Forum Discussion
Enable Print but Restrict Download for PDFs in SharePoint Online
Hi All, We have a group of users who have view only or restricted view permissions on SharePoint online , we wanted these users to be able to print the PDFs but not download or bulk download the...
To enable printing while restricting downloads for PDF files in SharePoint Online, you can follow these steps:
Activate SharePoint Server Enterprise Features:
Go to your SharePoint site/subsite where you want to manage PDF files.
Navigate to Site Settings.
Under Site Permissions, click Advanced permission settings.
Click on the Permission Level named View Only.
Scroll down and select Copy Permission Level.
Check the two items under list permission: Add item and View items.
Assign the New Permission Level:
Assign this new permission level to the users for whom you want to restrict PDF downloads.
By following these steps, users will be able to view PDF files in the browser but won’t be able to download them. Remember that this option is available only on the SharePoint root site, so you’ll need to assign the permission level there and let it inherit to the subsites. If you have specific PDFs you want to protect further, consider using Information Rights Management (IRM) policies or explore other options like Azure Information Protection
Activate SharePoint Server Enterprise Features:
Go to your SharePoint site/subsite where you want to manage PDF files.
Navigate to Site Settings.
Under Site Permissions, click Advanced permission settings.
Click on the Permission Level named View Only.
Scroll down and select Copy Permission Level.
Check the two items under list permission: Add item and View items.
Assign the New Permission Level:
Assign this new permission level to the users for whom you want to restrict PDF downloads.
By following these steps, users will be able to view PDF files in the browser but won’t be able to download them. Remember that this option is available only on the SharePoint root site, so you’ll need to assign the permission level there and let it inherit to the subsites. If you have specific PDFs you want to protect further, consider using Information Rights Management (IRM) policies or explore other options like Azure Information Protection
