A Beginner’s Guide to Document Management and

Workflow in SharePoint
© DocumentManagementWorkflowInfo.com

Table of Contents
Electronic Document Management Systems basics ...................................................................... 3
Defining and using workflows (BPM) in EDM................................................................. 3
Defining folder structures in an EDRMS ...................................................................... 3
Defining document types and metadata in an EDRMS ..................................................... 3
Components of an Electronic Document Management System ........................................... 3
EDRMS: The difference between documents and records ................................................. 3
SharePoint Document Management ................................................................................................. 4
How to delete a SharePoint document library template or list template .................................. 4
How to add a version column to a SharePoint document library .......................................... 4
How to set the default document template on a SharePoint document library .......................... 4
Document Center site template available in WSS 3.0? ..................................................... 4
Design and create a document content type in SharePoint ................................................ 4
Using a User Tasks web part for collaboration and document approval in SharePoint ................ 4
How to create a SharePoint site column ...................................................................... 4
How to add a content type to a SharePoint document library .............................................. 5
How to enable check-in, check-out, and versioning on a SharePoint document library ................ 5
Adding a document template to a SharePoint document library using a content type.................. 5
Understanding the basics of content types in SharePoint .................................................. 5
SharePoint document management web parts: Relevant Documents .................................... 5
Defining document management metadata in SharePoint ................................................. 5
How to enable tree view navigation in WSS 3.0 ............................................................. 5
Workflow / Business Process Management ..................................................................................... 6
How to use the Update List Item action in a SharePoint Designer workflow ............................. 6
How do SharePoint workflows and SharePoint event handlers differ? ................................... 6
Debugging Visual Studio 2005 workflows for SharePoint .................................................. 6
Understanding the Define Workflow Lookup dialog in SharePoint Designer ............................ 6
How to create custom Visual Studio 2005 workflows for WSS 3 or Office SharePoint Server 2007 . 6
How to create a custom SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow ............................................. 6
How to enable a Visual Studio workflow on SharePoint and attach it to a document library .......... 6
How to manually deploy a Visual Studio 2005 workflow to SharePoint................................... 6
Adding a three-state workflow to a content type in SharePoint ............................................ 7
The basics of custom Visual Studio workflows for SharePoint ............................................. 7
How to set up a three-state workflow on a SharePoint document library................................. 7
Introduction to SharePoint workflows .......................................................................... 7
 3 Ways to create workflows for WSS 3.0 and Office SharePoint 2007 ................................... 7
Standard out-of-the-box workflows in WSS 3.0 and Office SharePoint Server 2007 ................... 7
SharePoint basics ................................................................................................................................ 8
How to add a date difference column to a SharePoint list or library....................................... 8
Sample SharePoint workflows ........................................................................................................... 8
Format a date in a SharePoint workflow using a SharePoint formula..................................... 8
Format a date in a SharePoint Designer workflow using a custom action ............................... 8
Get a SharePoint list item GUID using a SharePoint Designer workflow ................................. 8
How to send an email alert containing a link to a SharePoint list item .................................... 8
Using a GUID to look up a SharePoint list item instead of an ID .......................................... 8
Using the Log to History List SharePoint workflow action for debugging ................................. 8
SharePoint Designer workflow: Create a new document based on a content type ..................... 8
4 Ways to set a date value in a SharePoint Designer workflow ........................................... 9
SharePoint Designer workflow: Move a document from one library to another ......................... 9
SharePoint Designer workflow: Allow users to enter an email address before running a workflow .. 9
How to perform date calculations and construct dynamic strings in a SharePoint Designer workflow
...................................................................................................................... 9
Visual Studio workflow: Copy a document from one SharePoint document library to another ........ 9
SharePoint Designer workflow: Send email when major versions of a document are checked-in .... 9
SharePoint Video Tutorials ............................................................................................................... 10
SharePoint Video Tutorial: Use a content type to add a document template to a SharePoint
document library ................................................................................................ 10
How to move a SharePoint Document Library using a List Template................................... 10
Use a calculated field and two dependent workflows in SharePoint to format a date ................ 10
Custom SharePoint Designer workflow activity to format dates ......................................... 10
Get the GUID of a new SharePoint list item created in a SharePoint Designer workflow ............ 10
Retrieve the GUID of the Current Item in a SharePoint Designer workflow ............................ 10
Define an email message with a link for a new Task list item in SharePoint Designer ............... 10
Set the approval status of a SharePoint list item using a SharePoint Designer workflow ............ 11
Create a document review workflow in SharePoint Designer 2007 ..................................... 11
Electronic Document Management Systems basics

