SharePoint Connector

Overview

The SharePoint Connector is a cloud-native application that automatically synchronizes documents from SharePoint Online to the Unique knowledge base. This guide provides administrators with essential information about requirements, features, and limitations.

For deployment, configuration, and operational details, see the IT Operator Guide.

Quick Summary

What it does: Automatically syncs flagged documents from SharePoint Online to Unique's AI knowledge base
Deployment: Kubernetes-based containerized application
Authentication: Uses Azure AD application permissions (no user accounts needed)
Scheduling: Configurable automated scans (default: every 15 minutes)

Requirements

Microsoft 365 / SharePoint Online

Prerequisites:

• Access to Azure AD for app registration
• SharePoint sites with document libraries
• Ability to add custom columns to document libraries

Permissions

Content sync: Microsoft Graph:

• Sites.Selected - Fetch sites, folders and effective content of granted sites (if site-specific access is granted)
• Lists.SelectedOperations.Selected - Fetch content from specifically granted document libraries (if library-specific access is granted)

Permission sync (only if permission sync is enabled): Microsoft Graph:

• GroupMember.Read.All - Read members of the groups files were shared with
• User.ReadBasic.All - Read details of the groups files were shared with

SharePoint REST API:

• Sites.Selected - Read details and members of site groups files were shared with for granted sites

For detailed permission justifications, see Microsoft Graph Permissions.

Features

Core Capabilities

Automated Periodic Document Synchronization

• Periodic scanning of designated SharePoint sites configurable without code change (default: every 15 min)
• User-controlled flagging via custom column in SharePoint
• Automatic detection of new, modified, and deleted files

Sync Modes

• content_and_permissions: Full sync of both content and SharePoint permissions to Unique
• content_only: Sync content without SharePoint permissions; uses configurable inheritance modes for scopes and files
• Configurable per site for flexible access control strategies

Permission Sync

• Access to specific SharePoint objects/files are synced periodically between SharePoint and Unique
• User mapping from SharePoint to Unique Users
• SharePoint Groups are reflected in Unique

Selective Sync

• Users flag documents for sync using a Yes/No column
• Only flagged documents are synchronized
• Administrators control which sites are scanned

Ingestion Modes

• Flat mode: All flagged files from a site are ingested into a single root scope
• Recursive mode: Maintains the SharePoint folder hierarchy as nested scopes in Unique
• Configurable per site for flexible organization

Multiple Document Formats

• Configurable via tenant configuration file
• Available MIME types:
  • PDF documents (.pdf)
  • Microsoft Word (.docx)
  • Microsoft Excel (.xlsx)
  • Microsoft PowerPoint (.pptx)
  • Text files (.txt)
  • HTML files (.html)
  • SharePoint Sites (.aspx)

Automatic Change Detection

• File-diff mechanism compares local vs SharePoint state
• Only new or modified files are re-ingested
• Deleted files automatically removed from knowledge base

Flexible Authentication

• Certificate-based authentication (recommended for production)
• Client secret authentication (development/testing only)

Advanced Features

Security

• Application-level authentication via Certificate
• Site-specific access (not tenant-wide)
• Each site must be explicitly granted access by SharePoint administrator

Dynamic Site Configuration

• Sites can be configured via a SharePoint list (dynamic) or YAML file (static)
• Per-site configuration: sync column, ingestion mode, permissions mode
• Manage site configurations without redeploying the connector

Observability

• Detailed logging with trace IDs
• Grafana dashboard templates
• Performance metrics
• Error tracking and alerting

Configuration

• Rate limiting (Graph API and Unique API)
• Concurrent file processing
• File size limits
• Custom MIME type filtering
• Scan interval scheduling

How It Works

High-Level Flow

See Architecture Documentation for detailed component diagrams.

Content Sync Flow

See Content Sync Flow for additional details.

User Workflow

1. Administrator Setup (One-time) - Deploy connector to Kubernetes - Register Azure AD application - Grant site-specific permissions - Configure sync column name
2. SharePoint Administrator (Per Library) - Add sync column to document libraries - Set column visibility for users
3. End Users (Ongoing) - Check sync column for documents to sync - Connector automatically picks up flagged files
4. Automated Processing - Connector scans sites every 15 minutes (configurable) - Downloads flagged files - Uploads to Unique knowledge base - Updates metadata

Limitations and Constraints

Not Supported

• Maximum 100,000 objects to sync per site
• Multiple SharePoint tenants (requires separate deployments)
• Real-time synchronization (periodic scanning only)
• Detection of sensitivity/classification levels (can be configured via Ingestion Metadata Filter on the Unique side)

Considerations

Future Versions

Planned enhancements:

Related Documentation

• FAQ - Frequently asked questions

For IT Operators

• Operator Guide - Deployment, configuration, and operations
• Deployment - Kubernetes and Helm setup
• Configuration - Environment variables and settings
• Authentication - Azure AD and certificate setup

Technical Reference

• Technical Reference - Architecture, flows, and design decisions
• Architecture - System components and infrastructure
• Flows - Content sync, permission sync, file diff mechanism
• Metadata - Ingested metadata fields for documents and SitePages
• Permissions - Microsoft Graph and SharePoint REST permissions
• Security - Security updates and SBOM

Standard References

• Microsoft Graph API - Microsoft Graph documentation
• Microsoft Graph Permissions Reference - Permission details
• Microsoft Entra ID Documentation - Authentication and authorization
• SharePoint REST API - SharePoint REST service