Sharing link with 'Anyone' is not available, what setting am I missing?

Question

I set up sharing rules to allow 'anyone' to view links last year, and it worked. Those links are still working for users outside of our organization. We haven't changed anything, and now we don't have the option to share the link with anyone, same file types as the ones that are currently working. I'm also an owner and admin. Please help me figure out what I am missing here?

I've checked the following:

• Site Level Sharing - allows anyone
• SharePoint Admin Center Sharing - allows anyone
• Permission Lockdown - is disabled
• Security Groups - not selected
• Entra External Identities - Guest Invite Settings - Anyone
• Entra Collaboration restrictions - Anyone
• Entra Collaboration restrictions - All allowed

What else am I missing?

Answer 1

Hi @Anna Marshall 

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A forum. 

Thank you for reaching out and I appreciate the detailed steps you’ve already checked. I know how important consistent sharing behavior is, especially when links created previously are still accessible externally, but new files no longer offer the “Anyone with the link” option. 

Based on the information you provided, and the documentation reviewed, your organization-level and site-level settings should allow anonymous sharing. Since everything looks correctly configured in SharePoint Admin Center, the next steps are to confirm a few less visible configurations that commonly cause this exact behavior: 

Steps you can safely do yourself 
1/ Confirm where you’re sharing from and which account you’re using 
Make sure you are signed in with your work or school account in OneDrive for Business or the SharePoint site where the file lives. If your org restricts external sharing, the “Anyone” option will not appear in your sharing dialog. 

2/ Confirm the site type  

Go to Site Settings > Site Information > View all site information  
If the site is part of a Shared Channel, this explains why the “Anyone” link isn’t available.  

3/ Block download and sensitivity labels 

If the file or site is using Sensitivity Labels (e.g., Confidential, Internal), some labels automatically disable anonymous sharing, even if tenant-level sharing allows it. 

Please review: 

• Whether a label is applied 

If the label's “External sharing” policy blocks anonymous links 

4/ File or library-level restrictions 

Even when the site allows Anyone links, specific libraries or folders may have shared disabled by: 

Library advanced settings 

Customized permissions 

SharePoint “limited-access lockdown mode” (You mentioned this is disabled, which is good.) 

Please test the behavior in a different library on the same site. 

You may find further guidance here: 

OneDrive does not have "Anyone with the link" as an option when sharing. - Microsoft Q&A 

FIX: 'Anyone with the link' option is Greyed Out on SharePoint (Solved) - WinTips.org 

Note: Microsoft is providing this information as a convenience to you. The sites are not controlled by Microsoft. Microsoft cannot make any representations regarding the quality, safety, or suitability of any software or information found there. Please make sure that you completely understand the risk before retrieving any suggestions from the above link  

 

Steps your IT department should handle 

1/ Check the OneDrive admin sharing settings 

Even if SharePoint is configured for “Anyone,” OneDrive has its own independent sharing policy. If that setting was changed recently, it can silently remove the “Anyone” option from OneDrive or personal site libraries. 

Microsoft 365 Admin Center > SharePoint Admin > Sharing > External sharing 

Ensure it is also set to Anyone and matches (or exceeds) your SharePoint setting. 

Here’s a resource that provides more insight: SharePoint: Anyone With The Link Sharing Option Greyed Out – How To Fix – Business Tech Planet 

2/ Disable “Limited‑access user permission lockdown mode” if enabled 
On the affected SharePoint site: Settings > Site settings > Site collection features and turn Limited‑access user permission lockdown mode off.

When this feature is on, external sharing options can be blocked even if tenant and site sharing are otherwise enabled. 

Note: Please understand that our initial response does not always resolve the issue immediately. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.  

I hope this information is useful. Additionally, as other users have raised similar concerns and may not be aware of where to share their feedback, I hope this response helps clarify the situation and suggests a potential next step. Highlighting this information can make it more visible to others in the community who may be facing the same issue, making it easier for them to find guidance and contribute their feedback as well. 

Thank you again for your time and for raising this important usability concern. If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, please don’t hesitate to reach out. 

I look forward to your thoughts on this. 

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Answer 2

Are you trying to share items in a Microsoft 365 Group/Team site? If so, this is by design, anonymous ("Anyone") links are not available therein.