There are two possible ways to restore data in SharePoint online:  

1. Recycle Bin
2. Site Collection Restore

1. Recycle Bin

If a user deletes a file, the file will be moved to Recycle Bin stage 1. Here it can be found and restored either by the user itself or by the Site Collection Admin at AAU IT Services for up to 90 days.  

If the file is deleted from Recycle Bin stage 1, it will be moved to Recycle Bin stage 2. At this stage only the Site Collection Admin will be able to see it. The file will be stored in collectively 90 days across both Recycle Bin stages. This means that if the file was initially deleted 85 days ago, and it then is deleted from Recycle Bin stage 1, it will still be restorable from Recycle Bin stage 2 for 5 more days.

If an entire SharePoint site is deleted, it will automatically be moved to Recycle Bin stage 2. 

2. Site Collection Restore

Microsoft makes a backup of Site Collection Suite every 12 hours and saves these for 14 days. From here it is only possible to restore the entire Site Collection Suite, and only to the original placement. This means that if you need this backup, and you have not deleted the entire Site Collection, the changes made in between the deletion and restoration will be gone. 

It is not possible to restore a single item from Site Collection Restore – it is all or nothing.  

Everyone with an AAU username can get access to SharePoint.

AAU accounts that need access to a SharePoint site need to be regular users, which means that e.g., SharedMailbox accounts cannot be SharePoint users.  

Access through external accounts can have its limitations in functionality e.g., in regards of synchronizing folders.  

Read more about data classification here

We offer SharePoint Online to everyone at AAU. 

There is an array of different types of SharePoint sites that all varies in standard setup options. In principle we offer all the same site types that Microsoft offers. However, the standard for SharePoint Online will be a Team site with the so-called “Modern” layout. This allows for easy options and many possibilities, along with a web layout that also fits mobile devices.  
 

When you are invited to partake in a SharePoint site as a guest you will receive an email with the invite. Once you have received the invite:  

1. Open a Chrome browser window in incognito mode – read how to open an incognito window here 
2. Right click on the SharePoint sites name from the email you have received 
3. Choose copy link 
4. Paste the link in the Chrome browser incognito window you have opened 
5. Hit enter  
6. You will see the following three different ways to log into the site:  
   • “Click here if you already have a private Microsoft account. Type in your email address and password, and afterwards you will be forwarded to our multifactor authentication access point” - How to set up multi-factor authentication will be explained later in these instructions. 
   • “Click here if you have a work or school account. Type in your email address and password, and afterwards you will be forwarded to our multifactor authentication access point” - How to set up multi-factor authentication will be explained later in these instructions. 
   • If you do not have any of the above-mentioned ways to access the site, you will need to create a Microsoft account, which will be explained in the following steps in these instructions.
     Beware! You must log in with the email address on which you received the SharePoint invite. 
7. Choose Create a Microsoft account – it’s quick and easy!
8. Type in the email address that you have received the SharePoint invite on 
9. Click next
10. Type in a password to the Microsoft account you are creating 
11. Type in information on your country and birthdate  
12. Click next
13. You will receive a confirmation code on the email address you have created the account with – copy this confirmation code from the email 
14. Paste the code in the correct space in your browser  
15. Click next 
16. Confirm that you are not a robot by solving the tasks made by the website.

Once the above-mentioned steps are completed, you will see the message: “More information needed”. This is because AAU uses multi-factor authentication, and you will therefore need to set it up. How to do this will be explained in the instructions below.

Click here to read about multi-factor authentication.

Set up multi-factor authentication

You can set up multi-factor authentication (MFA) to verify via either the app or text messages.

To set up MFA to validate via text message, follow these steps:

1. Click next
2. Click on “I want to use another method” 
3. Choose ‘Phone’ 
4. Click on ‘confirm’ 
5. Type in your country code 
6. Type in your phone number 
7. Click next
   You will now receive a text message with a code
8. Type in the code that you have received 
   When you have typed in the correct code the screen will show that your phone is now registered.
9. Click next 

To set up MFA to validate via the app, follow these steps:

1. Download the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone 
2. Click next on your computer 
3. Accept all permissions that the app might ask you to during the setup process 
4. Open the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone 
   The app will show you that you need to configure your account on your computer. Continuing in the app, click on ‘skip’ in the upper right corner. If you do not have the option to skip, continue to the next step. 
5. Click on add account in the app 
6. Choose add work or school account in the app 
7. Click next on your computer 
8. Choose scan a QR code in the app 
9. Give the app permission to use the camera while the app is in use 
10. Use the app to scan the QR code shown on your computer screen 
11. Click next on your computer 
    You will receive a notification in the app, which you will need to confirm. You will need to type in your lock code to your phone, use fingerprint scan or face recognition to confirm the notification.  
    Your account will now be shown in the app. 
12. Click next on your computer. The app is now fully setup.

Please note that the app must not be deleted, as you will need it more than once to confirm your identity.  

One of the functions in SharePoint is the ability to collaborate on files and documents.  

You can do this in a multitude of ways depending on the platform. You can choose to either work online directly in documents, or you can synchronize files directly to your own computer. 

There is no official AAU web layout available in SharePoint. Therefore, SharePoint is not ideal to use in scenarios where it is a requirement to use official AAU layouts. However, it is not a problem if the SharePoint site is not publicly accessible.  

There is currently only one SharePoint site layout that is optimized for mobile devices. It is the Team site that we use by default. Other site types can also be shown on mobile devices, they might just not be particularly useable on mobile devices.  

Microsoft are continually making new optimizations on this area, which means that you will be able to find much more information on optimal site layouts online, if you for example search “SharePoint online site design”.