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Getting Started with Microsoft SharePoint

Matt Meeboer
Matt Meeboer
  • Updated

Introduction

SharePoint is a web-based collaboration and document management platform created by Microsoft. SharePoint allows users to share files, data, news, and resources through a ‘site’.

A SharePoint site is a website where users will find content for their organization or team. Site content is contained in document libraries and lists.

A document library is a container where files, folders, and their associated metadata are held in a SharePoint site. To learn more, please see Microsoft’s documentation. For example, What is a document library?

A list is a collection of tabular data stored in columns and rows. The rows are list items and the columns may be fields, properties, or metadata. To learn more, please see Microsoft’s documentation. For example, What is a list?

FME provides several ways to interact with SharePoint document libraries and lists. This article will explain the three main methods of SharePoint integration in FME. The method you choose will largely depend on the storage resource you need to access and what you need to accomplish with your FME workflow.

 

SharePoint List Readers and Writers


The Microsoft SharePoint List Readers and Writers read from and write to lists only. They do not download, upload, or delete files stored in a SharePoint document library. In FME, each list is a feature type. Each row or item in a list is a feature, and each column or field in a list is an attribute. 

There are two SharePoint List Readers and Writers:

Microsoft SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer

The Microsoft SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer works with SharePoint Online lists only. Connection is made through a SharePoint Online web connection. This is the recommended transformer when working with SharePoint Online lists because it supports more OAuth2.0 authentication options, like client credentials. It also uses the Microsoft Graph API, instead of the legacy SharePoint API used by the Microsoft SharePoint Server List Reader/Writer, which means better support from Microsoft now and in the future. 

Since the Microsoft Graph API is also used by the SharePointOnlineConnector, it's possible to use the same web service definition and connection between the two. See Creating a SharePoint Web Connection for guidance.

The SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer does not ship natively with FME. Users must download and install the SharePoint Online Package from the FME HUB. The SharePoint Online List format requires a minimum version of FME 2024.1. 

Microsoft SharePoint Server List Reader/Writer (Legacy)

Before FME 2025.1.3, this format was known as the "Microsoft SharePoint List Reader/Writer"

The Microsoft SharePoint Server List Reader/Writer is intended for working with lists hosted on SharePoint Server on-premises. It offers additional authentication options for on-premises connections:
Basic, NTLM, or Kerberos. It can also read/write SharePoint Online lists using a web connection, but it is recommended to use the Microsoft SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer instead, unless you are on a version of FME that is 2024.1 or older.

The SharePoint Server List Reader/Writer uses a legacy SharePoint API, so a SharePoint Online web connection will not work. Please see the section Create a Legacy SharePoint List Web Connection in Form for instructions.

For more information, including the legacy list types supported, please see the Microsoft SharePoint List Reader/Writer documentation. 

 

SharePointListAttachmentConnector

The SharePointListAttachmentConnector is a transformer that lets you perform the following actions on list item attachments within a SharePoint Online document library:

  • List
  • Upload
  • Download
  • Delete

This connector does not ship natively with FME. Users must download and install the SharePoint Online Package from the FME HUB. 

Connection is made through a web connection. Since Microsoft's Graph API does not yet fully support list attachments, you must follow the instructions in Create a Legacy SharePoint List Web Connection in Form, which uses Microsoft's SharePoint API to create a connection.

 

SharePointOnlineConnector Transformer


The SharePointOnlineConnector is a transformer that lets you perform the following actions on files or folders held within a SharePoint Online document library:

  • List
  • Upload
  • Download
  • Delete

This connector does not ship natively with FME. Users must download and install the SharePoint Online Package from the FME HUB. 

Connection is made through a web connection. See Creating a SharePoint Web Connection for guidance.

 

SharePoint Online as a File System


Some FME readers and writers also support browsing SharePoint Online as if it were a file system. This allows you to read from or write to SharePoint Online without needing to add additional SharePointOnlineConnectors to your workflow. When adding a reader or writer, you can select a file from SharePoint: choose 'Select File From Web' and then 'Browse Microsoft SharePoint'.

The same SharePoint Online web service and connection defined for the SharePointOnlineConnector or SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer is used. Users must download and install the SharePoint Online package from FME Hub. 

 

Creating a SharePoint Web Connection

Before you can use the SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer, SharePointOnlineConnector, or browse SharePoint as a file system, you need to define a web service and use it to create a web connection.

Determine your Requirements

The connection you need to create depends on your organization’s requirements and guidelines. The following considerations determine how your web service should be configured in FME. 

 

1. How will you be working with SharePoint?

Read the earlier sections in this article and determine if you need to work with SharePoint Online Lists or SharePoint Document Libraries. If you want to browse SharePoint as a file system, please follow the SharePoint Online Connection articles.

 

2. What Azure Tenancy will you be using?

Microsoft gives the option of both single tenant and multitenant applications. For more information on this topic, see Microsoft’s documentation on Tenancy in Azure Active Directory.

 

3. Do you want to connect on behalf of a user or as an application?

SharePoint Online connections can access resources on behalf of a user, where Microsoft Graph API delegated permissions have been granted to the Azure app registration. As of FME 2024.1, application access is also supported. This is where Microsoft Graph API application permissions have been granted to the Azure app registration. 

Delegated permissions let you connect to SharePoint from FME on behalf of a Microsoft 365 user account. When you provide your username and password to authenticate an FME web service or connection, FME does not store these credentials. They are exchanged in the OAuth2.0 authorization code grant flow for a short-lived access token and a refresh token. FME only stores these tokens. The refresh token is used by FME to obtain a new access token when the current one expires. 

 

Application permissions let you connect to SharePoint with an Azure tenant id, client id, and client secret. These values are stored within the FME web connection and passed to SharePoint each time you need to connect. The client secret should be treated as a password. Configuration of a web service in FME is not required. With application permissions, Microsoft 365 credentials do not need to be provided to authorize the connection in FME. This method of authentication is similar to the use of a 'service account' and uses the OAuth2.0 client credentials grant flow. 

For a further comparison of the two authentication methods mentioned above, please see Microsoft’s Overview of permissions and consent. 

The SharePoint Server List Reader/Writer only supports delegated permissions (access on behalf of a user)

 

Once you have reviewed the points above and determined what your requirements are, follow the appropriate article below to create a web service and connection. If you are still unsure, please speak with your Azure or SharePoint administrator

 

Create a SharePoint Online Web Connection in FME Form

Create a SharePoint Online connection if you are working with the SharePointOnlineConnector, SharePoint Online List Reader/Writer, Share or are browsing SharePoint Online as a file system in FME. Connections made with the articles in this section use Microsoft's Graph API.

Connect on behalf of a user (Delegated Permissions)

Connect as an application (Application Permissions)

 

Create a Legacy SharePoint List Web Connection in Form

Create a Legacy SharePoint List connection only if:

  • You have a version of FME older than 2024.1 and need to work with SharePoint Online lists
  • You're using the SharePointListAttachmentConnector

Connections made with the articles in this section use Microsoft's SharePoint API.

Connect on behalf of a user (Delegated Permissions)

 

Create a SharePoint Web Connection in FME Flow

Once your SharePoint Online or SharePoint List web connection is working in FME Form, a few extra steps are needed to get it working in FME Flow. 

 

Troubleshooting Connections

If you experience issues connecting to SharePoint in FME, please review the Troubleshooting SharePoint Web Connections and Services article.

 

Tutorials

Below are some additional tutorials for working with SharePoint once you have successfully connected from FME.

 

Additional Resources

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