Configure anonymous access for a web application

Enable anonymous access for a Web application

1.     From Administrative Tools, open the SharePoint Central Administration Web site application.

2.     On the Central Administration home page, click Application Management.

3.     On the Application Management page, in the Application Security section, click Authentication providers.

4.     On the Authentication Providers page, make sure the Web application that is listed in the Web Application box (under Site Actions) is the one that you want to configure. If the listed Web application is not the one that you want to configure, click the drop-down arrow to the right of theWeb Application drop-down list box and select Change Web Application.

5.     In the Select Web Application dialog box, click the Web application that you want to configure.

6.     On the Authentication Providers page, click the zone of the Web application on which you want to enable anonymous access. The zones that are configured for the selected Web application are listed on the Authentication Providers page.

7.     On the Edit Authentication page, in the Anonymous Access section, select Enable Anonymous Access, and then click Save.

At this point, the Web application zone has been enabled for anonymous access.

Enable anonymous access for individual sites

Now you need to enable anonymous access for individual sites in the site collection.

Enable anonymous access for individual sites

1.     Go to the site on which you want to enable anonymous access and click the Site Actions menu.

2.     On the Site Actions menu, click Site Settings.

3.     On the Site Settings page, in the Users and Permissions section, click Advanced Permissions.

4.     On the Permissions page, on the Settings menu, click Anonymous Access. The settings for anonymous access lists three options:

·         Entire Web site   Select this option if you want to enable anonymous access for the entire Web site.

·         Lists and libraries   Select this option if you want to limit anonymous access to only the lists and libraries on your site.

·         Nothing   Select this option if you want to prevent anonymous access from being used on your site.

5.     Click OK.

At this point, your site is configured for anonymous access based on the options that you have selected.

Enable anonymous access for individual lists

If you select Lists and libraries, enable anonymous access for individual lists.

Enable anonymous access for individual lists

1.     Go to the home page of your Web site and, in the left navigation pane, click View All Site Content.

2.     Click the list on which you want to enable anonymous access.

3.     On the Settings menu, click List Settings.

4.     On the Customize List page, in the Permissions and Management section, click Permissions for this list.

5.     On the Permissions page, on the Actions menu, click Edit Permissions. A dialog box is displayed informing you that you are about to create unique permissions for this list. Click OK.

6.     On the Settings menu, click Anonymous Access.

7.     Select permissions for users who have anonymous access to the list, and then click OK.

At this point, users have anonymous access to the list you have configured. You can control whether users have anonymous access to other lists, the home page, or other pages on this site.