A SharePoint Workflows tutorial by Peter Kalmström
Version
History is a SharePoint feature that makes it possible to
track changes in items and files and restore earlier versions.
Sometimes it is convenient to have icons with links
to the version history of each item directly in a list or
library. Such a button can be created and kept up to date
with a workflow. The idea behind this workflow can of course
also be used for other SharePoint buttons.
For a list, you just have to create a new multiple lines
of text column with enhanced rich text in the SharePoint
list you want to use. Then you can start building the workflow.
For a library, you must use SharePoint Designer to create
the column, because a multiple lines column with enhanced
rich text cannot be created from SharePoint.
In the demo below Peter Kalmström, CEO and Systems Designer
of kalmstrom.com Business Solutions, shows how to first
create a new multiple lines of text column with enhanced
rich text in a library. After that, he describes how to
build the workflow that adds version history buttons to
each file in the library.
Create column
In SharePoint Designer, select Lists and Libraries
in the left pane.
Click on the library where you want to add the new
column to open its summary page.
Click on Edit Columns in the ribbon.
Click on the Add New Column? button in the ribbon.
Select the Multi Lines of Text option from the
dropdown.
Click once on NewColumn1 and give new column a
more appropriate name.
Double-click on the column row to show the properties.
Check the box for Enhanced Rich Text.
Version history button workflow
Create a list workflow for the library that starts
when an item is changed. Go to the end of the workflow.
Add the Action Update Item'. Update the new column
with a link that is built from the current site URL
from the workflow context + _layouts/15/Versions.aspx?list=
+ the list ID + a lookup for the ID of the current item.
Add the image link. The image should be kept in
the Site Asset of the same site as the library.
The result should be like this (add your own values
at bold text):
<a href="
[%Workflow Context:Current Site URL%]_layouts/15/Versions.aspx?list=LISTID&ID[%Current
Item ID%]" target="_blank"><img src="IMAGEURL"></a>
Version
History is a SharePoint feature that makes it possible to
track changes in items and files and restore earlier versions.
