Applies to Event Management & Employee Training Management

Archiving SharePoint List Data in Event Management & Employee Training Management Apps

Overview

The Event Management and Employee Training Management apps store data in SharePoint lists such as:

• Topics

• Events

• Enrollments

• Courses

• Achievements

Over time, these lists can grow significantly. Managing older records helps to:

• Maintain performance

• Improve usability

• Keep active data focused

This article outlines recommended approaches.

Option 1: Export to Excel (Quick Archive)

Best for:

• One-time archiving

• Simple scenarios

• Offline storage

Steps

1. Create a view including all required columns.

2. Use Export to Excel.

3. Save the file in a document library.

4. Before deleting, enable Migration Mode in App Settings

5. Delete archived items

6. Disable Migration Mode

Advantages

• Simple and fast

• No automation required

Limitations

• Data is no longer stored in SharePoint lists

• Lookup relationships are lost

• No easy restore

Option 2: Archive Using a Cloned List and Power Automate (Recommended)

Best for:

• Recurring archiving

• Structured data retention

• Automation

Step 1: Create Archive List

1. Go to Site Contents → New → List

2. Select From existing list

3. Choose source list

4. Name it (e.g., Event Archive)

5. Click Create

Step 2: Create Power Automate Flow

Trigger:

• Manual, or

• Scheduled (e.g., items older than 1 year)

Actions:

1. Get Items

2. Filter items:

   Created is earlier than Today minus 365 days

3. Create Item in archive list

Step 3: Delete Original Items

• Either manually or via flow

• Enable Migration Mode before deletion manually in app settings and disable it afterwards

Important: Handling Lookup Columns

Lists such as Enrollments, Achievements often use lookup fields (e.g., referencing Events, Topics, etc.).

Solution 1: Use Text Columns (Recommended)

• Replace lookup fields in archive list with text columns

• Store readable values (e.g., Event Title)

Benefits:

• No broken references

• Simple and reliable

• Independent from original lists

Solution 2: Keep Lookup Columns

• Keep lookup fields in archive list

Limitations:

• Depends on internal SharePoint IDs

• Can break if referenced items are deleted or archived

• Only safe if related data remains unchanged

Recommendation:

Prefer using text columns instead of lookup fields in archive lists or use both (lookup and text).

Option 3: Filter Views Instead of Archiving (Lightweight Approach)

Best for:

• Lightweight scenarios

• When data should remain in one list

• Avoiding any data movement

Approach

1. Adjust list views to hide older entries

2. Apply filters such as:

   Event Date is greater than Today minus 365 days

3. Create:

   • Active view → shows recent records

   • Archive view → shows older records

Advantages:

• No data movement or risk

• No automation required

• All relationships remain intact

• Quick to implement

Limitations:

• List size continues to grow

• May impact performance over time

• Not a true archiving solution

Summary

Option	Use Case	Automation	Notes
Export to Excel	One-time archive	No	Quick but limited
Clone List + Flow	Recurring archive	Yes	Recommended
Filter Views	Lightweight approach	No	Not true archiving

Best Practices

• Archive regularly (e.g., yearly)

• Use filters to control scope

• Test flows before production use

• Enable Migration Mode for bulk deletion

• Avoid using SharePoint internal IDs

• Prefer text-based references in archive data

Final Recommendation

For most customers:

• Use Option 2 (Archive List + Power Automate)

• Use text columns instead of lookup fields

• Use Option 3 (Filtered Views) as a lightweight alternative

• Use Option 1 (Excel export) for quick snapshots