Table of Contents

SharePoint Online as a Knowledge Source

Learn how to use SharePoint Online and OneDrive with FoundationaLLM agents.

Overview

FoundationaLLM provides two ways to integrate with SharePoint Online and OneDrive:

Approach Description Best For
End-User OneDrive Upload Users upload files directly from OneDrive in the Chat User Portal Ad-hoc document analysis, individual user files
Backend Knowledge Source Administrators configure SharePoint as a data source for agents Organization-wide knowledge bases, departmental content

This guide covers both approaches to help you choose the right integration method for your needs.

Approach 1: End-User OneDrive Integration

End users can upload files directly from their OneDrive (Work or School) account through the Chat User Portal. This allows users to share personal documents with agents for analysis without requiring administrator configuration.

How It Works

  1. Users click the paperclip icon (📎) in the Chat User Portal
  2. Click Select file from OneDrive (or Connect to OneDrive if not yet connected)
  3. Authenticate with their work/school Microsoft account
  4. Browse and select files from their OneDrive
  5. Files are uploaded to the conversation for agent analysis

User Experience

When using OneDrive upload:

  • Files are uploaded to the current conversation only
  • Documents are processed by the agent for that session
  • This is ideal for ad-hoc questions about specific documents
  • Files are not permanently indexed into a knowledge base

Prerequisites for OneDrive Upload

For users to access the OneDrive upload feature:

  1. OneDrive for Business must be enabled for your organization
  2. Microsoft Graph permissions must be configured for the User Portal
  3. Users must have work or school accounts (not personal Microsoft accounts)

Enabling OneDrive Integration

OneDrive integration is configured at the platform level. Contact your administrator to:

  1. Ensure the User Portal app registration has the required Graph permissions
  2. Verify OneDrive for Business is available to users
  3. Check that any conditional access policies allow the integration

For More Information

See Uploading Files to a Conversation for detailed user instructions.

Approach 2: Backend SharePoint Knowledge Source

Administrators can configure SharePoint Online as a backend data source to provide persistent knowledge for agents. This approach indexes SharePoint document libraries into a searchable knowledge base.

When to Use Backend Integration

This approach is ideal for:

  • Team collaboration documents
  • Policy and procedure libraries
  • Project documentation
  • Departmental content that should be accessible to all users of an agent

Prerequisites

Before configuring SharePoint as a backend knowledge source:

  • SharePoint Online site with documents to index
  • Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) app registration with appropriate permissions
  • Consent granted for the app to access SharePoint
  • Network connectivity to Microsoft 365 services
  • Management Portal access with appropriate permissions

Required Permissions

The app registration needs the following Microsoft Graph permissions:

Permission Type Description
Sites.Read.All Application Read items in all site collections
Files.Read.All Application Read all files user can access

Note: Permissions may vary based on your organization's requirements. Consult with your Microsoft 365 administrator.

Configuring SharePoint as a Data Source

Step 1: Navigate to Data Sources

  1. In the Management Portal sidebar, click Data Sources
  2. Click Create Data Source
  3. Select SharePoint Online Site from the type dropdown

Step 2: Enter Basic Information

Field Description
Data Source Name Unique identifier (e.g., hr-sharepoint)
Description Purpose and contents (e.g., "HR department documents")

Step 3: Configure Connection Settings

Field Description
Site URL Full URL to the SharePoint site (e.g., https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/HR)
Authentication Type Authentication method (Managed Identity or App Registration)

Step 4: Configure Authentication

Using Managed Identity:

  1. Ensure your deployment has a managed identity
  2. Grant the managed identity access to SharePoint via Microsoft Graph
  3. Select Azure Identity or Managed Identity authentication

Using App Registration:

  1. Create or use an existing Azure AD app registration
  2. Configure the required permissions
  3. Grant admin consent
  4. Enter the client credentials in the data source configuration

TODO: Document specific fields for app registration authentication (Client ID, Client Secret, Tenant ID) when visible in the UI.

