How to Block Users From Editing and Deleting Others Items

In this article I would like to use a SharePoint Out of the Box Solution for a common problem. The problem is associated with a survey list where:

1. Items can be created by any user
2. But editing / deleting of the item should be possible by the user that created it

Example: A survey list for employee feedback

What is Out of the Box?

This is a term used to denote built-in features of SharePoint. Out-of-the-box solutions are preferred & encouraged since it is easier to perform in the short term & easier to manage in the long term.

Possible Solutions

We can quickly jump into solutions like creating an Event Handler and on the Item Updated event we can ensure the user & cancel the event. But the drawback is that it requires code development, installation & maintenance.

Instead we can go for the Out-of-the-box solution "Modifying List Advanced Settings".

Create the List

To execute this please perform the following activities:

1. Create a list named My List from the template Contacts.
2. Create a user named user1 and add it to List Permissions, assign Contribute level
3. Create a user named user2 and add it to List Permissions, assign Contribute level
4. Login as user1 and create a contact named User 1 Contact
5. Login as user2 and create a contact named User 2 Contact
   
   
   
   

Now the list looks as in the following:



Please use separate browsers with a different session instance for users: Administrator, User1 & User2.

Modify Advanced Settings

Now we can modify the List Advanced Settings. Open the list in Administrator mode & choose "List Settings" > "Advanced Settings".



From the page that appears select the following options.



Click the "OK" button to save the changes. Now you will see the following.

User 1 can only view his own item:



User 2 can only view his own item:



The Administrator can view both items:



Please note that the Permission Levels determine the visibility as in the following:

1. Administrator is given Full Control permission level
2. User 1, User 2 are given Contribute permission level

References

http://bit.ly/10uiVpB 

Summary

In this article we have seen a possible scenario of List Item Permissions. SharePoint consists of various options & out-of-the-box solutions we need to be aware of.

This solution is apt for Survey Scenarios, where multiple users are required to provide their feedback, but they should not see other's feedbacks.

Please note that SharePoint 2010 also has a Survey list template.