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Setup OneDrive for Business to move files and metadata to Sharepoint Online

Copper Contributor

Hello! I am needing assistance to figure out the best way to complete this process.

I will explain what we are currently doing and if there is a better way please let me know.

 

I have a team of people that create documents and upload them to my OneDrive which I have shared with all of them.

The remainder of the Team will go in and edit those documents.

Once complete I will use the move command to move those documents to our Sharepoint Online site. (We are not having them upload directly to Sharepoint as I have to review each document)

 

I have created identical columns in OneDrive and Sharepoint. The issue we are having is that the metadata is not being moved over. I have searched to try and find a way to copy the Library from Sharepoint as a template and upload it to OneDrive but cannot find any way to do that.

 

Is there a better way to accomplish the above? Please note I am fairly new to Sharepoint and OneDrive so any help would be appreciated! Thank you

 

 

7 Replies

Are these columns type Managed Metadata ?

  • OneDrive for Business does not support Managed Metadata in its new Library experience (yet) or in the synched copy of the folders on local machines
  • Metadata is tagged in the OneDrive index - it is not added to the document properties so if you download the file you will not see your tags.

There is a uservoice request open for this 

https://office365.uservoice.com/forums/264636-general/suggestions/17714779-onedrive-for-business-syn...

https://onedrive.uservoice.com/forums/913528-onedrive-on-the-web/suggestions/6330603-add-ability-to-...

 

Yeah OneDrive isn't really meant to mess with the Libraries etc. Your best bet here would be to Create a Team to collaborate on these documents, if you don't already use Teams. Or you could use another "Collab" or Working library that you use where the Team collaborates on. You can even Share from this library just like OneDrive. Set it up the same as the destination and the MoveTo command should work. Worse case if it's not, you could make use of Flow, do an approval process which includes you as the approver, and when you approve, move the file using flow along with the metadata.

Yes it is managed metadata. Thank you for your response.

When you say "Teams" are you speaking of like a Team Room? Sorry new to all this.

best response confirmed by Tammy Bruns (Copper Contributor)
Solution
Teams as is MIcrosoft Teams that sites on top of a SharePoint site connected to the same Office 365 Group. If you don't use Teams same thing applies to just creating another SharePoint site for collaboration purposes. Or you could have a separate Library on the existing site you have the published documents on. Restricted to yourself and then you can Share the folders/files from that library just like OneDrive. Then control the move from there to the published library.
Hi @Chris Webb,

I tried using OneDrive for Business with Microsoft Flow. But, even the flow is unable to access the metadata of a folder in OfB.
It returns empty values for all the fields of the metadata except for the ID. Is there a way to find the other metadata fields as well?

@Chris Webb @Tammy Bruns 

You could also do this all from the SharePoint document library.  Go to library settings and go to versioning.  You want the following:

Require content approval for submitted item?  "YES"

Create a version each time you edit a file in the document library? "Create major and minor (draft) versions Example: 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 2.0"

Limit the numbers as you see fit in the next two boxes (or don't)

Who should see draft items in the document library? "Only users who can edit items"

 

From there, have a security group with all of your people in it and give that group "Edit" rights to the library.

Create another security group with you in it that has "Approve" rights.

 

This works well with Microsoft Teams as Chris has been explaining, but it works entirely within the SharePoint framework so you don't have issues regarding Metatags (columns), and if you have to move an item to another library, as long as the Metatags are the same, it transfers without issue.

 

Good luck...I just saw this looking for info on a different issue so I know it has been awhile since you first posted this question.

1 best response

Accepted Solutions
best response confirmed by Tammy Bruns (Copper Contributor)
Solution
Teams as is MIcrosoft Teams that sites on top of a SharePoint site connected to the same Office 365 Group. If you don't use Teams same thing applies to just creating another SharePoint site for collaboration purposes. Or you could have a separate Library on the existing site you have the published documents on. Restricted to yourself and then you can Share the folders/files from that library just like OneDrive. Then control the move from there to the published library.

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