Microsoft has long led the way in developing collaboration tools for the remote workplace. But at least two of their offerings sound very similar. So, SharePoint vs OneDrive – what’s the difference?
Because both store information on the cloud. Both can be accessed from anywhere. Both come with every installation of Microsoft 365 and Enterprise…
The differences are pretty difficult to spot from the outside. Let’s take a look in:
SharePoint vs. OneDrive – similarities
1) They’re on the cloud
Both SharePoint and OneDrive store information on the cloud.
This means any data you store in them is actually on Microsoft’s dizzyingly large network of computers. They’re backed up, saved, and can’t really be lost.
2) You can use them from anywhere
In a remote workplace, you might have a few team members in the office, a few working in different parts of the country while you do a little work on holiday in the Bahamas.
Well, that’s the dream. On a more mundane day-to-day level, the key point is that you can access data you have stored in either SharePoint or OneDrive on almost any device. All you need is an internet connection.
3) They’re highly (highly) secure
Both OneDrive and SharePoint are incredibly secure ways to store data. They use 256-bit keys (that’s basically a 256-character password, considered unbreakable) throughout a process that includes:
- Data secured in transit and at rest
- 2048-bit key SSL connections
- BitLocker disk-level encryption
- Every file (and every update to each file) is encrypted with a unique key
- All encrypted data is distributed across the data centre (each has unique credentials)
SharePoint vs. OneDrive – what’s the difference?
So far, so identical. They’re both incredibly secure ways to store and share files and data online. So what is the difference between Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive?
SharePoint is intended as a business collaboration tool
If you need a tool that will allow your team to work together to produce a project, presentation, or document, SharePoint is the one you want.
This is a tool that has been designed to facilitate collaboration in the modern remote workplace (and actually in-office teams too). Microsoft Teams stores all its data in SharePoint. That’s what it’s for.
What’s more, you can even use SharePoint to make an intranet, a kind of internal company internet that only your team has access to.
An intranet is a great place for most HR purposes, including being a place to store training materials and other internal resources.
OneDrive is intended for personal use
On the other hand, OneDrive is supposed to be just for you. It’s designed to be your personal on-the-cloud storage space.
It’s excellent at what it does. But it’s not really for workplace collaboration.
Use Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive together
The fact that SharePoint is intended for teams (and Teams) and OneDrive is intended for personal use means that most people and most offices that are on Microsoft 365 use them both.
Microsoft invented two different tools and includes them both in 365 for a reason. These tools don’t compete with each other.
Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive complement each other in a way that is secure and incredibly enabling for your team.
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