Defining and using workflows (BPM) in EDM

What is workflow? The term workflow can be broken down into two parts: Work = An
activity towards the production or accomplishment of something, i.e., a goal. Flow = A
course of successive events taken to achieve a goal or an outcome. In Document
Management, workflow is generally used as a process to route electronic documents
between entities. Entities can be people, departments, companies, or systems. Workflow
is sometimes also called ...

Defining folder structures in an EDRMS

The use of folders in document management Once you have defined the document types
and metadata for managing documents, you will need a way to categorize and group the
documents. Folders are used as a storage mechanism in document management; they
are used as containers to group and store documents. Folders should be created in such
a way that they are intuitive ...

Defining document types and metadata in an EDRMS

Document types Document types describe the document's content in electronic form
(such as an image) and the information associated with the document. You can use
document types to index and categorize documents in an EDRMS. Indexing information
in documents is commonly referred to as metadata. Metadata describes things such as
the type of document, the creation date of the document, the filing date ...

Components of an Electronic Document Management System

Basic components of an EDMS The basic components of an Electronic Document
Management System (EDMS) are: Document repository Check-in and check-out Version
control and auditing Classification and indexing Search and retrieval Security Integration
with desktop client applications The functionality of an Electronic Document Management
System (EDMS) may be extended to include: Workflow Collaboration Archiving Imaging
Records management Document repository Every EDMS should have a document
repository. A document repository is a central location on a server ...

EDRMS: The difference between documents and records

What is EDRMS? EDRMS stands for Electronic Document and Records Management
System. Document Management can be used to manage the lifecycle of documents in an
organization, which includes the way documents are created, stored, reviewed,
published, retrieved, disposed, and retained. Records Management is the act of:
Determining when documents become records. Which documents need to be retained
and for what period of time documents need ...
SharePoint Document Management

How to delete a SharePoint document library template or list template

A SharePoint document library template, not to be confused with a document template in
a SharePoint document library, is a .stp file that contains the structure, views, and
optionally the contents of a SharePoint document library. Likewise, a SharePoint list
template is a file that defines the structure of a SharePoint list. Templates for both
SharePoint libraries and lists are called ...

How to add a version column to a SharePoint document library

Introduction to versioning in SharePoint Document management systems should allow
for the tracking and maintaining of versions of documents. Windows SharePoint Services
(WSS) 3.0 and MOSS 2007 offer the possibility to maintain the history of the versions
that each document goes through. While it is not enabled by default, you can enable
versioning on SharePoint document libraries, and once you do, you ...

How to set the default document template on a SharePoint document library

The default document template on a SharePoint document library is defined as the
document template of the first content type listed under the menu of the New button on
the SharePoint document library. The importance of the order of document templates
listed under the menu of the New button on a SharePoint document library becomes
apparent when you want to use ...

Document Center site template available in WSS 3.0?

What is the Document Center? The Document Center is a site template that comes with
Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007. It provides features for creating and
managing large sets of documents. The Document Center is not available in WSS
3.0, but you can enable several of the features provided by the Document Center in
MOSS 2007, in WSS 3.0. Enabling Document Center features in ...

Design and create a document content type in SharePoint

Document content types in SharePoint While SharePoint offers several types of site
content types, the two most important content types for document management in
SharePoint are used to create: Documents Folders Site content types used to create
documents are called document content types, and those for folders, folder content
types. Document and folder content types encapsulate the metadata, workflows,
policies, and other settings of documents ...

