Manage Access Group Keeps Disappearing

Question

Manage Access Group Keeps Disappearing

Anonymous

I am helping a faculty member with their SharePoint site and there are a number of oddities happening. One of them is when I go to the gear, select "Site Contents", navigate to "Site Pages", and select "Manage Access" for a page, I noticed there are three groups that automatically are shared with: Owners (modern group), Owners (SharePoint group), and Members (SharePoint group). When I look at one of my own SharePoint sites I have all three of these but also a Visitors (SharePoint group) as well in the "Manage Access" Groups area.

Looking at advanced permissions, there is a Visitors (SharePoint) group created by default and I tried to add the group in the "Manage Access" area for any page. It let's me add it and after I add it I see four groups have permissions. When I navigate away and come back, check the "Manage Access" area, it goes back to only the original three groups with Visitors no longer on the list. I tried to add the group again but it does not stick. I am not experiencing this with any other SharePoint site; other sites automatically share with the default Visitors group.

While I was in advanced settings, I do see that the default Visitors group has read only access to the site.

This is a problem because anyone with visitor access (read only) cannot visit the site at all and get a "Sorry, you don't have access" screen.

What should I look at to fix this?

I can provide more information if needed.

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5 answers

Answer 1

Dear Hollyn Williams,

Thank you for your response and for sharing the issue regarding the Visitors group in the SharePoint site. I understand that when users with read-only access cannot view content, it’s something that should be addressed promptly to ensure a stable user experience.

Based on your description, the Visitors (SharePoint) group still exists at the site level and has been assigned read permissions. However, it does not appear or persist in the “Manage Access” panel for pages within the Site Pages library. Below are some recommended steps and best practices to help resolve this situation:

Recommended Troubleshooting Steps

1. Check Permission Inheritance on the Site Pages Library

Go to Site Contents → Site Pages → Library Settings → Permissions for this document library.
Check whether the library is inheriting permissions from the site or using unique permissions.
If it’s using unique permissions, re-add the Visitors group using the Grant Permissions option and assign Read access.

2. Use the Advanced Permissions Page for Reliability

Navigate to Site Settings → Site Permissions → Advanced Permissions.
Locate the Visitors group (e.g., “[Site Name] Visitors”) and ensure it is added to the Site Pages library with Read permission.
This method is more reliable and avoids UI refresh issues.

3. Avoid Misuse of “Stop Sharing”

If “Stop sharing” was used on the Visitors group at the library or page level, it may have removed the group’s access entirely.
Re-add the group via the advanced permissions page to restore functionality.

4. Verify Membership in the Visitors Group

Ensure the Visitors group includes the appropriate users or AD groups (e.g., “Everyone except external users”) to grant read-only access.

5. Restore Permission Inheritance (if appropriate)

If unique permissions are not necessary, consider restoring inheritance from the parent site to simplify permission management and ensure consistency.
After making changes, refresh the Manage Access panel or use a private browser window to avoid cached views.
Avoid using the quick share dialog to add SharePoint groups, as it may not handle them correctly.
If the Visitors group has been deleted entirely, you can restore it by accessing SharePoint’s hidden URL: permsetup.aspx.

Please note that our initial response may not resolve the issue immediately. However, with your cooperation and more detailed information, we can work together to identify the best solution.

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I look forward to your response and I look forward to hearing from you soon so that we can continue to work towards a resolution.

Best regards

Ryan-N-MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Answer 2

Good day, Hollyn Williams.

I hope you are doing well.

My apologies for reaching out to you again. Regarding your thread (Manage Access Group Keeps Disappearing - Microsoft Community), we would like to follow up if our moderator helps.

Meanwhile, hope you kindly mark it as an answer and vote it up by your original account which raised this question (as seen in the screenshot). Once marked, it will automatically pin to top. As other users will also search information in this community, your valuable marked answer will definitely also help other users who have similar queries easily to find the correct channel and useful information more quickly.

Greatly Appreciate again for your patience and understanding.

I wish you keep safe and wish you all the best in year 2025 as well! 😊

Warm regards,

Ryan-N-MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Answer 3

Dear Hollyn Williams,

Thank you for your response and for updating me on the situation. It's great to hear that you've found what you needed to resolve your issue. If you have any other questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to me.

If you find my answer helpful to you, please mark it as “Mark as Answer”. This will help the information I’ve provided reach more people.

best regards,

Ryan-N-MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

Answer 4

I'm sorry for the delay in responding back as other matters took me away from this but I read through your post this morning and thank you, thank you, thank you!

Your instructions helped me in actually checking what "Read" access gives to users for this site. I did not realize that the faculty member changed the settings for "Read" access. I went to "Permission Levels" in the advanced permission settings and then checked "Read" where I saw that most of the check boxes had been turned off. I did not realize you could customize a default permission level.

So thank you very much for being thorough with your response with multiple avenues!

Answer 5

Hi Hollyn Williams,

I hope the information I shared earlier was at least somewhat helpful in addressing your issue. If the previous methods haven’t been effective, please feel free to let me know. I’d be happy to explore the issue more deeply with you so we can work together toward a better solution.

Thank you very much, and I wish you a great day.

Best regards,
Ryan-N-MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

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Manage Access Group Keeps Disappearing

5 answers