SPFx provides an efficient and cost-effective means of customizing Microsoft 365s user experience by adding industry-standard web stack management tools and automated hosting capabilities.
Microsoft SharePoint is an innovative collaboration solution used widely throughout organizations to facilitate employee cooperation.
Microsoft SharePoint allows businesses and teams to quickly build intranet websites and manage content efficiently, offering multiple uses.
Since Sharepoint first hit the scene in 2001, its usage and functionality have evolved considerably.
Today, it provides multiple deployment methods - like SharePoint Online included within Office 365 subscription plans or hosting on-premises server instances - while SharePoint Frameworks addition represents a significant advancement in app development.
What Is SharePoint
Microsofts. NET Framework serves as the basis of Office applications in general; SharePoint web apps present unique challenges when developing individual pages; this experience-rich environment makes SharePoint best suited for developers familiar with it.
Recently, SharePoint development did not advance alongside its platform. Although Microsoft offered developers tools to support various tasks for SharePoint development, SharePoint can often only be utilized by one company at once using traditional C# programming techniques and compiling into dynamic link libraries; with cloud computing now present, businesses are required to support multiple websites simultaneously.
SharePoint is an integrated web collaboration tool built by Microsoft Office that works across different operating systems.
According to Wikipedia, its initial release in 2001 as an off-server product designed for storage and document management business processes became the basis for subsequent versions that expanded content management functions across intranets and the internet.
SharePoint was an immensely successful product when available on premises, giving customers nearly limitless extensibility with almost zero version-specific costs; after its 2007 release, it quickly became one of the premier content management systems available today.
Unfortunately, its deployment became severely restricted as customer-specific extensibility is version-specific; each new release incurred additional expenses.
Office 365 (now Microsoft 365) included SharePoint features as collaborative and content-management services in their cloud offering, making its functionality available as collaboration and content-management services to Microsoft customers.
In 2017, to support this shift, a new version of SharePoint was released with so-called modern experiences -- designed to offer more options for evergreen features while giving customers access to cloud services without needing to file sharing maintain or operate them -- along with new extension options like SharePoint Framework for this cloud-first model. Microsoft 365 brings the newest and best features of SharePoint into one comprehensive offering, as well as weekly updates to keep it fresh.
SharePoint Online serves as the core content service and platform of Microsoft 365, powering features such as Microsoft Viva, Teams, Syntax and Stream.
More than 200 Million monthly users utilize SharePoint Online, with this number growing as Microsoft invests in new features and capabilities.
Sharepoint Must Incorporate Cloud-Based Features
Open-source software thats easily adaptable can receive support. A client-side approach reduces costs, speeds response time and supports mobile app strategies - as business needs shift or new users join online systems sharepoint designer, this approach remains cost-effective and user-friendly.
Integration with various other cloud applications and services.SharePoint Framework, on the other hand, is an adaptive cloud version of the.NET framework; its toolchain relies on technologies like TypeScript, Yeoman and Webpack and allows developers to be more creative than before when using iFrames for content delivery.
SharePoint Framework facilitates client-side development using its HttpClient, with easy authentication for SharePoint Online and Office 365 (note that SharePoint external users Framework has yet to be tested with SharePoint Server 2016; however, support for it should arrive later this year in Feature.
Client-side development doesnt require knowledge of.NET technology; SharePoint Frameworks JavaScript model reduces the need for expensive resources like.NET programming languages.
What is SharePoint Framework?
SharePoint Framework (SPFx) is a client-side add-on designed to extend Microsoft Teams (formerly Office 365), Microsoft Viva (formerly Outlook), Office, and premises version SharePoint environments.
SPFx was first implemented as part of Microsoft 365 Apps "modern SharePoint experience.
Microsoft needed a future-proof extensibility model, in line with their goal of offering new features weekly to their customers.
They recognized that traditional SharePoint on-premises extensibility models wouldnt work for cloud subscriptions of Microsoft 365; SPFx was therefore created as user interface extensibility within SharePoint Online as part of Microsoft 365 subscription plans.
SPFx is designed using TypeScript during development and converted to JavaScript once deployed; SPFxs dev tools offer an exceptional experience when building web wide range components.
SPFx allows you to quickly build JavaScript components once and reuse them across Microsoft 365 services - such as Microsoft Teams, Viva (Outlook), Office App (Office 365 App), SharePoint or SPFx itself - for seamless deployment across these services. Build once exposed across Microsoft 365.
Microsoft engineers employ SPFx to develop features already present on SharePoint Online - for instance, web parts - using native features created using SPFx.SPFx offers multiple goals.
