SharePoint Site CollectionsBest Practices and Recommendations

Our Clients Have Challenges with Site Collections! Client 1 has 4 site collections in their SharePoint 2007 farm, each with more than 500 GB of documents.  Each site collection was stored in its own content database.

Client 2 has created site collections for every small team, department, etc.  Anyone who wanted a site essentially got their own site collection.  They have ~400 site collections for ~600 GB of content and about ~2500 sites.

Both clients are experiencing management and usability challenges!

Many of our clients have challenges with understanding how and when to deploy site

collections in SharePoint….

What is a SharePoint Site Collection?

A LOGICAL hierarchical collection of sites.

A Site Collection is also PHYSICAL – all content is stored within a single content database (although a content DB can host multiple site collections).

Key administration and governance boundary for management of sites – many key settings are found with the Site Collection settings,

URL path root starts at the Site Collection.

A Site Collection has one “root” site which is the top level site and many sub-sites.

Each Personal Site (e.g. my site) is its own Site Collection.

Site Collection Settings Govern Many Important Aspects of Sites Site Collection Administrators

Search Settings (sources, types, scopes, etc.)

Site Collection Features

Recycle Bin

Audit Settings and Reports

Content Type Retention Policies

App Permissions

Site Closure and Deletion Policies

Usage and Search Popularity Reports

Content Types

SharePoint Designer Settings

Site Collection Upgrades

Content Types

Columns

Web Parts

Master Pages and Page Layouts

Solutions

These features apply to all sites in the Site CollectionThe Site Collection Administrator(s) have access to all of these settings!

Site Collection Boundaries Impact Security Site Collections can define custom roles that are available to all sites within the Site Collection

The Site Collection Administrator has full control over EVERYTHING within the Site Collection

Site Collection Administrators have access to the Site Collection settings (see previous slide)

Site Collections can align to physical security provided by their content database (e.g. database encryption, different storage locations, etc.)

Site Collection Boundaries Impact Usability

Site Collection Boundary Controls:• Navigation• Top Link Bar• Quick Launch Bar• Breadcrumb trail• Look and Feel Gallery• Theme Gallery• Publishing Features (master pages,

inheritance of look and feel, content publishing workflow)

Site Collection Boundaries Impacts Taxonomy Site Collection is where Content Types are defined (although these can be syndicated across Site Collections through the Content Type Hub)

Workflows are deployed to each Site Collection

Site Columns are defined in each Site Collection

Lookup Columns are scoped to each Site Collection with no ability to replicate across Site Collections

Retention policy definitions are defined within a Site Collection

In Most Cases, Provisioning a Site is Better than Provisioning a new Site Collection Sites are template based and can be customized heavily – they act as re-usable provisioning templates. There is no concept in SharePoint of a Site Collection Template.

Security zoning and inheritance of security permissions can happen anywhere within the site structure – no need to create a new site collection just for a new set of permissions.

Site Collection settings are very broad and can be confusing to business users without significant training.

Site Collection settings expose very secured sites within to security risks through misconfiguration of site collection settings – having these configured properly is especially important for high sensitivity sites.

SharePoint Site Collection Limits and Boundaries

On Premise

Site Collections per Farm 750,000 (500,000 for Personal Sites, 250,000 other site collections)

Web Sites per Site Collection 250,000 per site collection

Site Collection Size 200 GB for general usage scenarios, recommendation is 100 GB or less for each site collection

Number of Device Channels per Site Collection 10

Office 365 Small Business

Maximum Size per Site Collection Up to 1 TB

Site Collections Per Tenant 1

Subsites per Site Collection 2000

Office 365 Midsize Business

Maximum Size per Site Collection Up to 1 TB

Site Collections Per Tenant 20

Subsites per Site Collection 2000

Office 365 Enterprise

Maximum Size per Site Collection Up to 1 TB

Subsites per Site Collection 10,000

Subsites per Site Collection 2000

Reasons to Create Additional Site CollectionsGood

Different features deployed (e.g. publishing vs. collaboration)

Different taxonomy features deployed (e.g. site collection specifically for document management or records management)

To isolate custom applications or deployed features (will help with future migrations)

Different security roles and isolation levels

Size is expected to be greater than 100 GB

Site Collection settings are of value to vary per site collection (e.g. one site collection with auditing turned on, another with it turned off)

Aligned to logical information management zones

Bad

No strategy at all defined

Upon request by the user

Need to isolate security (usually this can be done through sites instead)

Everyone gets their own site collection

One big monster site collection

Decision Path for Creating a Web App, Site Collection or Sub-Site…

Site RequestIs vanity URL

required?

Is custom code

required?

Needs content

isolation?

Is Unique application

type?

Identify Existing Web Application

Is high profile site?

Create new web

application?

Is for a distinct project?

Is large content expected?

Has Unique security?

Has unique backup

requirements?

Is related to existing site?

Create Web Application

Create Site Collection

Create sub-site

No No No No

Yes

No

YesYes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

No No

Request DNS

redirection from Vanity

URL

End

Yes

Yes

Thanks! Christopher Woodill

cwoodill@Hotmail.com

@microsofttrend

www.microsofttrends.com