Managed Metadata Service Applications WHAT’S IN THIS CHAPTER? Confi guring managed metadata Metadata navigation Publishing content types Two powerful features in SharePoint 2010 are metadata and content types. Metadata enables users to quickly and easily classify specifi c data about documents and list items within SharePoint by using list columns. Content types take metadata to the next level by providing a way to group a collection of metadata with a specifi c template. These content types can then be associated with many different lists within the site collection. Different content types can reference the same metadata (site columns), and content types can branch into several different levels. An example of this scenario would be an organization that wants to create a standard document content type with three required metadata columns. By associating this content type with each of the document libraries, the organization provides a way to collect consistent data from many different locations. They could then create an additional department document content type that inherits from the standard document content type, thus allowing each department to add addi- tional fi elds to the standard document. Using this approach enables an organization to manage the metadata and determine how it is associated with each of the different content types. This functionality was provided within SharePoint 2007, but it was diffi cult for an organization to deploy and manage it on a large scale. The biggest problem arose when an organization needed to make different content types or site columns available to many different site collections as these are natively only available within the site collection in which they were created. In order to do this within the 2007 framework, solutions would have to be created to deploy the content types and site columns to each of the site collections. With the release of SharePoint 2010, the 16 446 CHAPTER 16 maNaged metadata service aPPlicatioNs Managed Metadata service, sometimes called the Taxonomy service, enables you to create and manage column types and content types in one centralized location that then serves as a “hub” for the rest of the SharePoint farm. These terms can even be consumed across different SharePoint farms. This enables you to create and manage content types at a global level. ADVANTAGES OF THE MANAGED METADATA SERVICE The Managed Metadata service offers a new way to look at content types and metadata. It allows you to provide a collection of metadata and content types to all sites within the SharePoint farm. This framework is managed at a farm level, where various settings such as preferred values and synonyms can be configured, yet it can still be expanded within sites that are subscribing to the service. Consistency and usability is improved at a global level, but functionality and the abil- ity to customize remain in the hands of the users. Managed Metadata service offers some distinct advantages: A global framework — As described earlier, organizations often want to guide all of their departments to use specific columns and content types, but also provide some flexibility so that each department can extend the base schema to meet its specific needs. Through man- aged metadata and content type publishing, the Managed Metadata service within SharePoint 2010 provides this base schema. Site collections can consume the services and then extend them as needed to meet their specific needs. Consistency in data entry — The Managed Metadata service provides several key features that enable consistent entry of data. For instance, by configuring preferred values you can provide alternative selections to users when they are entering values. For example, if a user enters the term “car” or “vehicle,” an alternate suggestion of “automobile” can be displayed for their selection. This feature provides a way to easily guide users to enter the preferred values for common words. In addition, as users are entering values for keywords, suggestions of previous keywords are displayed for selection. Because options are being presented to users, it is less likely that multiple terms for the same items will be entered. Improved usability — In addition to enabling users to quickly and easily tag data based on a global structure, many new features greatly improve usability, including type ahead, preferred values, and recently used values. These features are available both in the SharePoint UI and within the Office applications. Users will be able to learn one approach to entering data that can be used across multiple applications. NEW MANAGED METADATA SERVICE FEATURES In addition to the usability features mentioned in the previous section, the new Managed Metadata service includes three major new feature improvements for column types, content types, and filtering. New Managed Metadata Service Features 447 Column Types Two new types of site column can be configured at a global level: Managed Metadata and Managed Keywords. Managed Metadata is a choice field that is configured to pull from levels within the global term store, and the Managed Keywords field is a text field that references a global store. Managed Metadata — Within Central Administration, you can create term stores that are used to populate various column types within SharePoint lists and libraries. Term stores are collec- tions of like values. These term stores can be populated manually or through a . csv import file. The terms, or keywords, in the term store are managed at a global level, and then consumed by sites and webs within the environment. Examples of entries within a term store could include some of the following values: Departments Offices Categories Project Status By adding these values at a global level, consistency across multiple sites and webs can be maintained. Instead of each site needing to maintain a column of the various departments within the organization, one centralized, managed list can be maintained. Combining this feature with the usability improvements such as type ahead and the data entry suggestion features enables users to easily and quickly enter standard organization data values. Managed Keywords — Managed keywords are similar to managed metadata, with the key difference being that the end user is able to enter new terms into the store — that is, terms that did not previously exist. Content Types Content types, mentioned earlier, are a powerful addition to any organization. They allow for stan- dard templates, metadata, and workflows to be associated with different list items and document types. They provide a way for an organization to easily guide its users through adding content to the site, by showing them the specific metadata and workflows that should be associated with their content. For example, at a global level the organization may want to collect the following information about each project document: Name Owner Keywords 448 CHAPTER 16 maNaged metadata service aPPlicatioNs Each department may want to also collect the following information: Project name Project type Assigned resources In such a scenario, the organization would be able to take the global project document content type and expand it to capture the additional fields. Because the content type is based on the parent, Project Document, any changes to Project Document would be pushed down to the extended content type. Once the framework is in place, the rest of the organization will be able to work within that frame- work to meet their specific needs. As mentioned earlier, SharePoint 2010’s Managed Metadata service stores these content types in a “hub,” to be accessed and used across multiple site collections. Filtering One the key benefits of configuring and consuming the managed metadata available in the farm is the ability to take advantage of the new filtering features. These features allow for multi-level filter- ing within the managed metadata columns. This filtering is made available within the standard list views, as well as within the site navigation in the Quick Launch area. The remainder of this chapter provides an in-depth look at configuring, maintaining, and using these new features. GETTING STARTED WITH THE MANAGED METADATA SERVICE The Managed Metadata service is provided to different sites through the creation of a service application. This section describes the steps required to create and define the service application. The Service Applications Architecture Service applications in SharePoint 2010 provide the framework for sharing content and services across multiple web apps, sites, and webs. Service applications are new in SharePoint 2010 and replace what is currently provided by the Shared Service Provider in SharePoint 2007. For a more detailed look at what makes up a service application, refer to Chapter 7. Configuring Managed Metadata Services Configuring the Managed Metadata service in SharePoint 2010 is pretty straightforward. Follow these steps to create and prepare a new instance of the Managed Metadata service for use within the environment. 