Body
Summary
This article explains the options for using an external Microsoft account to collaborate on USNH Microsoft documents.
Content
People who are not current, active students, faculty, staff, or sponsored users at one of the USNH institutions are considered "external" to the USNH Microsoft M365 environment or "tenant". External users must be invited into the USNH tenant in order to be able to collaborate on shared documents. While view-only access is possible for some documents, users must be invited into the tenant to edit or comment on shared documents.
To accept the invitation as an external user, you must have a Microsoft account to log into and the invitation must be sent to the email address associated with that Microsoft account.
Choose one of these three options for the Microsoft account you use for external sharing from USNH.
How-To
Task: To use an external Microsoft work, school, or institutional account
Instructions
Step 1 - Confirm you have access to your Microsoft account email Inbox
Step 1a - Browse to outlook.office.com
Step 1b - Sign in with your external Microsoft work, school, or institutional account email address or appropriate credentials
Step 2 - Confirm you know what your email address is for this account. If you already do know it, skip to Step 3.
Step 2a - Click "New mail" in the upper left to start a new email message.
Step 2b - Click the "Options" tab in the top menu bar.
Step 2c - Check the box to "Show From"
Step 2d - Look in the "From" field - your default email address will appear
Step 3 - Ask your USNH contacts to invite this email address to the USNH tenant as an external collaborator
Step 4 - When you receive the email invitation from Microsoft, click the link to access the USNH shared site - using that link in the invitation email "accepts" your invitation.
In this example, you would click New Site:
Outcome
You should be able to collaborate on USNH documents to which you have been invited using this email address.
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Task: To use a personal Microsoft account
Instructions
Step 1 - Confirm you have access to your Microsoft account email Inbox
Step 1a - Browse to outlook.office.com
Step 1b - Sign in with your personal Microsoft account email address
Step 2 - Confirm you know what your email address is for this account. If you already do know it, skip to Step 3.
Step 2a - Click "New mail" in the upper left to start a new email message.
Step 2b - Click the "Options" tab in the top menu bar.
Step 2c - Check the box to "Show From"
Step 2d - Look in the "From" field - your default email address will appear
Step 3 - Ask your USNH contacts to invite this email address to the USNH tenant as an external collaborator
Step 4 - When you receive the email invitation from Microsoft, click the link to access the USNH shared site - using that link in the invitation email "accepts" your invitation.
In this example, you would click New Site:
Outcome
You should be able to collaborate on USNH documents to which you have been invited using this email address.
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Task: To create a new personal Microsoft account
See How to create a new Microsoft account - with video or follow these steps.
Instructions
Step 1 - Browse to account.microsoft.com
Step 2 - Click "Sign in"
Step 3 - Below the blank, click on the "No account? Create one!" link.
Step 4 Option A - Type in your already-existing personal email address to use for your Microsoft account login and communication. You may need to log into that email account to get a security code during the setup process, so be sure your personal Inbox is available before you continue.
OR
Step 4 Option B - If you'd rather create a new Microsoft email address to use for this Microsoft account, click the "Get a new email address" link.
- Type in the email address you want and choose @outlook.com or @hotmail.com from the drop-down box. When you click "Next", Microsoft will tell you if that email address is already taken and offer you the chance to type a different one or see some similar, available addresses.
Step 5 - Click Next, and then follow the instructions to set up a password and the rest of the account information required by Microsoft.
Outcome
You have created a Microsoft account which you can use for collaborating with USNH as an external user. Continue with the task: To use a personal Microsoft account.
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Further Readings
Outlook: Adding Members to your M365 Group
outlook.office.com
account.microsoft.com
How to create a new Microsoft account - with video
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.