SharePoint Knowledge Base

SharePoint has basic user groups by default that users can be assigned to, but in this current world hardly anyone never customizes something. The same thing is true for SharePoint. There may be times when a group of people need special permissions so a new SharePoint group has to be made. This can be a huge timesaver because instead of having to permission each individual user, you can just make a group with the necessary permissions and then assign multiple people to the group very easily. SharePoint customization should make things easier and as SharePoint consultants there's nothing we like doing more.

How to Create a New SharePoint Group:

• Start Internet Explorer and type the URL for your organization's SharePoint server. The Start page will open.
• Navigate to the site where you want to add a group. The site's home page will open.
• On the Settings menu gear icon, click the Site settings option. The Site Settings page will open.

Figure 1: The Site Settings Page

• In the Users and Permissions section click the Site permissions link. The Permissions page will open.

Figure 2: The Permissions Page

• Click Create Group button. The Create Group page will open.

Figure 3: The Create Group Page

• In the Name field, type a name for the group. When naming the group, consider the people that will be added, not necessarily the permissions that you'll be assigning to them.
• In the About Me field, type a description for the group. Note that rich text editing tools are present, giving you the capability to format the description however you wish.
• If the owner of the group is not going to be you, delete your user name and enter the appropriate one in the Group Owner field. The owner will always be able to manage group membership. By changing the owner to someone else, you can allow them to modify the group. Users, such as Site Collection administrators, will also be able to modify the group membership.
• Click the Everyone radio button for the Who can view the membership of the group field, if you want all people with permissions to view your site to see who's in this group,. Otherwise, leave Group Members selected. You might want to make the members private if the confidentiality of the members should be maintained.
• Indicate who can edit members in the group by clicking the Group Owner or Group Members radio button for the Who can edit the membership of the group field. Typically only the group owner can edit group membership. However, if all of the members are highly trusted, you have the opportunity to allow any of them to modify membership.
• Click the appropriate option to allow requests to join or leave the group. You may want to allow requests to join or leave the group if you're setting up a volunteer team to support an initiative.
• Click the appropriate option to auto-accept requests. It is recommended that you keep this option set at No. Auto-accepting could make it difficult to manage the comings and goings of your group. However, if you are working with a volunteer group, such as those helping with the company picnic, auto-accepting requests may be appropriate.
• If you chose to allow requests, enter the appropriate email address to which users can send membership requests. Warning: not every server is properly configured to accept inbound email messages.
• Click Create. The new group will appear in the People and Groups page. You can now add users.

Figure 4: The New Web Development Group

Note: If you can't add a group name, either the group name already exists or you do not have specific permissions to add groups. Check the permissions settings to ensure you have the appropriate access rights.

How to Assign Users to a SharePoint Group:

• Navigate to the group that you want to add users to.
• Click the arrow beside New. The New menu will appear.
• Click Add Users. The Share dialog box will open.

Figure 5: The Share Dialog Box

• In the Add People field, type in the name of the user. As the name is typed, a list of matching results will appear.
• Click on the correct name when it appears in the list. The name will be added.
• Add additional names as needed.
• Click Share. The Share dialog box will close and the users will appear in the group list on the People and Groups page.

Figure 6: The New Group Members

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