How to get ordering in events obtained from delta request

Question

I am using Microsoft Graph API to access details about files in Sharepoint.

I am using the delta query request to get the list of files updated since my last fetch. Couple of questions -

1. If there is a file creation operation and then a delete operation and I then make a delta request, I only see the delete event. Is this guaranteed behaviour (that for multiple events on a single file, I will only get the latest state and not the intermediate states)?
2. If there is a delete operation on a file and then the file is restored from the recycle bin, the restore event's timestamp is the timestamp of the last update to the file. In other words, it is less than that of the delete. The restore event also appears to be indistinguishable from file creation / update events. Is there a way I can order the events correctly (so that restore is ordered after the delete)?

Answer 1

Hi @User3 ,

Welcome to Q&A forum!

Here are the answers to your questions:

• Delta Query Behavior: The behavior you’re experiencing with delta queries is a known characteristic of the API. When multiple operations occur on a file, such as creation followed by deletion, the delta query will reflect only the last state of that file (in this case, deletion). This is because each operation results in a new version or identity for the file in SharePoint Online, and once an operation completes successfully, previous versions are considered unchanged for subsequent requests. There isn’t a native way to retrieve intermediate states within a single delta request.
• Event Ordering: Similarly, event ordering can be tricky when dealing with restore operations from the recycle bin or other similar scenarios where events may seem identical but have different implications (such as delete vs. restore). Currently, there isn’t an inherent mechanism within SharePoint or its APIs to order these events differently based solely on their type.

There is currently no available method to do this, you can investigate customizing the application programming interfaces provided by Microsoft Graph to better suit your specific needs.

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