Sharepoint Online Communication Hub Site - Can LINKS to Word Templates Ever Work Correctly for Visitors?

Jim - KPFF 61

I need to find a way for people with Visitor (read) permissions to click on a LINK to a Word template and have it open like a Word template should giving them a "Document 1" file. I have a lot of these template files and I don't want to have to link to the files on our current web server folders for it to work.

I've found a way to force the template to work correctly for people with edit permissions but Visitors get a "Sorry, you don't have access." message with this solution. If I do a normal copy link the template files open in the browser but Visitors can only print them. They aren't given the option to even download the file, which I don't understand because Read Level should be able to download.

Visitors permissions are set to:

The Restricted View, Limited Access, and Web-Only Limited Access do not show up in my list of Permission Levels. I'm assuming this is something done at my company's administrative level? Who knows really. It could just be something SharePoint does to mess with people's head. That seems to be the whole purpose of SharePoint. It certainly isn't to make people's lives easier.

I understand that "There is no solution." is the most likely answer and that's fine. I just need to know for sure so I can move on and try to find a solution to the next stupid thing SharePoint does or doesn't do.

Xuyan Ding - MSFT 7,566 Reputation points

2022-09-09T08:16:33.59+00:00

Hi @Jim - KPFF ,

My understanding is that you want someone with read permission to be able to create the file with the template? If someone with edit permissions is completely free to create, why do you need to force a workaround to make it work as you mentioned above. In order to help you better, could you provide the method you mentioned so that we can test it?

Also,the understanding of the "link to the Word template" should be what the picture below refers to, if you are not referring to this, please feel free to point it out.
Jim - KPFF 61 Reputation points

2022-09-09T14:52:45.64+00:00

Hi @Xuyan Ding - MSFT ,

No, I found that way and it's not what I need. I have links on a page already. They need to click on the Word template and have it open a "Document 1".
Xuyan Ding - MSFT 7,566 Reputation points

2022-09-14T07:15:30.397+00:00

Hi JimKPFF-8946,

I probably know that you are not following the built-in method we usually use, if possible, please provide specific details of your method or provide directions for us to test and find out the corresponding permission problem.
Xuyan Ding - MSFT 7,566 Reputation points

2022-09-19T09:19:35.68+00:00

Is there any progress on this thread? Please feel free to let me know.
Jim - KPFF 61 Reputation points

2022-09-19T15:51:55.15+00:00

Hi @Xuyan Ding - MSFT ,

It is frustrating working with SharePoint Online to say the least. Something doesn't work that intuitively I know should work, so I spend days trying to find out why it doesn't work and how to make it work only to have SharePoint spontaneously start working correctly. Then there are the things that work correctly and then spontaneously stop working. I have bruises on my forehead from banging it on my desk!

This issue is resolved. For Visitors to have Word template links work correctly. Given Read permissions. Create the link by using this:

and it will work correctly.....eventually maybe. If it doesn't, just wait a week and check back, it will probably work then.

For the things that have stopped working correctly, I'm taking my own advise and ignoring them for now. I'll check back later and see if SharePoint decides it wants to fix itself.

Sorry for wasting your time @Xuyan Ding - MSFT .

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Sharepoint Online Communication Hub Site - Can LINKS to Word Templates Ever Work Correctly for Visitors?

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