"Everyone except external users" group is removed on Microsoft 365 private group website

Symptoms

You notice that the Everyone except external users group is removed on a Microsoft 365 private group website after it is converted from a public group.

Cause

This behavior is by design.

By default, the Everyone except external users claim is added to the Members group on public group sites. It will be removed if the group is changed to Private at the time of the conversion.

Workaround

To work around this behavior, follow these steps:

  1. Create a separate SharePoint permissions group.
  2. Assign to the new group the same permissions role as that of the original group.
  3. Add the Everyone except external users group to the new group.

After you make this change, the claim is removed from only the default Members group.

More information

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