Memory
SHAREPOINT.md holds the facts and conventions Copilot should know across the site.
The independent field guide
THE MISSING
MANUAL FOR
SHAREPOINT.MD
The plain-text file that teaches Copilot how your SharePoint site—and the team behind it—actually works.
SHAREPOINT.mdLIVE CONTEXT
# Site context ## Purpose This site is the source of truth for supplier renewals. ## Terminology - "Renewal pack" means the approved four-part template. - All currency is AUD unless stated otherwise. ## Rules - Save completed packs to /Renewals/Current. - Ask before acting when the contract owner is missing.
✓ Applied automatically as site context
Microsoft-confirmedSite-level context in Agent Assets
Tenant-testedReal behaviour, documented openly
Evidence-ledFacts separated from open questions
START HERE
One file. Three things you must understand.
Context helps Copilot make better decisions. It does not magically fix the site underneath it.
Procedure
Skills hold the reusable, multi-step instructions for work your team performs repeatedly.
Control
SharePoint permissions, metadata and governance remain the real source of truth and enforcement.
THE RULE OF THUMB
If Copilot needs to know it in almost every conversation, put it in SHAREPOINT.md. If it needs to do it as a repeatable sequence, put it in a Skill. If it must be enforced, configure it in SharePoint or Microsoft Purview.
THE USEFUL COMPARISON
SharePoint's answer to CLAUDE.md?
CLAUDE.md gives us the mature mental model. It does not prove SharePoint's undocumented internals.
C
CLAUDE.mdCODE REPOSITORY
- Project and filesystem context
- Documented scope hierarchy
- Loaded at session start
- Usually versioned in Git
- Context—not enforced configuration
same pattern≠different contract
SP
SHAREPOINT.mdSHAREPOINT SITE
- Site and business context
- Site-level scope is confirmed
- Applied automatically for the team
- Governed inside SharePoint
- Loading contract remains undocumented
“
CLAUDE.mdtells a coding agent how a project works.SHAREPOINT.mdtells Copilot how a site and its team work.
A PRACTICAL STRUCTURE
What belongs inside the file?
There is no official schema. This field-tested structure focuses on the context Copilot cannot safely infer.
Site identity
Purpose, audience and what is explicitly out of scope.
Authoritative locations
Which libraries, lists and pages to use—and when.
Business terminology
Acronyms, local meanings and ambiguous terms to clarify.
Naming and metadata
File patterns, required fields, dates and currencies.
Decision rules
Safe defaults, confirmation points and escalation paths.
Content standards
Tone, format, approved templates and output locations.
Boundaries
Actions that require confirmation and assumptions to avoid.
Ownership
The file owner, review cadence and last-reviewed date.
KEEP IT USEFUL
Don't turn it into a dumping ground.
Always-on context competes for attention. Concise, specific and maintained beats comprehensive and stale.
- × Long multi-step procedures that belong in Skills
- × Secrets, passwords or credentials
- × Duplicated policy text with a maintained source
- × Volatile detail without an owner or review date
- × “Rules” pretending to be security controls
THE EVIDENCE LEDGER
What Microsoft has confirmed—and what we're still testing.
The capability is real
- Context is saved at site level.
- It is applied automatically for team members.
- Context and Skills are Markdown in Agent Assets.
- Files are editable, versioned and governed.
- Microsoft names a
SharePoint.mdstarter.
The operating model is still emerging
- Recommended schema and headings
- Filename casing behaviour
- Refresh timing after an edit
- Conflict and precedence behaviour
- Maximum useful length
- How context and Skills work together
We're testing these behaviours in live tenants and will keep this guide current as the product and its documentation evolve.
ABOUT THE PERSON BEHIND THIS GUIDE
I'M DANIEL
ANDERSON.
I'm a Microsoft MVP, Microsoft 365 consultant and hands-on practitioner who has spent more than 20 years working with SharePoint and the Microsoft 365 platform.
I've been testing Copilot in SharePoint since its early preview days—back when it was still called Knowledge Agent. This guide exists because the product is moving quickly, while the practical explanation of how files such as SHAREPOINT.md actually work has not kept pace.
I build this material from real tenant testing, live demonstrations and the questions organisations ask when they try to put AI to work. The aim is simple: separate what Microsoft has confirmed from what practitioners have observed, then teach the useful part without the vendor hype.
START TEACHING THE SITE
Write the rule once.
Stop repeating it forever.
Get the annotated starter, replace the examples with your own site's truth, and test one behaviour at a time.