1. Open Central Administration and click the Application Management link. The Application Management screen has an entire section dedicated to the management of service applications, as indicated in Figure 16-1. These options enable you to create and edit new and existing service applications. Getting Started with the Managed Metadata Service 449 FIGURE 161 2. Click the link to the Manage Service Applications page. A listing of all service applications will be displayed. You can see all the services, their types, and their current status. Selecting any of these services will load the Ribbon, giving you quick access to the configuration elements of the service. Figure 16-2 highlights the Managed Metadata service and the corresponding Ribbon. FIGURE 162 3. To create a new Metadata service application, select the New option from the Ribbon and select Managed Metadata service to load a new page where you can enter the service infor- mation. Table 16-1 shows the options available for configuration. 450 CHAPTER 16 maNaged metadata service aPPlicatioNs TABLE 161: Managed Metadata Service Application Configuration Options OPTION DESCRIPTION Name A short name used to describe the Managed Metadata service application. Database Server Name of the server that is hosting your SharePoint databases. Database Name The specific database that will be used to store the service information. Database Authentication The type of authentication used to access the information stored in the data- base. Windows Authentication is the recommended configuration for this setting. Failover Server The server that will be used as the failover server. For more information on using a failover server, refer to Chapter 12. Application Pool Defines the identity that the service will run as. This service can run using an existing application pool or a new one can be created. Content Type Hub The URL entered in this property will be used as the hub for all content types. This will point to a separate site collection. Report Syndication Import Errors Select this option if you would like this service to report synchronization errors. Add this service application to the farm’s default list. Select this option if you want all sites to be connected to this service by default. 4. Once you have configured the preceding properties, click OK to return to the listing of service applications. You will notice that there are two different listings for your new service application. You can select these listings to configure the service’s properties. From the Service listing you can view the properties, configure the administrators, and manage the term store. Figure 16-3 shows the link to the Service list- ing for a Managed Metadata service application named MMS1. From the Service connection listing you can immediately access the Term Store Management Tool, shown in Figure 16-4. From the Term Store Management Tool, you can configure the settings shown in Table 16-2. TABLE 162: Term Store Configuration Options OPTION DESCRIPTION Available Service Applications Provides the capability to navigate between available Service Applications Sample Import Provides a sample import . csv file Term Store Administrators A collection of users or groups who have full control of the term store Getting Started with the Managed Metadata Service 451 OPTION DESCRIPTION Default Language Specifies the default language Working Languages Specifies each of the languages available for the service application FIGURE 163 FIGURE 164 452 CHAPTER 16 maNaged metadata service aPPlicatioNs Connecting to a Web Application Whenever a new web application is created, it can either be automatically associated with the default service applications or it can be configured using a custom set of service applications. Whenever you create a new Managed Metadata service application, one of the menu options will be adding it to the list of default service applications. After the service application has been created, it can only be removed from or added to the default list by the farm administrator using the Central Administration Farm Association page. If it is added to the default service applications when cre- ated, it will be available to all sites within web applications that are configured to consume the default services. MANAGED METADATA SERVICES The managed metadata services available in SharePoint 2010 provide a way for companies to bring organization and structure to the process of tagging content. Tagging content refers to applying metadata to documents and content within the organization. SharePoint 2010 allows companies to define and manage this process, including both structured and unstructured data. Structured metadata refers to a collection of terms that are tightly controlled and only modified through a strict set of reviews. Unstructured metadata refers to a collection of terms that can be updated by users at will. These are two extreme ends of the spectrum, and most organizations operate somewhere in the middle. With the new changes introduced with SharePoint 2010, both ends of the spectrum and everything in the middle can be implemented and managed. The rest of this section discusses the different methods for implementation. Metadata services in SharePoint 2010 are implemented through the use of a term store. When the service application is provisioned, the term store is cre- ated. Within the term store, groups are created that are used to house the term sets and terms. Groups are important because they are used primarily as a security boundary. Term sets are the groupings that are used to organize the terms. At the lowest level are the terms, which are the values selected by users in the system. Each of the terms can have an associated description, synonyms, and translation or custom properties. Figure 16-5 illustrates this hierarchy. Getting Started with Managed Metadata Groups, term sets, and terms are created by selecting the managed metadata service you want to work with and clicking the Manage button in the Ribbon on the Service Applications page in Central Administration. Alternatively, you can simply click the name of the managed metadata service you want to work with to open the Manage screen. Figure 16-6 shows the Ribbon menu options for accessing this management page. FIGURE 165 . applications in SharePoint 2010 provide the framework for sharing content and services across multiple web apps, sites, and webs. Service applications are new in SharePoint 2010 and replace. powerful features in SharePoint 2010 are metadata and content types. Metadata enables users to quickly and easily classify specifi c data about documents and list items within SharePoint by using. deploy the content types and site columns to each of the site collections. With the release of SharePoint 2010, the 16 446 CHAPTER 16 maNaged metadata service aPPlicatioNs Managed Metadata service,