SharePoint Skill: Have Copilot Organize Your Documents

In almost every department, one person knows where each quote and each contract belongs. When they go on leave, the method goes with them and the SharePoint library turns back into a warehouse of files named “Scan 0034”. A Copilot in SharePoint site skill records these rules in the site itself: here is how to write it, secure it and check that it files things the way you want.

Site skill or personal skill: which one should you choose for filing?

For a filing rule shared by a team, choose the site skill. The Microsoft Learn documentation distinguishes two types of skills in Copilot in SharePoint, and only the second one fits here.

A site skill is a Markdown file placed in /Agent Assets/Skills/<nom>/SKILL.md. There is nothing to enable beforehand: Copilot creates the Agent Assets library when the first skill is created. You need the Edit permission to create a skill and the Read permission to run it.

On the licensing side, Microsoft 365 Copilot is essential. Skills respect existing SharePoint permissions: Copilot only sees what the user can already see. However, they cannot run custom code or connect directly to an external system, as the Tech Community discussion on getting started with them points out. To prepare the ground on the tenant side, see our technical checklist for preparing a Microsoft 365 tenant for Copilot.

What Copilot does when you say “Organize these documents for me”

Copilot recognizes the right skill, applies your rules and only moves what it is sure about. A skill can trigger automatically or be called by name. The request therefore does not need to mention the skill.

Let's take an illustration: a library receives four files with meaningless names, an invoice, a quote, a contract and meeting minutes. You select them, open Copilot in the site and simply type “Organize these documents for me”. Copilot does not rely on the name alone: it reads the content, understands that “Scan 0034” is an invoice, picks out the supplier and the date, then sends each file to the intended location. For the ambiguous document, it does not decide: it asks where to put it.

The following week, the same sentence is enough to process the new files, with nothing to re-explain. That is the whole point of the skill: the method is stored, not the conversation.

The /Skills command lists the skills available on the site, which lets you check that yours is recognized. The latest new features are detailed in our article on Copilot in SharePoint: September 2026.

Writing the filing rules and putting the skill into service

A filing skill is only as good as your rules: if the organization is fuzzy to begin with, Copilot will file in a fuzzy way, just faster. Start with two or three document types, unambiguous destinations and an explicit rule for doubtful cases.

Here is an example of content, for illustration. Adapt the types and folders to your own folder structure.

1# Rangement des documents entrants
2 
3Objectif : classer chaque fichier déposé dans la bibliothèque selon le type détecté à la lecture du contenu, jamais d'après le nom du fichier.
4 
5## Règles
6- Facture : dossier Factures/<Année>/<Fournisseur>
7- Devis : dossier Devis/<Client>
8- Contrat : dossier Contrats/<Client>
9- Compte-rendu : dossier Comptes-rendus/<Année>
10 
11## En cas de doute
12Ne pas déplacer le fichier. Me poser la question en proposant les destinations possibles.
13 
14## Avant d'appliquer
15Présenter d'abord le mapping fichier vers destination et attendre mon approbation.

1Crée une skill pour ce site qui range les documents entrants selon ces règles : les factures par année puis fournisseur, les devis et les contrats par client, les comptes-rendus par année. Si tu as un doute sur un document, ne le déplace pas et pose-moi la question. Propose toujours un mapping avant de déplacer quoi que ce soit.

Day-to-day management can be done in two equivalent ways for the inventory:

Agent Assets: who can modify your filing rules?

By default, anyone with the Edit permission on the site can create or change a site skill. The Agent Assets library indeed inherits the site's permissions. The SharePoint Maven MVP stresses this: site members can modify or delete SKILL.md files.

Concrete consequence: a shared filing rule can be rewritten by any member, inadvertently or not. The following documents would then end up in the wrong folder structure, without any alert.

The recommended model: a small group of rule owners with the Edit permission, the rest of the members on Read. That is enough to run the skill, which requires only that permission.

Implementation: auditing and restricting the Agent Assets library

The script below audits the Agent Assets permissions, then, on request, breaks inheritance and reassigns the permissions. It relies on PnP.PowerShell.

• Module: Install-Module PnP.PowerShell -Scope CurrentUser. With recent versions, interactive sign-in requires the ID of a registered Microsoft Entra application (-ClientId).
• Minimum permission: site owner, with the right to manage the library's permissions. No tenant administrator role is needed.
• Output: the inheritance state and the list of principals with their roles. In simulation mode ($DryRun set to $true, the default value), no changes are written.
• Prerequisites: the library must exist, so at least one site skill must have been created. Role names depend on the site language: for example Modifier and Lecture on a French-language site. Adapt -EditRole and -ReadRole.

