Managing SharePoint Permission Levels

SharePoint permission levels enables users and webmasters to easily access all the resources that they want. A SharePoint admin can set up various permissions that will enable the site users to perform a particular action or task. A collection of so many permissions is often grouped into a collection known as “The permission level”.

If you would like to allow your site visitors to read items on your site, you-must also allow them to open all the pages that contain the items. In SharePoint, permission levels are used to specify which actions users can perform for a particular list or site. The site administrator can set permissions on whether visitors can change, view or manage the site. By-default, SharePoint contains some permission levels and you can customize the settings to fit your requirements.

Managing SharePoint Permission Levels

Types of Default SharePoint Permission Levels

  • View only- This settings allows visitors and users to view pages, documents and items in a site. People can view all documents that have a server side file handler but cannot download any files.
  • Approve- Used to allow users to approve and edit pages, documents and list items. by-default, the approved-group have this permission.
  • Restricted read- allows users to view documents and pages, but not historical-versions.
  • Manage hierarchy- edit pages, create websites, documents and list items. By-default this type of permission is only granted to the hierarchy of managers groups.
  • Read- allows visitor to view items , pages, lists and all documents in a library. However, this permission does not allow visitors to download any file.
  • contribute- make some updates, view, add and delete files and documents in a list.
  •  Limited access- by default, SharePoint permission levels allows users and groups to browse libraries and site pages when accessing specific items. Groups and users are not allowed to edit or open any other items contained in a library. As the site administrator, you must assign some access permission and limit content items that you would not want your groups or users to manage.
  •  Edit- enables one to delete lists, add, edit , update and delete documents. By-default, this permission is only assigned to group members only.
  • Design- create documents and lists, change themes, style sheets and edit pages on the site. This permission is not assigned automatically and SharePoint site administrators must choose who to grant this permission.
  • Full control- contain several SharePoint permissions. By-default, the site owners group is assigned to this permission automatically and the site admin cannot delete it or customize the settings.

As the SharePoint owner or administrator, you can associate site permissions with permission-levels and also associate permission-levels with SharePoint groups and users. SharePoint groups and users are associated with securable-objects such as list items, libraries, folders, lists, apps, documents and libraries. In SharePoint 2013 and 2010, site owners can modify permissions of different levels and control how their website is accessed. Unlike SharePoint 2007, the newer versions of sharepoint comes with advanced control options and administrators can assign various permission to a specified location.

If your site runs on an application, you can also control how the app is accessed, edited and viewed. SharePoint 2013 permission management helps administrators to create different roles for a SharePoint app. Each role can be assigned to access a subset of information and perform different tasks. You can write a particular code and embed it with your app to create different roles.

A SharePoint site that does not run on a particular app can also use “SharePoint Customized Apps” to set and create permission on a site. The most commonly used app for setting permission is the “SharePoint Permission app”. This app allows employees and site users to request managers to approve budgets, documents and files they upload to a site. The app also allows users to request permission for viewing items, documents, lists and list items that are limited in access settings. The permission apps supports the following roles; requester, approver and administrator. A site administrator can set some settings to manage all requests. A site user or visitor can submit a request and the site manager or administrator might choose to ether reject or approve the request.

Windows SharePoint-Services 3.0 permissions

windows SharePoint_service 3.0 contains 33 permissions where five of them are set in a default form. As the site admin, you can change the permissions that are included in all SharePoint permission levels except for “full-control-permission-levels” and limited access. In SharePoint permissions are categorized as site permissions, list permissions, personal permissions and objects that they apply to. For example list-permissions can apply libraries and lists, site-permissions to a specified site and personal-permission can apply to things such as personal views, comments and private web-parts.

Descriptions and Dependencies

Most SharePoint permissions are usually dependent on other permissions. Once you choose to edit or set a permission that is dependent on another one, the the granted permission on the dependent will be aromatically selected. Deleting a permission that is dependent on another permission will clear both permissions.

Once you create a site-collection online, you will automatically get several SharePoint-groups. If the groups permissions do not match with your requirements. go to site actions>>> site-settings >>> site-permissions, in the permission and users area settings of your site. Change the permission settings and modify them according to your requirements, click on the save button to update the changes you have made.

By-default, users in a members group can edit and create pages as well as upload documents and images to a page. However they cannot publish those images, documents and pages on the SharePoint site. As the site administrator, you can choose whether to grant them the permission to publish pages or whether to request you when they want to publish anything on the site.

As the SharePoint site admin, you set different SharePoint permission levels to control how your website will be managed. The permission granting interface, allows administrators to gain full control over their site. By just enabling some settings, a site admin can choose whether to allow his users to download, upload, view, edit and add files to the site. If you want to easily manage your SharePoint site, you must grant or disapprove SharePoint permission levels for site users, visitors and group members who access the site.

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Marissa Hart is the Lead Author & Editor ShareMe. ShareMe is a blog focused on SharePoint Online. SharePoint Online delivers the powerful features of SharePoint without the associated overhead of managing the infrastructure.