SharePoint Online REST APIs (Part I): Documents
In the SharePoint Online REST APIs series, I’ll be sharing the most common APIs I use. I mainly use these APIs in Power Automate, so I’ll base the information in this series on the data you need for a Send an HTTP request to SharePoint action.
The first article of the series is how to interact with documents in SharePoint Online. This is not a comprehensive list; rather a list of calls that I use when I can’t use predefined Power Automate actions. I have used the color red to identify interchangeable values.
Get all the document libraries in a site
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists?$filter=BaseTemplate eq 101
BaseTemplate refers to list template type. For document libraries, the number is 101. Microsoft has documentation for the other template types.
Get all files (including folders) in a library
Using the library name
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists/GetByTitle('Library Name')/items
Using the library GUID
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items
The first example uses the library name which is the easiest option. I prefer to use the library GUID. This allows you to change the library name and not worry that your code will break. To find the library GUID, go to your SharePoint site. Find your document library and then Library Settings. The library GUID will be displayed in the address bar of your browser (GUID will be displayed between the ‘%7B‘ and ‘%7D‘ characters).
Get all files in a folder
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/GetFileByServerRelativeUrl('/sites/Site Name/Library Name')/Files
Use this call to receive data about all the files that are in a document library folder.
Get all folders inside a library
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items?$top=4000&$select=FSObjType,BaseName&$filter=FSObjType eq 1
FSObjType refers to list file system type. For folders, the number is 1. Microsoft has documentation for the other system types.
The top parameter is optional. In this case, it is going to return the top 4,000 results.
Get document properties using the file path
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/GetFileByServerRelativeUrl('/sites/Site Name/Library Name/FileName.ext')/listItemAllFields>$select=ID,Title
This call is fairly straight forward. You could achieve the same result using the Get Item action in Power Automate. However, this call gives you more flexibility including returning specific columns.
listItemAllFields is optional but the output returns more detailed information about the item.
Get current version of a file using the document ID
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items(23)?$select=FileLeafRef,OData__UIVersionString
If you need to know what version number a document is, use the above call. The main column you want to return is OData__UIVersionString.
Get the version history metadata of a file
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items(23)/Versions?$select=ID,Title&$top=2
The previous call gets the current version number, but if you want to get the metadata that you see in the version history, you can use this call. It is a good idea to use the select parameter to reduce the amount of columns returned.
The top parameter is optional. In this case, I only want to return the last two entries in the version history.
Find a document in a library (folder and ID unknown)
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items?$select=FieldValuesAsText/FileLeafRef&$expand=FieldValuesAsText&$filter=substringof('Filename.ext',FileLeafRef)
If you know a document is inside a library, but only know the filename, you can search for it using the call above. The $select=FieldValuesAsText/FileLeafRef&$expand=FieldValuesAsText is important to be able to search by filename.
Get the E tag of a document
Method
URI
GET
_api/web/GetFileByServerRelativeUrl('/sites/Site Name/Library Name/Filename.ext')/etag
I usually use this call if I’m trying to manipulate the URL of a file. The E tag is important to find the file (without knowing where it resides in the site) so it never changes and is useful in sharing a link to a file.
Update file metadata without affecting the version number
Method
URI
Body
POST
_api/web/lists(guid'GUID')/items(2353)/validateUpdateListItem()
{
"formValues": [
{
"FieldName": "Title",
"FieldValue": "New Title"
},
{
"FieldName": "FileLeafRef",
"FieldValue": "New Filename.ext"
}
],
"bNewDocumentUpdate":true
}
I have covered this call in a previous post, but this is probably the most used API call I use. Even if you choose to increase the version number (set bNewDocumentUpdate to false), you can update metadata on a file that is not possible using a SharePoint Online Power Automate action.
Wow, your blog has saved me hours of searching. Thank you so much.
You wouldn’t happen to have a SharePoint REST API trick up your sleeve for getting a list of sites user groups, group members, and list/libraries they have access? I’ve successfully got this information on a per user with access to a list or library but I’m lazy so I’d like to get the information all at once.