Add unstructured data as a knowledge source for the Copilot Studio agent.

 For more information on unstructured data, visit the article Using unstructured data as a knowledge source for agents .

Add OneDrive files and folders

You can add files and folders from OneDrive to use as knowledge sources for your agent. The difference between adding files and folders using OneDrive versus uploading files is:

1. The file upload method only allows you to select individual files. With OneDrive, you can add both files and folders.
2. The file upload method requires you to reload the file if any changes are made to it. In the file upload method, the files are static. Therefore, if a file is updated, those updates will not be reflected in the uploaded version unless it is updated manually. With OneDrive, added files and folders are synchronized, so changes are updated automatically.
3. The file upload method allows anyone with access to the agent to access the file. With OneDrive, user login credentials are verified to ensure they have permission to access the file before providing feedback.

When you use OneDrive as a knowledge source, your files are stored in the Dataverse, where they are processed and indexed for use. Your files and folders remain in the Dataverse, so they will consume storage space.

The Upload files > OneDrive  as knowledge source option now supports the following file types:

1. Word: .doc, .docx
2. PowerPoint: .ppt, .pptx
3. PDF: .pdf
4. Excel: .xls, .xlsx
5. The maximum file size is 512 MB.

Documents protected by sensitivity labels or password protection cannot be indexed. If added, these document types will appear as available but will not provide feedback.

1. Open the agent.

2. Select Add knowledge from the Overview or Knowledge page , or from the Properties of the Generative Answers node.

3. From the Add knowledge dialog box , select OneDrive .

4. Select Browse items to choose specific files or folders, or enter the URL of the OneDrive file.

1. When selecting Browse items , you can choose up to 5 individual files or folders, or a combination of both.
2. Select Confirm selection after you have selected all the items.
3. Specify URLs for items that you have general access to, but are not stored in your OneDrive.

5. After adding items from OneDrive, you can update the names and descriptions in Copilot Studio. The descriptions should be detailed, especially if Generative AI is enabled, as it helps coordinate generation. Name changes in Copilot Studio do not affect files or folders in OneDrive.

6. Select Add to agent to complete adding OneDrive items to your knowledge base.

7. On the Knowledge page , you can view the status of the OneDrive items you've added. The time it takes to index your items depends on the number of files, file size, and file type. Additionally, if this is the first time you're configuring this data source, it will take extra time to create the Dataverse schema.

Note : Individual files appear as separate items in the list. A folder is represented as a single item, encompassing all subfolders and files within it.

8. After the status of the items is set to Ready , you can ask your agent questions in the Test panel .

9. The first time you ask a question in the Test panel , you must connect to verify your access to the content.

Add SharePoint files and folders

You can add files and folders from SharePoint to use as knowledge sources for your agent. The difference between adding files and folders using SharePoint versus uploading files is:

1. The file upload method only allows you to select individual files. With SharePoint, you can add both files and folders.
2. The file upload method requires you to reload the file if any changes are made to it. In the file upload method, the files are static. Therefore, if a file is updated, those updates will not be reflected in the uploaded version unless it is updated manually. With SharePoint, added files and folders are synchronized, so changes are updated automatically.
3. The file upload method allows anyone with access rights to the file to access it. With SharePoint, user login credentials are verified to ensure they have permission to access the file before providing feedback.
4. Currently, the document library is not supported.

Note : The alternative SharePoint knowledge source option provides full SharePoint integration within Copilot Studio using the SharePoint connector. Use this option when you need the full capabilities of the SharePoint connector, custom authentication configuration, or advanced query options.

When using Upload Files > SharePoint as a knowledge source, your files are stored in the Dataverse, where they are processed and indexed for use. Your files and folders remain in the Dataverse, so they will consume data storage space.

The Upload files > SharePoint as knowledge source option now supports the following file types:

1. Word: .doc, .docx
2. PowerPoint: .ppt, .pptx
3. PDF: .pdf
4. Excel: .xls, .xlsx

The maximum file size is 512 MB.

Note : MP4 video files are not supported.

PDF files added via this link support page-level citations, allowing users to directly access the page within the document where the cited information is referenced.

Documents protected by sensitivity labels or password protection cannot be indexed. If added, these document types will appear as available but will not provide feedback.

