SharePoint Introduction

SharePoint is a family of Microsoft technology, used for document sharing, publishing, collaboration. Or, you can say that SharePoint is a browser based document management platform given by Microsoft. Or, simply you can say SharePoint is a Microsoft's Content Management System. SharePoint includes 2 techniques, MOSS and WSS; i.e. MOSS + WSS = SharePoint.
Although collaboration is at the heart of SharePoint, it includes many other important core features to help in the following business needs:

·         Document Management

·         Web Content Management

·         Business Process Management (Workflows)

·         Enterprise Search

·         Business Intelligence (Dashboards, Reports)

·         Social Networking

·         Electronic Forms (InfoPath)

MOSS

MOSS stands for Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. MOSS is a portal based platform for managing and sharing documents.

WSS

WSS stands for Windows SharePoint Server. WSS is the core framework on which SharePoint works.

BUILT - IN FEATURES OF SHAREPOINT

So what features can you expect in SharePoint 2010? The answer depends on what version you implement: SharePoint Server or SharePoint Foundation. The following sections address everyday scenarios and show you examples of how SharePoint can make things easier for you and your users.

·         Alerts

One feature that both SharePoint Foundation and SharePoint Server offer is something Microsoft refers to as alerts. An alert is a request you create in SharePoint to be notifi ed by e - mail or by text message (SMS) when SharePoint content changes (for example, when a document is updated, a contact is deleted, or news items are created). Using alerts, you can be sure to keep yourself updated about changes to information that is important to you! SharePoint will send you an e - mail or a text message (SMS) to your phone, to notify you what has happened. The following information types are examples of what can be monitored by alerts: A document library or a single document A picture library or a single picture A contact list or a single contact A link list or a single link A news list or a single news item An event list or a single event.

·         RSS (Really Simple Syndication)

A very handy feature introduced in SharePoint 2007 that also is supported in SharePoint 2010 is support for the Really Simple Syndication (RSS) technique. Using this feature, a user can be notifi ed when new items are added to any type of SharePoint list, such as document libraries, contacts, news, and tasks lists. This is similar to alerts mentioned earlier, but the main difference between them is that alerts send e - mail that will be stored in your inbox along with other e - mail, whereas all RSS notifi cations will be collected in one folder, thus giving you a much better overview of all the notifications.

·         Managing Meetings

If there’s one thing that almost all employees agree on, it is that most meetings are a huge pain! Why? The usual complaints are that they are a waste of time, boring, and too long; that meeting participants are unprepared; and that following up on tasks and activities after the meeting is hard. All of this indicates that even a small step forward to make meetings more effective is important. SharePoint enables you to change many tasks related to meetings into something more positive. Before a typical meeting, the meeting organizer uses Microsoft Outlook to invite participants, as well as to book resources such as the conference room. Take a closer look at a meeting to understand how you can enhance this type of activity. A meeting is an event where the following steps typically occur: 1. A number of people are invited. 2. The invitees come together, usually in a meeting room. 3. While together, they discuss a number of topics defined in an agenda. 4. The discussion results in a number of actions and decisions, documented in meeting minutes.

Pages:

A SharePoint site, like any other web site, is comprised of pages. A page in SharePoint is a container for smaller components called web parts that provide some unique functionality or content. A page in SharePoint automatically inherits its permissions settings from the library that it’s stored in within the site.

Webparts:

Webparts are the smallest component for a web application in Sharepoint. A webpart is having their own unique functionality. On a same web page there may be several web parts. A page in SharePoint is comprised of web parts that exist within zones on a page. Web parts are components that come either out-of-the-box in SharePoint, or are available from third party vendors or custom developed by SharePoint developers. A web part can be re-used throughout the pages within a SharePoint site or in some cases across sites. For e.g. one web part will define the weather report, another web part will define the news and so on.

Library:

A library is a component in SharePoint that stores files i.e. documents. Think of a library as a folder on your file system that can also contain sub-folders. For example, a library can be created to store "project status" in the Project management team site. Libraries can contain metadata to describe the particular file in more detail and to make it easier to find.

List:

A list is a component in SharePoint that stores rows of information. For example, a list can be created to store product list in a production team site. Lists can contain metadata to describe the particular row in more detail and to make it easier to find.

SharePoint Farm:

The base level for any SharePoint implementation is the SharePoint farm. Physically a farm can consist of one server or many servers. An organization may implement one or more farms. This usually depends on security and performance needs. From a performance perspective it may make sense for an organization with locations across the globe to maintain multiple farms with those locations accessing content closest to them for speed. In these cases, content between the farms need to be synchronized. From a security perspective an organization may have a SharePoint intranet for internal content and a SharePoint extranet for third party access. All or some components of the extranet farm might have to be located in the DMZ whereas security policies or concerns may prohibit any portion of the intranet farm outside of the organization's physical network.

Site:

A Web site is a group of related Web pages that is hosted by an HTTP server on the World Wide Web or on an intranet site. Most Web sites have a home page as their starting point. The home page is interconnected with other pages by using hyperlinks. You can use top-level sites and subsites to divide site content into distinct, separately manageable sites. Top-level Web sites can have multiple subsites, and subsites themselves can have multiple subsites. The entire structure of a top-level Web site and all of its subsites is called a Web site collection.

What is a site collection?

A site collection is where the design, security, navigation, content types, web parts, workflows and etc. are maintained for all the sites within the collection. An organization might create a site collection for the HR department, for IT department and one for the Finance department each with its own design, security policy and navigation requirements.

Site Template:

Windows SharePoint Services provides the following collaboration templates that you can use when creating a new site. 

SITE TEMPLATE	DESCRIPTION
Team Site	This template creates a site that teams can use to create, organize, and share information. It includes a document library, and basic lists, such as Announcements, Calendar, Contacts, and Links.
Blank Site	This template creates a Web site with a blank home page that you can customize with a browser or a Windows SharePoint services-compatible Web design program by adding interactive lists and other features.
Wiki Site	This template creates a site where you can quickly and easily add, edit, and link Web pages.
Blog	This template creates a site that you can use to post information and to allow others to comment on it.
Application Templates	These templates are tailored to address the requirements of specific business processes or sets of tasks within organizations of any size. The templates can be applied to common scenarios, such as managing a help desk or tracking a marketing campaign. To learn more and download the templates, see the Application Templates for Windows SharePoint Services Web page.

Content Type:

SharePoint content types provide a way to package security, metadata and workflows for a specific file or document type or list item. That package of security, metadata and workflows will follow that file, document or list item wherever it's stored in SharePoint.