Table of Contents
🧩 Squirrel Archive and Restore Buttons for SharePoint
🔍 Overview
The Squirrel Archive and Restore buttons integrate seamlessly with SharePoint, giving users a simple and secure way to archive or restore files with a single click — directly within the SharePoint interface.
This feature is powered by a lightweight SPFx package and a custom Restore column, which you can deploy to one or all SharePoint sites using provided PowerShell scripts.
Key Features:
- ✅ One-Click Archive & Restore directly from SharePoint - 🔐 Secure authentication using the logged-in user’s Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) - 🔁 Easy deployment via SPFx package and PowerShell automation - ⚙️ Works across all sites or can be targeted to individual SharePoint sites
🧱 Step 1: Upload the SPFx Package
| 📦 Obtain the SPFx package from SmiKar Software. |  |
| 🔧 Go to your SharePoint Admin Center (`https://TENANTNAME-admin.sharepoint.com`). |  |
| 🧭 Navigate to More Features > Apps > Open. |  |
| ⬆️ Click Upload and select the SPFx package. |  |
| 🗂️ Choose to deploy to all sites or a specific collection. |  |
| ✅ The app will now be enabled. |  |
| 🔍 Confirm the app shows as “Enabled” and “Available to all sites”. |  |
📌 Step 2: Deploy the Restore Column to All SharePoint Sites
SmiKar provides three PowerShell scripts:
- `Create and associate restore button.ps1` – Adds the Restore column to all sites - `Add Button to Individual Site.ps1` – Adds the Restore column to a single site - `Delete and Unassociate Restore Buttons.ps1` – Removes the Restore column from all sites
🛡️ Note: You must be a Global Administrator to run these scripts successfully.
Deploying to All Sites:
| 🛠️ Open `Create and associate restore button.ps1` in Visual Studio Code. |  |
| ✏️ Update the tenant name on line 2. Replace `“TENANTNAME”` with your actual tenant name. |  |
| ▶️ Press F5 to run the script. It will loop through your SharePoint sites and add the Restore column. |  |
| ✅ Once completed, you will see: “🎉 ✅ SPFx Field Customizer installed and associated on all sites!” |  |
| 🔍 Confirm the Restore column appears in any document library where a file has been archived. |  |
🔄 Step 3: Deploy to an Individual SharePoint Site
When a new SharePoint site is created, run this script to enable the Restore button for that site.
| 🛠️ Open `Add Button to Individual Site.ps1` in Visual Studio Code. |  |
| ✏️ On line 2, update `“TENANTNAME”` and `“SITENAME”` or directly replace with your site’s URL. |  |
| ▶️ Press F5 to run the script. |  |
| ✅ Success message: “🎉 ✅ Restore button added successfully to Your New Site URL” |  |
| 🔍 Verify the column is present in the document library of the new site. |  |
🧹 Step 4: Delete the Restore Column from All Sites
Use this when you need to fully remove the Squirrel Restore Column from all document libraries.
| 🗑️ Open `Delete and Unassociate Restore Buttons.ps1` in Visual Studio Code. | |
| ✏️ Update the tenant name on line 2 with your tenant’s actual name. | |
| ▶️ Press F5 to run the script. |  |
| ✅ Confirmation: “🎉 ✅ All Restore columns have been fully deleted from all sites!” |  |
| 🔍 Visit a few SharePoint document libraries to confirm the column is no longer visible. Refresh the page if needed. |  |
Need assistance with deployment or scripts? Contact [support@smikar.com](mailto:support@smikar.com) or your SmiKar representative for help.