1. Open the agent.

2. Select Add knowledge from the Overview or Knowledge page , or from the Properties of the Generative Answers node.

3. From the Add knowledge dialog box , select SharePoint .

4. Select Browse items to choose specific files or folders, or enter the URL of the SharePoint file.

1. When selecting Browse items , you can choose up to 5 individual files or folders, or a combination of both.
2. Select Confirm selection after you have selected all the items.
3. Specify URLs for items that you have general access to, but are not stored in your SharePoint.

5. After adding items from SharePoint, you can update the names and descriptions in Copilot Studio. The descriptions should be detailed, especially if Generative AI is enabled, as it helps coordinate generation. Name changes in Copilot Studio do not affect files or folders in SharePoint.

6. Select Add to agent to complete adding SharePoint items to your knowledge source.

7. On the Knowledge page , you can view the status of the SharePoint items you've added. The time required to index your items depends on the number of files, file sizes, and file types. Additionally, if this is the first time you're configuring this data source, extra time will be needed to create the Dataverse schema.

Note : Individual files appear as separate items in the list. A directory is represented by a single item, encompassing all its subdirectories and files.

8. After the status of the items is set to Ready , you can ask your agent questions in the Test panel .

9. The first time you ask a question in the Test panel , you must connect to verify your access to the content.

Page-level citation for PDF files

When your agent answers a question using a PDF file added via Upload files > SharePoint , the citation will link to the specific page in the PDF where the referenced information is located. Selecting the citation will open the PDF in a new tab at that page, so users can validate the answer without scanning the entire document.

Currently, the following is a page-level support citation:

1. PDF files are added via the Upload files > SharePoint path (and are stored and indexed in the Dataverse).
2. The files must meet the minimum threshold (approximately 4 KB or more).

Add knowledge base data

Knowledge bases are a crucial way for organizations to share information, both with internal users and customers. They often include sales, service, support, policies, etc. However, knowledge base content is often unstructured. This unstructured, non-table-based storage is typically less expensive than relational, table-based storage, while also allowing for greater configuration flexibility than tables.

Copilot Studio currently supports the following unstructured data sources:

1. Confluence (cloud only)
2. Steam
3. ServiceNow
4. ZenDesk

Unstructured knowledge base content is added at the "collection" level. This content might be called "Pages," "Knowledge Bases," or some other term in the individual source, but in this context, think of them as "folders." You cannot select individual files.

Only published articles may be used. Draft or archived content may not be used.

User login information is used to verify that the user has permission to access the content. Before providing a summary or answer, the agent will verify the permission.

1. Open the agent.

2. Select Add knowledge from the Overview or Knowledge page , or from the Properties of the Generative Answers node.

3. From the Add knowledge dialog box , select an unstructured knowledge base source: Confluence, Salesforce, ServiceNow , or ZenDesk .

Note : If your administrator has configured a Microsoft 365 connection to a knowledge base source, that source will be listed in the Featured section . Otherwise, check the Advanced section .

4. Select the Your connections drop-down menu and choose Create new connection . When prompted, log in to your knowledge base.

Note : The connection established during this setup allows the creator to access data to generate the knowledge base for the agent. This login information is not used by the agent's users after the agent is published. Those users must log in using their own credentials.

5. Select Allow to grant Copilot Studio access to your knowledge base, then select Next .

6. Select your knowledge base source from the list of tables and sources available in your environment.

Note : The information icon in the source provides a message indicating that this source is unstructured.

7. Select Preview to review your data before it is retrieved. A sample set of knowledge base data will be displayed, and you can select each row to see what you will use.

8. After selecting the knowledge base, select Next .

9. Update the name and description of the knowledge base source. The description needs to be detailed, especially if the Generative AI feature is enabled, as it helps coordinate generation. Changing the name in Copilot Studio does not affect files or folders within the source file.

10. Select Add to agent to complete the process.

11. On the Knowledge page , you can view the status of the knowledge base source you've added. The time required to index your items depends on the number of files, file sizes, and file types. Additionally, if this is the first time you've configured this data source, it will take extra time to create the Dataverse schema.

12. After the status of the items is set to Ready , you can ask your agent questions in the Test panel .

13. The first time you ask a question in the Test panel , you must connect to verify your access to the content.