How to avoid your MOSS WebSite Breaking

Very often we work with with various groups such as Web designers or content authors who are working on different aspects of a Web site. With so many groups working simultaneously, you are probably worried that somebody might inadvertently break a site — for example, by changing the design of the home page, modifying the style sheet, saving files in a wrong location, or breaking the site navigation or search functionality. If you are concerned, then I have a good news, We can avoid these scenarios by using Contributor Settings to turn on and configure Contributor mode in Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer 2007.

Let us see what are these Contributor groups and how they are related to MOSS/SPD.
1. Contributor mode is enabled by default, and there is no required setup for the site manager or administrator. Only an administrator can turn Contributor mode on or off.

2.With Contributor Settings, a site manager can define Contributor groups in an organization, and then define exactly what tasks they can or cannot do in Office SharePoint Designer 2007.

3.This means that you can use the Contributor Settings to set different editing restrictions for different groups.

• For example, you can allow Web designers to create new styles but restrict content authors from doing the same.


• Or you can allow content authors to create new pages from a master page but restrict the same for a different group.


• Site managers can configure Contributor groups so that users have access to only those commands and features in Office SharePoint Designer 2007 that they need to complete their tasks.

The features that you can access in Office SharePoint Designer 2007 depend on your role in the organization. See the following table for more details.
The features that you can access in Office SharePoint Designer 2007 depend on
your role in the organization.
If you are a Site Manager
If your SharePoint permission level gives you full control, you can:

• Create Contributor groups and assign them editing restrictions.
  Insert content regions on a master page and specify the type of content that is allowed in that region.


• Restrict areas outside of content regions on a master page from being edited.
  Control how and what types of pages are created and where content is saved.


• Prevent users from modifying the default home page, master page, or any other page included in the site definition.


• Allow full, unrestricted use of Office SharePoint Designer 2007 to only the groups you choose.

If you are User such as a Web Designer or a Content Author (or any restricted user)
Depending on the editing restrictions for your Contributor group, you can:

• Create new pages


• Apply styles and formatting to existing pages.


• Insert images and media files


• Work with SharePoint content such as Web Parts and Data Views

Contributor Settings is not a security feature
Important
1)Contributor Settings is not a security feature. Contributor mode is a limited access mode for users who open and edit SharePoint sites in Office SharePoint Designer 2007.
2)Contributor mode is designed to be used in an environment where site managers are confident of their users’ intentions.
3)Contributor mode helps to guide users in a particular direction to carry out their tasks, and this guidance prevents accidental changes to the Web site.