M365 Changelog: (Updated) SharePoint – Microsoft Lists – Create a List From CSV and Export to CSV

MC668787 – Updated August 25, 2023: Microsoft has updated the content below to show as intended.

The Create a list from CSV feature in SharePoint will allow you to import data from a CSV file. Microsoft has also augmented the “Export to CSV” feature by providing another option to “Export to CSV with schema.” This export option will allow you to maintain the custom formatting, choice pills, rich text-based editing and people data, so that your source and destination lists will look identical. 

This message is associated with Microsoft Roadmap ID 100501

When will this happen:

Targeted Release: Rollout will begin in late August 2023 and is expected to be complete by early September 2023.

Standard Release: Rollout will begin in mid-September 2023 and is expected to be complete by late September 2023.

USSec/USNat: Rollout will begin in late September 2023 and is expected to be complete by early October 2023.

How this will affect your organization:

You will soon be able to create a new list from a CSV file. This new creation option is available as part of the list creation dialog, on any surface where you can already create lists, such as, SharePoint Sites, Lists web app, Teams etc. 

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There will also be more options to enable the exporting of Lists data. Along with the “Export to CSV” feature, which allows you to export list data in a csv format, we’ve added the “Export to CSV with schema” option, which maintains the list schema + any other custom formatting added on to the list, such as, choice pills, row formatting, etc.  

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The “Export to CSV” feature will continue to work as it has been so far, with one small change:

• The Boolean field will be exported as TRUE/FALSE instead of YES/NO to align with standard expectations of how Boolean fields are represented. 

The “Export to CSV with schema” feature will introduce the following changes to the exported format: 

• People column will export the underlying email address, instead of name displayed in the list 
• DateTime will be exported as the standardized Universal DateTime format. Eg: 2023-04-03T00:00:00Z
  • This export format is used for export of DateTime columns only, when the column data is date only, without any time information it will be simply exported as 03/04/2023 
• Boolean field will be exported as TRUE/FALSE instead of YES/NO 

Importing a CSV file generated from the “Export to CSV with schema” option will allow you to maintain the custom formatting, choice pills, rich text-based editing and people data, so that your source and destination lists will look identical. 

What you need to do to prepare:

• If you are currently using the Boolean representation as YES/NO in any automations, integrations etc., it will need to be updated to be represented as TRUE/FALSE.
• If you are looking for a way to replicate a list with data, schema and formatting, use the “Export to CSV with schema” option for the best results.

Learn More

For additional information, please visit this page.

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