Customers and partners can reap the advantages of an extensibility model which is predictable and repeatable, such as Node. Gulp. Yeoman. React development. Automatically host solutions for customers and partners, streamlining the hosting of custom solutions and their operations.
Automatic single sign-on with Azure Active Directory offers a safe and previous version straightforward way to access Microsoft Graph APIs, Azure-hosted services and applications - without needing tokens or keys for each access token required by each service or application provider.
SPFx solutions run directly in the client environment without needing externally hosted code accessible through APIs.
SPFx can easily integrate with Microsoft Azure code, including Azure Functions and Web APIs, for secure cloud calling of these components based on administrative permissions within a tenant.
Microsoft recognized SPFxs widespread appeal among both customers and partners as a reason to invest outside SharePoint Online; starting in 2018, you could directly use SPFx with Microsoft Teams; this was announced for use with Viva development projects Connections extension as early as 2021; in 2022 support was added for building Outlook/Office extensibility using SPFx with similar benefits as described previously.
SharePoint Framework is an innovative model of pages and web parts which supports client-side SharePoint Development, allows easy data integration, extends Microsoft Teams/Viva, etc., as well as utilizes the latest web technologies in conjunction with your chosen development environment to produce responsive document storage apps/experiences for clients.
The SharePoint Framework makes the development experience simpler while supporting client-side development for SharePoint apps/experiences.
SPFx, the SharePoint extensibility and customization model recommended to developers.
Due to the tight integration among SharePoint Online, Microsoft Teams, and Viva Connections, SPFx provides customizations and extensibility options exclusive to Viva Connections users. SPFx offers support for SharePoint Server 2016 and Online through SPFx. For more information about which platforms support SPFx and how developers may utilize it, visit.
SharePoint Framework: Key Features
SPFx includes several key features:
- JavaScript will run within the context of the current connection and user: Customization takes place without using iFrames (JavaScript has been embedded into the page), rendering controls using average page DOM.
- Controls are intuitive and responsive by nature: giving developers access to every stage of the life cycle rendering, loading, serializing/deserializing and making configuration changes.
- JavaScript is designed for framework agnosticism: any of your preferred JavaScript Frameworks, such as React, Handlebars Knockout, Vue.js or Angular, can be chosen storage per user without restriction. Furthermore, the developer toolchain comprises open-source technologies like TypeScript, Yeoman and Webpack that make up its toolchain for development teams.
- Performance is reliable: SPFx Client-side Solutions may be used by end users on any self-service group or team website as long as their actions have been delegated by tenant administrators, providing consistent web component addition to both collaboration platform modern and classic pages.
- Microsoft Teams can benefit from SPFx-based solutions: They enhance the Script Edit web part with robust client API, HttpClient object authentication for Office 365 sharepoint authentication and context information about property configuration/definition, along with straightforward property setup/configuration processes that reduce the effort required.
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Sharepoint Framework: Causes And Effects
JavaScripts popularity as an accessible programming language was one of the primary drivers behind creating SharePoint Framework.
First created for frontend web sharepoint development in the 90s, JavaScript can be found embedded into personal cloud storage, many desktop and runtime apps and client and server-side software solutions.
Mikael Rogers, the Node.js Foundation community manager, commented in an email from The New Stack that such adoption experiences align with past results in JavaScript adoption.
A recent Stack Overflow study of over 56,000 developers demonstrated that JavaScript had become more prevalent among backend languages such as Java and frontend ones like PHP. As part of its evolution, SharePoint Framework was introduced, explicitly designed to run in web browsers while making API calls to both SharePoint Online and Office 365.
SharePoint Framework, part of Office 365 and Microsofts family of products, opens up opportunities for future integration.
SharePoint is one of the primary influences on records management for many Microsoft collaboration tools such as Power BI and PowerApps; in turn, SharePoint Framework continues the tradition of giving developers more freedom when developing their applications.
SharePoint Framework is an innovative technology which takes SharePoint into the modern era by unifying it with Office apps like Word and Excel that are available with wide variety across devices - SharePoint was previously only accessible from desktops or laptops, while Office applications such as Word were accessible on tablets or phones; with SharePoint Frameworks apps having similar appearance and feel as other Office 365 offerings.
Sharepoint Is Expensive And Difficult To Use
Microsoft started looking more carefully at SharePoints business around this time.
They realized it was primarily available only to large organizations due to its expensive licensing fee and hosting cost; additionally, administrators must possess knowledge in Windows/SQL Server as well as other products to administer SharePoint successfully; consequently, many medium-sized and smaller businesses could not afford its implementation.
