Spotlight #03: Roles and Permissions in Team Folders

Spotlight #03: Roles and Permissions in Team Folders

Hello all,
 
We are back with another interesting feature in Zoho WorkDrive's spotlight series.



Zoho WorkDrive is an online file management and content collaboration platform designed to help teams store, manage, share, and work together on documents. 

In this article, we’ll discuss the different types of roles and access permissions you can assign to your team members in a Team Folder.
 
With a Team Folder, you can bring your team members to a shared workspace to create, store, and share files for collaboration. When working together, it's important to retain control over how data is accessed and edited. With WorkDrive's role-based permission system, admins can determine what users can and cannot do with a shared file or folder.

Whether they're deciding who can view, edit, or delete information in the folder, admins have complete power to manage permissions.
 
Say you create a Team Folder named "Human Resources" to manage items such as your employee onboarding kit, company policies, and appraisal procedure documents. 

As the folder's creator, you become its Admin by default, and gain complete control over all the files and folders within it. You can add team members (in this case, from the HR department) to manage the data.

Using WorkDrive, you can assign the right level of access to each member based on their responsibilities. 

Here are the different types of roles and access permissions available in WorkDrive:



  • Admin: By default, the person who creates the Team Folder automatically becomes the Admin. They hold complete control over the Team Folder and can add/remove members, manage Team Folder settings, and move files/folders outside the Team Folder. Only admins have the right to delete a Team Folder.
  • Organizer: Organizers can add or remove members, move files/folders within a Team Folder, and manage Team Folder member permissions (Note: They cannot assign an Admin role). Apart from this, they can also share files outside the team, and delete and restore information in a Team Folder. 
  • Editor: Editors can create documents with the built-in Zoho Office Suite, upload files from their local storage, and rename and edit all the files and folders in a Team Folder. 
  • Commenter: Commenters can view the files in a Team Folder and add comments to start discussions on files.
  • Viewer: Viewers can view, copy, sync, and download files.

Key benefits of implementing role-based permissions for users:
  • Provides better control over files: An Admin/Organizer can share a specific file in a Team Folder with anyone outside the team and collaborate with them. This functionality lets users share access to a specific file instead of giving access to the entire Team Folder. 
  • Saves time: When you add members to a Team Folder, they automatically get access to all associated files, and can instantly start to collaborate on documents. This saves the time you'd spend sharing files with every team member individually.
Zoho WorkDrive gives you the advantage of setting appropriate permissions for Team Folder members. Granular-level access allows members to provide access exclusively to required information. 

Access permissions are designed to help team members understand their responsibilities with respect to tasks assigned, thereby facilitating a clear, supportive working environment.
 
We hope this article provides you with an understanding of the different user roles in Zoho WorkDrive, and how you can utilize them. 

Please follow WorkDrive's Community to stay connected and updated on every product update in the series. 

If you have any questions, please leave a reply below or contact support@zohoworkdrive.com
 
Collaborate to innovate!

    Access your files securely from anywhere







                            Zoho Developer Community





                                                  Use cases

                                                  Make the most of Zoho Desk with the use cases.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  eBooks

                                                  Download free eBooks and access a range of topics to get deeper insight on successfully using Zoho Desk.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  Videos

                                                  Watch comprehensive videos on features and other important topics that will help you master Zoho Desk.

                                                   
                                                    

                                                  Webinar

                                                  Sign up for our webinars and learn the Zoho Desk basics, from customization to automation and more

                                                   
                                                    
