Sharepoint template under "From your organization"

Question

We have created a template share point site and used the commands below to export that site in xml format.

Connect-PNPOnline -url

Answer 1

Dear @Daniel Kaliel, 

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.   

I understand how important it is for you to make your custom SharePoint template available in the From your organization section so that your admins can apply it. 

I would like to clarify that the XML file you generated is a PnP Provisioning template. This format is not what SharePoint displays in the From your organization gallery. That gallery only surfaces modern SharePoint site templates, previously known as site designs, which are created from site scripts in JSON format and registered at the tenant level. Because of this, the PnP XML cannot be uploaded directly into that interface. 

The From your organization tab is powered entirely by the site templates and site scripts that you publish to the tenant. These are created and managed through SharePoint Online PowerShell using commands such as Add-SPOSiteScript and Add-SPOSiteDesign. The PnP provisioning engine is separate and does not automatically integrate with that gallery. 

To make your template appear in the From your organization tab, you can follow the process below: 

Publish the template as a tenant site template: 

This method converts the site into a site script (JSON) and registers it so it is visible in the gallery. 

• Step 1: Extract a site script from your existing site 

Open SharePoint Online Management Shell. 

Connect to your tenant: 

Connect-SPOService -Url https://<tenant>-admin.sharepoint.com 

Extract the JSON script from the site you used as your template: 

$extracted = Get-SPOSiteScriptFromWeb -WebUrl "https://<tenant>.sharepoint.com/sites/YourTemplateSite"  
-IncludeBranding `  
-IncludeTheme `  
-IncludeRegionalSettings `  
-IncludeSiteExternalSharingCapability `  
-IncludeLinksToExportedItems `  
-IncludedLists ("Site Pages", "Shared Documents") 

This produces the JSON content that SharePoint can use as a site script. 

• Step 2: Upload the site script to the tenant 

Register the extracted JSON as a site script: 

$script = Add-SPOSiteScript -Title "Contoso Project Site Script" -Content $extracted 

This makes the script available for reuse across your tenant. 

• Step 3: Create the site template 

Create the site template and link it to the site script: 

$design = Add-SPOSiteDesign -Title "Contoso Project Site" -WebTemplate "64" `  
-SiteScripts $script.Id `  
-Description "Standard project site with lists, theme, and settings" `  
-ThumbnailUrl https://<tenant>.sharepoint.com/sites/assets/project.png 

Note: Use "64" for Team sites and "68" for Communication sites. 

This step publishes the template so it becomes visible under Settings > Apply a site template > From your organization on eligible sites. 

• Step 4: (Optional) Limit who can view the template 

If you want only certain admins or groups to see the template: 

Grant-SPOSiteDesignRights -Identity $design.Id -Principals "******@contoso.com" -Rights View 

This allows you to control access to the new template. 

Additional information is available in the following resources: 
SharePoint site template and site script overview | Microsoft Learn 

Apply and customize SharePoint site templates - Microsoft Support 

SharePoint site design - PowerShell cmdlets | Microsoft Learn 

Introducing the PnP provisioning engine | Microsoft Learn 

Get-SPOSiteScriptFromWeb (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn 

Add-SPOSiteScript (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn 

Add-SPOSiteDesign (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn 

Grant-SPOSiteDesignRights (Microsoft.Online.SharePoint.PowerShell) | Microsoft Learn 

As community moderators, we kindly ask for your understanding that our access to internal development details is limited. We also don't have the ability to provide direct remote support. Our primary role is to guide users toward the appropriate resources and support channels. While we may not have visibility into performing deeper backend analysis, we’ll continue doing our best to support you within the scope of our responsibilities.  

I hope this information is helpful. If you have any questions or need further support, please don’t hesitate to reach out at any time. 

Thank you for your patience and understanding. 

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Answer 2

The XML file created with Get-PnPSiteTemplate is a PnP Provisioning template and cannot be uploaded directly to make it appear under the From your organization tab. That tab surfaces SharePoint modern site templates (formerly called site designs) that are created and registered via site scripts and site templates, not raw PnP XML.

To have templates appear under From your organization, use the modern site template mechanism:

1. Create site scripts that define the actions (lists, themes, etc.).
2. Create site templates that reference those scripts and register them for Team or Communication sites.
3. Once registered, these templates appear in the site template gallery under From your organization and can be applied via Settings → Apply site template.

PnP Provisioning templates (your exported XML) are applied differently, using PnP PowerShell, for example:

Connect-PnPOnline -Url "https://yourtenant.sharepoint.com/sites/targetcommunicationsite"
Invoke-PnPSiteTemplate -Path "PnP-Provisioning-File.xml"

If the goal is an admin-selectable template in the UI, the supported path is to implement a modern site template (site design + site scripts) rather than trying to import the PnP XML into the From your organization gallery.

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References:

• SharePoint site template and site script overview
• Customize a default site template
• Apply and customize SharePoint site templates
• Introducing the PnP provisioning engine
• Applying PnP Templates to SharePoint Sites