Microsoft Teams: Sharing Files from within a Team

Overview

Microsoft Teams is an easy way to pull together a group to share, collaborate and communicate in one central location without the use of phone calls that take time away from our day or emails that can easily get buried.  From directly within Teams we can bring everyone together to share information, securely edit files live and at the same time, bring together Microsoft Office 365 apps (OneDrive, OneNote, Planner, Forms, etc) and third-party apps and websites in one place, tag members of the team in conversations or actions and customize the work through adding notes (OneNote and others) and other applications.

For a more in-depth walk-through with Microsoft Teams, view the Tech Talk video training.

There are multiple ways to share files from within a Team to those who need access to those files.

First Method: Sharing a file from the Files tab

1. From within your Team, Select Files and then find the file you would like to share.
2. Click on the three dots to the right of the file name, and the Copy Link
   
   
    
3. This will generate a link to the file that you can share with anyone who has access to the Team.  You can paste this link into an email, Canvas, or anywhere else.  When someone clicks this link, it will take them to the file within Teams and retain the same access level they have within your Team and/or Channel.
   
   If you desire to limit access to the file, it is recommended that you create a Private Channel to share the file.  This will limit access to the file only to those who have access to the Channel.
   
   

Second Method: Sharing a file from the Files tab (For Read-Only Access)

1. From within your Team, Select Files and then find the file you would like to share.
2. Click on the three dots to the right of the file name, and then click Open in Sharepoint.
   
   
    
3. In SharePoint, you will see a very similar file listing as you saw in Teams.  However, in this view, you can mouse over the file and see the sharing arrow (highlighted in yellow).  Click on the Sharing Arrow.
   
   
    
4. Once you click the Sharing Arrow, you will see a familiar sharing screen similar to the one you would see if you shared a file from OneDrive.
5. Here you can select whom you would like to give access to, if it should be full access or read-only access, and if they are allowed to download the file.  Select the appropriate group that you would like to give access to (anyone, anyone at Cedar Crest, anyone who already has access, or specific people).  If you select specific people, you will be taken to a screen to specify who those people are.
   
   
    
6. If you would like to share this file with read-only access, uncheck the Allow editing box.  If you would like to keep individuals from downloading their own copy of the file, and limit them to only viewing only, click the Block download slider to the right.  Then click Apply.
   
   
   
    
7. When you click apply, you will be taken to the screen that allows you to the screen that you can share the link from.  If you've set the previous screen properly, you can select Copy Link.  If not, you can click where it shows who has access to get back to the previous screen.
   
   
   
    
8. Once you click Copy Link, the link will be copied to your clipboard.  You can then post that wherever you need it (Email, Canvas, etc).  This will give anyone with the link, and access, the level of access that you specified in previous steps.