How to share your microsoft word document using onedrive
Pablo Calvog/Shutterstock Microsoft’s OneDrive cloud storage service (formerly and somewhat more colorfully known as SkyDrive) is a perfectly serviceable “bucket” of data storage, but it really shines when you pair it up with Windows itself. It’s also fairly competent at sharing files and folders with other OneDrive users, or even with public users on the web. If you need a little instruction, the following guide will show you how to share OneDrive files better than a kindergarten teacher.
On the web
The web interface of OneDrive doesn’t have any particular advantages over the integrated Windows version or the stand-alone desktop app, but it’s useful if you happen to be using a computer that isn’t yours. Just log into the site (onedrive.live.com) with the same Microsoft account that you use on your own computer. The default view is “Files,” which shows all the files in your root folder and the folders therein, including both default folders and any you’ve created yourself.
Michael Crider/Digital Trends
To share an individual file, navigate to the relevant folder, then right-click on its icon or thumbnail. Click “Share” to open the Share menu. From here you can invite people via an email, or click “Get a link” to create a publicly-visible link to view or download the file. Send that link through an email, text message, instant message, or any other medium, and your recipient will instantly have access to the file. (Remember, this link makes the file available to anyone, including anyone that your recipients share the link with!)
To adjust permissions, click “Recipients can only view.” Here you can select whether the people you send the file to can edit the file, and whether users without a Microsoft/OneDrive account can view the file. This makes a difference, since non-Microsoft users will have to download the file and re-upload it to share it, instead of using the built-in OneDrive tools.
Michael Crider/Digital Trends
If you want to share a folder, do the same thing — just right-click it and click “Share” to open the Share menu. You can share multiple items at once by holding down the Ctrl button, clicking each item, then clicking the “Share” button on the top menu. Remember, any files in your “Public” folder (which is included in OneDrive by default) are automatically shared with all web users.
In Windows 10 and Windows 8.1
OneDrive is deeply integrated with Windows 10 and Windows 8.1 – it’s built right into the default file explorer, and any files placed in the OneDrive folder will be automatically uploaded to Microsoft’s servers whenever you have an Internet connection. That makes it easy to share files: just upload them to OneDrive and use the Share function in any OneDrive app. But the service is so integrated that you don’t even need to leave the file browser.
Michael Crider/Digital Trends
Open your OneDrive folder in File Explorer – by default, it’s above “This PC” in the navigation panel on the left side. Right-click on any file or folder, then click “Share a OneDrive link.” The public link to the file or folder will automatically be saved to your clipboard. Now just right-click and select “Paste” or press Ctrl+V in an email, text message, et cetera. The link works the same way as it does in the web version.
Michael Crider/Digital Trends
If you need to stop sharing a file or folder, right-click it, then click “More OneDrive sharing options.” Your default browser will open the web version of OneDrive. Now click “Don’t share this folder” to revoke access to anyone who clicked the share link. Be aware: revoking access won’t help you if the recipient has already downloaded or modified the file.
Windows 8 and Windows 7 users
Older versions of Windows don’t come with the OneDrive service pre-installed. To get more or less the same functionality as newer versions of Windows, go to this address and download the OneDrive executable. Run it, log in with your primary Microsoft account, and select a folder location. Then follow the steps above to share files either on your desktop or on the web.
Other platforms
Microsoft takes a platform-agnostic approach to OneDrive, so apps are available on Windows, Windows Phone, OS X, iOS, Android, and even the Xbox. On OS X the app works the same as the Windows version, syncing local and cloud copies of files. On mobile platforms, OneDrive allows you to view and download your cloud files, but doesn’t keep a local copy of each file. You can still share links in the mobile apps, though the interface for doing so varies from platform to platform.
Marshall GunnellMarshall Gunnell
Writer
Marshall Gunnell is a writer with experience in the data storage industry. He worked at Synology, and most recently as CMO and technical staff writer at StorageReview. He’s currently an API/Software Technical Writer at LINE Corporation in Tokyo, Japan, runs ITEnterpriser, a data-storage and cybersecurity-focused online media, and plays with development, with his RAID calculator being his first public project. Read more.
Aside from the traditional method of sending a Microsoft Word document to others as an email attachment, you can also upload and share your document from the cloud. All you need to get started is an OneDrive account. Here’s how.
