Support for Item-Level Permissions in SharePoint Document Libraries

[CID]

Currently, ArcGIS for SharePoint applies permissions at the document library level, which limits the ability to manage access to individual files or folders within a library. In many enterprise scenarios, especially those involving sensitive geospatial data, it's crucial to enforce item-level permissions to ensure that only authorized users can view or interact with specific documents.

We propose adding support for granular permission handling at the item level (files and folders) within SharePoint document libraries.

This feature would significantly improve the usability and security of ArcGIS for SharePoint in environments where data sensitivity varies across items in a library.

We’d appreciate consideration of this enhancement and would welcome any updates or timelines regarding its feasibility.

[RaajRaaj]

@CID - Thank you for posting your idea on Esri Community. I will be keep you posted.

Thanks & Regards,

Raaj

[RaajRaaj]

Hello @CID --

I have a follow up question. For your workflows, do you prefer to see the "item level permissions" reflected in the "Edit in map view" (previously known as "Edit locations") tool alone or do you want to see it reflecting in the "Extract EXIF data" and "Geoenablement" tools as well?

Thanks & Regards,

Raaj

[CID]

Hello Raaj

I'm not sure I fully understand the question, but the original need came from a situation where a user was unable to modify the location using the "Edit locations" tool because they didn’t have write permissions on the entire library, even though they did have permissions on specific folders or individual files.

For that reason, the request was made to add support for granular permission handling at the item level (files and folders) within SharePoint document libraries.

From my point of view, any tool that allows modifying EXIF data should take this permission granularity into account, not just “Edit in map view.” In other words, any tool that updates metadata should validate item-level permissions to ensure consistent behavior aligned with the SharePoint permission model.

Thanks again

[RaajRaaj]

Hello @CID --

My question was whether any of your current workflows were hindered due to this limitation and if those workflows use all 3 - Edit in map view, Extract EXIF data and Geoenablement. 

The challenge with Extract EXIF data and Geoenablement is that, if the user does not have "edit permissions" on the document library and if they try to run EXIF extraction or geocoding, it may fail since they cannot create columns to store the EXIF metadata or x,y values.

Would it be ok if we address "Edit in map view" tool to begin with (tentatively planned for May 2026) and then tackle EXIF and geoenablement once we are able to address all scenarios?

Thanks & Regards,

Raaj

[CID]

Hello

Thank you for the explanation.

From our point of view, it is a good idea to address the “Edit in Map View” tool first.
In our case, we are not using the standard “Extract EXIF data” option nor geoenablement

Thanks & Regards

[RaajRaaj]

Thank you!

Thanks & Regards,

Raaj