select OneDrive settings.
3. Select More settings, and then select Run sharing report.
4. Choose a location to save the report, and then select Save.