Salesforce + SharePoint Online Integration — Secure Document Governance
Salesforce + SharePoint Online Integration is an implementation service for organizations that manage governed documents — proposals, contracts, collateral — in SharePoint Online and need them accessible from Salesforce records. Salesforce Files Connect for SharePoint Online is retired: Microsoft ended the Azure ACS authentication it depended on on November 1, 2024, and grandfathered support ran out in April 2026. IT Partner implements currently supported approaches instead — an AppExchange connector app (such as CloudFiles, sFiles, Share Connect, 24Files, or Egnyte), Power Automate flows, Salesforce Connect with OData for list data, or a custom Microsoft Graph API integration — and migrates organizations whose Files Connect setup stopped working.
What this engagement is
This service connects Salesforce with SharePoint Online so sales, legal, and compliance teams reach current SharePoint documents from Salesforce Opportunities, Accounts, and Cases — with metadata such as document status visible in context, alerts when linked documents change, and access governed by SharePoint permissions and Salesforce sharing rules. A 2026 reality shapes the approach: Salesforce Files Connect for SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business is effectively retired — Microsoft retired the Azure Access Control Services (ACS) authentication it depended on on November 1, 2024, and grandfathered support for existing setups ended in April 2026. IT Partner therefore implements one of the currently supported approaches: an AppExchange connector app (such as CloudFiles, sFiles, Share Connect, 24Files, or Egnyte) that connects Salesforce to SharePoint through the Microsoft Graph API with live document access, per-record folder automation, and reduced Salesforce file-storage consumption; Microsoft Power Automate flows for folder creation, metadata, and alerting scenarios; Salesforce Connect with OData where SharePoint list data should surface as Salesforce external objects; or a custom Microsoft Graph API — or MuleSoft — integration where requirements are bespoke. The right approach is selected during discovery, and organizations that lost a working Files Connect integration can be migrated to a supported replacement as part of this service. Third-party connector apps carry their own license fees, identified during scoping.
Success criteria
What you receive
How the work unfolds
Discovery and approach selection: confirm Salesforce objects, SharePoint sites and libraries, document types, metadata fields, permission model, notification requirements, and compliance constraints; identify any retired Files Connect configuration to replace; recommend a connector app, Power Automate, Salesforce Connect + OData, or custom Microsoft Graph API approach, with vendor license fees identified. Acceptance gate: approach and scope approved by the client.
Environment readiness: validate Salesforce licensing for the selected pattern (including external-object licensing where Salesforce Connect is chosen), SharePoint Online configuration, versioning, administrator access, and app registrations or connector permissions.
SharePoint preparation: configure or validate document libraries, metadata columns, content types where applicable, permissions, versioning, and approval/status fields needed for the integration.
Salesforce preparation: configure the agreed objects, page layouts or components, external data source settings where applicable, sharing rules, and user access needed to expose SharePoint documents.
Integration build: implement document linking, metadata visibility or sync, and change-notification logic using the selected supported approach.
Testing and UAT: validate representative Accounts, Opportunities, and Cases; confirm links, previews, metadata, alerts, access-control behavior, and error handling with client stakeholders; remediate findings.
Production rollout and handover: deploy the approved configuration, decommission any remaining retired-connector configuration, and provide administrator knowledge transfer, configuration notes, and operational guidance.
Prerequisites
Who does what
IT Partner
- Lead discovery to confirm Salesforce objects, SharePoint sites and libraries, metadata model, permission model, notification requirements, and whether a retired Files Connect configuration must be replaced.
- Recommend and design the integration approach — connector app, Power Automate, Salesforce Connect + OData, or custom Microsoft Graph API — including authentication flow, permission assumptions, and link or preview behavior.
- Configure the agreed connectivity: connector-app installation, Microsoft Entra ID application registrations or connected-app settings, and the delegated or application permissions approved by the client.
- Implement Salesforce-side configuration so the agreed records surface SharePoint documents as links, previews, connected folders, or external objects.
- Configure metadata visibility or sync and update alerts per the approved design.
- Align access control across SharePoint permissions, Microsoft 365 sharing policies, and Salesforce sharing rules within the approved scope.
- Perform functional testing across representative records, libraries, file types, and permission scenarios.
- Provide implementation notes, configuration summary, and handover guidance, including connector-app administration references where applicable.
Your team
- Provide named business owners for sales, legal/compliance, Salesforce administration, and SharePoint/Microsoft 365 administration.
- Provide timely administrative access or approved delegated access to the required Salesforce and Microsoft 365/SharePoint environments.
- Confirm the Salesforce objects, record types, page layouts, SharePoint sites, document libraries, document categories, and metadata fields in scope.
- Define or approve the document governance model, including ownership, approval status values, expiration rules, and retention or compliance requirements where applicable.
