Expand section General

Does using SharePoint free my users from relying on VPN?

Yes! Businesses have traditionally used VPN as the access point to remotely connect to the server. While it’s a secure connection, it can be annoyingly slow. With SharePoint, accessing your files remotely is as simple as opening a web browser and logging into your company’s Office 365 account. No more VPN and no more connection manager software.

I like VPN because it is secure. Does SharePoint secure my data as it travels over the internet?

Yes! As part of Microsoft Office 365, SharePoint enjoys the same highly secure environment including: physical data center security, network security, access security, application security, and data security. Every file – and every update of every file – is encrypted using its own encryption key.

I like the way our server is organized. Can I keep the same look and feel in SharePoint?

Yes! Administrators can easily re-create the look of their shared server by adding document libraries and folders in SharePoint. Think of it as a way to do everything that you have done before – and then some. Users can drag and drop files onto their SharePoint document library and right-click files just like on their shared server.

Can I have multiple users work on the same document simultaneously in SharePoint?

Yes! With SharePoint’s real-time co-authoring of files, each employee can work on the same document at once, see the changes immediately and rest assured that SharePoint is automatically updating the file as they go. This means you’re not locked out of a document even when one of your co-workers has it open on their computer.

What is Office365? What does it have to do with SharePoint?

Office365 is a cloud-based version of Microsoft Office. SharePoint is the storage component of Office365. Think of OneDrive for Business as a personal SharePoint site (My Site) for your documents.

What if I don’t want to edit files in my web browser, can I edit them using my client application?

Yes! You can do both. SharePoint Online’s browser-based Office apps are designed so you can edit your Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote file in your web browser. If you want to edit using your client application instead, click ‘Open in Desktop App.’ your work will still save to your SharePoint document library.

What if I lose my internet connection while I’m working in SharePoint. Is my work still saved?

Yes! Let’s say the coffee shop is closing and you’re halfway through edits to an Excel spreadsheet using SharePoint’s Excel web app. You close the hood on your laptop, drive home and pick back up on your project later that evening. You may have severed the Wi-Fi connection at the coffee shop, but as soon as you reestablish a network connection at home, SharePoint automatically updates your file for you, so you don’t lose a thing.

Does SharePoint allow me to search the contents of files instead of just by filename?

Yes! Think of SharePoint’s search tool like a web search for your business. It’s constantly crawling your network analyzing file contents, titles, dates and metadata to deliver you relevant results and detailed previews. Find that file right away!

Can we go back to look at previous file versions in SharePoint?

Yes! With SharePoint’s unlimited file versioning, you can click on a specific document and retrieve previous versions, right back to the moment it was created. Not only that, you can see when the version was created and who made the changes. File versioning is particularly handy when business strategies change and an employee needs to retrieve a previous edit they thought had been lost forever!

Can I assign unique permissions to each employee in SharePoint?

Yes! You can set up varying levels of permissions for each user, or specific permissions for a directory or file allowing you to apply security on a granular level. You can set a rule that requires users to check out documents in order to edit them or you can specify how many historical versions of a document should be kept.

Can alerts be set up to notify users that there are updates to content?

Yes! You can set up alerts for individuals or an entire team. You can choose the type of alert, the changes to send alerts for, and when to send them.

Can I sync my calendar and contacts between Outlook and SharePoint so they update automatically?

Yes! By creating a new calendar in SharePoint, you can sync and easily establish a connection to your Outlook calendar, allowing your team members to have access through SharePoint. You can also overlay SharePoint calendars in the same site group to see combined schedules, making assigning deadlines and booking meetings fast and efficient.

Does SharePoint work with Microsoft Teams?

Yes! According to Microsoft, they work better together. In Microsoft Teams, you automatically have a SharePoint site where channel and documents are stored. Using SharePoint or personal OneDrive accounts to store files for use in Microsoft Teams has many advantages, including the ability to access files without leaving Teams, using document co-authoring, and bringing the security and compliances of SharePoint and OneDrive files to Teams.