Microsoft 365
SharePoint or OneDrive: where should this file live?
A simple rule for choosing, and how to share properly without emailing attachments around.
Last reviewed 20 August 2026
The rule is ownership. If the business owns the document, it belongs in SharePoint or a Teams channel. If it's your own drafts and personal working files, OneDrive.
- OneDrive — yours. Disappears with you when you leave, which is exactly why finished team documents shouldn't live there.
- SharePoint / Teams files — the team's. Permissions follow the team, survive staff changes and don't need re-sharing every time.
Sharing properly
- 1Open the file and choose Share, not attach.
- 2Set the link scope: people in your organisation, specific people, or anyone with the link.
- 3For external recipients, use 'specific people' so the link only works for them.
- 4Choose whether they can edit or only view.
- 5Set an expiry date for anything shared outside the business.
'Anyone with the link' means exactly that — anyone it's forwarded to, indefinitely. Avoid it for anything you'd mind seeing elsewhere.
Still stuck?
Log it with the helpdesk and a real engineer will pick it up — or book a call if you'd rather talk it through.