Using a User Tasks web part for collaboration and document approval in
SharePoint
It is common in document management scenarios to have multiple people approving a
document. In such a case, you can assign a task to a user so that the user knows that
there is a document for him/her to approve. The out-of-the-box (OOTB) Approval
Workflow in Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 uses this method to notify users
that there is a ...

How to create a SharePoint site column

Site columns are used in SharePoint as metadata on documents. Document types in
SharePoint are defined through content types. The scope of a site column, that is, the
availability of a site column on SharePoint sites, depends on the SharePoint site you
create the site column on. The availability of a site column follows the site hierarchy in
SharePoint, which means ...
How to add a content type to a SharePoint document library
You can use content types in SharePoint to define document types. Content types consist
of site columns, which are used to define metadata of documents in SharePoint. Content
types allow you to store documents of different types in the same SharePoint document
library. For example, you can use content types to define multiple document templates
on a SharePoint document library. Adding ...

How to enable check-in, check-out, and versioning on a SharePoint document

library
Check-in and check-out Check-in and check-out in document management controls the
editing of documents by multiple people. It ensures that only one person can edit a
document at a time. To edit a document, a user would first have to check-out a
document. This prevents anyone else from editing the document until that user checks
the document back in. During the period that ...

Adding a document template to a SharePoint document library using a content

type
You can use site content types to assign one or more document templates to a
SharePoint document library. This means that you can create document templates that
define the structure of documents and then add these document templates to a
document library, so that users can create documents based on these document
templates. Figure 1. Document templates assigned ...

Understanding the basics of content types in SharePoint

Document types and metadata in SharePoint Content types in SharePoint define
document types in document management, while site columns in SharePoint define the
metadata in document management. Since document types consist of metadata, content
types consist of site columns. In SharePoint, a content type always inherits from a base
content type. So when you create a content ...

SharePoint document management web parts: Relevant Documents

Introduction One of the Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) 3.0 out-of-the-box (OOTB)
web parts you can use for document management in SharePoint is the Relevant
Documents web part. The Relevant Documents web part helps you create a personalized
view of the documents you (as the currently logged on user) are working with. The
Relevant Documents web part allows you to: Display documents that were last ...

Defining document management metadata in SharePoint

Introduction to SharePoint site columns Site columns are at the core of document
management in SharePoint. As mentioned in Defining document types and metadata in
an EDRMS, you can use site columns in SharePoint to define metadata and content types
to define the document types that make use of site columns. Site columns provide a
central and reusable model for defining columns: You can ...

How to enable tree view navigation in WSS 3.0

Introduction A document management system should allow for easy retrieval of
documents. Part of being able to easily retrieve documents is being able to easily
navigate documents. The flat folder structure of document libraries In SharePoint,
documents are stored in documents libraries, and documents libraries can have many
levels of folders and subfolders. But a SharePoint document library can only display
documents and folders ...
Workflow / Business Process Management

How to use the Update List Item action in a SharePoint Designer workflow
The main goal of the Update List Item action in a SharePoint Designer workflow is to
update the values of fields of one item that is located in a SharePoint list or a SharePoint
document library. When you add an Update List Item action to a SharePoint Designer
workflow the following phrase appears: Update item in this list And when you click on ...

How do SharePoint workflows and SharePoint event handlers differ?

Introduction A SharePoint event handler or event receiver is a piece of code that runs
when an event, such as the adding, deleting, or changing of a SharePoint list item or
document, takes place. They react to changes just like a SharePoint workflow can react
to those same changes made to an item. SharePoint event handlers vs. SharePoint
workflows The main differences between ...

Debugging Visual Studio 2005 workflows for SharePoint

If you're developing a SharePoint workflow in Visual Studio 2005 on the same machine
where SharePoint is running, debugging the workflow is a 5-step process: Deploy your
workflow to SharePoint. Set breakpoints in your workflow code. Set the Visual Studio
debugger to attach to Workflow code. Attach the Visual Studio debugger to the
w3wp.exe process for the SharePoint server to which the workflow has ...

