Disable File Explorer for users using Intune

Question

Dear Team,

Our business users rely on SharePoint and Teams for collaboration. We would like to restrict users from saving and downloading files locally, as well as prevent them from adding SharePoint site folders as shortcuts in File Explorer.

To achieve this, we want to disable File Explorer access for SharePoint entirely and ensure it does not appear as an option. Our goal is for all users to work directly through SharePoint and manage files online.

Could you please advise if there is a way to disable File Explorer for this purpose? We are using Windows 11 Enterprise. Please let me know if you need any additional information from my side.

Thank you for your support.

Answer 1

Dear Ramesh Subedi,

Thank you for reaching out.

According to our investigation, you can achieve your requirement by following the steps below.

The first option allows you to disable the sync button and prevent users from saving files locally. (Please note that the sync button will still be visible; however, when users click on it, they will receive an error preventing them from syncing files locally.)

1. Go to the SharePoint Admin Center → Settings → Sync.

Set the option to allow sync only for specific user computers. Any users not listed will receive an error.

2. For your second question, you can use Intune to set the registry key on the targeted computers. This will remove the SharePoint listing from File Explorer.

You can follow the steps in this article ---- >> How to block OneDrive use from within Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise and Office 2016 applications - Microsoft 365 | Microsoft Learn

Please test this method and let us know if it meets your requirements. If my answer helps you resolve your issue, please consider voting for it—it would mean a lot!

Thank you for your time and patience, we hope you have a great day!

Best regards,

Community Moderator | Sophia