Saving a Word document to the cloud is easy and only requires a few steps on your end. To achieve this, though, you’ll need an OneDrive account. If you’re a Microsoft 365 or Office 365 subscriber, then you already have one. If not, create a Microsoft account, and sign in to OneDrive.
Once you’ve gotten your OneDrive account set up, open the Word document that you’d like to share. Once open, select the “Share” button, located in the top-right corner of the window.
Once selected, the “Share” window will appear. There are a few options to choose from here. In the “Attach A Copy Instead” group, you can choose to send your document as a Word or PDF attachment. If you select either of these options, your default email client will open with the file set as an attachment.
What we’re interested in though is sharing it from OneDrive. To do this, Select your “OneDrive” account under “Share.”
Once selected, Word will begin uploading a copy of your document to OneDrive. This could take a few moments depending on the size of the document.
The “Send Link” window will appear once the document is finished uploading. By default, anyone with the link can edit. If you’d like to change this setting, select the “Anyone With The Link Can Edit” box.
In the next window, uncheck the box next to (1) “Allow Editing” to remove the privilege. This renders the document read-only. You can also (2) set an expiration date, and/or (3) set a password to improve the security of the document. Once you’ve adjusted the settings, select “Apply.”
Finally, enter the email address of the recipient and click “Send.”
The recipient will receive an email providing access to the document. Please be sure to check your spam folder if you’re the recipient of the invitation, as it sometimes gets flagged.
Alternatively, you can copy the share link and send the link directly to the recipient on a chat app such as Slack or Zoom. To do this, select the “Copy Link” option.
In the next window, select “Copy.”
The link is now copied to your clipboard and ready to be shared. Once the recipient receives the link, they will be able to access the document.
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Marshall Gunnell
Marshall Gunnell is a writer with experience in the data storage industry. He worked at Synology, and most recently as CMO and technical staff writer at StorageReview. He’s currently an API/Software Technical Writer at LINE Corporation in Tokyo, Japan, runs ITEnterpriser, a data-storage and cybersecurity-focused online media, and plays with development, with his RAID calculator being his first public project.
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Does this sound painfully familiar? You email your coworkers a file. They add their feedback, and then you have to integrate comments and changes from 3 or 4 copies of your original.
There is another way. If you have an account on SharePoint or Microsoft OneDrive, you can store files, such as your Word documents, to one of those places, then use the Share command to let others read or edit your copy of the file. No more file pile, just one copy with everyone’s feedback. (Exactly what they can do to your file depends on the permissions you give them).
Here’s the process from start to finish. Skip ahead to the section you need.
Start by adding SharePoint or a OneDrive to your list of places in Word
In Word, click File > Save As > Add a place.
Under Add a place, click the service you want to use, like Office 365 SharePoint or OneDrive.
Complete the Sign in screen that appears for either service. You may need to contact your IT department for a user name and password.
Once you’re done, the new location appears on Word’s Save As pane.
Save to your new place and share
After you add a cloud storage location to your list of places, you can share your document. You only need to do this once per file.
Open the document you want to share.
Click File > Save As.
On the Save As page, double-click the location you want to use— your SharePoint document library, a location on your computer, your MySite, or your OneDrive.
Give the file a name and click Save. If this takes you back to the Info tab, click Share again.
Under Share with People (or, in Word 2013, Invite People), enter the names or email addresses of the people you want to share the file with.
If you want to, select Can Edit or Can View. The first option lets your coworkers change the file, the second keeps your file more secure.
Enter a message in the box below the address line if you want to, then click Share.
Share an already saved document
If you’ve already saved a file to SharePoint or a OneDrive, follow these steps.
Open the document you want to share.
Click File > Share > Share with People (or, in Word 2013, Invite People).
Enter the names or email addresses of the people you’re sharing with.
If you want to, click Can Edit or Can View. The first option lets your coworkers change the file. The second keeps your file more secure.
Enter a message in the box below the address line if you want to, then click Share.
Stop sharing with someone
And here’s how you stop sharing a document.
Open the document you don’t want to share.
Click File > Share.
Under Share with People (or, in Word 2013, Invite People), right-click the person you want to remove and click Remove User.
More about OneDrive and Microsoft 365
To open a OneDrive account, see Sign up for a Microsoft account.
To subscribe to a Microsoft 365 SharePoint account, see the Microsoft 365 home page.
If your company has SharePoint and you have questions about it, contact your system administrator.
When you share your document with others and give them permission to edit, everyone’s changes are made in the same document.
In the top right corner, above the ribbon, click Share.
