How To Restrict Access To A Specific Folder In SharePoint

Key Takeaways

To restrict access to a specific folder in SharePoint, you need to hover over the folder and click the three dots. From there, go to “Manage access,” then “Advanced,” click “Stop Inheriting Permissions,” check the “Members” and “Visitors” boxes, then click “Remove User Permissions.” [More…]


To undo the access restrictions and unique permissions, click “Delete Unique Permissions.” Then re-add the “Members” and “Visitors” groups. [More…]

Some organizations — smaller ones in particular — will have one SharePoint team site where everything (i.e., important and confidential company documents) is stored. However, it’s potentially risky to have all your site members able to access everything within the site in any scenario, which is why we see a lot of organizations asking if they can restrict access to specific folders in SharePoint.

How to restrict access to a specific folder in SharePoint:

  1. In SharePoint, open the site containing the folder you’re restricting access to.
  2. Click “Documents.”
  3. Hover over the folder to which you want to restrict access.
  4. Click the three vertical dots.
  5. Click “Manage access.”
  6. Click “Advanced.”
  7. Click “Stop Inheriting Permissions.”
  8. Select the groups you want to revoke access from and click “Remove User Permissions.”
  9. OPTIONAL: Grant permissions to extra users.
  • Get SharePoint from $6.00 per month with Microsoft 365 Business Basic.

info Note: your Microsoft 365 user must have the appropriate roles assigned to follow this process. You must be either a Global or SharePoint admin.

We’ve also created a video that walks you through all the steps given above. You can give it a watch here:

Please continue reading for a visual, in-depth guide on everything you need to know about restricting access to a specific folder in SharePoint.


What permissions can you grant to a SharePoint file?

  • Full Control
  • Design
  • Edit
  • Contribute
  • Read
  • Restricted View

How to restrict access to a specific folder in SharePoint (Step-by-step, with screenshots):

You can restrict access to a specific folder in SharePoint by following this simple process. The only thing to remember is that you need to have the appropriate privileges assigned to your Microsoft 365 user. You need to be either a global admin or a SharePoint admin to make these changes.

  • First, go to Office.com and sign in using your Microsoft 365 credentials.
  • Click the app launcher. (1)
  • Then select “SharePoint” from the menu. (2)
  • Click the My sites” icon on the left menu. (1)
  • Open the SharePoint site in which the folder you want to restrict is located. (2)
  • Click “Documents.” (1)
  • Hover over the folder to which you want to restrict access.
  • Click the three vertical dots. (2)
  • Select “Manage access” from the pop-up menu. (3)

Locate the folder that you want to restrict access to. Hover over the folder with your cursor, and three vertical dots will appear — in our example, we hovered over a folder named “Sensitive Information.” Click the three vertical dots, and a menu will open up. Then select “Manage access.”

  • Click on “Advanced” in the bottom right corner of the pop-up box.
  • Click on “Stop Inheriting Permissions,” and a dialogue box will open.
  • Click the “OK” button in the dialogue box.

With default settings, a folder within your document repository will “inherit” the permissions of the root/parent folder. The default parent folder permissions let any member of a team site access all the folders and files stored within.

When you click “Stop Inheriting Permissions,” it allows you to set specific permissions for that folder. So while members of the team site can still access the rest of the files and folders as before, you can stop them from accessing the folder that is no longer inheriting permissions.

  • Next, uncheck the checkbox next to “Members.” (1)
  • And uncheck the checkbox next to “Visitors.” (2)
  • Then click “Remove User Permissions.” (3)
  • Click the OK” button when the dialogue box opens.

The process is as simple as that. After clicking Remove User Permissions,” the users within those groups can no longer access the folder.

OPTIONAL: Grant permissions to extra users

If you want to give extra people the appropriate SharePoint permission level to access the folder rather than revoke access, the screenshot below will walk you through the process.

  • Click Grant Permissions.” (1)
  • A dialogue box will open, allowing you to share the file or folder.
  • Enter the name(s) of who you want to grant access to. (2)
  • Click “Show Options” to select a permission level. (3)
  • Then click the “Share” button. (4)

info Note: If you left “Send an email invitation ticked in “Show Options,” the user(s) you invited will receive an email containing a link that will grant them access to the file or folder.


How to restrict access to a SharePoint folder by group

You can find a list of groups on your SharePoint Online start or home page. The groups will be listed on the left pane and displayed under the “Frequent sites” header.

