SharePoint Online: How to Save Site as Template?
Requirement: Save SharePoint Online Site as Template!
Site templates are the quickest way to define the skeleton of a particular standard in SharePoint. It provides great re-usability so that we can create as many sites as we want from the template without manually re-creating them. So, After you create a site and customize it, add lists and libraries to it, you save it as a template. When you save a site as a template, any lists and libraries, look and feel, and other objects such as calendars, etc., you have added are also saved, optionally with content. Alright, let’s see how to save a site or subsite as a template in SharePoint Online.
How to Save a SharePoint Online Site as a Template?
Once you create a new site and customize it to meet your specific requirements, you can save the updated site as a new template to be used when additional sites are created. To Save the site as a site template, follow these steps:
- Login to your SharePoint Online site >> Click the Settings gear >> On the menu Click on “Site Settings”
- On the Site Settings page, click on the “Save Site As Template” link under the Site Actions section. If you don’t find the Save Site As Template link, use: SharePoint Online: Save Site as Template Option Missing?
- On the Save As Template page, provide a file name, template name and description for your site template.
- Optionally, you can select the “Include Content” checkbox. Click OK to save the site as a template.
- Once the site is saved as a template, you’ll see the “Operation Completed Successfully” page. The saved template will be available under the site collection “Solutions” gallery. Now, you can create subsites based on the saved template. You can also download the template and upload it to any other site collection’s solution gallery.
To download a site template created, Navigate to the top-level site (Root Web) >> Click on Site Settings >> Under Web Designer Galleries, click on the “Solutions” link. The Solution Gallery lists all solutions like our site template. Click on the solution name to download the WSP file to your local disk.
Say that you have a site created with all the artifacts to manage projects effectively, You save it as a template called “PMO Template”. This template is then available when other new sites for new projects are created. By saving the site as a template, you save yourself and others the effort of duplicating the customization made to the Project site when additional sites are required for new projects. Also, you provide others a starting point for creating project sites that include the lists and libraries, layout, and components they will need in their sites. This helps ensure that all project sites have a consistent structure and contain the resources needed to manage the project properly.
Here is another article on saving site template in SharePoint On-premises, How to Save Site as Template in SharePoint?
