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Share a file as email attachment not as a link in SharePoint

Iron Contributor

Is it possible to share a file as email attachment not as a link in SharePoint? I think in the past it was possible.

11 Replies

@AtanasM When you write an email and select "Attach file" and then "Browse Web Locations" and select a file, from OneDrive or SharePoint, you should get this question: Share or Attach.png

@MagnusGoksoyrOLDProfile this is in Outlook. Is it possible directly from SharePoint to choose the file and to send it in an email as attachment?
No, unfortunately it is not. This functionality is in Outlook.
best response confirmed by AtanasM (Iron Contributor)
Solution

@AtanasM 
OOTB this is not possible. It requires downloading of the SharePoint document, creating a new email in Outlook and attaching the downloaded file.


Alternatives:
1. There are 3rd party SharePoint apps that offer this capability (example). This allows users to select one or more documents in SharePoint and attach them to a new email.
2. Use PowerAutomate

 

@Paul_HK_de_Jong could you provide a sample of a 3rd party SharePoint app?

@AtanasM 
The Collab365 site contains a list with SHAREPOINT EMAIL MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE. See here and here.



@MagnusGoksoyrOLDProfile This doesn't work for me. 'Share Link' just puts a hyperlink in the body. 'Attach as copy' doesn't link to the shared file, it's just a local copy (I just sent tests). I know this is possible, though, because I just got one yesterday -- a PPT linked in Sharepoint but attached as a file.  I'm also curious how to do this, because, most obviously, it allows one to search for attachments using Outlook.

 

JBock_0-1708473085439.png

Joe

 

@JBock You wrote: "'Share Link' just puts a hyperlink in the body. 'Attach as copy' doesn't link to the shared file, it's just a local copy".  

 

It seems to me those are the only two possibilities: either you send a link or you send a copy.  What else could it be?

 

Duncan 

Like I said, attaching a Sharepoint file as an attachment allows you to search for attachments later in Outlook. Personally, I can think of far more instances where sharing that file as an attachment is better than a hyperlink in the body of the email--the searchability mentioned, the fact that it's obvious there is a file related to the message, and that it opens in the appropriate Office app rather than a browser--all behavior I want and I know my colleagues want. It's unfortunate that this feature isn't consistent across users, and it seems to me like it's being deprecated by Microsoft for no reason.

@JBock Unfortunately we seem to be misunderstanding each other.  I think there are two possibilities: 1) share a link in the body of the email message, or 2) share the file as an attachment to the email message.  Were you looking for something different than either of those two possibilities?  If so, what is it?

@biteme1160 Historically there have been 3 options: 1 - Attach a local copy of a file -- any changes made are not shared because opening the attachment just opens a local, unshared copy, 2 - Share a hyperlink to a shared file in the body of the email (clicking the link will open the file in a browser, navigated to the Sharepoint site), and 3 - Share a shared file as an attachment (that is what my screenshot shows).  In this example, opening the attachment opens the Sharepoint file, not a local copy.  This 3rd example--what I cannot do anymore--is different from #1 because it is a Sharepoint file and, I think, was the spirit behind the OP.

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Accepted Solutions
best response confirmed by AtanasM (Iron Contributor)
Solution

@AtanasM 
OOTB this is not possible. It requires downloading of the SharePoint document, creating a new email in Outlook and attaching the downloaded file.


Alternatives:
1. There are 3rd party SharePoint apps that offer this capability (example). This allows users to select one or more documents in SharePoint and attach them to a new email.
2. Use PowerAutomate

 

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