Understanding the Define Workflow Lookup dialog in SharePoint Designer

Introduction You can use the Define Workflow Lookup dialog box in a SharePoint
Designer workflow to look up data in: The current item the workflow is running on. A
variable that is stored within the current workflow. A SharePoint list or library on the
same site the workflow is running on. The Define Workflow Lookup dialog box displays
one or two sections depending on the ...

How to create custom Visual Studio 2005 workflows for WSS 3 or Office
SharePoint Server 2007
Software required to create Visual Studio workflows for SharePoint Before you can start
to create custom Visual Studio 2005 workflows that can run on a SharePoint server, you
must install the following software: Windows Server 2003 (a server you can develop on)
SQL Server 2005 (as a prerequisite for WSS 3.0) Windows SharePoint Services 3.0
Visual Studio 2005 Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 Visual Studio 2005 Extensions for ...

How to create a custom SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow

Introduction to SharePoint Designer workflows If you want to know whether you should
be using SharePoint Designer to design your workflows, you can read an article I
previously wrote about when to choose a SharePoint Designer workflow and when an
out-of-the-box SharePoint workflow or a custom Visual Studio workflow. Before you can
create custom workflows in SharePoint Designer you must: Have access to ...

How to enable a Visual Studio workflow on SharePoint and attach it to a document

library
Before you can use a Visual Studio workflow on a list, library, or content type in
SharePoint, the workflow's feature must have been installed and activated on a
SharePoint site. Checking whether a workflow has been installed and activated To check
whether a workflow has been installed and activated: On the Site Actions menu of the
root site of a SharePoint site collection, ...

How to manually deploy a Visual Studio 2005 workflow to SharePoint

Steps for deploying a Visual Studio workflow to SharePoint Once you have created a
Visual Studio workflow for SharePoint, you'll have to deploy it to SharePoint before you
can attach it to a list or library. Deploying a Visual Studio workflow to SharePoint is a 3-
step process: Install the DLL for your workflow into the Global Assembly Cache (GAC).
Create the feature.xml and workflow.xml ...

Adding a three-state workflow to a content type in SharePoint

Introduction A content type in SharePoint can be seen as a document type in document
management. The main benefit of using content types in SharePoint is that content
types enable you to store different types of documents in one document library. In a
previous article I showed you how to add a three-state workflow to a document library,
but you can also add workflows to content types. Why add ...

The basics of custom Visual Studio workflows for SharePoint

Two types of workflows You can create two types of workflows in Visual Studio:
Sequential State Machine Sequential workflows A sequential workflow consists of a set of
activities, which are executed in a rigid, predefined manner. The work performed
generally follows a predictable number of pathways. A good example of the application
of a sequential workflow is a document approval process, where a document is modified
...

How to set up a three-state workflow on a SharePoint document library

About setting up a 3-state workflow in WSS 3.0 A three-state workflow can be used to
track documents in a SharePoint document library by using 3 different states. Setting up
a three-state workflow on a SharePoint document library is a 2-step process. You must:
Create a Choice column or use an existing Choice column on the document library. Add a
three-state workflow to the document library. 1. ...

Introduction to SharePoint workflows

Introduction As discussed in Defining and using workflows (BPM) in EDM, workflows are
generally used in document management as processes to route electronic documents
between people, departments, companies, or systems. The 2 base types of workflow
There are two types of workflow: Collaborative processes Transactional processes
Collaborative processes are driven by people and consist of an unknown number of
steps. Examples of collaborative processes are: E-mail, ...

3 Ways to create workflows for WSS 3.0 and Office SharePoint 2007
Introduction Both in Windows SharePoint Server (WSS) 3.0 as Microsoft Office
SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007 you can either: Use out-of-the-box workflows, or
Use SharePoint Designer 2007 to create custom workflows, or Use Visual Studio 2005 to
create custom workflows Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages. Using
out-of-the-box workflows I’ve previously discussed the standard out-of-the box
workflows that are available in WSS and in MOSS. These workflows provide basic
functionality ...

