Why ShArc does not archive SharePoint system libraries

Some libraries are not archived because SharePoint identifies them as system libraries.

What is happening?

The library is flagged in SharePoint as a system list. SharePoint assigns this property internally, typically when a library is created by a script, an app or solution, a list template, or a migration tool.

The flag indicates that the library is used by SharePoint or another application rather than as a regular user document library.

This is not a setting that end users can change through the SharePoint interface. It is also not a property that ShArc sets or can modify. ShArc only reads the property provided by SharePoint to determine which libraries it can safely process.

Typical examples of libraries and lists that may be flagged in this way include:

• User Information List
• TaxonomyHiddenList – managed metadata term storage
• Workflow History and Workflow Tasks
• Access Requests List
• "Sharing Links ..." lists used to track shared links
• Maintenance Log Library

There are many other examples. These are generally libraries or lists that SharePoint or a SharePoint add-on uses internally.

How can you verify this yourself?

Through the browser

While signed in to SharePoint, open the following address in a browser and replace the placeholders with your own values:

https://<tenant>.sharepoint.com/sites/<site>/_api/web/lists/getbytitle('<LibraryName>')?$select=Title,IsSystemList,Hidden,IsCatalog,IsApplicationList

SharePoint returns the properties of the library. For an affected library, IsSystemList is set to true.

This value comes directly from Microsoft's SharePoint service. ShArc is not involved in producing or assigning it.

Through PnP PowerShell

Connect to the affected SharePoint site:

Connect-PnPOnline -Url "https://<tenant>.sharepoint.com/sites/<site>" -Interactive

To check one specific library:

$list = Get-PnPList -Identity "Documents" -Includes IsSystemList
$list.IsSystemList # Returns True or False

To check all libraries and lists for the properties considered by ShArc:

Get-PnPList -Includes IsSystemList, Hidden, IsCatalog, IsApplicationList |
Select-Object Title, IsSystemList, Hidden, IsCatalog, IsApplicationList

The -Identity parameter accepts the list ID as a GUID, the display name, or the URL path, for example Lists/MyList.

Why does ShArc exclude these libraries?

Libraries flagged as system lists usually contain SharePoint's internal data rather than ordinary user documents. SharePoint features, applications, or add-ons may depend on the original files remaining physically available in these locations.

ShArc archives content by moving the file data to cold storage and leaving a lightweight stub file in its original location. Applying this process to a system library could affect or break the SharePoint feature, application, or site that relies on it.

For this reason, the exclusion is a deliberate safety guardrail designed to protect your SharePoint environment. Because its purpose is to prevent this type of damage, the exclusion cannot be disabled.

What can be done about it?

Microsoft does not provide a supported way to change the IsSystemList property through the available APIs or administration tools, including:

• SharePoint REST API
• Client-Side Object Model (CSOM)
• Microsoft Graph API
• PnP PowerShell

If the files need to be archived by ShArc, the available approach is to create a new regular document library and move the files into it.

Before doing so, we recommend investigating how and why the original library was created as a system list. An application, migration process, SharePoint solution, or other integration may still depend on the library and its current configuration.