                                                  • Desk Community Learning Series


                                                  • Meetups


                                                  • Ask the Experts


                                                  • Kbase


                                                  • Resources


                                                  • Glossary


                                                  • Desk Marketplace


                                                  • MVP Corner






                                                            Manage your brands on social media



                                                                  Zoho TeamInbox Resources



                                                                      Zoho CRM Plus Resources

                                                                        Zoho Books Resources


                                                                          Zoho Subscriptions Resources

                                                                            Zoho Projects Resources


                                                                              Zoho Sprints Resources


                                                                                Qntrl Resources


                                                                                  Zoho Creator Resources



                                                                                      Zoho CRM Resources

                                                                                      • CRM Community Learning Series

                                                                                        CRM Community Learning Series


                                                                                      • Kaizen

                                                                                        Kaizen

                                                                                      • Functions

                                                                                        Functions

                                                                                      • Meetups

                                                                                        Meetups

                                                                                      • Kbase

                                                                                        Kbase

                                                                                      • Resources

                                                                                        Resources

                                                                                      • Digest

                                                                                        Digest

                                                                                      • CRM Marketplace

                                                                                        CRM Marketplace

                                                                                      • MVP Corner

                                                                                        MVP Corner







                                                                                          Design. Discuss. Deliver.

                                                                                          Create visually engaging stories with Zoho Show.

                                                                                          Get Started Now


                                                                                            Zoho Show Resources


                                                                                              Zoho Writer Writer

                                                                                              Get Started. Write Away!

                                                                                              Writer is a powerful online word processor, designed for collaborative work.

                                                                                                Zoho CRM コンテンツ








                                                                                                  Nederlandse Hulpbronnen


                                                                                                      ご検討中の方




                                                                                                            • Recent Topics

                                                                                                            • Client Script | Update - Client Script Support For Portals

                                                                                                              Dear All! We are excited to announce the highly anticipated feature: Client Script support for Portals. We understand that many of you have been eagerly awaiting this enhancement, and we are pleased to inform you that this support is now live for all
                                                                                                            • Alias Email Id already exists

                                                                                                              Hi I'm trying to create an alias : contact @ yoavarielevy.co.il but i get the message  Alias Email Id already exists I had an account with the same name but I deleted it. Can you help? Thanx Yoav
                                                                                                            • Professional Plan not activated after payment

                                                                                                              I purchased the Professional Plan for 11 users (Subscription ID: RPEU2000980748325) on 12 September 2025, and the payment has been successfully processed. However, even after more than 24 hours, my CRM account still shows “Upgrade” and behaves like a
                                                                                                            • How to create auto populate field based on custom module in Zoho CRM?

                                                                                                              Hello, i'm still new to Zoho CRM and work as administrator in my company. Currently, I'm configuring layout for Quotes Module. So, the idea is, I've created a read-only field in Quotes called "Spec". I want this field automatically filled with Specification
                                                                                                            • Zoho Books - France

                                                                                                              L’équipe de Zoho France reçoit régulièrement des questions sur la conformité de ses applications de finances (Zoho Books/ Zoho Invoice) pour le marché français. Voici quelques points pour clarifier la question : Zoho Books est un logiciel de comptabilité
                                                                                                            • how to edit the converted lead records?

                                                                                                              so I can fetch the converted leads records using API (COQL), using this endpoint https://www.zohoapis.com/crm/v5/coql and using COQL filter Converted__s=true for some reasons I need to change the value from a field in a converted lead record. When I try
                                                                                                            • Auto Update Event Field Value on Create/Edit

                                                                                                              Hi there, I know this question has been posted multiple times and I've been trying many of the proposed similar scripts for a while now but nothing seems to work... what might I do wrong? The error I receive is this: Value given for the variable 'meetingId'
                                                                                                            • Pre-orders at Zoho Commerce

                                                                                                              We plan to have regular producs that are avaliable for purchase now and we plan to have products that will be avaliable in 2-4 weeks. How we can take the pre-orders for these products? We need to take the money for the product now, but the delivery will
                                                                                                            • Constant color of a legend value

                                                                                                              It would be nice if we can set a constant color/pattern to a value when creating a chart. We would often use the same value in different graph options and I always have to copy the color that we've set to a certain value from a previous graph to make
                                                                                                            • Zoho Pagesense really this slow??? 5s delay...