Microsoft quickly decided to join in when hosted SharePoint services began their discussion board rapid expansion, realizing they must find ways to support one-tenant architecture so multiple instances of SharePoint installations could coexist on one server for full functionality.
They created whats known today as one-tenant architecture, which only had one client or tenant (the same thing as single-tenant architecture in some other environments).
At first glance, the idea of allowing clients to deploy customizations on a server - where one broken web component could cause all sites hosted therein, as well as our intranet, to fail - just wasnt viable.
They needed to find an alternate option.
Partial Trust Solutions For Sharepoint Server 2010 And Sharepoint Online, 2010-2012
Microsoft introduced several features into SharePoint Server 2010 that made it more multi-tenant compliant, such as Service Applications, which allowed internal communication administrators to develop processes shared between multiple websites.
For instance, a search engine indexer could be shared between sites.
They introduced the Sandbox for developers. Sandboxed solutions would run separately within the SharePoint core process, while its related Sandbox was an independent process from the one that ran them.
Sandbox was designed so that if the custom code you wrote crashed, only Sandbox processes would be affected; SharePoint sites of customers wouldnt go down sharepoint foundation entirely but would leave behind an empty spot where this custom web component should have gone, an acceptable tradeoff.
These partial-trust solutions were known as SharePoint Sandbox Solutions due to their distinct process whose permissions or capabilities did not match those of the SharePoint core process.
The Sandbox Approach Is Too Restrictive
Our sandboxed solution was limited in its access to site collections it had been deployed into; any further access would not have been possible and thus fell outside its capabilities, becoming inaccessible and making complete trust solutions unusable by developers.
Problematic solutions for partial trust often didnt give full access to all aspects of SharePoint API; instead, only certain subsets had full privileges.
Cloud computing presents many cloud users with challenges that prevent them from fully taking advantage of its many offerings, like Microsoft SharePoint Online (SPO) in Office 365.
Customers were only permitted partial trust for custom code custom components and had to abide by strict Sandbox throttling limitations when using SPO.
Microsoft Did Not Fully Grasp Customer Needs
They failed to grasp all of the difficulties customers were encountering; for example, they could not accurately quantify how many solutions had been devised by customers who did not host SharePoint themselves.
Microsoft only trusted products when expanding SharePoint.
Although one could view a partially trusted solution from both perspectives - customer and Microsoft development models - it was solely focused on third-party development models.
The SharePoint Framework serves both first-party and third-party developers alike.
Before continuing, let me introduce REST API and CSOM. Microsoft first custom development implemented REST in SharePoint Server 2010.
REST was initially intended to replace task-specific ASMX web services while opening SharePoint up for more development outside its core functionality - both server-side with .NET development and client-side web solutions using jQuery. The Client Object Model (CSOM), also released at this time, included both a.NET SDK as well as JavaScript SDK and Silverlight SDK - use CSOM today only as its.NET counterpart.
After beginning work, move on to the Basics package for initial training on SharePoint Framework concepts.
With continuous monitoring and automated testing as your go-to techniques for testing SharePoint framework sites, this Ultimate Bundle will make you an expert at managing them with continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD).
Microsoft heard feedback from its customers: give us the option of writing custom code in SharePoint Online.
Microsoft was forced to provide developers with more suitable options.
2013-2016: Add-in model for SharePoint Online & Server 2013
Microsoft took an unorthodox approach with SharePoint Server 2013. They pondered, "Why do we require developers?".
After taking this tack, their solution was to ax our customized code off our SharePoint servers entirely.
Our ultimate aim was for our code to run smoothly within a web browser and as an independent process from SharePoint while giving developers tools for customizing advanced features of SharePoint sites and interactions between sites and individuals.
Microsoft released SharePoint Server 2013, which introduced an entirely new way of customizing SharePoint, known as App Model development for Office Clients, as well as apps themselves installed into Office with similar functions to todays Office Add-ins (which were also renamed).
This added-in could customize SharePoint by developing apps utilizing this concept - similar to todays Office Add-ins but with greater control.
Apple refused to permit Microsoft Office on the iOS App Store on principle, stating that apps belong solely in the App Store and apps cannot exist within apps.
Apple refused to concede, so instead, they changed Apps into Add-ins in order to include project management Office in this way: install Office first then download Add-ins!
As both SharePoint & Office were part of the same company, consistency between them was imperative.
Therefore, the app model has been changed from app to "Add-in".
Enhance SharePoint REST API and CSOM
Microsoft has made significant investments in both its SharePoint REST and CSOM APIs to meet this need for customized solutions running off SharePoint servers, an extensible platform with developers needing the capability to communicate directly with SharePoint through these APIs.
