How To Change The Column Linked To Items In Sharepoint Lists

What Column Linking is in SharePoint Lists

Column linking in SharePoint refers to the ability to choose a column that serves as the main identifier for items in a list. By default, SharePoint uses the “Title” column to provide the clickable link to each item. However, admins can configure SharePoint to use a different column for these links.

Linking to an alternate column can make it easier to identify items when viewing a list. For example, linking to the “Product Name” or “Contact Name” column could help differentiate items better than just a title. Some key reasons to consider using column linking in SharePoint include:

• Improve clarity when reviewing a list – A descriptive column like name, product ID or owner may identify items better than the title
• Link based on unique identifiers – Columns like product code or contact email provide a unique value to differentiate list items
• Highlight key metadata – The linked column can showcase important associated information about an item

Overall, linking to descriptive or unique columns can make SharePoint lists more usable and help users better understand the purpose of each item.

Locating the Column Linking Option in List Settings

The setting that controls the linked column for SharePoint lists resides in the List Settings. To access the configuration options for column linking:

1. Navigate to the desired SharePoint list that you want to modify
2. Click the “List” button on the ribbon and select “List Settings” from the menu
3. Scroll down to the “Columns” section of the settings page
4. Find the subsection titled “Add a column to show each of these additional fields”

This “Add a column” area contains the dropdown menu to select which column you want linked. By default, this is set to “Title” for new lists. Here admins can choose a different column to serve as the link for items.

Selecting a Different Column to Link to Items

When configuring column linking in the List Settings, the key action is choosing which column should be used for the clickable links for items. Some common options include:

• Title – The default option, displays the text title for items
• Created By – Links using the name of the user who created the item
• Assigned To – Links based on the assigned user for workflow tasks
• Product No. – Links using a unique product ID number

The impact of changing the linked column depends on the nature of the list content. Often picking a descriptive or unique column can improve clarity. However, some impacts may include:

• Improved differentiation between items that have similar titles
• Changes to sorting and filtering behavior in views
• Broken links if the chosen column data changes after links are generated
• Decreased clarity if the linked column has sparse data or complex values

As a best practice, try to select a reliable, descriptive column with consistent data formats to avoid unexpected side-effects.

Updating Column Links for Existing List Items

For existing SharePoint lists that already contain items, an additional step is required to update links after changing the linked column. The new column configuration only applies to newly created items.

To update links for existing items, admins need to run a PowerShell script using the SharePoint Online Management Shell. The following example script finds all list items and resets the link URLs to use the new linked column:

$SiteURL = "https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/myteam"
$ListName = "Products List"

Connect-SPOService -Url $SiteURL
 
$List = Get-PnPList -Identity $ListName
foreach ($Item in $List.Items) {
  $Item["URL Path"] = ""
  $Item.Update()
  Write-Host "Updated item ID "$Item.Id
}

Write-Host "Link column updated for list '$ListName'"

Key things to note about this script:

• The $SiteURL and $ListName variables need to be updated per your environment
• This iterates through each list item and updates the URL Path field
• This triggers SharePoint to assign a new link URL using the latest column setting

So using PowerShell provides an efficient way to apply the column linking changes to existing items.

Verifying the Updated Column Links

After modifying the linked column configuration and running any update scripts, it is important to test that the changes were applied properly. To validate:

1. Navigate to the list view in SharePoint to show all items
2. Check that the links displayed for items now correspond to the newly linked column
3. For large lists, sort items by different columns to sample test rows throughout
4. Open a sample of different list items to further verify links work as expected

If any issues updating links are found:

• Confirm the new linked column was selected properly in the settings
• Rerun the PowerShell script to trigger reprocessing of links
• Use SharePoint admin tools to identify other potential problems

Verifying the results and performance testing with different views provides the confidence that the linking changes were applied successfully across all existing list items.