Summary
This article provides information on Creating and Managing SharePoint Groups.
Context
A SharePoint group allows collaborators to have the same set of permissions to sites and content. Rather than assign permissions individually, you can use groups to conveniently assign the same permission level to many people at once. Expand a topic below for the tasks you want to achieve.
How-To
Create a group
Note: To do the following steps, specific permissions to Create Groups and Manage Permissions are needed. The Full Control level has both of these permissions.
Instructions
Step 1 - On the website or team site, click Settings (the gear icon).
Step 2 - Click Site Permissions.
Step 3 - Click Advanced Permissions.
Step 4 - Click Create Group, and in the Name and About me boxes, type a name and description for this SharePoint group.
- Note: Do not use special characters in the group name, i.e. \"'/{}:<>+=,;?*@
Step 5 - In the Owner box, specify a single owner of this security group.
Step 6 - In the Group Settings section, specify who can view and edit the membership of this group.
Step 7 - In the Membership Requests section, select the preferred settings for requests to join or leave the group. You can specify the email address to which requests should be sent.
Step 8 - In the Give Group Permissions to this Site section, choose a permission level for this group.
- Full Control - full control.
- Design - can view, add, update, delete, approve, and customize.
- Edit - can add, edit and delete lists, can view, add, update, and delete list items and documents.
- Contribute - can view, add, update, and delete list items and document.
- Read - can view page and list items and download documents.
Step 9 - Click Create.
Add users to a group
Note: You can add users to a group at any time.
Instructions
Step 1 - On the website or team site, click Settings (the gear icon).
Step 2 - Click Site Permissions.
Step 3 - Click Advanced Permissions.
Step 4 - Click the group you want to add users, then click the arrow next to New and choose Add Users Add Users to this Group.
Step 5 - Enter the email address of the people you wish to invite. You can also include a message with the invitation if you wish.
- Note: DO NOT choose everyone, if you wish everyone in the USNH system to have access please put in a ticket USNH ET&S Ticketing System.
Step 6 - Click Share.
Remove users or groups from a SharePoint online site
Note: DO NOT delete any of the default SharePoint groups, this can make the system unstable. Only delete group(s) you have created and no longer want to use.
Instructions
Step 1 - On the website or team site, click Settings (the gear icon).
Step 2 - Click Site Permissions.
Step 3 - Click Advanced Permissions.
Step 4 - In your list of users and group, click the checkbox next to the group or user you wish to remove.
Step 5 - Click the Remove User Permissions icon in the ribbon (upper left corner).
Step 6 - The warning "You are about to remove all permissions for the following user or group xxx" will appear. If you do want to remove permissions, click OK. Otherwise click Cancel.
Step 7 - The user or group will be removed from your permissions list.
From the ribbon, you also can check permission levels of individuals and groups, and edit user permissions.
Grant site access to a group
Instructions
Step 1 - On the website or team site, click Settings (the gear icon).
Step 2 - Click Site Permissions.
Step 3 - Click Advanced Permissions.
Step 4 - Click Grant Permissions.
Step 5 - In the Share dialog, type the name of the SharePoint group that you want to give access to.
Step 6 - By default, the Share dialog displays the message Invite people to Edit or Invite people with Can edit permissions. This grants permissions in the SharePoint Members group. To choose a different permission level, click Show options and then choose a different SharePoint group or permission level under Select a permission level or Select a group or permission level. The drop down box shows both groups and individual permission levels, like Edit or View Only.
Step 7 - Click Share.
Assign a new permission level to a group
If you have customized a permission level or created a new permission level, you can assign it to groups or users.
Note: Permissions for the default SharePoint groups (Owners, Members, and Visitors) for Team sites that are connected to a Microsoft 365 group can't be modified.
Instructions
Step 1 - On the website or team site, click Settings (the gear icon).
Step 2 - Click Site Permissions.
Step 3 - Click Advanced Permissions.
Step 4 - In your list of users and group, select the checkbox next to the group or user who's permission level is changing.
Step 5 - On the Permissions tab (upper left corner), click Edit User Permissions.
Step 6 - On the Edit Permissions page, select the check box next to the name of the new permission level. If you select multiple permission levels, the permission level assigned to the group is the union of the individual permissions in the different levels. That is, if one level includes permissions (A, B, C), and the other level includes permissions (C, D), the new level for the group includes permissions (A, B, C, D).
Step 7 - Click OK.
Further Reading
Understand groups and permissions on a SharePoint site
Overview: Site governance, permission, and sharing for site owners
Need additional help?
For assistance concerning site creation, content sharing, file synchronization, or other common SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, or Office app activities, we recommend our Microsoft 365 Learning sites:
Learn more about the great tools our Microsoft 365 Learning sites offer!
Visit the Technology Help Desk Support page to locate your local campus contact information or to submit an online technology support request. For password issues you must call or visit the Help Desk in person.