This page provides common answers for SharePoint Online Sites to help you get started.
Should I use/store my files in Microsoft Teams or in SharePoint?
Microsoft Teams is the hub for teamwork. It allows for collaboration, document management, chat, calls, meetings, and much more. Every Team has an associated SharePoint Team site where much of the Team's content is stored.
SharePoint Online is primarily a document management and intranet website platform where you store, collaborate, and share information seamlessly across the organization, and is also part of Microsoft 365.
Read more: Should I store my files in Microsoft Teams or in SharePoint? An understanding of behind the scenes
How are Teams and SharePoint related?
When you you create a new Team, several other services are automatically created in the background:
- Microsoft 365 Group
- SharePoint Online Team site
- Exchange Online shared mailbox & calendar
- OneNote notebook
- Other services like Power BI and Planner
This means that when you share files in a Team, they are actually stored in the associated SharePoint Team site, not in Microsoft Teams itself. In other words, Teams and SharePoint are closely related because every Team has an associated SharePoint site for storing documents.
Read more: Overview of Teams and SharePoint integration
Should I create a Team Site or a Communication Site?
What are Hub Sites?
Hub sites provide a way to organize and bring together content from related sites. ITS can designate your site as a hub site for you if you need to associate multiple sites (Team or Communication) with each other. If you need a hub site created, please submit an ITS Service Desk ticket.
Read more: Planning Hub Sites
Can I make my SharePoint site open to the public?
No. SharePoint sites are designed to be for "internal" University audiences only with login required for access. The largest supported audience for a site is "the whole University", plus optionally specific external/non-albany.edu email addresses.
If you need a website that is open to the public (viewable and searchable by the world without requiring login), submit a "New Web Project" request to the University's Web Services team.