OVERVIEW
Target audience: SharePoint site owners, McGill Staff
Classic SharePoint Alerts are being retired by Microsoft. To continue receiving notifications when items are added or changed in a list or library, you can use SharePoint Rules. Rules allow you to automate simple notifications without extra licensing.
How to check existing alerts
Before creating new rules, review your existing alerts:
- From your SharePoint site, go to the document library or list.
- On the command bar, click on the Ellipsis (…), then select Manage My Alerts (if not available, it means you don’t have any alert setup for this document library or list).
- Review existing alerts and note which ones are critical then decide which alerts need to be recreated as rules.
How to create a rule
- Open the list or document library where you want notifications.
- On the command bar, click on the ellipsis (…), then select Integrate > Rules.
- Choose a condition that triggers the rule and the action that the rule will take:
- When a file or metadata is modified
- When a new file is added
- When a file is deleted
- When a date approaches
- Choose your condition and select who should receive the notification. If you want to receive a notification whenever any changes is made to the file, click on the "if" dropdown and select "always".
When "if" is selected:
When "always' is selected:
- Add a custom message (optional)
- Click Create to save the rule.
Note: SharePoint’s built-in Automate Rules apply to the entire document library or list, not to a specific file or folder. This may result in more alerts than needed. After creating the rule, you can set up an Outlook rule to filter the notifications you want and automatically remove the rest. For detailed instructions on creating Outlook rules, refer to Microsoft’s official documentation.
Manage or delete rules
- On the command bar, click on the ellipsis (…), then Integrate > Rules > Manage rules.
- From here, you can edit, disable, or delete rules.
Best practices
- Recreate only critical alerts to reduce unnecessary notifications.
- Review rules periodically to ensure they remain relevant.
Support
- If you need assistance, contact the IT Service Desk. They can support you with the elements highlighted in this article.
- If your needs are more elaborate than simply receiving an alert when a change occurs in a document library in SharePoint, plan a Q&A session with a SharePoint specialist in MS Bookings.
