SharePoint Naming Convention Rules
Beyond style preferences, there are technical rules that filenames must follow. Knowing them prevents broken links, sync errors, and unhappy users.
What it is
SharePoint and OneDrive have technical constraints on filenames that, if violated, cause real problems — broken sync, failed downloads, file paths that exceed length limits, errors in URLs. Most users never encounter these (the system mostly accepts what they type), but for important content and bulk uploads, knowing the rules prevents pain.
The forbidden characters list is short but important: ~ ” # % & * : < > ? / \ { | }. Avoid these in filenames. Apostrophes and accented characters mostly work but can cause edge-case issues with some integrations. Length limits matter too — the full path (server + library + folders + filename) has a maximum, and very deep folder structures with long filenames hit it.
The rules don’t matter for most everyday work. But when you’re preparing files for bulk upload, planning a migration, building integrations, or troubleshooting sync errors, the rules matter a lot. A few minutes of cleanup before upload prevents hours of investigation later.
When to use this
- Before bulk uploading files into SharePoint.
- When troubleshooting sync errors or broken links.
- When designing a folder structure that will hold many files.
- When you’re planning a migration from another system.
How to do it
Best practices
- Avoid forbidden characters: ~ ” # % & * : < > ? / \ { | }
- Avoid leading or trailing spaces. Hard to see, easy to break things.
- Use underscores or hyphens instead of spaces. Cleaner URLs, better cross-system compatibility.
- Keep total path length under 200 characters. Server + folders + filename adds up faster than you think.
- Test sync with a sample of weird filenames. Confirms behaviour before you scale.
Common mistakes
- Special characters in filenames. Causes sync errors, broken links, URL encoding issues.
- Very deep folder structures with long names. Hits path length limits silently.
- Mixing case inconsistently. ‘Policy.docx’ and ‘policy.docx’ are technically different on some systems. Pick a case style.
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What’s the most important rule for SharePoint naming?
Plain language. If a new starter can’t understand the name on day one without a decoder ring, the name fails. This single rule eliminates 90% of bad SharePoint names — abbreviations, internal codes, project numbers, departmental acronyms all get rejected when held to the ‘new starter test’.
Should SharePoint filenames include version numbers?
No. SharePoint has built-in Version History that tracks every save automatically. Putting v1, v2, v3 in filenames defeats the system and creates the ‘Final_FINAL_v2_use_this’ problem. Use plain descriptive names and let Version History do its job. If you need to mark a major milestone (e.g. ‘Approved Version’), use a Status column.
Should I include dates in SharePoint filenames?
Only when the date is part of the document’s identity (e.g. ‘Q3 2026 Board Pack’, ‘2026 Annual Report’). Don’t add upload dates or modification dates — SharePoint stores those automatically as metadata. The rule: include a date in the name only if you’d want it to stay in the name forever.
Are there characters I shouldn’t use in SharePoint names?
Yes — SharePoint blocks certain special characters in file and folder names: " * : < > ? / \ |. Other characters technically work but cause issues: trailing dots, leading spaces, names matching reserved words. Stick to letters, numbers, spaces, and basic punctuation (hyphens, parentheses, commas).