It's Time to Replace SharePoint Alerts
The classic alert mechanism built into Microsoft SharePoint were once a helpful way to stay informed. However it no longer meets the needs of modern organisations. Microsoft has begun retiring native SharePoint Alerts. They are no longer being actively developed and will stop functioning entirely in July 2026.
At the same time, organisations are demanding far more from their notification systems:
- Dynamic logic
- Rich content
- Cross-platform delivery
- Business-process awareness
- Branding
The built-in alerts simply don’t cut it. They offer limited customization, minimal logic, no native integration with modern collaboration platforms, and a clunky experience.
Enter Infowise Ultimate Forms. This no-code platform, designed for SharePoint (both Online and on-premises), provides a powerful, modern replacement for SharePoint Alerts. And in many ways upgrades the concept entirely.
Below, we’ll explore why Alert functionality matters, what shortcomings the native SharePoint Alerts have, and how Ultimate Forms addresses them, giving you a compelling reason to transition now rather than wait.
The Importance of Alerts in Business Processes
Alerts and notifications aren’t a nicety, they are a business-critical element. They ensure that key changes, approvals, updates or status shifts don’t go unnoticed. For example:
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A contract gets uploaded or modified and legal must review it.
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A purchase request exceeds budget and needs manager approval.
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A document’s status changes to “Archived” and operations must trigger next steps.
Without timely, reliable notifications, teams may miss crucial events, workflows stall, compliance drifts, and productivity drops.
Why Native SharePoint Alerts Fall Short
While SharePoint Alerts served a purpose, several fundamental limitations make them inadequate today:
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Very basic logic – You could only trigger alerts on very simple events (item added/changed/deleted), with little ability to apply complex conditions.
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Minimal customization – Emails were generic, lacking branding, dynamic fields, or rich formatting.
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Limited delivery channels & integration – Alerts were email-centric; integration with Teams, external apps, or complex routing was minimal.
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No future roadmap – Microsoft’s own blog states the classic Alerts form is being retired (July 2026) and not actively developed.
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Governance/management issues – As business needs evolved, managing multiple alerts across lists and users became unwieldy.
Given these gaps, many organisations find themselves at risk if they continue relying on the legacy alert system.
How Ultimate Forms Makes Alerts Better
Infowise Ultimate Forms doesn’t just mimic SharePoint Alerts, it elevates them. Here are the key advantages:
1. Rich, condition-based alerts
You can configure triggers with detailed logic—e.g., “when status becomes ‘Pending Approval’ and cost > $5,000”. Then send alerts only when conditions are met.
2. Dynamic email templates & branding
Rather than generic notifications, you can use branded email templates with dynamic data (columns from SharePoint items), rich formatting, links, buttons, and even embedded approval actions.
3. Multiple delivery methods & scheduling
Alerts in Ultimate Forms can be immediate, delayed, or summary-based (e.g., a digest every morning). Recipients can include individuals, groups, security groups, or even addresses stored in list items.
4. No code required
The user interface is visual and intuitive. Business users or power users can configure alerts without writing workflows or scripts. This reduces dependency on IT and accelerates deployment.
5. Native SharePoint integration (Online & On-Premises)
Because Ultimate Forms is designed to run within SharePoint, you don’t need to overlay separate systems, maintain extra credentials, or migrate your alert logic outside your familiar landscape.
6. Scalable, reusable templates and governance
You can save and reuse alert templates across lists and sites, standardizing your approach and reducing administrative overhead.
Real-World Scenario: Replacing SharePoint Alerts with Ultimate Forms
Imagine your organisation has a Leave Request list. Previously you had a SharePoint Alert set up so that when an item was modified it emailed the manager. But:
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The email had no branding or context.
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It fired every time anything changed, even minor edits.
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There was no way to delay or summarise notifications.
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You couldn’t include rich content or actionable buttons.
With Ultimate Forms you can:
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Configure an alert to only trigger when the Leave Status changes to “Submitted”.
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Use a branded email template featuring the employee’s name, department, leave dates, and a link to approve/decline.
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Send the alert to the manager, HR group, and keep the employee cc-ed for transparency.
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If no action is taken within 48 hours, automatically send a reminder.
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Later, archive the notification and log it in a dashboard, so operations and HR can review how long approvals take.
All done via a visual configuration interface inside SharePoint. No code, no new tools.
Why Now Is the Time to Move
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The built-in alerts are being retired. Waiting means risking a sudden loss of notification capability.
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Switching sooner gives you time to test templates, migrate logic, and onboard business users.
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You’ll move from “just sending alerts” to “intelligently automating alerts as part of your business processes”.
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By empowering business users, you relieve IT from handling every alert change or new requirement.
Conclusion
If your organisation still relies on SharePoint’s built-in Alerts, the time to rethink is now. The feature set was sufficient in its era, but it no longer aligns with the demands of modern business collaboration, process automation, and workflow governance.
Infowise Ultimate Forms offers a future-proof, flexible, no-code platform that replaces the legacy alerts, and upgrades them. You get rich triggers, branded notifications, multiple channels, easy configuration, and deep SharePoint integration.
In short: you’re not just preserving the “alert” capability, you’re transforming how your teams stay notified, aligned and responsive.
