TutorialKart.comWhat is Microsoft SharePoint?
Microsoft SharePoint is a web-based content and collaboration platform used to create intranet sites, publish pages and news, manage documents, track structured information, and help people find organizational content. It is commonly used by departments, project teams, and entire organizations as a shared workspace for files, knowledge, processes, and internal communication.
SharePoint is available as SharePoint in Microsoft 365, a cloud service managed by Microsoft, and as SharePoint Server Subscription Edition for organizations that operate SharePoint in their own environment. The features and administration experience differ between the cloud and server editions.
What Microsoft SharePoint is used for
SharePoint combines several related capabilities in one platform. An organization can use it for a company intranet, while individual teams can use separate sites for projects, departments, policies, procedures, or knowledge bases.
- Intranet sites: Publish company news, policies, announcements, navigation, and frequently used resources.
- Team collaboration: Give a team a shared place for files, pages, lists, links, and project information.
- Document management: Store files in document libraries with metadata, version history, permissions, views, and approval processes.
- Structured data tracking: Use Microsoft Lists and SharePoint lists to manage issues, assets, requests, contacts, tasks, and other records.
- Knowledge management: Create searchable pages, guides, FAQs, and departmental knowledge centers.
- Business processes: Connect lists and libraries to approvals and other automated workflows using Microsoft Power Automate.
Core SharePoint components
SharePoint sites
A SharePoint site is a workspace that contains pages, document libraries, lists, navigation, permissions, and other resources. Two common modern site types are team sites and communication sites.
- Team site: Designed for collaboration among a defined group of people. It is commonly connected to a Microsoft 365 group.
- Communication site: Designed to publish information to a broader audience, such as company news, policies, or departmental updates.
SharePoint pages and web parts
Pages present information inside a site. Editors build modern pages by adding web parts for text, images, links, documents, lists, news, people, events, and other content. Pages can be published and used in site navigation or distributed as news posts.
SharePoint document libraries
A document library stores files and provides controls beyond a basic folder. Depending on configuration and permissions, users can organize documents with folders and metadata, view version history, check files in or out, share files, apply retention settings, and create filtered views.
SharePoint lists
A SharePoint list stores structured records in rows and columns. Columns can hold text, numbers, dates, choices, people, links, or other data types. Views can sort, filter, group, and format list items for different users or tasks.
Microsoft SharePoint features
- Centralized content: Files, pages, news, and structured records can be organized within sites.
- Permissions and sharing: Site owners can control access at the site, library, folder, file, list, or item level, although simpler permission structures are easier to manage.
- Version history: Libraries and lists can retain earlier versions so authorized users can review or restore changes.
- Search: Users can search across sites and content they have permission to access.
- Metadata and views: Columns, content types, filters, and custom views help organize large collections of documents and records.
- Microsoft 365 integration: SharePoint works with Microsoft Teams, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Power Automate, and Power Apps.
- Responsive access: Modern SharePoint sites can be used through supported desktop and mobile browsers and Microsoft mobile apps.
- Extensibility: Developers can build supported customizations with the SharePoint Framework and Microsoft Graph where appropriate.
SharePoint, OneDrive, and Microsoft Teams differences
| Microsoft service | Primary role | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| SharePoint | Shared content, sites, intranets, lists, and document management | Department sites, project workspaces, policies, shared libraries, and internal portals |
| OneDrive | An individual’s work files and personal working space | Draft files, personal file synchronization, and sharing a file before it becomes team-owned content |
| Microsoft Teams | Chat, meetings, calls, and team collaboration interface | Conversations and meetings, with channel files stored in the connected SharePoint site |
These services are connected rather than interchangeable. For example, files uploaded to a standard Teams channel are generally stored in a document library on the team’s connected SharePoint site. OneDrive is better suited to files owned and managed by an individual, while SharePoint is used for content intended to be owned by a team or organization.
