SharePoint overview
Glean connects to Microsoft SharePoint for indexed and real-time search, scoped to each user's permissions. SharePoint uses its own app registration for content access. The Microsoft 365 parent connector provides identity crawling and the tenant ID. These indexing setup instructions use certificate-based authentication.
Azure Access Control Services (ACS) authentication for SharePoint Online stopped working on April 2, 2026. See Azure ACS retirement in Microsoft 365.
Set up the Microsoft 365 parent connector first. If your SharePoint credential fields show inherited credentials, use the existing parent app for SharePoint permissions and manage its credentials on the parent connector. You do not need to recreate an existing connection. See Microsoft 365.
Capabilities
SharePoint supports indexed search, real-time search, and read and write tools. File and site indexing uses application permissions on the SharePoint app. Native real-time search uses delegated permissions on that same default app, while tools use a separate central or custom OAuth configuration. Each user must authorize their own account for real-time search and tools.
The new setup configures these capabilities in one flow. With the previous setup, indexing is configured first and an administrator enables real-time search separately. See SharePoint setup or Previous SharePoint setup.
For indexed content details, including supported site-list item types and crawl limitations, see What gets indexed.
Which capabilities do you need?
Use the comparison below to see what each capability contributes to search, ranking, and agent behavior.
| What you get | Indexed connector | Real-time search | Read and write tools |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Org-wide: everything crawled is searchable by anyone with permission | Per-user: only content the querying user can access | — |
| Freshness | Near real-time (webhook-driven updates) | Always live (fetched at query time) | — |
| AI ranking (activity signals) | ✓ Full ranking | ✗ Not available | — |
| Fetch unindexed content by URL (for example, sharing links) | ✗ (only documents already in the index) | ✓ (fetched live, even if never indexed) | — |
| Agents read and summarize documents | ✓ | ✓ | Through read tools |
| Analyze all rows in a SharePoint List | — | — | ✓ |
| Agents can move, update, or share files | — | — | ✓ |
| Content stored in Glean's index | Yes (crawled and indexed) | No (nothing stored) | No |
| App registration | SharePoint app, separate from the Microsoft 365 identity app | Default SharePoint app used for indexing | Glean-managed app or custom OAuth app |
| Separate tool configuration | No | No | Included with New setup; manual with Previous setup |
| Best for | Broad, ranked, everyday search | Volatile or sensitive content kept current and unindexed | Analyzing list data and managing files |
Set up SharePoint
- Choose your setup: Match the guide to the setup screens in your Admin console. The setup interface does not determine whether credentials are separate or inherited.
- New setup: Use this guide if you see Connect, Set up indexing, and Review setup.
- Previous setup: Use this guide if you configure SharePoint on a Setup tab and finish with Save. Existing connections continue to work without a migration.
- Set up the indexing connector: This page covers indexing in detail. It describes the permissions the connector requires, what Glean crawls from your SharePoint sites, pages, lists, and document libraries, and how to scope the crawl.
- Real-time search: Real-time search fetches content live from SharePoint at query time, which suits content that must always be current or that you would rather not store in Glean's index.
- Use SharePoint in Glean: Learn how to filter, count, sum, and compare values across all rows in a SharePoint List.
- Read and write tools: SharePoint tools let Glean Assistant and agents analyze lists, read site pages, and manage document library files.
Permissions and security
Glean reads all user access permissions from SharePoint and enforces them at query time, so users only see results they have access to. For details, see permission enforcement and the activity signals used for ranking. File and site indexing uses certificate-based application permissions with admin consent, not delegated user privileges.