1# Audit puis restriction de la bibliothèque Agent Assets
2# Exemple en simulation :
3# .\Restrict-AgentAssets.ps1 -SiteUrl https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/Finance -ClientId 00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000 -RestrictAccess -EditorsGroup 'Finance - Proprietaires regles' -MembersGroup 'Finance Members'
4param(
5    [Parameter(Mandatory)][string]$SiteUrl,
6    [Parameter(Mandatory)][string]$ClientId,
7    [string]$LibraryTitle = 'Agent Assets',
8    [switch]$RestrictAccess,
9    [string]$EditorsGroup,
10    [string]$MembersGroup,
11    [string]$EditRole = 'Edit',
12    [string]$ReadRole = 'Read',
13    [bool]$DryRun = $true
14)
15 
16# 1. Connexion interactive au site
17Connect-PnPOnline -Url $SiteUrl -Interactive -ClientId $ClientId
18 
19# 2. Récupération de la bibliothèque et de son état d'héritage
20$list = Get-PnPList -Identity $LibraryTitle -Includes HasUniqueRoleAssignments
21if (-not $list) {
22    throw 'Bibliotheque introuvable : creez au moins une skill de site avant de lancer ce script.'
23}
24Write-Host ('Heritage rompu : {0}' -f $list.HasUniqueRoleAssignments)
25 
26# 3. Audit : principaux et rôles actuellement attribués
27function Get-LibraryAcl {
28    param($Library)
29    Get-PnPProperty -ClientObject $Library -Property RoleAssignments | Out-Null
30    foreach ($ra in $Library.RoleAssignments) {
31        Get-PnPProperty -ClientObject $ra -Property RoleDefinitionBindings, Member | Out-Null
32        [pscustomobject]@{
33            Principal = $ra.Member.Title
34            Droits    = ($ra.RoleDefinitionBindings.Name -join ', ')
35        }
36    }
37}
38Get-LibraryAcl -Library $list | Format-Table -AutoSize
39 
40# 4. Restriction (optionnelle) : rupture d'héritage puis réattribution des droits
41if ($RestrictAccess) {
42    if (-not $EditorsGroup -or -not $MembersGroup) {
43        throw 'Renseignez -EditorsGroup et -MembersGroup avec -RestrictAccess.'
44    }
45    if ($DryRun) {
46        Write-Host ('[Simulation] Rupture de l heritage de {0}' -f $LibraryTitle)
47        Write-Host ('[Simulation] {0} : ajout du role {1}' -f $EditorsGroup, $EditRole)
48        Write-Host ('[Simulation] {0} : ajout du role {1}, retrait du role {2}' -f $MembersGroup, $ReadRole, $EditRole)
49    }
50    else {
51        Set-PnPList -Identity $list -BreakRoleInheritance -CopyRoleAssignments
52        Set-PnPListPermission -Identity $list -Group $EditorsGroup -AddRole $EditRole
53        Set-PnPListPermission -Identity $list -Group $MembersGroup -AddRole $ReadRole
54        Set-PnPListPermission -Identity $list -Group $MembersGroup -RemoveRole $EditRole
55        Write-Host 'Restriction appliquee. Relancez le script sans -RestrictAccess pour verifier.'
56    }
57}

To validate the result, rerun the script without -RestrictAccess: inheritance should show as broken and the members group should no longer hold the edit role. No propagation delay is documented in the sources consulted: confirm with a test account that is a member of the site, which should be able to trigger the skill but not modify SKILL.md.

Limits, alternatives and troubleshooting

A filing skill works from your rules; it invents nothing. It replaces neither document governance nor an automated flow: no custom code, no direct connection to an external system.

To classify by metadata rather than by folders, autofill columns are an alternative or a complement. The Microsoft Learn documentation recommends at most 10 columns per library and files of 65 pages maximum. It requires the Microsoft 365 Copilot license, and files uploaded afterwards are processed even if their author is not licensed.

To avoid starting from scratch, the PnP community catalog offers ready-to-use skills: File Classifier classifies files by type (contracts, invoices, purchase orders) based on their content, and Library Cleanup handles duplicates and bad names. They are good models for writing your own rules.

Frequently asked questions

Do you need a Microsoft 365 Copilot license to use a filing skill?

Yes, the Microsoft 365 Copilot license is required to use Copilot in SharePoint and its skills. Skills run within the user's existing SharePoint permissions.

Do you need to enable anything before creating a site skill?

No. According to Microsoft Learn, Copilot creates the Agent Assets library when the first skill is created. You simply need the Edit permission on the site.

Can Copilot file documents that I do not have access to?

No. Skills respect existing SharePoint permissions: Copilot only sees what you are already allowed to see.

Who can modify or delete a site skill?

By default, anyone with the Edit permission, because Agent Assets inherits the site's permissions. To reserve this ability for a few people, break the library's inheritance and restrict it, for example with the script in the Implementation section.

Where to start

Start with the scope, not the tool: a filing skill merely duplicates your method, which must be clear first. Our guide to the 10 Copilot workflows for IT managers gives other ideas of repetitive tasks to capitalize on, and the article on the Copilot in SharePoint news for August 2026 completes the picture of available features.

If your organization already always files things the same way (invoices, contracts, HR files, construction-site documents), the skill is worth the effort. If the rules vary from one colleague to another, clarify them first: Copilot will not decide for you.

Going further

• Extend Copilot in SharePoint with skills (Microsoft Learn): skill types, storage, permissions, prerequisites and step-by-step creation.
• What's New in Copilot in SharePoint: July 2026: file organization via chat, built-in skills and the /Skills command.
• SharePoint Showcase: 10 Custom AI Skills Every SharePoint Site Owner Should Build: getting-started tips and examples of skills to install.
• How to create SharePoint Skills using Copilot (SharePoint Maven): an MVP's tutorial, with points of attention on Agent Assets permissions.
• SharePoint Skills – PnP community catalog: ready-to-use skills, including File Classifier and Library Cleanup.