Standard out-of-the-box workflows in WSS 3.0 and Office SharePoint Server 2007
Workflows in Windows SharePoint Services (WSS) 3.0 Windows SharePoint Services
(WSS) 3.0 comes with only one workflow template out-of-the-box (OOTB): Three-state
workflow Three-state workflow The Three-state workflow is a simple issue tracking
workflow that shows the status of active and resolved issues. You can use this workflow
to move a document along one or 3 states, for example a Pending, Approved, and
Rejected state. The Three-state workflow works with ...
SharePoint basics

How to add a date difference column to a SharePoint list or library

Introduction Document Management almost always involve working with dates, such as
start dates, end dates, due dates, etc. And often, you might want to perform date
calculations, for example, to find out how many days are left before a due date arrives,
that is, calculate the difference between two dates. You can create a calculated column
in SharePoint to calculate date differences ...

Sample SharePoint workflows

Format a date in a SharePoint workflow using a SharePoint formula

You can use a custom SharePoint Designer action to format a date in a workflow, but if
you do not want to or cannot write code, you can also use a SharePoint Calculated
column to format a date in the same SharePoint list a workflow is running on or in
another SharePoint list. But whichever method you choose, you will have ...

Format a date in a SharePoint Designer workflow using a custom action

As you may already know, SharePoint Designer 2007 does not offer an out-of-the-box
workflow action to be able to format dates. However, you can follow the instructions
given in Building Custom Activities for Use in SharePoint Designer 2007 to create a
custom workflow action that can be used in SharePoint Designer 2007 to format dates.
Create the Workflow Activity Library project In ...

Get a SharePoint list item GUID using a SharePoint Designer workflow

GUIDs are the next best thing after IDs for being able to uniquely identify SharePoint list
items, so you could use a GUID instead of an ID to look up a SharePoint list item. There
are two occasions on which you might want to get the value of a GUID of a SharePoint
list item in a SharePoint Designer workflow: If you ...

How to send an email alert containing a link to a SharePoint list item

SharePoint email alert scenario You have a SharePoint Tasks list in which new tasks are
periodically created. You want to be able to send an email to the person assigned to the
task and have the email contain a link to the task so that the assignee can easily click
and open the task in SharePoint. Send an email message with a ...

Using a GUID to look up a SharePoint list item instead of an ID

Introduction I've previously written about the basics of defining a workflow lookup in
SharePoint Designer. In that article, I also mentioned that you have to ensure that you
use either a SharePoint list item ID or GUID to ensure that the item can be found. In this
article, I'll create a sample workflow - actually 2 workflows - to demonstrate how you ...

Using the Log to History List SharePoint workflow action for debugging
Introduction You can use the Log to History List SharePoint Designer workflow action to
write messages to the workflow history list during the lifetime of a workflow. These
messages can serve as a way to report the status of the workflow back to the user. You
can also use the Log to History List SharePoint Designer workflow action to debug a
SharePoint ...

SharePoint Designer workflow: Create a new document based on a content type

Scenario You want to use a SharePoint Designer workflow to create a Word, Excel, or
any other type of document that is based on a document template that was added as a
content type to a SharePoint document library. Solution You can use the Create List Item
action in a SharePoint Designer workflow to create a new document that is based on a ...

4 Ways to set a date value in a SharePoint Designer workflow

The values of dates in SharePoint Designer workflows can be static or dynamic, that is,
you can set them to be a specific date (static), or you can calculate them or set them to
the value of other date fields (dynamic). You have 4 options when it comes to setting the
value of a date field in a SharePoint Designer ...

SharePoint Designer workflow: Move a document from one library to another

Scenario You have a document on which you want to start a workflow that will move the
document from one document library to another. Solution Moving a document using a
SharePoint Designer workflow involves copying the document to the SharePoint
document library you want to move the document to, and then deleting the document
from the current document library it is in. You can ...

SharePoint Designer workflow: Allow users to enter an email address before

running a workflow
Scenario You want to select a document in a SharePoint document library, start a
workflow on this document, enter an email address, and then click to send an email to
the recipient who is required to approve the document. Solution You can use an initiation
form in a SharePoint Designer workflow to enter an email address (or any other data)
before the workflow ...