                                                                                                              I put the pagesense on my website (hosted by webflow and fast) and it caused a 5s delay to load. do other people face similar delays?
                                                                                                            • Payroll and BAS ( Australian tax report format )

                                                                                                              Hello , I am evaluating Zoho Books and I find the interface very intuitive and straight forward. My company is currently using Quickbooks Premier the Australian version. Before we can consider moving the service we would need to have the following addressed : 1.Payroll 2.BAS ( business activity statement ) for tax purposes 3.Some form of local backup and possible export of data to a widely accepted format. Regards Codrin Mitin
                                                                                                            • Problem with Email an invoice with multiple attachments using API

                                                                                                              I have an invoice with 3 attachments. When I send an email manually using the UI, everything works correctly. I receive an email with three attachments. The problem occurs when I try to initiate sending an email using the API. The email comes with only
                                                                                                            • Page Layouts for Standard Modules like CRM

                                                                                                              For standard modules like quotes, invoices, purchase orders, etc, it would be a great feature to be able to create custom page layouts with custom fields in Zoho Books similar to how you can in Zoho CRM. For example, and my current use case, I have a
                                                                                                            • Non-depreciating fixed asset

                                                                                                              Hi! There are non-depreciable fixed assets (e.g. land). It would be very useful to be able to create a new type of fixed asset (within the fixed assets module) with a ‘No depreciation’ depreciation method. There is always the option of recording land
                                                                                                            • Fixed asset management

                                                                                                              I want to know if there is any individual module for fixed assets management
                                                                                                            • One time sale item in billing automatically detects as service

                                                                                                              if i have some items which i don't want to add in my "item" list because its sold only for one time. but when i type item name in invoice, it (system) automatically takes it as a service and despite of HSN , it shows SAC code to be entered. if its selectable i.e. either item or service , it would be very helpful and a must have feature.
                                                                                                            • Project template after project creation

                                                                                                              How can I apply a project template AFTER the project has been created?
                                                                                                            • convert the project to templet

                                                                                                              i have some deployment ME product for different customer , i need to create a fixed template for use it rather then keeping creating this template every time
                                                                                                            • Is there a notification API when a new note is addeding

                                                                                                              Trying to push to Cliq, or email notification when there's a new note added in module. How to implement this?
                                                                                                            • Seriously - Create multiple contacts for leads, (With Company as lead) Zoho CRM

                                                                                                              In Zoho CRM, considering a comapny as a lead, you need us to allow addition of more than one contact. Currently the Lead Section is missing "Add contact" feature which is available in "Accounts". When you know that a particular lead can have multiple
                                                                                                            • Related Module in Sharing Rules

                                                                                                              Zoho CRM team recently added the feature to filter records by Related Records It will be really beneficial if we can have this feature for Sharing Rules as well
                                                                                                            • Assignment Thresholds Resetting After Lead Conversion

                                                                                                              Hello everyone, We're facing an issue with Zoho CRM's lead assignment thresholds that makes them unsuitable for our workflow. I'm hoping to find a potential workaround or solution from the community. Here’s our current process: A new lead is created automatically
                                                                                                            • Vendor Signatures Needed for Purchase Orders

                                                                                                              Hello everyone, We have a unique requirement that necessitates that Vendors & Suppliers formally acknowledge our Purchase Orders upon receipt. I was hoping that there would be an option to do so in Zoho Books, but that does not appear to be the case.
                                                                                                            • Export Invoices to XML file

                                                                                                              Namaste! ZOHO suite of Apps is awesome and we as Partner, would like to use and implement the app´s from the Financial suite like ZOHO Invoice, but, in Portugal, we can only use certified Invoice Software and for this reason, we need to develop/customize on top of ZOHO Invoice to create an XML file with specific information and after this, go to the government and certified the software. As soon as we have for example, ZOHO CRM integrated with ZOHO Invoice up and running, our business opportunities
                                                                                                            • Zoho CRM Analytics - Allow To Reorder Dashboards

                                                                                                              I would like to suggest that you add the ability to reorder dashboards in the Analytics Module. I can see that this has been requested some time ago, the latest 9 years ago. I am not sure if this is a big or small endeavor, but such a small fix can go
                                                                                                            • Territory view for custom modules?

