How to build a FREE helpdesk ticketing system in SharePoint

In this lesson, you’ll build the foundation of the helpdesk system by creating the SharePoint site and the core ticket tracking list.

We’ll configure structured columns in this order:

1. ID (Ticket ID number)

2. Title (Name of Requester)

3. Attachments

4. Requester Email Address

5. Department

6. Status (Choice: New, In Progress, Resolved)

7. Query (Description of query)

8. Assigned To (Person)

9. First Contact Date (Date & Time)

10. Resolution Date (Date & Time)

11. Link to Attachments

You’ll also define internal column names correctly so Power Automate connects seamlessly.

By the end, your helpdesk database will be fully structured and ready for automation.

In this lesson, you’ll build a professional Microsoft Form that feeds directly into your helpdesk system.

Below are questions you can ask the submitter to record in your tracker (MS List)

You can start with the standard questions below:

1. Name (Free Text)

2. Email Address (If the form is open to external users)

3. Department (Choice question)

4. Topic (Choice question)

5. Query (Free Text Long)

6. Attachments (e.g. PDF, Word, Excel)

We’ll configure:

• Required fields

• Dropdown priority selections

• Conditional questions

• File upload options (if applicable)

This form acts as the front door of your support system.

By the end, you’ll have a structured intake process that ensures clean data collection.

Now we automate the process.

You’ll build a Power Automate flow using:

Trigger:
“When a new response is submitted”

Actions:

• Get response details

• Create item (SharePoint)

We’ll correctly map dynamic content fields and ensure column internal names match exactly.

By the end, your system will automatically log every submission into SharePoint.

In this lesson, we handle file attachments and conditional branching inside the workflow.

You’ll configure adding a link to the attachment submitted in the MS Form

IMPORTANT:

Set Variable 2 : first(body('Parse_JSON')).link

Compose: replace(variables('URL'),'&action=default&mobileredirect=true','')

This ensures the system processes attachments properly and handles logic branches without errors.

By the end, your system will support supporting documents and structured automation flows.

Troubleshoot:

If the above doesn't work when testing, try the below:

Alternative Compose: first(split(decodeUriComponent(replace(variables('URL'),'&action=default&mobileredirect=true','')),'?'))

This lesson elevates your system to a professional standard.

You’ll:

• Send automated email confirmations

• Attach a structured ticket summary

You’ll use a structured text template (provided as a downloadable MS Word file) to input into your compose and format the ticket summary clearly.

This creates a professional confirmation experience for requestors.

Security is critical in any business system.

You’ll learn how to:

• Break inheritance

• Remove default permissions

• Set the basis to apply view only ticket tracking permission for your ticket tracker page

We’ll ensure your system protects sensitive ticket data while remaining easy to use.

By the end, your helpdesk will be secure and role-controlled.

Security is critical in any business system.

You’ll learn how to:

• Grant view-only access to requestors

• Restrict edit access to the support team

IMPORTANT:

Send HTTP request to break inherited perms:

URI: /_api/lists/getByTitle('Name of list')/items(Create item tag)/breakroleinheritance(copyRoleAssignments=false,clearSubscopes=true)

Capture email:

replace(variables('TxtEmail'),'"','')

Send an HTTP request to SharePoint to get user email:

URI: /_api/web/SiteUsers/getByEmail('@{variables('TxtEmail')}')

Initialize User email variable:

Value: body('Send_an_HTTP_request_to_SharePoint_to_get_user_email')['d']['id']

User email:

Inputs: variables('User_ID')

Send an HTTP request to SharePoint 2:

URI: /_api/lists/getByTitle('B')/items(Name of list)?[‘ID TAG’]})/roleassignments/addroleassignment(principalid=@{variables('User_ID')},roledefid=1073741826)

We’ll ensure your system protects sensitive ticket data while remaining easy to use.

By the end, your helpdesk will be secure and role-controlled.

In this lesson, you’ll connect your SharePoint data to Excel for operational reporting.

You’ll use the downloadable Excel template included in this course to:

• Excel data warehouse with a live feed from your MS List

• Track open vs resolved tickets

• Monitor response times using various formulas

This template can be reused across departments.

By the end, you’ll have a practical reporting layer ready for management.

In this lesson, we upload the attachments to the ticket and conditional branching inside the workflow.

IMPORTANT:

Get file Content using path: *to input at the end of pathway*

first(body('Add_Attachment_1'))?['name']

Add Attachment:

first(body('Add_Attachment_1'))?['name']

Here we introduce operational performance tracking.

You’ll configure automation logic to update:

First Contact Date → when status changes to “In Progress”
Resolution Date → when status changes to “Resolved”

This enables SLA tracking and performance reporting later in Power BI.

By the end, your system will automatically measure response performance.

Now we move into advanced reporting.

You’ll connect Excel date warehouse data directly into Power BI

We’ll transform fields, clean date columns, and prepare your dataset for visualisation.

This prepares the foundation for executive-level dashboards.

In the final build lesson, you’ll design a clean, professional Power BI dashboard.

You’ll create visuals such as:

• Open vs Resolved Tickets

• Tickets by Priority

• Average Resolution Time

• Tickets by Department

By the end, you’ll have a management-ready performance dashboard.