Simple Steps to Customize Color Code for Your SharePoint Calendar

Color-coding event categories on the calendar is important for all businesses using SharePoint. On one hand, it helps users identify and prioritize information. On the other hand, it provides SharePoint administrators the ability to indicate which events are assigned to certain groups. With no code needed, SharePoint 2010 and SharePoint 2013 include functionality that can be leveraged to achieve this effect. In this article, I will show you simple steps to customize the color codes for your SharePoint Calendar!

READ MORE: Top 6 Free Websites for Keyword Research

1. Set up your SharePoint Calendar with the appropriate metadata Column

First, make sure to set up your event categories correctly. On the page of the Calendar you want to work with, click Calendar tab, then click List Settings. In List Settings, click Category Column. Select all the options indicated on the image below then click OK

Once the column has the desired options, you can update the existing events to include the correct Category

Then you can categorize new events when they are created.

2. Create Views

When all the relevant events have been categorized, you can then build a view to show only that specific category. On Calendar tab, click Create View. On Create View page, click Calendar under Start with an existing view. On Create Calendar View page, type a name in the View Name field. For example:

Click OK. You now have a View of the Calendar that shows Meeting as the Category. Repeat this process for other choices.

3. Create SharePoint Calendars Overlay

On Calendar tab, click Calendars Overlay then click New Calendar link. Fill out all the fields. Give the overlay a name and description, then choose the color. Click Resolve. When the URL resolves, the List field will be populated. From this drop-down, choose the Calendar you are working with then choose the specific View you wish to use in the List View field then click OK. Repeat these steps to create an overlay for each calendar view.

4. Trouble Shooting

Here’s a few common scenarios:

• Too many event categories: You are allowed to create, apply, and color-code 10 calendar overlays in SharePoint
• URL won’t resolve: It may be related to a missing list on the site, most often the Discussion Board list. The solution is to delete the non-existent list. This can be done by opening up the site in SharePoint Designer and deleting the list.
• Duplicate events on your calendar. This happens if you don’t create a calendar view with a filter where the category is blank (see Step Three). Unless you use this blank calendar view, you are just adding the color-coded events on top of existing calendar events.

Ps: If you want to change the color for your SharePoint calendar when it has already been set, you would have to go back into the overlay you created and choose a different color, or remove the existing overlay and create a new one (with the same settings) but choose a new color.

Source: www.premierpointsolutions.com/training/
www.degdigital.com/insights/

[read more: 10 blogs you must follow to start to learn sharepoint]

***

If you are looking for a SharePoint tutorial source, we are also hosting bi-weekly webinars for beginners to power users.It’s free for everyone. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any question!