Part V: Access and Windows SharePoint Services
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But, unlike Access tables, SharePoint lists are not relational. There is no way to directly relate data
in two different SharePoint lists, or to query multiple SharePoint lists to find related data. Also, you
can’t add validation rules to individual SharePoint list columns, or to the list as a whole. You can,
however, restrict values in list columns to ensure that a list contains valid data.When linking SharePoint data (as described in Chapter 33), you’re somewhat limited in your use
of the SharePoint data in an Access application. Because the data is not relational, and because
there are no primary keys in SharePoint lists, you can’t easily create meaningful relationships
between linked SharePoint lists and Access tables.However, as you’ll see in Chapter 33, there is still plenty you can do with SharePoint data. A
linked SharePoint list is fully editable. You can update or delete existing rows in the SharePoint
list, or add new rows as needed.Also, a common use of SharePoint data in Access is to populate reports, or to combine SharePoint
data with Access data. Because of the ability to create ad hoc joins in Access queries, you can create
reports with data from both sources.Looking at a SharePoint Web Site
Before going into the detail of describing how Access integrates with SharePoint technology, you
need to picture a typical SharePoint Web site.Perhaps the most common use of SharePoint is storing shared documents and other files.
SharePoint keeps track of files from the moment they’re added to a list until they’re removed or
deleted. Figure 32.3 shows a short list of several different types of files in a SharePoint document
library.In Figure 32.3, notice that the library contains several different types of documents. Each row in
the document list includes an icon indicating the document’s type, the document’s name, the size
of the document, and the name of the person who added the document to the list. The library also
includes tracking information (“In progress,” “Approved”) for each item.SharePoint document libraries support a check-in/check-out paradigm. Only one person at a time
is able to check out a document for changes. Although not shown in Figure 32.3, SharePoint
records when a document is checked in or out, and keeps track of the individuals making changes.
SharePoint can even be instructed to roll back document changes to an earlier version, if necessary.Figure 32.4 shows a group calendar with multiple appointments. Users can be assigned permis-
sions to view or update calendar contents, and SharePoint calendars can be tied to personal calen-
dars in Outlook.One particularly strong feature in SharePoint is its support for discussion lists. Discussions can be
configured as blogs (where new discussion topics are added in a linear fashion) or threaded (where
replies to postings can branch out in new directions). Figure 32.5 shows a task list and team
discussions.