How to perform date calculations and construct dynamic strings in a SharePoint

Designer workflow
Scenario When you store a document in a SharePoint document library named
DepartmentDocs, you want to create a new list item in a Tasks lists named ProjectTasks.
The new list item should have the name of the document in its Title and the due date of
the new list item should be set to 3 days after the date the document ...

Visual Studio workflow: Copy a document from one SharePoint document library
to another
Workflow description This article demonstrates how you can create a Visual Studio
workflow that can be manually started on a document in a SharePoint document library
to copy that document to another document library on the same or another SharePoint
site. Creating the custom SharePoint workflow In SharePoint, create 2 document
libraries: One to copy documents from and another one to store the copied documents
...

SharePoint Designer workflow: Send email when major versions of a document

are checked-in
Scenario You want to be able to send an email to one or more users whenever a
document is checked into a document library and a major version (e.g. version 1.0, 2.0,
3.0, etc.) is assigned to the document. Solution In SharePoint, ensure that versioning
(major and minor versions) is enabled on the document library where the documents are
stored. In SharePoint Designer, open the ...
SharePoint Video Tutorials

SharePoint Video Tutorial: Use a content type to add a document template to a

SharePoint document library
The steps described in the video above can also be found in the following SharePoint
document management article: Adding a document template to a SharePoint document
library using a content type. In this SharePoint document management video you
learned... How to create a custom SharePoint site content type based on the Document
parent content type. How to assign a document template for an ...

How to move a SharePoint Document Library using a List Template

There are several ways to move documents that are stored in a SharePoint document
library, some of which include manual copying or moving of documents,
programmatically moving a SharePoint document library, or as the video above
demonstrates, using a SharePoint list template to copy a SharePoint document library
and its documents from one site to another. Please note that the method ...

Use a calculated field and two dependent workflows in SharePoint to format a date
Before you begin, you must know how to create a SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow.
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow demo you saw... How to define a formula on
a SharePoint list column to format a date using workflows. How to create a SharePoint
list item from within a SharePoint Designer workflow. How to set the value of fields in a
SharePoint list item ...

Custom SharePoint Designer workflow activity to format dates

Before you begin, you must know how to create a SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow.
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you saw... How to use a custom activity
in SharePoint Designer to format a date. How to look up and use a variable in a
SharePoint Designer workflow. How to set the value of a field in the SharePoint list item
that a ...

Get the GUID of a new SharePoint list item created in a SharePoint Designer
workflow
Before you begin, you must know how to create a SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow.
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you learned... How to create a new
SharePoint list item in a SharePoint Designer workflow and store the ID of the list item in
a workflow variable. How to look up the GUID of a SharePoint list item that was created
in ...

Retrieve the GUID of the Current Item in a SharePoint Designer workflow

Before you begin, you must know how to create a SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow.
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you learned... How to look up the GUID
of the Current Item in a SharePoint Designer workflow. How to add and use the Log to
History List action for debugging purposes.

Define an email message with a link for a new Task list item in SharePoint
Designer
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you learned... How to add and use the
Send an Email action. How to define and configure an email message in a SharePoint
Designer workflow. How to look up data in a SharePoint workflow when defining an email
message. How to add a link to a SharePoint list item in the body of an email message of
...
Set the approval status of a SharePoint list item using a SharePoint Designer
workflow
In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you learned... How to create a new
SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow. How to add a Condition to compare a field to a
value. How to add a workflow step. How to create a conditional branch. How to add and
use a Set Field in Current Item action. How to add and use an Assign a To-do Item
action. How to ...

Create a document review workflow in SharePoint Designer 2007

In this SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow video you learned... How to create a
document review workflow in SharePoint Designer 2007. How to create a new SharePoint
Designer 2007 workflow. How to attach a SharePoint Designer 2007 workflow to a
SharePoint document library. How to use the Collect Data from a User workflow action.
How to assign the users who should input data to the SharePoint ...