SharePoint Document Issues

How to Move or Copy a OneNote Notebook to a New SharePoint Site

Khadija Khan Oct 14, 2026 868 views

Question details

The user needs to safely transfer a team OneNote notebook from an old SharePoint site to a newly migrated SharePoint site without losing synchronization.

How to Move or Copy a OneNote Notebook to a New SharePoint Site

Product: Microsoft OneNote
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: A SharePoint site URL changed after migration, and the old site is scheduled for deletion, requiring the notebook to be moved.
Observed behavior: The notebook needs to be migrated to the new site, but SharePoint lacks a direct built-in command to safely copy OneNote notebooks while preserving synchronization.

Before you start

Ensure you have the OneNote desktop application installed on your computer and verify that you have edit permissions for both the old and new SharePoint sites.

Solution 1Recommended

Copy Sections via OneNote Desktop App

Use the OneNote desktop application to manually copy sections from the old notebook to a newly created notebook on the destination SharePoint site.

SharePoint does not provide a reliable built-in command to directly copy or move a OneNote notebook file without risking synchronization issues.

The safest method is to create a blank notebook in the new location and copy the contents section by section using the desktop software.

Create a New Notebook

Navigate to the destination SharePoint site and create a completely new, blank OneNote notebook.

Open Both Notebooks

Launch the OneNote desktop application on your computer and open both the old notebook (from the old site) and the new notebook.

Copy Sections

Right-click a section tab in the old notebook and select 'Move or Copy'. Choose the new notebook as your destination and click 'Copy'.

Wait for Synchronization

Allow the desktop application time to fully synchronize the newly copied sections to the new SharePoint server.

Verification Required: Always verify that the new notebook is correctly synced and accessible before restricting access to or deleting the old notebook.

Solution 2

Change Notebook Location Properties

Modify the notebook properties to point to the new SharePoint URL, though this method is less reliable for maintaining synchronization.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't I just move the OneNote file directly within SharePoint?

SharePoint does not offer a reliable built-in command to directly copy or move OneNote notebooks. Moving the raw file often breaks the internal synchronization mechanism and can lead to data corruption or loss.

Is it better to Move or Copy notebook sections?

It is highly recommended to use the 'Copy' function. This leaves the original data intact on the old SharePoint site, serving as a failsafe backup until you confirm the new notebook has synced successfully to the new location.

Will changing the location properties of the notebook work?

Simply changing the file location in the notebook properties might not preserve synchronization correctly. The manual section-by-section copy method via the desktop app is much safer and more reliable for site migrations.

Document & File Issues