Setting Default Metadata Values in SharePoint 2010
In this blog I will be migrating several documents from a file share into SharePoint 2010. On the file share they are unstructured data. When we migrate them into SharePoint they will be seen as the content type courseOutline and they will have an Instructor and technical department site column attached to them as metadata. In order to save time we will be using the feature of Column default values for metadata columns in SharePoint 2010. In order to understand this process it is important that you have a grasp of the concepts in the following two blog entries:
Creating Site Columns and Custom Lists in SharePoint 2010
Creating a Custom Content Type in SharePoint 2010
I have set up a new site collection and created a custom content type courseOutline with the site columns Instructor and technicalDepartment both are choice columns.
I have added a folder structure to mimic the file share and I have adjusted the default view to include the site columns, including Title.
Match Folder Structure
I match the folder structure of my file share. If I wanted a different structure, I would do that here but in this case, I am migrating data into SharePoint and changing it from unstructured data to proper content types with searchable metadata.
Click Library Library Settings
I click the Library Tab and then the Library Settings icon in the ribbon.
Click Column Default Value Settings
I click on Column default value settings under General Settings on the List Settings page.
Select the folder
I select the Cisco folder since this is the first one I want to set the default values for.
Set default values for Instructor
I select Instructor by clicking on the Column link.
Edit Default Value
I choose the radio button Use this default value: and add in Mark Jacobs (the Cisco Instructor) Then click OK.
Set default value for technicalDepartment
I click the link for technicalDepartment (notice the green icon now on the Cisco folder since a default value has been set for this location.)
Fill in Modal Window form
I select the radio button to Use this default value: and then set the Default value to Cisco. It is important to set the value to the exact match for one of the values in the choice column. Then I click OK.
Repeat process for development
I repeat the process I used for setting the values in the Cisco folder but this time I click the Development folder in the Location to configure column and set the default values appropriate to development outlines.
Repeat process for SharePoint
I repeat the process I used for setting the values in the Cisco and Development folders, but this time I click the SharePoint folder in the Location to configure column and set the default values appropriate to sharepoint outlines.
Repeat process for Systems
I repeat the process I used for setting the values in the Cisco, Development, and SharePoint folders, but this time I click the Systems folder in the Location to configure column and set the default values appropriate to systems outlines.
Return to courseOutlines Library
Using the breadcrumb, I return to the courseOutlines document Library which is now properly set up.
Go to Cisco folder
I click on the Cisco folder to get into it.
Click Add document
I click the Add document link.
Click Upload Multiple Files
I click the Upload Multiple Files link (notice that I could have just done this from the courseOutlines document library because you can choose a folder in this modal window).
Browse for files instead
You can drag files into the Drag Files and Folders Here Silverlight control or you can click Browse for Files instead. You can only upload up to 100 files at a time in this way.
Select files to upload
I select the top document and then holding the shift key down select the bottom document which selects them all then click the Open button.
Click OK
I verify the items in the window then click OK.
Verify status
I verify that the status shows done, then I click the Done button.
Validate results
I check to make sure that the instructor column has the value Mark Jacobs and that the technical department is now Cisco. I will then repeat the process for the other folders.
Repeat steps for Development folder
I repeat the steps for adding documents to the Cisco folder but this time I upload the documents from the Development folder on the file share to the Development folder in the courseOutlines document library.
Repeat steps for SharePoint folder
I repeat the steps for adding documents to the Cisco folder but this time I upload the documents from the SharePoint folder on the file share to the SharePoint folder in the courseOutlines document library.
Repeat steps for System folder
I repeat the steps for adding documents to the Cisco folder but this time I upload the documents from the Systems folder on the file share to the Systems folder in the courseOutlines document library. I have now successfully uploaded many documents from the unstructured world of the file share into the content type structured world of SharePoint 2010 using default column value settings!
Enjoy!
Spike Xavier
SharePoint Instructor – Interface Technical Training
Phoenix, AZ
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When we use the Microsoft out of the Box feature Send to other liaotocn, the date value of the document which is copied to destination document library is getting erased in the source document library for the Microsoft office 2007 documents. It works fine for Microsoft office 2003 documents.Steps to reproduce the issue:1) Create two standard document libraries DocLib1 and DocLib22) Now add DateTime metadata column to DocLib1, follow the below steps to add the existing date time metadata columna. Go to Document Library > Settings > Advanced Settingsb. Now set the Allow management of content types to Yes and click okc. Now click on Add from existing site columns and select Article Date and click add and then click ok3) Repeat the step2 for DocLib24) Now upload the Microsoft office 2007 document to DocLib1 and enter the title and Author Date and click on save.5) Now use the out of the box Send to other liaotocn via the right click of the document to copy the document to doclib26) After the document is copied verify the Author date in DocLib1 and notice that Author date is erased completely.7) Repeat the steps 4 to 6 for Microsoft Office 2003 documents and it works fine.
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I want to know how to deal with many sub folder eg Year, month, date.
Do i need to add them manually ?
Hi,
I created a library and had created a hierarchy of folders as shown in the above picture. However I was not able to see the treeview of folders when I went to column default value settings. Any idea why this is not shown?
Also I was not able to set defaults at a folder level. Since any change was made at a library level and not at a folder level. Am I missing something here?
There are many solutions to this, the easiest is to create a workflow to check the values and when a new item is added if the values are different than the default values to adjust them.
spike
Spike …. I have created a library folder configuration as you have stated above, but find I have encountered an issue that I am unable to determine how to correct. Example Relocating 2 documents fron "Sharepoint" Folder above to the "Development" Folder:
If you open CourseOutlines > Sharepoint > using the ribbon Library Tools > Library > Open in Explorer and select Word and PDF documents "5060" – perform a "Cut" and then a "Paste" into CourseOutlines > Development, I find that the values for "instructor" and "technicalDepartment" do not get updated accordingly. In other words – they retain their original values of "Spike Xavier" and "sharepoint" and are not updated to "Dan Wahlin" and "development". Is there any way to correct this and enforce that the original default values be updated as the documents are relocated?
This one is driving me crazy – Hope you can help…. Kind Regards,