Save your document in OneDrive, if it’s not already there.
Enter email addresses of the people you want to share with, and make choices for permission you want to allow.
Type a message if you want, and click Send.
The people you’re sharing with will get mail from you, with a link to your document.
In the top right corner, above the ribbon, click Share.
Enter email addresses of the people you want to share with, and make choices for permission you want to allow.
Type a message if you want, and click Send.
The people you’re sharing with will get mail from you, with a link to your document.
In the upper right corner, click the Share icon, and then click Invite People.
If the file is on your device, you’ll be asked to upload the file to the cloud first.
Invite users by adding their names or email addresses.
When adding names for the first time, Word will ask permission to access your Contacts.
To allow your users to edit the file, click the Can Edit check box. Add any comments in the comments field and click Share.
The people you’re sharing with will get mail from you, with a link to your document.
- Choose Share at the top left.
- Enter the names or emails of the people you wish to share your document.
- If you want to add a time limit for sharing, choose Anyone with a link can edit.
- Under Link Settings, add an expiration date. When you add a date, the link will only work until that timeframe. After that, the link will be invalid, and you will need to create a new link for users requiring access to your file or folder.
- You can also add a password from this same box. When a user clicks the password link, they will be prompted to enter a password before they can access the file. You’ll need to provide this password separately to users.
- Uncheck Allow editing, if needed. See below for some clarification.
- Click Apply.
With Allow editing selected, recipients can change files and add files in a shared folder if they’re signed in with a Microsoft account. Recipients can also forward the link, change the list of people sharing the data or folder, and change permissions for recipients. If you’re sharing a folder, people with edit permissions can copy, move, edit, rename, share, and delete anything in the folder. When this box is unchecked, people can view, copy, or download items without signing in. They can also forward the link to other people. However, they cannot make changes to the version on your OneDrive.
Finally, with the email addresses added, choose to Send. Recipients receive an email that provides access to the document. If they don’t receive the email, have them check their email junk or spam folder.
The recipient will receive an email providing access to the document. Please be sure to check your spam folder if you’re the recipient of the invitation, as it sometimes gets flagged. If you don’t want to send an email, you can choose Copy link. Select this option to share items using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Zoom, Slack, or similar apps, or through email or messaging. Anyone who gets the link can view or edit the item, depending on the set permission. Users with the link cannot upload new items, however.
As you can see, sharing documents through Microsoft’s OneDrive is a straightforward process that offers some customization, such as data expiration and password.
To share a file from within Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or another Office app:
Select Share on the ribbon.
Or, select File > Share.
Note: If your file is not already saved to OneDrive, you’ll be prompted to upload your file to OneDrive to share it.
Select who you want to share with from the drop-down, or enter a name or email address.
Add a message (optional) and select Send.
Share files from OneDrive
Right click the file and select Share.
Or, select a file and select Share on the toolbar.
Select who you want to share with from the drop-down, or enter a name or email address.
Add a message (optional) and select Send.
Change views
The left pane lets you filter your view of items in OneDrive.
Files – See all of your OneDrive files and folders.
Recent – See which Office documents you’ve opened most recently, whether you’ve modified them or not.
Shared – See items that you’ve shared with other people and that other people have shared with you.
Discover – See what’s trending around you, based on who you work with and what you’re working on.
Recycle bin – See items and folders that you’ve deleted.
Stop or change sharing
If you are the file owner, or have edit permissions, you can stop or change the sharing permissions.
Select the file or folder you want to stop sharing.
Select Information in the upper-right corner to open the Details pane.
Select Manage access and:
Select the X next to a link to disable it.
Select Can Edit or Can View, and then select Stop Sharing.
Select Can Edit or Can View and then select Change to….
Select a file and select Copy link.
With Microsoft OneDrive, you can back up and sync your folders and files in the cloud and share them with friends and family.
You can house your files in the cloud at a variety of online storage sites—including Dropbox, Box, Google Drive, and iCloud—but only Microsoft OneDrive is built directly into Windows 10.
With OneDrive, you can store documents, photos, and other files online and sync them across multiple computers and devices. You can also share any file on OneDrive with other people.
To use OneDrive, you need a Microsoft Account, which you can set up through the Microsoft account website. You will also need the right type of storage plan for your needs. A basic free plan offers you 5GB of OneDrive space. For $1.99 a month, you can score 100GB of real estate. A subscription to Microsoft 365 Personal ($6.99 a month or $69.99 a year) grants you a hefty 1TB of OneDrive space, while Microsoft 365 Family ($9.99/month or $99.99/year) doles out 1TB each for up to six users.
