Office 365 – the best “Replacement” for File share

During an assessment phase for one of our clients, we noticed that they were still using an on-prem file share to host all their company data, which has disadvantages like paying for server hardware, power consumption, office space, disk space, and server maintenance. My gut feeling is that this is not just the case of my client I came across, but that there are many clients across the globe who are in the same situation. If that is the case, the best way to get rid of it is to replace a secure cloud file share solution with Microsoft 365. Yes, you heard it right!! You can replace your old File Share using OneDrive SharePoint and Teams. Here is how to:-

• Get a secure source for files everyone you need to can access from anywhere. 
• Delegate file access to users depending on what the user needs to work better.

O365 OneDrive

OneDrive is a simple-to-use cloud storage platform for small businesses. User adoption is as easy as  showing your users how to use OneDrive.

Most importantly, if you're already running the Windows 10 operating system and end user computers running Windows or macOS with Microsoft Office 2016 or later, you will have the OneDrive sync app already installed and running. If you want to add device sharing or access restrictions, you can easily manage OneDrive settings in the OneDrive admin center.

Note: Sorry for Red Cross on OneDrive, I have some issue with it in my laptop.

Let’s look at the new features of OneDrive……

Files On-Demand

OneDrive Files On-Demand lets you view, search for, and interact with files stored in OneDrive, without having to download the files to your device. This feature will help you to save a lot of space on your local hard drive. You can also make certain files available offline by right-clicking them and selecting "Always keep on this device"

Links for Organized Collaboration

Emailing attachments back and forth creates duplicate content and slows down the efficiency of collaboration. With OneDrive, you can send links to files in Outlook and Teams. You will have a familiar sharing experience, but the storage of your files will be centralized in OneDrive. This allows your team members to collaborate on the same file instead of sending different versions back and forth to each other. You can also configure the sharing permissions of each file directly within Outlook.

File Restore and Known Folder Move

OneDrive lets you restore files to any point over the past 30 days. While Known Folder Move allows you to select Windows known folders, such as your desktop, Documents, or Pictures and allow them to automatically sync to OneDrive.

SharePoint for securing “shared storage”

Small businesses use SharePoint to create internal websites. You can use it to easily create a team or org-wide site. SharePoint is also a secure place to store, organize, share, and access information from any device.

To stay connected to your business SharePoint on mobile devices, all you need is a web browser and the SharePoint mobile app, when you upload files to your SharePoint document library, you can access them from anywhere. 

In a document library, click to open the document you want to work on. It will open in Office for the web. The number of people currently editing the document appears at the top right of the document. Most importantly, If you have site owner permissions, you can also share your SharePoint with whomever you want. 

Teams for sharing files in chat and channels

Teams is the best communication hub for Microsoft users. You can easily share files from your OneDrive or SharePoint site in a Teams chat. Select the “Choose file” button beneath the box where you type a message. This will upload a copy of your original file. If the file you're trying to share is already in the Files tab of a chat, you can just select “Share” from there. In a Teams channel, go to the Files tab for that channel and select “Upload”. That file will be accessible to every member of that channel.

Hope this is helpful!