  • Now return to “Permissions” as described in the section above.
  • Click “Grant permissions.”
  • This time, instead of typing a username, type a group name.
  • Now, when you click the “Share” button, the file or folder will be shared with everyone in the group(s) you selected.

How to remove restrictions from a specific folder in SharePoint

If you want to remove restrictions from the “Members” and “Visitors” groups, you can do that by granting permission back to those groups. However, that should be done separately to avoid granting the same permission level to Members and Visitors. We advise that Members are granted “Edit” permissions, whereas Visitors should be granted “Read” permissions.

Add Members

  • First, click “Grant Permissions.” (1)
  • Type your Site Name, which in this case is “Demo,” then a space, followed by “Members.” (2)
  • The “Members” group for the “Demo” site is “Demo Members.”
  • Next, click on “Show Options.” (3)
  • By default, the permission level should be “Edit,” but select your preferred level. (4)
  • Finally, click the “Share” button. (5)

Add Visitors

  • First, click “Grant Permissions.” (1)
  • Type your Site Name, which in this case is “Demo,” then a space, followed by “Visitors.” (2)
  • The “Visitors” group for the “Demo” site is “Demo Visitors.”
  • Next, click on “Show Options.” (3)
  • Click the select box and choose “Read” from the list. (4)
  • Finally, click the “Share” button. (5)

You may have to refresh the page to see the groups you’ve added.


How to view unique permissions for all files and folders in a SharePoint site

  • First, open SharePoint.
  • Select a site from the home page or go to My Sites” on the left menu. (1)
  • Then select a site from the left pane. (2)
  • Click the gear icon in the top right corner of your SharePoint site to access “Settings.” (1)
  • Then select “Site permissions” from the Settings menu. (2)
  • Then select “Advanced permissions settings” at the bottom.
  • Click the “Show these items” link inside the yellow message box.
  • Click “view exceptions.”

You will now be presented with a list of items that have unique permissions. To see what those permissions are, click on “manage permissions” next to the items.


How to remove unique permissions from files and folders in SharePoint

  • First, open SharePoint.
  • Click the My sites” icon on the left menu. (1)
  • Open the SharePoint site in which the folder you want to change is located. (2)
  • Click “Documents.” (1)
  • Hover over the folder to which you want to restrict access.
  • Click the three vertical dots. (2)
  • Select “Manage access” from the pop-up menu. (3)

Locate the folder that you want to edit. Hover over the folder with your cursor, and three vertical dots will appear — in our example, we hovered over a folder named “Sensitive Information.” Click the three vertical dots, and a menu will open up. Then select “Manage access.”

  • Click on “Advanced” in the bottom right corner of the dialogue box.
  • Next, click on “Delete unique permissions.”
  • Finally, click the OK” button in the dialogue box.
  • The file or folder will now inherit permissions from its parent.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How do I change folder properties in SharePoint?

  • First, locate the file or folder that you want to change.
  • In the list view, click the name of the folder.
  • In the grid view, click the folder icon.
  • Then, click the info icon in the top right corner.
  • You can view and edit the properties in the right-hand pane.

How do I prevent people from sharing files in SharePoint?

To prevent people from sharing files in SharePoint, you need to open SharePoint and click the gear icon from the home page.

  • From there, click “Site settings.”
  • Next, click “Site permissions” under “Users and Permissions.”
  • Then click “Access request settings” in the top menu.
  • Uncheck the box next to “Allow members to share the site and individual files and folders.”
  • Then click the “OK” button.

Conclusion

You can restrict access to a SharePoint folder by removing the “Members” and “Visitors” groups so that only the “Owners” have access. You can also restrict access to users and groups by granting access to specific users and groups so that anyone who is not granted access is thereby restricted.

The important point to remember is that if you want to re-add Members and Visitors, ensure that the permissions level for Visitors is set to “Read.” You can do that by granting permissions to each group individually. If you grant permissions to both groups at the same time, they will both retain the same permissions level.

Thank you for reading.

Jack Mitchell

Jack Mitchell has been the Operations manager at telecoms and MSP Optionbox for more than 4 years. He has played a crucial role in the company, from marketing to helpdesk, and ensures that the IT requirements of over 300 clients are continuously met. With his innate passion for technology and troubleshooting and a particular interest in Apple products, Jack now delivers the most comprehensive tech guides to make your life easier. You can connect with Jack on LinkedIn.

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