Manage granular file permissions

It’s important to have control over what people can—and can’t—do with the data you’ve shared. Dropbox granular permissions give you the power to control who can access folders and files, and what kind of access they have for each.

For example, Dropbox lets you share a specific image file with your team—without giving them permission to access the “Design” folder it lives inside.

Send view-only files

With email attachments, you can’t control what happens to your attached file once you send it, and it’s often impossible to attach large files like video or CAD drawings.

Dropbox gives you the ability to share view-only links—these allow recipients granular permissions to view, comment on, and download—but not edit—the original files. You can also set a password and an expiration date for your links so they’re off-limits once you’ve completed your project. Or you can use Dropbox Showcase to share an entire project as a tailor-made presentation—without giving recipients editing or file sharing permissions for the original files.

Track file changes in real time

Tracking changes to your files is a crucial part of any project. With Dropbox, you can get notified when someone has viewed, edited, deleted, or moved files between folders. Don’t like the change someone’s made? With file recovery and version history, you can easily recover an old version of your file.

You’ll also receive a notification when anyone has commented on a file, making it easier to gather feedback in one central location without exchanging comments over email or in separate documents.

Can I make Dropbox files or folders public?

Yes, you can make Dropbox files and folders public by creating a shared link to your file or folder and setting the access permission to “Anyone with the link”. Anyone with this shared link can view your content without being able to edit the original file.

How do I remove access to a shared Dropbox folder?

It’s possible to remove access to a shared Dropbox folder. If you’ve shared a Dropbox folder by creating a shared link, you can disable the link to remove access to the previously shared folder.

If you’ve invited someone to join a shared folder, you can remove access to the folder by removing a collaborator—or even yourself—from the list of invited users. You’ll also have the option to delete the folder from their devices the next time they’re connected to the internet.

Do Dropbox shared links expire?

Yes, Dropbox shared links can expire. Dropbox Professional and Business users can create a shared link with an expiration date. When creating a shared link, select Expiration and choose when you’d like the link to expire. For Dropbox Basic and Plus users, you can’t set an expiration date on your shared links, but you can always remove access or delete links at your discretion.

What notifications will I get from Dropbox shared folders?

The notifications you get from Dropbox shared folders are up to you. To stay aware of changes made in your shared folder, you can turn on desktop notifications and select or modify what notification you’ll receive. You can be notified when someone @mentions you, comments on or edits your file, assigns a task to you, opens a file or folder, or shares a file or folder with you.

File permissions for increased security

Manage granular file permissions

Send view-only files

Track file changes in real time

Increase your file security with Dropbox