Step 5: Specify Document Library

Indicate which document libraries or folders to access:

Field Description
Document Library Name of the library (e.g., Documents, Shared Documents)
Folder Path Specific folder within the library (optional)

Step 6: Save the Data Source

Click Create Data Source to save the configuration.

Creating an App Registration

  1. Navigate to Azure Portal > Microsoft Entra ID > App registrations
  2. Click New registration
  3. Enter a name (e.g., FoundationaLLM-SharePoint-Reader)
  4. Select Accounts in this organizational directory only
  5. Click Register

Configuring Permissions

  1. In the app registration, go to API permissions
  2. Click Add a permission
  3. Select Microsoft Graph
  4. Choose Application permissions
  5. Add required permissions (Sites.Read.All, Files.Read.All)
  6. Click Add permissions
  7. Click Grant admin consent (requires admin privileges)

Creating Client Secret

  1. In the app registration, go to Certificates & secrets
  2. Click New client secret
  3. Enter a description and expiration
  4. Copy the secret value immediately (it won't be shown again)

Document Library Paths

Common Path Formats

Library Type Path Format
Default Documents Shared Documents or Documents
Custom Library Library display name
Subfolder Documents/Policies

Finding the Correct Path

  1. Navigate to your SharePoint site
  2. Open the document library
  3. Note the library name from the URL or navigation

Using in Data Pipelines

After creating the data source:

  1. Navigate to Data Pipelines
  2. Create a new pipeline
  3. Select your SharePoint data source
  4. Configure processing stages (text extraction, embedding, etc.)
  5. Run the pipeline to index documents

Supported File Types

SharePoint data sources typically support:

Category Extensions
Office Documents DOCX, DOC, XLSX, XLS, PPTX, PPT
PDF PDF
Text TXT, MD, HTML

Sync and Updates

Initial Indexing: The first pipeline run indexes all documents in the specified libraries.

Incremental Updates:

TODO: Document incremental sync capabilities and how to handle document updates/deletions.

Comparison: Which Approach to Use

Feature OneDrive Upload Backend Knowledge Source
Setup Required Minimal (user-driven) Administrator configuration
Persistence Per-conversation only Permanent knowledge base
Scope Individual user files Organization/team documents
Use Case Ad-hoc analysis Structured knowledge retrieval
Data Pipeline Not required Required for indexing
File Access User's own OneDrive Configured SharePoint sites

Best Practice Recommendations

  • Use OneDrive Upload when users need to analyze their own documents on-demand
  • Use Backend Knowledge Source when you need agents to have access to shared organizational content
  • You can use both approaches together — agents can search backend knowledge while users also upload additional documents

Troubleshooting

OneDrive Upload Issues

Can't connect to OneDrive:

  • Verify you're using a work or school account
  • Check that OneDrive for Business is enabled
  • Clear browser cache and try again

Files not showing in picker:

  • Ensure files are in your OneDrive, not SharePoint
  • Check file permissions
  • Verify OneDrive sync is complete

Backend Data Source Issues

Authentication Failures:

  • Verify app registration credentials
  • Check admin consent was granted
  • Ensure client secret hasn't expired
  • Confirm tenant ID is correct

Access Denied:

  • Verify the site URL is correct
  • Check the app has Sites.Read.All permission
  • Ensure the document library name is correct

Documents Not Found:

  • Verify folder paths are correct
  • Check documents aren't in a subfolder not included
  • Ensure documents aren't checked out or locked

Connectivity Issues:

  • Verify network allows access to SharePoint Online
  • Check for conditional access policies blocking access
  • Review Microsoft 365 service health

Security Considerations

  • Use application permissions rather than delegated for background processing
  • Apply principle of least privilege
  • Regularly rotate client secrets
  • Monitor access through Azure AD audit logs
  • Review which SharePoint sites are exposed to agents