Using SharePoint 2007 Content Types
August, 2007
A new concept introduced with SharePoint 2007 is the notion of a Content Type. At a high-level, a content type is a category of information that is collected and stored in SharePoint. Content types can be list-based – such as Events, Tasks, or Issues – or document-based – such as Meeting Minutes, Status Reports, and Expense Reports. In addition to hundreds of content types whose definitions come with the purchase of SharePoint, site owners also have the ability to define their own custom content types.
When properly used, content types can provide several benefits to site owners. The most fundamental of these benefits is that content types can be defined once in a SharePoint site and get reused throughout that site and all of its sub-sites. This makes it easy for the owners of information to define and manage their information only once, no matter how expansive their sites become.
One component of a content type definition is that custom columns can be associated with a content type. Any libraries where that content type is used will subsequently prompt users to apply the metadata when adding information of that content type. For example, if a company is using a SharePoint site to store resumes, a Resume content type might have columns for Name, Position, and Current Employer, among others. As the site grows, and additional sub-sites or document libraries are added, the Resume content type could continuously be associated with new libraries. And all libraries in which Resumes were stored would prompt users for the same common metadata information when uploading resumes.
Lists and libraries also provide the ability to store multiple content types in the same list. When multiple content types are similar enough that they can be grouped together, yet have subtle differences, it might make sense to include both in the same list or library. For example, a Contacts list might include contact information for Customers, Employees, Vendors, and Emergency Contacts. Each type of contact might have several characteristics in common – such as name, phone number, and email address – but some characteristics that are either unique or superfluous. Employee contact information might include Home Address, while Vendor contact information might include Purchase Order number. The ability to use multiple content types in the same list allows for the flexibility to group similar, yet slightly different pieces of information together.
Another characteristic that is specific to document-based content types is that content types can have associated templates. A Meeting Minutes document might follow a standard document template, complete with typical company header information. If Meeting Minutes are collected in multiple sites, users can complete a new Meeting Minutes document by selecting the Meeting Minutes content type from any library’s New menu. If the company logo changes, the base definition of the Meeting Minutes content type can be updated with the corresponding new template, which will subsequently trickle down to all libraries that use that content type.
A final feature of the content type is that it can be associated with an information management policy that addresses such things as audit requirements and retention periods. For example vendor contracts might be associated with a contracts content type with the retention period set to seven years. When the seven year mark is reached, the information management policy for that content type will initiate an expiration workflow such as one that will ensure the contract document is deleted from the repository.
Content types provide an important new component to the SharePoint taxonomy. When planning the architecture of a site, careful consideration should be given to what content types – or, what major types of information – will be collected throughout the site. Up-front planning will be the best way to take full advantage of the Content Type feature.
