Use Sharing Rules for External Users

Follow Along with Trail Together

Want to follow along with an expert as you work through this step? Take a look at this video, part of the Trail Together series. The clip starts at the 38:04 minute mark, in case you want to rewind and watch the beginning of the step again.

Sharing Rules for External Users

Sharing rules work the same way for external users as they do for internal users. In this step, you see how to use sharing rules for partner users.

Take a look at this video to see an overview of what sharing rules do.

Sharing rules grant additional access to records on an object-by-object basis, regardless of where users fall in the role hierarchy. You can create sharing rules based on owner or based on criteria. You can even set up sharing rules specifically for guest users in your portal or site.

Owner-based sharing rules let you share records between groups of users. Criteria-based sharing rules apply when certain criteria are met. Salesforce creates and maintains these site-specific groups of users.

• Portal roles
  
• Portal role and subordinates
  
• Roles, Internal and Portal Subordinates
  
• All Customer Portal Users and All Partner Users public groups
  
• And if you have channel programs and levels set up, you have Channel Programs and Levels Groups
  

You can also set up your own public groups for sharing purposes.

The All Customer Portal Users and All Partner Users public groups don't exist in production orgs created after the Summer '20 release. However, you can still see these public groups even in newly created Trailhead Playground orgs.

Let’s take a look at how Ursa Major uses sharing rules to open record visibility among partner users.

Sharing Rules Using an Account Role

Ursa Major’s partner users fall into two categories: distributors and resellers. Sometimes the partner users belonging to different accounts need to see one another’s records. For example, partner managers in the Express Logistics and Transport account need read and write access to opportunities owned by all partner users in Edge Communications.

Follow along as Maria, Ursa Major’s admin, sets up a sharing rule that uses the account roles that you set up in the previous step.

1. From Setup, enter Sharing in the Quick Find box, then select Sharing Settings.
   
2. Under Opportunity Sharing Rules, click New and enter this information.
   

• Label: Share Edge Opportunities
• Rule Name: [autopopulates]
  
• Rule Type: Based on record owner
  
• Select which records to be shared: Portal Roles and Subordinates: Edge Communications Partner Manager
  
• Select the users to share with: Portal Roles: Express Logistics and Transport Partner Manager
  
• Select the level of access for the users: Read/Write
  

3. Click Save and OK.
   

See what you did? You gave read and write access to all opportunities owned by Edge Communications partner managers and subordinates (that is, partner users) to partner managers at Express Logistics and Transport.

Using sharing rules, you can also give access to records owned by internal Salesforce users to external users who have Customer Community Plus and Partner Community licenses, and vice versa.

Now let’s take a look at how you can share records with a public group comprising partner users.

Criteria-Based Sharing Rules Using a Public Group

Ursa Major wants partner managers to be aware of any high-priority energy accounts. The company also wants the director of channel sales to be aware of these accounts.

How can Maria meet this need? First she has to create a public group that includes managers in partner accounts, as well as the director of channel sales. Note that she’s creating a public group that includes both internal and external roles.

1. From Setup, enter Public Groups in the Quick Find box, then select Public Groups
   
2. Click New and enter this information.
   

• Label: Partner Managers and Channel Director
• Group Name: [autopopulates]
  
• Search Roles for Channel Sales and move Role: Director, Channel Sales to Selected Members
  
• Search Portal Roles for Manager and move Portal Role: Edge Communications Partner Manager and Portal Role: Express Logistics and Transport Partner Manager to Selected Members
  

3. Click Save.
   

Now Maria has to create a sharing rule that meets the criteria she was given.

1. From Setup, enter Sharing in the Quick Find box, then select Sharing Settings.
   
2. Under Account Sharing Rules, click New and enter this information.
   

• Label: High Priority Energy Accounts
• Rule Name: [autopopulates]
  
• Rule Type: Based on criteria
  
• Select which records to be shared: Criteria
  
  • Field: Industry equals Energy AND Field: Customer Priority equals High
    
• Select the users to share with: Public Groups: Partner Managers and Channel Director
  
• Select the level of access for the users:
  
  • Default Account and Contract Access: Read Only
    
  • Opportunity Access: Private
    
  • Case Access: Private
    

3. Click Save and OK.
   

And there you have it. You’ve opened up access to previously inaccessible accounts for a whole groups of users. Onward!

Resources

Salesforce Help: Sharing Rules

Video series: Who Sees What in Experience Cloud