Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors + SharePoint: The End of Manual Data Syncing

If you’ve ever tried to bring external data into SharePoint, you know the pain.

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Whether it’s pulling customer info from a CRM, product data from SQL, or old records from a legacy system, the process is messy, time-consuming, and fragile.

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You probably had to:

• Set up complex data sync jobs
• Create and maintain mirror SharePoint lists
• Handle broken lookups and out-of-date data
• Deal with performance hits and storage bloat
• Write custom scripts just to keep things working

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And let’s not even talk about what happens when the source system changes. 😩

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But what if you could skip syncing altogether?

What if SharePoint could use data directly from those external systems — live — with no duplication, no sync jobs, and no daily headaches?

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Thanks to Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors and smart tools like skybow Studio, this is now possible. It’s the new way to work with external data in SharePoint. In this post, we’ll break down how it works and how to set it up.

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How to use Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors in your SharePoint solutions

In the past, if you wanted to use data from another system — like your CRM, SQL database, or even an old CSV file — you had to sync it into a SharePoint list. That often meant:

• Extra storage use
• Manual sync tasks or custom code
• Data getting out of date fast

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With Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors (former Graph Connectors), you can access external data directly inside your SharePoint Solutions without copying or syncing it.

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Microsoft lets you use over 70+ Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors (and growing) that pull data into Microsoft Search, Copilot, and now — thanks to skybow Studio — SharePoint forms.

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Here’s how the system is set up:

1. External System: SQL, Zendesk, SAP, Salesforce, CSV, etc.
2. Microsoft 365 Copilot Connector: Pulls in the data (either cloud-based or from your on-premises server).
3. Search Index: Microsoft indexes the data so it can be used in Copilot and Search.
4. skybow Forms: Now can pull in that same data directly using the form control “Data Lookup”.

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In this video you will find a follow-along guide for the setup of the Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors for your SharePoint app. Matthias (CPO @ skybow) also shows various real world examples:

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What makes Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors so valuable in your SharePoint Solutions?

When you're building SharePoint solutions, every extra step — like syncing data, maintaining lists, or writing custom code — adds friction. Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors remove much of that complexity by giving you real-time access to external data right inside SharePoint.

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Here’s how this changes the game for builders and end users:

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Use external data without syncing or storing it in SharePoint

No more creating duplicate SharePoint lists or writing Power Automate flows just to keep customer, ticket, or inventory data updated. With Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors, you can read external data directly, so your SharePoint solution always shows the latest information, straight from the source.

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Example:
A sales overview in SharePoint can show customer details from a CRM or ticket statuses from Zendesk, without syncing anything or maintaining a shadow list.

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Supports all kinds of external systems

Out of the box, you can connect to over 70+ systems like:

• SQL Server (on-prem or Azure)
• Zendesk (for help desk tickets)
• CSV files (from legacy or exported systems)
• Salesforce, ServiceNow, SAP, and more...

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If there’s no ready-made Microsoft 365 Copilot Connector you can use in your SharePoint app, you can even build your own with the Copilot Connector.

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Example:
Still using an old internal app that only exports CSVs? Upload that file to SharePoint, hook up a CSV connector, and users can search and interact with that data.

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Show external data inside SharePoint Forms

Using tools like skybow Studio, you can insert data from external systems directly into custom forms without syncing or duplicating data.

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You can:

• Add lookup fields that pull values from an external SQL table
• Display related Zendesk tickets tied to a user or project
• Use drop-downs that pull from a live list of products, customers, or assets

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Example:
In a support request form, users can select the affected product from a live SQL database, not a stale list you have to update manually every week.

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Advanced filtering and search

You can search external data using KQL (Keyword Query Language). That's the same powerful language used by Microsoft Search.

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That means:

• Fast results
• Rich filtering (contains, does not contain, starts with, etc.)
• Better relevance for users

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No need to mess with old-school CAML queries or clunky workarounds.

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Example:
You can show only “active customers” from an external CRM, or filter out “archived tickets” from Zendesk before they even appear in the dropdown.

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Step-by-Step: How to set Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors up for your SharePoint solution

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Setting up the Microsoft 365 Copilot Connector

1. Go to Microsoft 365 Admin Center
2. Navigate to Copilot Agents and Connectors
3. Click New Connection
4. Choose your connector (like SQL, Zendesk, SAP, Salesforce, CSV)
5. Fill in the required info (like client ID and secret for OAuth)
6. Set up how often it should crawl the data (daily, weekly, etc.)
7. Define your schema (choose title, unique ID, and content field)

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Setting up skybow Lookup

1. Open a form in skybow Studio
2. Add a Data Lookup control to your SharePoint form
3. Choose “Graph Connector” as the source
4. Select the connector you set up
5. Pick key fields, display fields, and filters (KQL)
6. Choose multiple select if needed
7. Preview data and save

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Things you should know when using a Microsoft 365 Copilot Connector in your SharePoint solution

Here are a few more points you should know and consider if you want to use Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors in your own SharePoint solutions. Of course, the points refer to the setup using skybow Studio:

• No extra license is needed for using the data in forms
• You do need a Copilot license if you want Copilot to use that data
• Setup recently moved from the Search Admin Center to the Copilot section
• You can have up to 10 data sources per tenant
• Editing existing connections can be tricky — often you need to delete and recreate
• Some deletion attempts fail and get stuck

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Pro tip for skybow Builders:

If you move the solution to another SharePoint tenant and the connector name changes, use the Deployment Maintenance Page in skybow Studio to update the connection ID. No need to rebuild everything from scratch.

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Your key take aways

You don’t need to sync data anymore.

That means less mess, less duplication, and more real-time accuracy. The combination of Microsoft 365 Copilot Connectors and skybow Data Lookup gives you a smart, modern way to use external data inside SharePoint.

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✅ No more syncing or cross-site lookups

✅  Works with many data types: SQL, CSV, Zendesk, etc.

✅  Easy to set up with skybow forms

✅  Supports search, filter, and multi-select

✅  Only needs a standard M365 license

✅  Keep your data live, searchable, and up to date

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If you would like to see the feature live in a demo or need help with the set-up, simply book a free call.

Our team will be happy to support you! 💚