Use a screen reader to highlight a file or folder in a document library in sharepoint online

Screen reader content

This article is for people with visual impairments who use a screen reader program with the Office products and is part of the Office Accessibility content set. For more general help, see Microsoft Support home.

Use SharePoint in Microsoft 365 with your keyboard and a screen reader to highlight important files, folders, or links in a document library by pinning them to the top of the document library. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques. The pinned item appears as a thumbnail image at the top of the document library page.

Notes: 

• New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.

• To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft Office.

• When you use SharePoint in Microsoft 365, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because SharePoint in Microsoft 365 runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you'll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not SharePoint in Microsoft 365.

In this topic

• Switch to the List view

• Pin an item in a document library

• Change the order of pinned items

• Unpin an item

Switch to the List view

To list all the items in a document library, you need to switch to the List view.

1. Go to the document library that contains the file, folder, or link you want to highlight.

2. Press the Tab key until you hear "Command bar," press the Right or Left arrow key until you hear "All documents view," and then press Enter.

3. Press the Down arrow key until you hear "List," and press Enter.

Pin an item in a document library

The pinned item only appears as highlighted in the folders and library views in which it was originally pinned. If you use custom views, you need to pin the item in each view where you want it to appear as highlighted. You can pin a maximum of three items per library, folder, or view.

1. Go to the document library that contains the file, folder, or link you want to pin.

2. To select the item to be pinned, press the Tab key until you hear the first item in the items list. Press the Down arrow key until you hear the name of the item you want to pin.

3. To open the context menu, press Shift+F10.

4. Press the Down arrow key until you hear "Pin to top," and then press Enter.

Change the order of pinned items

When you have pinned more than one item, you can change the order in which they appear.

1. Go to the document library, folder, or view where the items are pinned.

2. To select the item you want to move, press the Tab key until you hear "List of pinned items." Press the Right arrow key until you hear the name of the item you want.

3. To open the context menu, press Shift+F10.

4. Press the Down arrow key until you hear "Edit pin," press the Right arrow key, press the Down arrow key until you hear the option you want, and then press Enter to select.

Unpin an item

1. Go to the document library, folder, or view where the item is pinned.

2. To select the item you want to unpin, press the Tab key until you hear "List of pinned items." Press the Right arrow key until you hear the name of the item you want.

3. To open the context menu, press Shift+F10.

4. To unpin an item, press the Down arrow key until you hear "Edit pin," press the Right arrow key once, press the Down arrow key until you hear "Unpin," and then press Enter.

See also

Use a screen reader to create a custom view of a document library in SharePoint Online

Use a screen reader to edit a custom view of a document library in SharePoint Online

Keyboard shortcuts in SharePoint Online

Basic tasks using a screen reader with SharePoint Online

Use a screen reader to explore and navigate SharePoint Online

Technical support for customers with disabilities

Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.

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