At the start of a training, we usually ask the participants which version of SharePoint they’re using. And the answer is often: “I don’t know”.
That’s not surprising, because SharePoint doesn’t have a version button or an ‘About’ section where you can find this information. Still, it can be helpful to know which software version you’re working with – when you’re following a SharePoint training, for example 😊.
Here’s how you can find out:
SharePoint Online
You can tell SharePoint Online apart from the other versions as follows:
- There’s no ribbon. Instead, you’ll see a ‘waffle’ button (top left) or an app launcher that displays a list of available apps.
- At the top of the window, you’ve got the options ‘Create site’ and ‘Create news post’.
- In the window itself, you’ll see ‘News from sites’ and ‘Frequent sites’.
- The homepage ‘Quick Launch’ or left navigation bar displays ‘Following’, ‘Recent’ or ‘Featured Links’.
In this window, you can create Team sites or Communication sites.
SharePoint Online Classic experience
Here’s how you can recognise this version:
The title of your work environment is Office 365.
The app is titled ‘SharePoint’. Under the title, there’s a ribbon with three tabs: Browse, Files and Library/List.
SharePoint 2016
This version looks slightly different:
The title of your work environment is SharePoint. To the left of the title, you’ll see the waffle button or app launcher. There’s always a ribbon.
SharePoint 2013
Here’s how you can tell you’re using SharePoint Server 2013:
There’s a ribbon, but no waffle button or app launcher. The title of your work environment only says SharePoint. You need the menu in the top right corner to switch between apps.