Set Up OneDrive
OneDrive is automatically available and ready to use in Windows 10. In fact, when you go through the Windows 10 setup, you’re asked if you want to use OneDrive. If you missed that opportunity, you should still see an icon for OneDrive in the System Tray. If the icon does not appear, you’ll need to trigger it manually from the OneDrive exe file.
To do this, open File Explorer. Make sure that hidden items are enabled (click the View menu and check the box for Hidden items). Then, drill down to the following location: C:\Users\[YourUsername]\AppData\Local\Microsoft\OneDrive\.
In that folder, double-click the OneDrive.exe file, and the icon will appear in the System Tray. Right-click that icon and select Settings. Click the Settings tab and make sure the box to Start OneDrive automatically when I sign in to Windows is checked.
At the Settings screen, click the Account tab and select the Add an account button. At the Set up OneDrive screen, enter the email address for your Microsoft Account and click Sign in. Choose your type of OneDrive account (Personal, Work, or School). Enter your password and click Sign in.
Confirm the location that Microsoft has set for your OneDrive folder. You can change the location or accept the default and click Next. Review the tutorial screens that explain how to set up OneDrive, then click the Open my OneDrive folder.
Add Files to OneDrive
Your next task is to select the folders and files you wish to add and sync to your OneDrive storage. From File Explorer, move any folders and files you wish to synchronize into your OneDrive location. For example, if you use a folder called Word Documents for your Microsoft Word files, move that entire folder into OneDrive (so that typically would be C:\Users\[username]\OneDrive\Word Documents).
Follow the same steps for any other folders you wish to include as part of your OneDrive synchronization. You can also create any new folders that you want to sync in OneDrive.
Sync Files in OneDrive
Next, you’ll need to choose the folders and files you wish to sync. Right-click the System Tray icon for OneDrive and select Settings. Click the Account tab and then select Choose folders. Here you’ll see the files and folders that you moved into your OneDrive folder. If you wish to sync everything stored in your OneDrive folder, click the checkbox for Make all files available.
Otherwise, check the individual folders you wish to sync and uncheck any folders you don’t want synced. Unchecked folders will remain on OneDrive but will be removed from your current PC. Click OK when done.
Cloud Storage
You can choose to store your synced files locally or opt to download them only when they’re needed. Click the Settings tab and look at the setting for Files-On-Demand, which should be enabled by default. With this setting turned on, your OneDrive files are stored online instead of on your computer.
The links to your online files still appear in File Explorer. When you double-click a file to access it, the file is downloaded on the fly from OneDrive to your computer. The advantage of Files-On-Demand is that you save space on your hard drive. The disadvantage is that you need to be online to access a file.
You may want to leave this option disabled if you have plenty of hard drive space but enabled if you’re low on storage. You can also opt to store certain folders and files online only and others both online and locally. Click the checkbox if you wish to turn off this option.
Back Up With OneDrive
After OneDrive is up and running, you can also use it to back up important folders. From the OneDrive program window, click the Backup tab and select Manage backup. You can opt to back up your desktop, pictures folder, and documents folder. Check the items you wish to back up and click Start backup.
You can also choose to automatically save photos and videos to OneDrive whenever you connect a camera, phone, or other picture-taking device. Plus, you can automatically save screenshots to OneDrive. To enable either option, check the box next to it.
View Folders and Files
You can view your local OneDrive folders and files in File Explorer. Right-click on the OneDrive System Tray icon and select Open folder.
Some of our most painful Microsoft Word memories are the loss of hours of work because we forgot to save our documents. You don’t have to worry about that anymore because Word allows you to automatically save documents to Microsoft OneDrive.
If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, you get 1
RELATED: How to Create, Edit and View Microsoft Word Documents for Free
Automatically save Word documents to OneDrive
Before we proceed with this method, make sure you have a few basic things in place. This method only works if you have an active Microsoft 365 subscription. It works with both the individual plan and the family plan, but not if you’ve purchased a one-time use license for Office.
RELATED: What is Microsoft 365?
You also need to open both the Word and OneDrive apps on your computer and make sure you are signed in with your Microsoft account. When you sign in to OneDrive, the app walks you through a quick setup process. Keep in mind that you need an active internet connection to set up OneDrive and ensure that documents are automatically saved and synced.