SharePoint in Microsoft 365 versus SharePoint Server
| Area | SharePoint in Microsoft 365 | SharePoint Server Subscription Edition |
|---|---|---|
| Hosting | Hosted and operated by Microsoft | Deployed and administered by the organization |
| Updates | Cloud features and service updates are delivered by Microsoft | Administrators plan and install supported updates |
| Infrastructure | No SharePoint server farm is maintained by the customer | The organization manages servers, databases, security, capacity, backup, and recovery |
| Best fit | Organizations adopting Microsoft 365 cloud services | Organizations with specific on-premises, regulatory, integration, or operational requirements |
The choice should be based on governance, compliance, integration, identity, infrastructure, and support requirements. Features available in SharePoint in Microsoft 365 are not always available in SharePoint Server, and the interfaces can differ.
How SharePoint document collaboration works
- A site owner creates or selects a team site.
- The team stores files in a document library rather than distributing multiple email attachments.
- Members edit documents according to their permissions. Supported Office files can be opened in the browser or desktop apps.
- Version history records changes when versioning is enabled, making it possible to review or restore an earlier version.
- Columns and views can classify files by project, department, document type, status, owner, or review date.
- Power Automate can be used for a process such as document review or approval when automation is required.
SharePoint permissions and governance basics
SharePoint security is permission-based. Users normally receive access through groups such as site owners, site members, and site visitors. Owners can manage the site, members can usually contribute content, and visitors normally receive read access. Exact permissions depend on the organization’s configuration.
- Grant access through groups instead of assigning many individual permissions.
- Use the least privilege needed for each role.
- Avoid unnecessary unique permissions on individual files and folders.
- Define who owns each site and how inactive sites are reviewed or removed.
- Plan naming, external sharing, retention, sensitivity, and content lifecycle rules before broad adoption.
- Test access with representative user accounts before publishing confidential content.
Common SharePoint limitations to plan for
SharePoint can support many content and collaboration scenarios, but it is not automatically a complete solution for every process. Complex custom applications, heavily nested permissions, uncontrolled site creation, inconsistent metadata, and poorly planned migrations can make an environment difficult to maintain.
Before implementation, identify the business owner, audience, content types, permissions, retention needs, search requirements, migration approach, and measures of success. Use standard SharePoint capabilities first and introduce custom development only when a clear requirement cannot be met through supported configuration.
Microsoft SharePoint frequently asked questions
Is SharePoint a file storage system?
SharePoint includes document storage, but it is more than a file repository. It also provides sites, pages, news, lists, search, permissions, metadata, versioning, and integration with other Microsoft 365 services.
Is SharePoint the same as OneDrive?
No. OneDrive is primarily an individual’s work-file space, while SharePoint is designed for shared sites, team-owned files, intranets, lists, and organizational content. Both use related Microsoft 365 file and sharing technologies.
Does Microsoft Teams use SharePoint?
Yes. A team created in Microsoft Teams normally has a connected SharePoint team site. Files added to standard Teams channels are stored in the connected site’s document library, while Teams provides the chat, meeting, and collaboration interface.
Can SharePoint be used without Microsoft 365?
Organizations can deploy a supported on-premises edition such as SharePoint Server Subscription Edition. SharePoint in Microsoft 365, however, is provided as part of eligible Microsoft 365 plans and is managed as a cloud service.
Can SharePoint automate approval processes?
Yes. SharePoint lists and libraries can be connected to Microsoft Power Automate for processes such as approvals, notifications, reminders, and record updates. The workflow should be designed with clear ownership, error handling, permissions, and audit requirements.
SharePoint tutorial editorial QA checklist
- Confirm whether instructions apply to SharePoint in Microsoft 365 or SharePoint Server.
- Verify that team sites, communication sites, lists, libraries, pages, and web parts are described as separate SharePoint components.
- Check that Teams channel file storage and OneDrive comparisons are stated accurately.
- Avoid presenting permission inheritance breaks as the default design.
- Verify product names and feature availability against current Microsoft documentation before publishing step-by-step instructions.
For current product guidance, see Microsoft’s official SharePoint help and learning resources and the SharePoint documentation for administrators and developers.