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Re: How to share a folder with external users?

How to share a folder with external users?

guy2
Explorer | Level 4
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I am the admin of our business account and want to achieve the following folder/permissions structure.  Unfortunately I can't figure out how to do this with Dropbox.  (All users need to be able to edit. ) 

Top Level Folder (editable by team member 1, team member 2, external user 1, external user 2)

  • Sub-folder 1
  • Sub-folder 2
  • Sub-folder 3
  • Sub-folder 4 (also editable by external user 3, external user 4)
  • Sub-folder 5
  • Sub-folder 6

Simply put: a couple of people on my team and a few externals need access to a top level folder.... and a couple of other external users need access to only a sub-folder.  

What is the best way to achieve these folder/permissions between my team members and external users??

Thanks

 

1 Accepted Solution

Accepted Solutions

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
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Hey there @guy2,
 
Thanks for taking the time to explain exactly what you want to achieve here! To do this you will need to have the folder within a Team folder to be able to have different access levels in the folder structure. You can either create a new team folder or move the current shared folder into a team folder.
 
Then, what I would recommend would be to create a Group from within your Admin console. Youā€™ll need to add the team members you want to give access to the top level here (so TM1 and TM2), you wonā€™t be able to add the external members in the group here but not to worry.
 
Then you will need to manage the folder from within the admin console here. If the folder is currently shared with the group ā€œEveryone at [Team name]ā€, youā€™ll need to remove this group from the folder by clicking the ā€œCan edit/viewā€ to the right of the group name and choose ā€œRemoveā€ from the menu. Now you will share the folder with the new group created and also add in the external users you want to give access to the top level folder (EU1 and EU2).
 
Once youā€™ve done this, you can simply go to the sub folders and add in any external users to the correct folders. They will only be able to see that folder and itā€™s contents and nothing above that. 
 
I hope this clarifies the steps for you but please donā€™t hesitate to let me know if you have any other questions or need some more clarification - Thanks!

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


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View solution in original post

13 Replies 13

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
Go to solution
Hey there @guy2,
 
Thanks for taking the time to explain exactly what you want to achieve here! To do this you will need to have the folder within a Team folder to be able to have different access levels in the folder structure. You can either create a new team folder or move the current shared folder into a team folder.
 
Then, what I would recommend would be to create a Group from within your Admin console. Youā€™ll need to add the team members you want to give access to the top level here (so TM1 and TM2), you wonā€™t be able to add the external members in the group here but not to worry.
 
Then you will need to manage the folder from within the admin console here. If the folder is currently shared with the group ā€œEveryone at [Team name]ā€, youā€™ll need to remove this group from the folder by clicking the ā€œCan edit/viewā€ to the right of the group name and choose ā€œRemoveā€ from the menu. Now you will share the folder with the new group created and also add in the external users you want to give access to the top level folder (EU1 and EU2).
 
Once youā€™ve done this, you can simply go to the sub folders and add in any external users to the correct folders. They will only be able to see that folder and itā€™s contents and nothing above that. 
 
I hope this clarifies the steps for you but please donā€™t hesitate to let me know if you have any other questions or need some more clarification - Thanks!

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, please give it a Like below.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question!
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guy2
Explorer | Level 4
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Ok so something like this?.....

  • Team Folder (give acces to Group containing team members)
    • Sub-folder 1 (also give access to exteranl users 1 & 2)
      • Sub-folder 1.1
      • Sub-folder 1.2
      • Sub-folder 1.3 (also give access to external users 3 & 4)
      • Sub-folder 1.4
      • Sub-folder 1.5

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
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Hey @guy2,
 
That would work perfectly yes! You can even add the external users to the top level folder also if needed, you will just need to add them manually instead of with the group, as you can only add team members to a group.
 
Essentially, within Team folders you can add access at any specific folder level and the user will inherit access only to the content within.
 
Hope this helps - Cheers!

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, please give it a Like below.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question!
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guy2
Explorer | Level 4
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Hmmmm ok, so like this?.....

  • Team Folder (give acces to Group containing team members, manually give external users 1 &2)
    • Sub-folder 1 
    • Sub-folder 2
    • Sub-folder 3 (also give access to external users 3 & 4)
    • Sub-folder 4
    • Sub-folder 5

I want to clarify because I tried that but it seems I can only add Groups to a team folder... not external users manually.

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
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Hey @guy2,
 
In that case, since you wonā€™t be able to add the external users to a group, you may want to go with the previously mentioned structure and add the external users to a sub folder immediately under the top level folder.
 
Have a great day!

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, please give it a Like below.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question!
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guy2
Explorer | Level 4
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Ok, i'm i bit confused... what did you mean by "That would work perfectly yes! You can even add the external users to the top level folder also if needed, you will just need to add them manually instead of with the group, as you can only add team members to a group."

Can you please clarify what you meant there?  It sounds like you were saying to add the external users to the Team Folder manually, instead of with the group... which is not  possible.  Was that your mistake? Or my misunderstanding?

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
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Hey there @guy2,
 
Firstly, apologies for any confusions I caused there. Some Dropbox Business teams have access to a slightly different new team folder structure. In these teams they have a team shared workspace and a personal folder for all personal files. 
 
From what you mentioned about only being able to add a group to the top level of a team folder lets me know that you arenā€™t using this new folder structure. In the new structure it would be possible to add the external users and individuals to the top level of the folder. 
 
It seems I made the incorrect assumption there, so your previous suggested structure (quoted beneath) would be the one you would need to use with your current Business plan.

  • Team Folder (give acces to Group containing team members)
    • Sub-folder 1 (also give access to exteranl users 1 & 2)
      • Sub-folder 1.1
      • Sub-folder 1.2
      • Sub-folder 1.3 (also give access to external users 3 & 4)
      • Sub-folder 1.4
      • Sub-folder 1.5
I hope that clears up the confusion I may have caused, if you have any other questions about these differences Iā€™d be more than happy to clear that up for you.
 
Thanks! 

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, please give it a Like below.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question!
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guy2
Explorer | Level 4
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Thanks for clearing that up!   The logical next question is: how do i use this 'new' Team Folder?  Doing it the sub-folder within a sub-folder way in order to have the ability to share with externals seems like a workaround.   The 'new' Team Folder might be less confusing for the end users.   

Daphne
Dropbox Staff
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Hey @guy2,
 
Itā€™s possible that you will have the option to update to a team shared workspace from your Admin console. Youā€™ll need to go to the Settings tab from the left panel and then the option for ā€œEarly accessā€ near the top.
 
The option would be called ā€œUpdate to a team spaceā€, and youā€™ll see the option to Enroll in this. I will suggest to read up a little about the team shared workspace first before doing so, there will be an option to ā€œLearn moreā€ before enrolling in this.
 
Iā€™d also like to note that the way the external user would see the folder wouldnā€™t change at all, since they will see the folder you share with them (regardless of its location within your team folder) as the ā€œtop levelā€ folder in their account like how a shared folder appears. The only difference would be how you and your team will see the folder.
 
Let me know if you have any other questions about this - Cheers! 

Daphne
Community Moderator @ Dropbox
dropbox.com/support


Heart Did this post help you? If so, please give it a Like below.
:arrows_counterclockwise: Still stuck? Ask me a question!
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