When you create a site collection using the Collaboration Portal template in Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, you get an extra web part not available in any of the other templates. It’s called ‘I need to…’ and displays a list of options, starting with ‘Set up MySite’. It starts life on the home page of the top-level site in the site collection.

It’s a useful web part because you can give access to a lot of links without taking up much screen estate. The web part is automatically included on the home page of any site collection created using the Collaboration Portal template and is also listed in the web part gallery. But if you add it to any other site in your site collection, it will start with an error message. It’s a few easy steps to replace that error message with a new list of items to choose from.

I’ve reconfigured the ‘I need to…’ web part a fair few times for customers and figured it was time to write a ‘how to’ blog post. You can use the ‘I need to…’ web part with any list on any site within the site collection. Here’s how to get it working.

Minimum Requirements

  • SharePoint Server 2007 – Standard or Enterprise Edition
  • A site collection created using the Collaboration Portal template
  • Site Admin permission (to edit pages, add web parts and what not)

This web part only works in SharePoint Server, that is Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007. Either version (Standard or Enterprise) will do, but little ol’ Windows SharePoint Services will not do. You can try exporting from a SharePoint Server and importing it to Windows SharePoint Services (like I tried) and you will get an error message when you try to configure it. Probably hackable with a bit of effort but definitely not supported and questionable on the licensing front. Also, the web part is only included within the web part gallery within site collections created using the Collaboration Portal template

Step 1: Add the ‘I need to…’ web part to your site

This bit is easy. On the site where you want to add the new ‘I need to…’ list, go to the home page and click Site Actions – Edit Page. Click Add a web part and choose ‘I need to…’ from within the Web Part gallery (it’s usually listed in the Default Group).

When you first add the web part to a new site, it will display with an error message similar to the one above. This is because the web part in the gallery is configured to point to a specific list from a specific site that doesn’t match the site you just added the web part to. We’ll be fixing that.

Step 2: Create a list to contain the items to appear under ‘I need to…’

We need to create a list to contain the items you want to appear under ‘I need to…’ This will become the list name in the web part properties (replacing /sitedirectory/sites)

  • Create a new list based on the Links list template
  • Add a new column called ‘Display’, make it a Choice of Yes or No, with Yes as the default. This column and value will be used as the Filter Field and Filter Value in the web part properties (required to make the web part work)
  • Add a new item to the list, this will be used to test the web part is configured correctly (I tend to use a dummy link and name)

Step 3: Configure the ‘I need to…’ web part to use your new list

Go back to the page where you added the ‘I need to…’ web part and modify the web part. In the tool pane, modify the web part properties:

  • Under List Name, click the Change button and select your new list
  • Under Filter Field, select the Display common
  • Under Filter Value, select Yes.
  • Click Apply to apply the changes made to the web part and see if the ‘I need to…’ web part is now displaying a dropdown menu with ‘Choose task’ displayed instead of the original error message

Chances are, the error message is still showing. I don’t know why but I usually have to perform these steps twice to make the changes stick. So repeat the steps – select the list, set the Filter Field and Filter Value, then click Apply again. It usually works fine the second time:

Final step, before you click OK and close the toolpane for the web part. If you are planning to use long titles for the items to be listed under ‘I need to…’, the default width of the web part will not be long enough to display them. To increase the width, enter a value in the Width: text box. Choosing 200 pixels creates a width about 25% longer than the default width.

And hey presto, you now have a new ‘I need to’ web part configured to display items from your own list.

What you put in the list is entirely up to you. It can be a list of favourites (you don’t need to leave it named as ‘I need to…’ edit the web part properties and change the title to something else, such as ‘Top sites to visit’). More often, it’s a list of processes such as book a vacation, request a something or other… Anything can go in the list as long as it is a link that works (easy way to check – open the link in your browser and see what happens)

Final note:

If all you wanted to do was add items to the existing ‘I need to…’ web part (i.e. below ‘Set up MySite in the first image in this post), you can take the easy route and not set up an entirely new ‘I need to…’ list. Instead, all you need to do is:

  • Navigate to the Site Directory
  • Click on Site Actions – View All Site Content,
  • In the All Site Content page, click on ‘Sites’. In the Sites list, add your items and make sure you check the box ‘Tasks and Tools’ (that’s the Filter Field and Value) for each one