How to Create Navigation Links in SharePoint 2013 using PowerShell

Again one more snippet of PowerShell, which will be useful in terms of deployment. Creating the Navigation items, though many of us are using the Managed Navigation, even in some of the projects are following the structural Navigation.

In the same manner, I was met with a requirement to create the structural navigation with many Headings and Links and the Audience targeted. It’s a very simple, straight forward requirement. Let us have it here. Am reading the values from the Config XML file, so that it can be used as a reusable component.

 ##================================================================================================
 ## Description	: Create the Structural Navigation
 ## Author		: Sathish Nadarajan
 ## Date			: 19-Oct-2015
 ##================================================================================================
 
 # ============================================ Setup Input Paths ===========================================================
 
  
 $Host.UI.RawUI.WindowTitle = "-- Create Structural Navigation --"
 
 $StartDate = Get-Date
 Write-Host -ForegroundColor White "------------------------------------"
 Write-Host -ForegroundColor White "| Create Structural Navigation |"
 Write-Host -ForegroundColor White "| Started on: $StartDate |"
 Write-Host -ForegroundColor White "------------------------------------"
 
 $LogTime = Get-Date -Format yyyy-MM-dd_hh-mm
 $LogFile = ".CreateStructuralNavigation-$LogTime.rtf"
 
 #start-transcript $logfile
 
 $scriptBase = split-path $SCRIPT:MyInvocation.MyCommand.Path -parent
 Set-Location $scriptBase
 
 $ErrorActionPreference = "Stop"
 
 function AddPowerShellSnapin()
 {
     try
     {
         Write-Host "Adding PowerShell Snap-in" -ForegroundColor Green
         # Try to get the PowerShell Snappin.  If not, then adding the PowerShell snappin on the Catch Block
         Get-PSSnapin "Microsoft.SharePoint.PowerShell" 
     }
     catch
     {
         if($Error[0].Exception.Message.Contains("No Windows PowerShell snap-ins matching the pattern 'Microsoft.SharePoint.PowerShell' were found"))
         {
             Add-PSSnapin "Microsoft.SharePoint.PowerShell"
         }
     }
     Write-Host "Finished Adding PowerShell Snap-in" -ForegroundColor Green
 
 }
 
 
 function AddNavigationLinks
 {
     try 
     {     
         Write-Host "Entering into AddNavigationLinks Method" -ForegroundColor Green 
 
         # Get the SiteURL
         $SiteUrl = $SiteConfig.Config.SiteURL;
 
         # Get the WebURL
         $WebUrl = $SiteConfig.Config.WebURL;
         Write-Host "WebUrl : $WebUrl" -ForegroundColor Green 
 
         # Get the Error Message
         $ErrorMessage = $SiteConfig.Config.ErrorMessage;
 
         # Initialize the Site Object
         $Site = Get-SPSite $SiteUrl
         Write-Host "Site: $Site" -ForegroundColor Green
 
         # Get the Publishing Site based on the SPSite
         $PubSite = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Publishing.PublishingSite($Site)
         Write-Host "Pubsite: $PubSite" -ForegroundColor Green
 
         # Get the SPWeb Object
         $Web = Get-SPWeb $WebUrl
          Write-Host "Web: $Web" -ForegroundColor Green
         
         # Initialize the PublishingWeb based on the SPWeb
         $PubWeb = [Microsoft.SharePoint.Publishing.PublishingWeb]::GetPublishingWeb($Web)
  
         foreach($Heading in $SiteConfig.Config.Headings.Heading)     
         {
             $CreateSPNavigationNode = [Microsoft.SharePoint.Publishing.Navigation.SPNavigationSiteMapNode]::CreateSPNavigationNode
             $headingNode = $CreateSPNavigationNode.Invoke($Heading.Title, $Heading.URL, [Microsoft.SharePoint.Publishing.NodeTypes]::Heading, $Web.Navigation.TopNavigationBar)
             $headingNode.Properties["Audience"] = $Heading.Audience
             $headingNode.Update()
 
             foreach($Link in $Heading.Links.Link)
             {
                 $qlNav1 = $Web.Navigation.TopNavigationBar
 
                 $qlNav1 | select Title, ID
 
                 $qlink = $qlNav1 | where {$_.Title -eq $Heading.Title}
 
                 $linkNode = New-Object Microsoft.SharePoint.Navigation.SPNavigationNode($Link.Title,$Link.URL,$true)
 
                 $qlink.Children.AddAsLast($linkNode)
 
                 $linkNode.Properties["Audience"] = $Link.Audience
 
                 $linkNode.Properties["Description"] = $Link.Description
                 $linkNode.update() 
  
                   
             }
         }
 
         $Web.Update()
     }
 
     catch 
     { 
         Write-Host "Custom Exception Happened : " + $Error[0].Exception.Message -ForegroundColor Red  
     } 
 
 }
 
 try
 {
     $ConfigXmlPath = $scriptBase + "CreateNavigationLinks.xml"
     Write-Host "Read the Config Values" -ForegroundColor Green 
 
     # Get the Content of the Config Xml
     [Xml]$SiteConfig = Get-Content $ConfigXmlPath  
 
     AddPowerShellSnapin
 
     AddNavigationLinks
 
     Write-Host "Script Execution Completed Successfully" -ForegroundColor Green 
 }
 catch
 {
     Write-Host "Custom Exception Happened on Main : " + $Error[0].Exception.Message -ForegroundColor Red  
 }
 

And the Config XML Looks like,

 <?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
 
 <Config>
 
   <WebApplicationURL>http://MyWebApplication/</WebApplicationURL>
 
   <SiteURL>http://MyWebApplication/sites/MyCustomSiteCollection/</SiteURL>
 
   <WebURL>http://MyWebApplication/sites/MyCustomSiteCollection</WebURL>
 
    <ErrorMessage>Some Exception Occured During the Navigation Creation Process</ErrorMessage>
    
   <Headings>
 
     <Heading>
       <Title>TestHeading</Title>
       <URL>Page1.aspx</URL>
 	  <Audience>;;;;PM,TL,IL,C</Audience>
       <Links>
 		<Link>
 			<Title>Link1</Title>
 			<URL>Page2.aspx</URL>
 			<Audience>;;;;PM,TL,IL,C</Audience>
 			<Description>Test Description</Description>
 		</Link>
 	  </Links>
 	  
     </Heading>
 
 	<Heading>
       <Title>TestHeading2</Title>
       <URL>Page3.aspx</URL>
       <Links>
 	  </Links>
     </Heading>
   </Headings>
   
 </Config>
 

Download the Source HERE

Happy Coding,

Sathish Nadarajan.