Microsoft made an unusual design decision that treats SharePoint add-ins like second-class citizens - like second-rate websites.
Their rationale could include online version OAuth being a crucial part of model identity verification and REST API functionality of add-ins; nevertheless, Microsoft has chosen this path when developing SharePoint add-ins for this platform.
SharePoint Add-ins were no longer added directly to SharePoint sites that already existed; instead, when installed they would create subsites with distinct URLs personal document retention containing add-ins designed to prevent customized solutions from quickly accessing parent site data.
Microsoft Doesnt Understand Customer Needs Comprehensively
As has already been noted, Microsoft did not fully comprehend the issues faced by customers.
Microsoft continues to extend SharePoint using only reliable, fully-tested solutions; Microsoft does not use add-ins in this regard - something they did previously as share documents well. Microsoft was blissfully unaware of any of the trials or struggles customers were going through.
SharePoint developers had no option other than finding solutions independently when the add-in model wasnt meeting client demands.
Instead of telling Microsoft they couldnt meet those demands, SharePoint developers used all available tools to address issues independently.
Also Read: Microsoft SharePoint: The Purpose and Benefits of Using the SharePoint
JavaScript injection for SharePoint Server 2013 and SharePoint Online, 2013-2016
Customers increasingly took matters into their own hands after having negative content structure experiences with partially trusted solutions that included an add-in phase before eventually falling flat.No mistake here - SharePoints Add-in Model forms part of this phase in its history.
Add-in models had several shortcomings that rendered them an inferior option for most developers.
Learning REST API, OAuth authorizations and apps was often an uphill battle; add-in models did not enable developers to modify existing websites as desired by customers; these issues led many of us to opt out altogether. Developers were unwilling to wait for Microsoft to issue another solution; thus, they chose instead to utilize existing tools.
JavaScript Injection
JavaScript Injection was an option available to developers looking to customize SharePoint sites.
SharePoint has long featured both the Content Editor Web Part and, more recently, Script Editor Web Part to allow users to format text attractively while including publishing sites JavaScript on websites. These web components allowed them to achieve both goals simultaneously with a sharepoint application. Utilizing this approach and an enhanced REST API, client-side developers could extend and modify existing SharePoint sites more quickly than before.
Javascript Injection Shortcomings
JavaScript Injections Drawbacks Like its other variants, this approach has its branding elements drawbacks as well.
Manual deployment was employed for all customizations during deployment - the deployment process went something like this: Upload assets (JavaScript, CSS images, etc) into an asset library so CEWP can add them directly onto pages.
Add Client Side Script to CEWP is not without risk as any user with editing rights office 365 enterprise could change the HTML code of any custom solution based on personal whim and development cycle make changes without going through change management sharepoint enterprise processes - potentially becoming a significant liability in companies where custom solutions rely on this approach for user needs.
Manual steps may not be an efficient method to deploy custom solutions in complex application organizations with stringent change management policies since this solution design package cannot be scripted to automate the deployment of custom solutions.
Customizations frequently utilize DOM manipulators such as jQuery to modify, electronic form insert, or change content or functionality on pages per their specific needs and requirements.
Microsoft will then modify the DOM to meet their specific requirements - adding buttons or changing an elements HTML ID; Microsoft updates to SharePoint Online associate - training and SharePoint Server can cause your scripts to break due to changing element IDs.
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What is Next for SharePoint Developers?
SharePoint Engineering began an examination of SharePoint 2013 following its release, noting what developers were using and not using and then comparing these efforts against its goals.
Customers Increasingly Rely On JavaScript Injection -- Customers increasingly utilize JavaScript-driven solutions in creating solutions with customizable platforms. CEWP and SEWP web parts are the most frequently employed within SharePoint Online, as this is how most individuals implement JavaScript-based customizations.
Yet, people understand its limits.
Microsoft wanted to adopt and enhance customer-side software development as an approach rather than make minor modifications to it.
This new approach met both SharePoints goals and those of its customers.
Custom solutions wont interfere with the SharePoint Process as they run entirely on the browser (client).
Therefore, customizations only impact user accounts in context with them.Installing apps allows customers to customize existing websites. SharePoint solutions make development and implementation simpler as files dont need to be hosted externally - instead, they reside within SharePoint, where only browser access will execute them.
Conclusion
Microsoft tried various models of development until it found one which fit both sharepoint developers and themselves well.
By studying the challenges faced and customer behaviors observed, Microsoft made their determination as to the ideal fit model of development for themselves and customers alike.