Once you have done this, open Microsoft Word and create a new document by clicking the “File” button.
Then select “New” from the left pane.
Now choose “Blank Document” or a template from the list displayed on the right. This will open a new document in Word.
You will see a button called “AutoSave” at the top of the Word window. Click the toggle next to ‘Auto save’ and make sure it is set to ‘On’.
Word will ask you to select the folder where your files will be automatically saved. Choose ‘OneDrive’.
Name your document and Word will save the file in the Documents folder in OneDrive.
You only need to manually save the document once at the start and Microsoft Word will take care of the rest. This method also allows you to get your work on other devices, so if you want to start writing on your desktop computer and then switch to your smartphone or laptop, you can do that easily as long as Office and OneDrive are set up on the computer. other devices.
RELATED: How to change Microsoft Office default save location on Windows 10
Save Word documents in another OneDrive folder
If you want to thoroughly organize your Microsoft Word files, you can create different folders in OneDrive and store those files there. Here’s what to do.
Open a Word document and then click “File”.
In the Save a copy section, choose the “OneDrive” option.
You will see the location of your document at the top. This will be something like OneDrive> Documents. To change this, click on “New Folder” and name the folder.
Select the folder you just created.
Click on the “Save” button.
To go back to the previous folder, select the up arrow icon at the top.
This is when Microsoft Word automatically starts saving your document every few seconds, so the risk of losing your work is minimized. As long as you are connected to the internet, you don’t have to worry about anything.
To check where your document is saved, open the file and click on its name in the top bar.
You will now see the file name and location listed there.
If you prefer to store Microsoft Word documents locally, we are here for you.
RELATED: Save Office documents on this PC by default
Are you looking for How to Automatically Backup a Word Document to Onedrive? then you have come to the right place because below is the step-by-step guide you need in other to know how to automatically backup your Word document to Onedrive.
How to Automatically Back Up a Word Document to OneDrive
To set up automatic backups with OneDrive, follow the instructions below.
- In your taskbar, click the OneDrive icon (the one that looks like a cloud).
- Select Help & Settings from the drop-down menu.
- Select Settings > Backup > Manage Backup from the drop-down menu.
- You’ll see a new screen where you may select the folders you want to back up.
- To back up Word documents, go to the Documents folder.
- Select any other folders you’d like to back up and click Start Backup; all of your existing data will be saved in the cloud via OneDrive.
- This may take some time depending on the size of the files.
As you work on files, OneDrive will automatically sync them. Although you should save your work by pressing CTRL + S as you work on a document, OneDrive will upload the most recent version of the document to the cloud on a regular basis.
If you don’t save new Word documents in the Documents folder, they won’t be automatically backed up.
Hover your cursor over the OneDrive symbol in the taskbar to check the status of sync. It will display the upload’s current status as well as the amount of time you’ll need to complete the initial backup.
How to Autosave Word Documents to OneDrive
Microsoft Word can integrate with OneDrive and automatically save documents there. Rather than try to backup a document, start your project the right way with automatic saves to the cloud. Not only does this protect you against the loss of a document, but it means you can access it from anywhere.
Follow these steps to automatically save Word documents to OneDrive:
- Open your document, go to File thenSave As.
- Chose OneDrive and any subfolder you want to save the document to.
- Click on Save.
- In the Word document, toggle Autosave to the On position.
When you save a document to OneDrive, Autosave is enabled by default. If you toggle Autosave on a document that isn’t previously saved to OneDrive, it will prompt you to choose a folder.
Select OneDrive from the pop-up menu to start backing up your document to OneDrive automatically.
How OneDrive Organizes Files
OneDrive shows files in the File Explorer, but this might be a different case if you have multiple Onedrive accounts.
- After you sign into OneDrive and set up your backup, you can find your files in the File Explorer within Windows.
- Choose OneDrive from the list on the left after clicking the File Explorer icon. In OneDrive, you’ll be able to see any document, image, and other material you’ve backed up from your PC.
- The files will display with different naming schemes if you use two separate OneDrive accounts and access them both on the same machine.
- Under OneDrive — Personal, you’ll find all of your personal files.
- All other files, whether for work or school, will be stored in OneDrive — Company/School Name.
How to Download Files From OneDrive
It’s simple to re-download a file from the cloud if the worst happens and you lose access to your computer (or if you unintentionally delete a file and need to re-download it from the cloud).
