Skip to content

Enable External Sharing for Guest Access

Configuration Scope: Environment-Specific

This setting is environment-specific and must be configured separately in each environment (dev, test, prod). Changes here will not be included in configuration exports.

This guide explains how to enable external sharing on a SharePoint site to allow guest access to Brief Connect.

Overview

External sharing allows users outside your organisation to access your Brief Connect environment using guest accounts. You may need to enable this for:

  • Non-production environments where external users (such as Engage Squared team members) need access
  • Production environments that are intentionally set up for guest access (e.g. central government tenancies)

Before you start

Before enabling external sharing, ensure you have:

  • SharePoint Administrator access

Enable External Sharing

  1. Navigate to the SharePoint admin center.

  2. In the left navigation pane, expand "Sites" and select "Active Sites".

  3. Find and select the site where Brief Connect is installed.

  4. Click "Sharing" in the top menu.

  5. In the external sharing section:

5.1. Click the dropdown menu

5.2. Select "Existing guests"

5.3. Click "Save" to apply the changes

  1. Wait a few minutes for the changes to propagate.

Verify Access

  1. Ask an external user to attempt accessing Brief Connect. They must be added to the 'Users' group in Brief Connect (which is added as a Site Viewer to the SharePoint site).

  2. Confirm they can successfully log in and access required features.

See also