- Review and approve the field mapping between SharePoint metadata and Salesforce-visible fields before configuration is finalized.
- Purchase any third-party connector-app licenses if that approach is selected; fees are identified during scoping.
- Provide test users and representative sample records and documents for validation.
- Participate in user acceptance testing and confirm that linking, metadata, alerts, and permissions meet the agreed requirements.
- Communicate process changes to affected users and maintain ongoing ownership of licenses, permissions, and document governance after handover.
What's not included
Limitations & technical notes
Frequently asked questions
What does the Salesforce + SharePoint Online Integration service do?
IT Partner connects Salesforce with SharePoint Online so teams reach current SharePoint documents from Salesforce Opportunities, Accounts, and Cases — with metadata such as document status visible in context, alerts when linked documents change, and access governed by SharePoint permissions and Salesforce sharing rules. Files stay in SharePoint; Salesforce references them.
Can't we just use Salesforce Files Connect for SharePoint?
Not anymore. Microsoft retired the Azure Access Control Services (ACS) authentication that Files Connect for SharePoint Online depended on on November 1, 2024, and Microsoft's grandfathered support for existing setups ended in April 2026. Any Salesforce-to-SharePoint document integration today must use a supported approach — an AppExchange connector app, Power Automate, Salesforce Connect with OData for list data, or a direct Microsoft Graph API integration — which is what this service implements.
We used Files Connect and it stopped working. Can you migrate us?
Yes — that migration is a core use case for this service. IT Partner assesses your previous Files Connect configuration (linked objects, libraries, and access model), recommends a supported replacement, and implements it so your Salesforce records again reference documents stored in SharePoint.
Which integration approach will IT Partner use?
The approach is selected during discovery based on your requirements, volumes, and budget: an AppExchange connector app (such as CloudFiles, sFiles, Share Connect, 24Files, or Egnyte) that connects Salesforce to SharePoint through the Microsoft Graph API with live document access and per-record folder automation; Power Automate flows for folder, metadata, and alerting scenarios; Salesforce Connect with OData where SharePoint list data should appear as Salesforce external objects; or a custom Microsoft Graph API integration. Connector apps carry their own vendor license fees, identified during scoping.
Are files copied into Salesforce or kept in SharePoint?
Files remain stored in SharePoint Online. Salesforce displays linked documents as secure links, previews, or connected folders, so SharePoint stays the governed repository — with version history, approvals, and audit trails — while Salesforce provides record-level access to the content. This also reduces Salesforce file-storage consumption.
What document metadata can be shown or synced?
Fields such as document status — Draft, Approved, Archived — and last-modified information, plus additional fields like approval status, expiration dates, and owners where a custom metadata field mapping is defined. The exact fields and values are agreed during scoping, and available behavior depends on the selected approach.
Does the integration notify users when SharePoint documents change?
Yes. Alerts can be configured for updates to linked documents — especially critical ones such as contracts and proposals — so teams stop working from stale versions. The notification mechanism and timing depend on the selected approach and are validated during testing.
How does access control work?
Access is enforced by both platforms: SharePoint permissions and Microsoft 365 sharing policies govern the documents, and Salesforce sharing rules govern record context. A user who is not permitted to open a file in SharePoint cannot open it from Salesforce, and co-editing continues in SharePoint with its version history and audit trail.
Can teams track which document versions were used in a deal?
Salesforce references the current file version, while SharePoint maintains version history and approvals. Where deal-by-deal version evidence is required, the design review covers how SharePoint versioning and the selected approach support it.
What licenses do we need?
A Salesforce org and a Microsoft 365 tenant with SharePoint Online, plus Microsoft 365 licenses for every user who opens linked files. If a connector app is selected, you purchase its license from the vendor. If the Salesforce Connect + OData pattern is chosen, Salesforce external-object licensing is required. Power Automate licensing applies where automated workflows are in scope. All of this is confirmed during scoping.
How long does the integration take, and how is it priced?
The service is billed hourly at the published rate, with total effort scoped per project. A standard engagement is planned at five days; the final timeline depends on the number of Salesforce objects, SharePoint libraries, metadata fields, and notification requirements.
What is not included?
License costs — Salesforce, Microsoft 365, Power Automate, and connector-app fees — are excluded. Also excluded unless separately scoped: large-scale document migration or library cleanup, SharePoint information architecture redesign, custom Salesforce development, and integrations with other systems. Restoring the retired Files Connect is not offered; this service replaces it. Ongoing managed support and monitoring are optional extra-cost add-ons.
What happens after the integration is completed?
SharePoint documents are linked to the agreed Salesforce records, metadata and alerts work per the approved design, and access is governed by SharePoint permissions and Salesforce sharing rules. You receive administrator handover notes and a configuration summary; ongoing support, monitoring, and change requests are available under a separate support agreement.