Manage SharePoint Online in Windows Server Essentials
Applies To: Windows Server 2016 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials, Windows Server 2012 Essentials
You can manage your SharePoint Online libraries and team sites from the Dashboard, without signing in to Microsoft 365, if you integrate Microsoft 365 with your Windows Server Essentials server. You get SharePoint Online libraries and team sites with any Microsoft 365 business plan. Find out how to integrate Microsoft 365 with your server
As a bonus, your users will be able to use the My Server 2012 R2 app to access files in your SharePoint Online libraries from anywhere using their mobile device or Windows phone. Where can I get the My Server app?
Haven't tried SharePoint yet? What you can do now
Where on the Dashboard will I manage my libraries and team sites?
You'll use the new SharePoint Online tab, which is added to the Storage area of the Dashboard when you integrate Microsoft 365 with the server, to manage SharePoint Online resources.
What can I manage from the Dashboard?
Manage your online libraries
- Add a library. On the SharePoint Libraries tab, use Add a library. You'll be able to make all of the usual choices:
- Choose a team site and the library type.
- Decide whether to use version control.
- Assign access permissions. Tip: To find out what team site permissions your library will inherit if you don't assign permissions, use View the site permissions.
- Open a library. To work with the contents of the library, you'll need to open it in Microsoft 365. Just select the library and click Open the library. What you can do with the content will depend on the credentials that you use to sign in to SharePoint Online.
- Change version controls or access permissions. You can use View the library properties to either view or change the version controls or access permissions for the library.
- Delete a library. After you've checked to make sure the library isn't storing anything you'll need later, select the library and click Delete the library. Warning: Before you delete a SharePoint Online library, be sure to save any files that want to keep to another location. When you delete a library from SharePoint, everything is deleted permanently. There's no way to retrieve anything.
Manage your team sites
- Manage SharePoint team sites. The Manage team sites action lets you sign in to Microsoft 365 and manage your SharePoint Online team sites. What you can do in Microsoft 365 will be determined by the online account that you sign in with. When you close Microsoft 365 and return to the Dashboard, click Refresh to show the changes.
- View or change team site permissions. Since a library inherits permissions from its team site by default, it's helpful to have easy access to the team site. To view or change permissions for a team site, select the team site or any of its libraries, and click View the site permissions.
Tips
Click Refresh to show the latest changes made in the Microsoft 365 portal. You'll need to refresh the display after you open Microsoft 365 to manage SharePoint Online. If you keep the Dashboard open for long periods, click Refresh to make sure you're seeing the latest changes.
What you can do in SharePoint Online depends on whether you're working on the Dashboard or in Microsoft 365. On the Dashboard, SharePoint Online changes are made using the administrator account for Microsoft 365 integration. But when you sign in to Microsoft 365 from the Dashboard, the access permissions for the online account that you use determine what you can do.
To find out the administrator account for Microsoft 365 integration, open the Microsoft 365 tab on the Dashboard.