What is external sharing in SharePoint?
External Sharing in SharePoint refers to users' ability to share sites, files, and folders with users outside of the organization.
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This Microsoft 365 feature allows organizations to collaborate securely with external partners, clients, vendors, or contractors while maintaining control over shared content.
There are several levels of external sharing in SharePoint, ranging from:
- Anyone links (anonymous access) - No sign-in required
- New and existing guests - Requires recipients to verify identity and authenticate
- Existing guests only - Only users already in the organization's directory can access
- No external sharing - Access limited to internal users only
Administrators can configure external sharing settings at both the tenant and site levels, determining whether sharing is allowed, restricted to specific domains, or requires additional authentication.
Organizations can enforce policies such as expiration dates on shared links, sensitivity labels, and audit logs to monitor and control external sharing and prevent unauthorized data access.
