SharePoint 2007: The Definitive Guide

Chapter 28. Using the SharePoint Object Model

Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 is basically an extension of the ASP.NET2.0 framework, a platform to build collaborative solutions. Just like ASP.NET, where you have all kinds of starter kits, WSS 3.0 offers something similar with a number of starter templates, such as team sites, wikis, blogs, etc. Just as WSS 3.0 is built on ASP.NET, Microsoft Office SharePoint Server (MOSS) 2007 is an extension of WSS and provides additional features, such as enhanced portal capabilities, improved search, and the business data catalog. Because both WSS and MOSS are based on ASP.NET, you can tweak, tune, customize, enhance, and extend the core SharePoint platform to meet your organization's needs. In this chapter, you will learn about the SharePoint Object Model, which defines how SharePoint works and provides you with the core API for modifying SharePoint for your needs.

Tip

Although the content of this chapter is important for administrators to understand in a general sense, some knowledge of programming and ASP.NET is required to completely understand this material.

In a sense, everything is possible, but you will need a solid understanding of both ASP.NET2.0 and the SharePoint object model in order to create customized solutions for your business needs. There are a number of ways to leverage the power of the SharePoint object model, including:

• Building custom Web Parts

• Building application pages, located in the _layouts virtual directory, that are compiled ...