folders

Working with Folders

Create, copy, move, rename, download, delete, and share folders in SharePoint document libraries.

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Prerequisites

Requirement	Description	Reference
Site Owner or Member role on the library	Required to create, update, and delete folders. Read access for browsing.	SharePoint permissions

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How folders work

graph TD
    Library["Document Library\ne.g. Shared Documents"]
    Folder["Folder\ne.g. Reports"]
    Subfolder["Subfolder\ne.g. 2026"]
    File["File"]

    Library --> Folder
    Folder --> Subfolder
    Folder --> File
    Subfolder --> File

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Folders are containers inside document libraries. They can be nested and are identified by a server-relative path (e.g. /sites/team/Shared Documents/Reports).

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Getting started

from office365.sharepoint.client_context import ClientContext

ctx = ClientContext("https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/team").with_client_secret(
    "contoso.onmicrosoft.com", "client_id", "client_secret"
)

# Create a folder
folder = ctx.web.folders.add("/sites/team/Shared Documents/Reports").execute_query()
print(f"Created: {folder.serverRelativeUrl}")

# List files inside
files = folder.files.get().execute_query()
for f in files:
    print(f"  {f.name}")

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Create & Set Up

What	File	Notes
Create a folder	create.py	By server-relative path
Create if not exists	create_if_not_exist.py	No error if already there
Create with color	create_with_color.py	Folder coloring in modern UI
Create a document set	create_doc_set.py	A special folder with metadata

Browse & Discover

What	File	Notes
Get folder by path	get_by_path.py	By server-relative path
Check if exists	folder_exists.py	Returns True / False
Get by sharing link	get_by_shared_link.py	Resolve a sharing link
Get metadata	get_props.py	Name, path, size, item count
Get system metadata	get_system_metadata.py	Internal SharePoint fields
List files inside	list_files.py	All files in a folder, printed as scanned (progress hook)
List subfolders	list_folders.py	Direct children only (add --recursive)
List with custom scope	list_folders_custom.py	Recursive or filtered
Get files list	get_files.py	Alternative file listing

Move, Copy & Rename

What	File	Notes
Move	move.py	Move to a new location
Move (alternative)	move_alt.py	Different API endpoint
Copy	copy_folder.py	Duplicate with all contents
Copy by path	copy_folder_using_path.py	Uses server-relative path
Rename	rename.py	Change the folder name

Download

What	File	Notes
Download as ZIP	download_as_zip.py	Entire folder as a .zip
Download files	download.py	Download files inside (tqdm progress)

Delete

What	File	Notes
Delete a folder	delete.py	Moves to recycle bin

Share

Sharing operations for folders are in the sharing/ directory.

Update Properties

What	File	Notes
Set properties	set_properties.py	Change folder metadata fields

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API reference

• Working with folders — SharePoint REST API