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Microsoft Ups SharePoint Online File Limits
Microsoft today announced file-upload improvements to its SharePoint Online service.
The improvements echo Microsoft's SkyDrive Pro enhancements announced late last week. SkyDrive Pro, which is a SharePoint-based client application for storing and accessing files, now supports file uploads of 2 GB max, up from a previous 250 MB limit.
It's also now possible to upload multiple files to SharePoint storage. Users can upload them via the upload dialog box, by the drag-and-drop method or they can use the standalone SkyDrive pro sync client, according to Microsoft's announcement.
Microsoft broadened the file types that can be stored using SharePoint Online. It's now possible to store .EXE and .DLL files in the cloud. "For SharePoint Online, our telemetry shows that customers want to store these files in the cloud along with their other content," explained Mark Kashman, a senior product manager for SharePoint marketing, in Microsoft's announcement.
The announcement claims that the .EXE and .DLL files don't get executed when uploaded to a SharePoint team site. Moreover, SharePoint has an antivirus scanner that will check if malicious files are uploaded.
Files are now retained in SharePoint Online's recycle bins for 90 days, which is an improvement from 30 days of retention. File versions now get tracked by default. SharePoint Online will list up to 10 file versions.
Microsoft is also increasing the number of SharePoint Online site collections that each of its customers can create. Previously, the site collection limit was 3,000 site collections per tenant. In the next few weeks, that limit will be expanded to 10,000 site collections per tenant maximum. However, the site collection expansion only applies to organizations using Office 365 Enterprise plans. Microsoft defines a site collection as "groups of websites organized into a hierarchy."
The new SharePoint Online improvements were made based on customer feedback, according to Kashman. SharePoint Online users can expect to see the new capabilities in "coming weeks," he noted.
About the Author
Kurt Mackie is senior news producer for 1105 Media's Converge360 group.