Create Colored Folders in SharePoint Online using CLI for Microsoft 365

In my previous blog post Creating Colored Folders in SharePoint Online and OneDrive, we saw how to create colored folders in SharePoint online document libraries and OneDrive for Business using user interface (UI) from browser. In this blog post, we’ll explore how to create colorful folders in SharePoint Online using CLI for Microsoft 365, a powerful command-line tool that extends SharePoint’s capabilities.

This new feature of coloring SharePoint & OneDrive folders allows users to assign a color label to folders, providing a visual cue for organization and categorization. However, it’s essential to understand how this works internally and what values are used for coloring folders in SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business.

Thanks to Tetsuya Kawahara and his PnP PowerShell script sample at Create Colored Folder which explains SharePoint uses the column with internal name as _ColorHex to store the color setting information of folders. The _ColorHex field is a hidden field within SharePoint libraries, and it is not visible by default in standard views. This field stores the color as a numeric value corresponding to each color.

SharePoint supports a predefined set of 16 numerical color values that can be used to color folders. The following table shows the numerical values corresponding to each color:

Color	_ColorHex value
Yellow	Empty or 0
Dark red	1
Dark orange	2
Dark green	3
Dark teal	4
Dark blue	5
Dark purple	6
Dark pink	7
Grey	8
Light red	9
Light orange	10
Light green	11
Light teal	12
Light blue	13
Light purple	14
Light pink	15

We will see how to use these _ColorHex column values to create a new folder in SharePoint online document library using CLI for Microsoft 365 below:

Step 1: Install the CLI for Microsoft 365

Before we can start working with the CLI for Microsoft 365, we need to install it. You can install the CLI for Microsoft 365 by using below NPM commands or by following the instructions on the official documentation page:  CLI for Microsoft 365 – Installation.

npm install -g @pnp/cli-microsoft365

You have to use below command if you want to install beta version of CLI for Microsoft 365:

npm install -g @pnp/cli-microsoft365@next

Step 2: Create colored folder using CLI for Microsoft 365

After installation of CLI for Microsoft 365,  you can use below CLI for Microsoft 365 script to create a new colored folder in SharePoint online document library using CLI for Microsoft 365:

# Set Variables
$siteUrl = "https://contoso.sharepoint.com/sites/work"
$relativeUrlOfParentFolder = "/ColoredFolders"
$documentLibraryDisplayName = "Colored Folders"
$folderName = "Confidential"
$folderColor = 1

try {
    # Get Credentials to connect to SharePoint Online site
    $m365Status = m365 status
    if ($m365Status -match "Logged Out") {
        m365 login
    }

    # Create the folder
    $newFolder = m365 spo folder add --webUrl $siteUrl --parentFolderUrl $relativeUrlOfParentFolder --name $folderName | ConvertFrom-Json

    # Get the created folder item
    $newFolderItem = m365 spo listitem get --webUrl $siteUrl --listTitle $documentLibraryDisplayName --uniqueId $newFolder.UniqueId | ConvertFrom-Json

    # Change the value of the _ColorHex column of the created folder to change the color
    m365 spo listitem set --webUrl $siteUrl --listTitle $documentLibraryDisplayName --id $newFolderItem.Id --_ColorHex $folderColor

    Write-Host "Folder created and color changed successfully." -ForegroundColor Green
    Write-Host "Folder URL: $siteUrl/$relativeUrlOfParentFolder/$folderName" -ForegroundColor Green
}
catch {
    Write-Host "An error occurred: $_" -ForegroundColor Red
}
finally {
    # Disconnect from SharePoint site
    m365 logout
}

Once you run above script successfully and navigate to SharePoint document library, you will see that new colored folder is created inside the SharePoint document library as given below: 

Colored folders created in SharePoint Online using CLI for Microsoft 365

Conclusion

Adding color to your folders in SharePoint Online document libraries using CLI for Microsoft 365 is a simple yet effective way to enhance the visual organization and management of your documents. This can improve user experience and help users quickly identify and access the content they need. Experiment with different colors and organizational schemes to find what works best for your team or organization.

Learn more

• SharePoint Online: Apply JSON View formatting using CLI for Microsoft 365
• Set SharePoint site home page using PnP PowerShell and CLI for Microsoft 365
• Enable/Disable SharePoint Online List Comments using CLI for Microsoft 365
• Add/Update image columns in SharePoint lists using CLI for Microsoft 365
• Enable or Disable the Social Bar (Like, Views, Save for later) from SharePoint online sites

• CLI for Microsoft 365
• Microsoft 365
• OneDrive
• PowerShell
• SharePoint
• SharePoint Online