                                                                                                              I have recently activated territories however I can't seem to find how to use territories for custom modules? These modules have territories:  Contacts /  Accounts / Opportunities These modules don't have territories:   Buildings (custom module) and 
                                                                                                            • Zoho Books - How to Invoke a Custom Function in Schedulers

                                                                                                              We have multiple schedulers that send emails to customers in batches. Currently, we are maintaining the same code across several schedulers. Is it possible to use a custom function inside a scheduler script? If yes, how can we invoke the custom function
                                                                                                            • Adding a developer for editing the client application with a single user license

                                                                                                              Hi, I want to know that I as a developer I developed one application and handed over to the customer who is using the application on a single user license. Now after6 months customer came back to me and needs some changes in the application. Can a customer
                                                                                                            • additional accounts

                                                                                                              If I brought 5 emails to my account. Can I later buy additional emails.
                                                                                                            • Approval Process Comments

                                                                                                              Is it possible to view the comments entered during the approval or rejection of a record in the approval process? If not, is there a way to require a field to be completed upon approval or rejection?
                                                                                                            • Login for test case

                                                                                                              Had a few questions regarding authentication test cases and couldn't find an answer in the the docs. 1. If an app like Zoho Creator requires authentication before providing access, do I need to create a login function and add it to each test case? 2.
                                                                                                            • Zoho / Outlook Calendar sync

                                                                                                              The current Marketplace -> Microsoft -> Meetings integration needs 2 changes. 1. The current language for the Two-Way sync option should be changed. It currently states, "Sync both your Zoho CRM Calendar and Office 365 Calendar meetings with each other."
                                                                                                            • Collaps Notes

                                                                                                              There are times when long/large notes are added to a record i.e. Accounts or Deals etc. Currently, the full note is displayed in the notes related list section. It would be great if by default only 5 to 10 rows of the note are displayed when the note
                                                                                                            • GST Slabs Redefined: Stay Compliant Using Zoho Books!

                                                                                                              Hello Everyone! The Government of India is rolling out new GST rates, a major reform aimed at simplifying the current tax structure starting 22 September 2025. GST will move from four slabs (5%, 12%, 18%, 28%) to two main slabs (5% and 18%), plus a special
                                                                                                            • Form Rules for Suburb Categories to alternate landing pages or Making a Fields Contents ALL CAPS

                                                                                                              I need to send differentform submissions to two to three different thank-you URLs (for Meta/Google pixels) depending on which suburb a user selects in a form. I have ~400 suburbs split into two categories (A and B, based on business value). Current challenges:
                                                                                                            • Please make it easier to Pause syncing

                                                                                                              right now it takes 3 clicks to get there. sounds silly, but can you make it just 2 clicks to get it done instead? thats how dropbox does it, 2 clicks to pause instead of 3.
                                                                                                            • Customer members area

                                                                                                              Does FSM support a customer members area? If not what do you propose we use if we want the data used in FSM for customers to give them an area / login to see past orders, create new orders and general announcements.
                                                                                                            • Zoho Books-Accounting on the Go Series!

                                                                                                              Dear users, Continuing in the spirit of our 'Function Fridays' series, where we've been sharing custom function scripts to automate your back office operations, we're thrilled to introduce our latest initiative – the 'Zoho Books-Accounting on the Go Series'.
                                                                                                            • Record Logged in User while using CRM lookup field

                                                                                                              Is it possible, while using the Zoho CRM lookup field, to automatically use the user account logged into Zoho CRM in a hidden field? I was hoping to add employee accounts to my current plan. But would like a record on the Form submission of who submitted
                                                                                                            • Desktop app doesn't support notecards created on Android

                                                                                                              Hi, Does anybody have same problem? Some of last notecards created on Android app (v. 6.6) doesn't show in desktop app (v. 3.5.5). I see these note cards but whith they appear with exclamation mark in yellow triangle (see screenshot) and when I try to
                                                                                                            • Next Page