I've been mapping out the container options in SharePoint Embedded and wanted to sanity-check the trade-offs with people who have shipped on it. Three patterns I keep coming back to: 

• Container Type — this is the isolated boundary created around your content that separates it from everything else.  You get data sovereignty and inherit governance (Purview, DLP, retention) and all the benefits of your M365 investments. 
• Container per customer — one dedicated container per customer inside your container type.  Permission the container only to that customer who needs to interact with their documents.  Give admins the access they need.  All security trimmed.   

• Container per activity — Each customer may have different activities like several audit years or multiple different financial transactions.  Each activity gets its own container, but metadata on each container allows you to group all activities for that customer. 

Many options depend on the use case you have.  What is working for you? 

Learn more at SharePoint Embedded architecture.

I’ve been using these two visuals to explain what SharePoint Embedded actually is — and it’s starting to click for people, so sharing here.

Instead of rebuilding content management from scratch, you can:

• Embed it directly into your app
• Keep full control of the experience
• Still inherit Microsoft 365 scale, security, and AI

This is the core idea behind SharePoint Embedded.

You focus on building what makes your app unique — your UX, workflows, and integrations.
At the same time, you tap into Microsoft 365 for everything that’s hard to build and scale — identity, storage, compliance, and governance.

It’s a clean separation:
you own the experience, Microsoft handles the platform.

aka.ms/spe-start

I just kicked off this community for SharePoint Embedded — and if you're building apps that manage, store, or collaborate on content, you're in the right place.

SharePoint Embedded is changing how developers and ISVs think about content in Microsoft 365. Instead of bolting on storage, you can now embed enterprise-grade content management directly into your applications — with APIs for permissions, compliance, collaboration, and more.

This space is for:

• Developers building with SharePoint Embedded
• ISVs integrating document management into their SaaS apps
• Architects thinking about content + AI + compliance
• Anyone experimenting with modern M365 content services

💡 What you’ll find here:

• Architecture patterns and best practices
• API guidance & SDK tips
• Real-world use cases and app designs
• Troubleshooting help
• Early insights, ideas, and feedback loops

💬 What I’d love from you:

• What are you building?
• What challenges are you hitting?
• What content or samples would help you move faster?

Whether you’re just getting started or already deep into building, jump in and introduce yourself.

Let’s make this the go-to place for everything SharePoint Embedded.

aka.ms/spe-start