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Question

Managing permissions

  • May 22, 2025
  • 2 replies
  • 38 views
C
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BACKGROUND

  • We share folders with our clients.
  • Different folders require different levels of permission

PROBLEM

  • It seems to me that when you change the permission of a subfolder that changes the permission for that individual across the entire folder string.

QUESTION(s)

  • Is there a workaround?
  • If not, can someone coach me on how to think through designing our folder structure?

    2 replies

    C
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    Hi there, 

    Welcome to the Box Community!

    This seems expected behavior as permissions in Box follow our waterfall permission model.

    This means that when you add a user to a parent folder that same level of access is automatically inherited by all of the sub folders that exist in the structure at the time you add the user, as well as to any new folders that get created there later on. Changing the access level for any subfolder causes the individual's access level also to change for the parent folder and all its subfolders. The system displays a message stating this information when changing someone's access level in a subfolder instead of in the parent folder. 

    If you would like to learn more about Folder permissions, you can take a look at this article: Understanding Folder Permissions 

    Thanks for posting and for your participation in the forum!

    Regards,

    C
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    Thank you. I was missing the term "parent folder."  When I change the permission of a sub folder it changes the parent folder too.  

    - Parent folder shared as "Editor"

    - Change Sub folder to "Viewer"

    - Parent folder is now shared a "Viewer"

    To my understand that is not the flow of a waterfall system.  

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