SharePoint has “share” in the name, yet every time someone sends me a link, I click it and land on the same screen: “Sorry, you don’t have access.” Then I’m asked to request permission…from the person who just shared it with me. It happens every single time. The problem isn’t people. It’s the permission model. SharePoint inherits rules from parent folders most of us never see, so the system quietly overrides the very action the user just took. Here’s how to fix it: • Honor the intent. If someone shares a file with a person, grant the access immediately. • Make “Request Access” rare. Use it when access shouldn’t be granted, not as the default experience. • Trust the sharer. If someone with access shares a file, permissions should align automatically. With a few smart changes, this could work the way people expect it to. Sharing should be a single action, not a multi-step detour.
Nate Lynch
4mo
These replies point to the same bigger issue: sharing isn’t easy. There are too many ways to do it right, even more ways to do it wrong, and no clear path for the average user. When every shared link I receive across multiple companies leads to the same “you don’t have access” message, that’s not a training problem, that’s a design problem. If most people consistently struggle with the same action, the system isn’t guiding them well enough. A great sharing experience should be simple, predictable, and aligned with user intent. SharePoint has the pieces, but the flow needs to be clearer and more unified so people know exactly how to grant access on the first try. This isn’t about blame, it’s an opportunity. With a few thoughtful improvements, sharing could feel effortless instead of confusing.
Terence Rabe
4mo
There a multiple modes of "sharing" in SharePoint. You can... - Copy and paste the link (which is usually the culprit for the message you shared) - Save or upload a file into an area where the audience has access and tell them it's there - Use the Share button - Use Copy link button - Use Teams as the front end , which has options of it's own There's no right or wrong way, but *it is* important for the team in each case to agree what's best for their workload and then stick to it. Most of the friction comes from everyone freestyling their preferred way of sharing without knowing the impact they have on colleagues (and cybersecurity). And before anyone comes @ me with 'why can't it be easy like Google', trust me you do not want to see the absolute governance nightmare the freewheeling Google Workplace sharing creates under the hood 😱
Jonathan Stuckey
4mo
Yep its a common issue with this (and other) platforms that try to be all things for all people (and situations). In SPO sharing where the default is "share to people with existing access" causes entirely different experience to where its "everyone in the organisation can access". The issue is compounded with multiple solutions managing different profiles (and sensitivity) of information where the behaviours are changed - mostly for the right reasons. From the users perspective they just see "Its SharePoint". UX needs grounding in purpose and intent, but then so does the training and support that goes with it.
Texas Health Resources•410 followers
4moSpot on. The parent folder inheritance model makes sense from an IT security perspective but breaks user expectations every time. What most orgs don’t realize: you can configure ‘Share’ to automatically break inheritance and grant direct permissions. It’s a setting most admins don’t touch, but it solves exactly this problem.