Rules for required documents
Together we describe which documents each type of client or case needs, and how often: monthly, yearly or once.
Document control
Know which documents are missing, and remind the person responsible
Document control checks that each client's or case's SharePoint folder holds its required monthly documents, reminds the person responsible about anything missing and files newly received documents into the right folders, all inside your Microsoft 365 tenant.
Missing documents · illustrative example
Documents by month
| Aug | Sep | Oct | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Client A | In | In | Missing |
| Client B | In | In | In |
| Case C | In | Missing | Missing |
| Case D | In | In | Missing |
Reminder to the person responsible
- ToThe person responsible
- FromOne agreed mailbox
- MissingOctober documents
File received → text recognised → filed in its folder
01
When people check the folders by hand
The list of required documents usually exists already: contracts, orders, reports, permits. The hard part is making sure they land in the right folder every month. Folders are opened one by one, reminders are written by hand, and a gap shows up only when someone needs the document.
This is not a new document management system. Your documents stay where you keep them now; the check, the reminders and the filing work alongside.
02
What we build
A check by name, then by content
File names, dates and locations are checked first. If a name does not fit, the app reads the PDF text, and reads scanned documents with text recognition inside your Azure subscription.
Reminders to the person responsible
The app works out who is responsible from who has access to the client's or case's folder. Each person gets one email about their own clients only, with links to the folders and suggested standard names.
Automatic filing
Files from a shared intake folder are moved to the right client, year and month folder and renamed to the standard. When the app is unsure, it leaves the file alone and asks.
A summary for whoever owns the process
One place showing which documents are missing, by client, month and person responsible.
03
How it runs in your tenant
The apps run in your Azure subscription, in an EU region. Each part gets only what it needs, and writing is kept apart from reading.
| Part | Permission | Why it is needed | Access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Check | Files.Read.All, Sites.Read.All and User.Read.All, or Sites.Selected (read on one site) and User.Read.All | Find missing documents and the person responsible | Read |
| Text recognition | Azure role “Cognitive Services User” on the Document Intelligence resource | Read the text of scanned PDFs without a key, with the same managed identity | Read |
| Filing | Sites.Selected with write on one documents site | Move and rename files on that site only | Write, one site |
| Reminders | Exchange “Application Mail.Send”, scoped to one shared mailbox | Send reminders from that mailbox only | Send, one mailbox |
Filing uses a separate identity from the check. The reminder app holds no Microsoft Graph permissions at all, only the Exchange right to send from one mailbox. In our test, an attempt to send as another person was refused (HTTP 403).
04
Test results
Measured on 2026-10-08 and 2026-10-09 in our own Microsoft 365 test environment with invented data; we planted the gaps and the untidy files on purpose. Checking by file name alone produced 2 false findings; after reading the text there were none. The results do not show how the check will work on your folders.
- 18 of 18
- planted document gaps found (731 files, 18 invented clients)
- 3 of 3
- misnamed or scanned documents recognised, after reading the text and applying OCR
- 4 of 4
- filing decisions correct: 2 files moved, 1 skipped because it already existed, 1 left with a question
- 9 of 9
- clients whose responsible person was identified correctly from folder access
05
What you get from the pilot
- Rules for your list of required documents and your folder structure, set up for one team or one person's clients
- The check in your Azure subscription, on a schedule you agree
- Reminders to the people responsible by email and, if you want, in Teams
- Automatic filing of the intake folder
- A summary for whoever owns the process
- A handover document for your IT team
06
What we need from you
- The list of required documents for each type of client or case
- A few examples of folder and file names (not contents)
- An Azure subscription and a resource group in an EU region
- An administrator who can approve the permissions: a Global Administrator or Privileged Role Administrator
- A shared mailbox for reminders and a few Exchange PowerShell commands that allow sending from it only; worth doing a day early, as in our test the right took about two hours to take effect
- Two short review meetings during the pilot
Common questions.
Something else on your mind?
Do you read the contents of our documents?
Only when a file name does not match the expected document, and only inside your Azure subscription. The app reads the PDF text, or recognises the text of a scanned document, to work out the client, the document type and the month. We do not download your documents.
Can the app delete or overwrite files?
The check cannot: it has read rights only. Filing has write rights on one documents site only: it moves and renames files, but does not delete them or overwrite an existing file. In our test it skipped a file whose standard name was already taken.
What if a file is badly named or scanned?
Then the app reads its text, and recognises the text of a scanned document. In our test it recognised 0 of 3 such files by name alone, 2 of 3 after reading the PDF text, and 3 of 3 with text recognition.
How is the person responsible identified?
From who has access to the client's or case's folder. In our test this identified the responsible person correctly for all 9 clients. If responsibility is recorded somewhere else in your company, such as a business system, we discuss it on the call.
Which documents can be checked?
Any document whose presence can be defined by a rule: monthly reports, contracts, orders, permits or certificates. Documents that are needed only in certain cases, such as after a new contract is signed, are harder to check: that needs data from your business system.
Is this a document management system?
No. Your documents stay where they are in SharePoint, and people work as usual. The check, the reminders and the filing work alongside and help people keep to the rules you already have.
What if some documents are kept in personal OneDrives?
If your administrator grants read access across the organisation, the check sees personal OneDrives too. If read access covers one site only, personal OneDrives stay invisible and those clients are listed as not found. In our test, all 3 clients whose folders were in OneDrives were listed that way.