How to add document library with folders and content types through feature/site definition.

When creating custom features, definitions one of the things most clients
want is a document library included in the Site Template with a
pre-defined folder structure.

In this post I’m going to narrate how to provision document library with folders form a custom feature.

So here we go.

Open element.xml of your feature it should be something like this.

<Elements xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/sharepoint/">
<ListInstance
FeatureId="00BFEA71-E717-4E80-AA17-D0C71B360101"
TemplateType="101"
Title="My Docs"
Url="My Docs"
Description=""
QuickLaunchUrl="My Docs/Forms/AllItems.aspx" />
</Elements>



Over here we are just creating an instance of a document library.
In SharePoint by default you will find a feature with forlder name “DocumentLibrary” in your 12/template/feature. So we do not need to create whole schema file just like custom list.

Creating a list instance with this GUID is same as creating a document library from Site Settings > Create > Document Library.

Description of each property

FeatureId --> Hardcode guid which refers SharePoint Document Library.
TemplateType --> 101 denotes that we want to create Document library. 100 for list and 115
for content type etc...
Title --> My Docs simple title of newly created List.
Url --> My Docs same as Title. You can use different if you want but same will be better to maintain and understand.
Description --> just description non mandatory.
QuickLaunchUrl --> My Docs/Forms/AllItems.aspx Just like /Forms/AllItems.aspx, use you used in url tab.

If you installed feature with this element TAG you will get Document library.

Now here we go for folder.
Add the following code just before the </Elements> tag:

<Module Path="First Folder" Url="My Docs \First Folder” />

Note : The Url in the above tag begins with the url of the list instance.

If you want to add sub folders to the above folder

<Module Path="First Folder" Url="My Docs \First Folder\sub folder of first folder” />


Note : The ListUrl in the above tag begins with the url of the list instance.

If you want to add content type to the folder then you need to add one more tag

<ContentTypeBinding ListUrl="My Docs" ContentTypeId="0x010110" />

Note : you already have a contentype installed with specific ContentTypeId.

My next Post will be: How to create/install Contentype from feature. Comming Soon.

You can create multiple document libraries from one feature.
Just add more than one List instance.
Here is one sample of my element.xml

<Elements xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/sharepoint/">
<!-- Doc lib 1-->
<ListInstance
FeatureId="00BFEA71-E717-4E80-AA17-D0C71B360101"
TemplateType="101"
Title="My Docs"
Url="My Docs"
Description=""
QuickLaunchUrl="My
Docs/Forms/AllItems.aspx" />
<!-- required custom content type for this document library instance -->

<ContentTypeBinding ListUrl="My Docs"
ContentTypeId="0x010100A107D9F002764eea923263A0B3587210" />
<!-- Single folder no sub-folders -->
<Module Path="Administration" Url="My Docs/Administration" />

<!-- A Folder and associated sub-folders -->
<Module Path="Development" Url="My Docs/Development" />
<Module Path="Development" Url="My Docs/Development/Code Review" />
<Module Path="Development" Url="My Docs/Development/PreRequisite" />
<!-- Doc lib 2-->
<ListInstance
FeatureId="00BFEA71-E717-4E80-AA17-D0C71B360101"
TemplateType="101"
Title="Your Docs"
Url="Your Docs"
Description=""
QuickLaunchUrl="Your Docs/Forms/AllItems.aspx" />

<ContentTypeBinding ListUrl="Your Docs" ContentTypeId="0x010100D8B76062F25E42efB17D4CBF9747FB57" />
<Module Path="Business Analyst" Url="Your Docs/Business Analyst" />
<Module Path="Functional Analyst" Url="Your Docs/Functional Analyst" />
<Module Path="Functional Analyst" Url="Your Docs/Functional Analyst/Requirment" />
<Module Path="Functional Analyst" Url="Your Docs/Functional Analyst/change Request" />
</Elements>



and speacial thanks to "bobthebuilder" for make me under
stand all this functionality from his wonderful post @ SHAREPOINT.H@CK.