SharePoint REST API - Granting access to a User fails with '400 Bad Request'

Question

I am using the following REST API URI to grant access on a given folder to a given user. It was working earlier but failing now -

<hostName>/_api/web/GetFolderByServerRelativeUrl('<pathToFolder>')/ListItemAllFields/roleAssignments/addroleassignment(principalid=<principalIdVariable>,roleDefId=1073741827)

I was able to verify that the principalId of the user exists.

There are other REST API URIs that I have been using which are working without any issues like - creating SP folders, getting files in a given SP Folder, granting access on a given Folder to a SP user group.
But the granting access to a user has been failing.

Please advise what could be going wrong in this case?

Answer 1

Hi @Millennium Falcon
When a new SharePoint object is created, by default, Permission inheritance occurs. All SharePoint objects will be created within the context of a hierarchical tree. Unless the inheritance structure is broken, all SharePoint objects inherit permissions from its parent in the hierarchy.

Permission inheritance enables user to make the assignment of permission just once, and have that permission trickle down to all sites, lists, libraries, folders and items that inherit permissions from its parent. However as part of security management there are scenarios where we need to implement unique permissions to a particular site or list. We will need break the inheritance using the BreakRoleInheritance method of REST API.

Please try to use following api first

/_api/web/GetFolderByServerRelativeUrl('<pathToFolder>')/ListItemAllFields/breakroleinheritance(true)  

Then you can use the api to add roleassignment

Here is a similar issue with yours. Please make a reference
https://sharepoint.stackexchange.com/questions/113317/manage-file-permissions-using-rest-api/113322#113322

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