An internal service-desk coordinator is preparing a reply about connecting a laptop to a meeting-room display. The library contains an old release, the instruction in force today, an approved replacement for next week and a draft edited this morning. Sorting by "Modified" would put the draft first.
The coordinator should identify which owner-approved instruction applies to the requested date and equipment, then bind the reply draft to that exact version. Preparing the reference does not authorize sending the reply or changing the instruction.
This is a proposed MAJLS operating design, not a deployed integration. Every document, receipt, date, device group and request below is synthetic and illustrative. The example contains no hardware directions.
Separate repository state from business applicability
Microsoft documents three possible current file versions in SharePoint: checked-out, latest minor/draft and latest published/major.[1] It describes a major version as usually representing a milestone such as review or publication, while a minor version is work in progress.[1] That distinction does not supply this example's equipment scope or effective-date rule.
Content approval and visibility also depend on configuration: Microsoft describes approval before visibility to specific users, but warns that some read-permission configurations expose items regardless of Approved status.[2] It also states that enabling content approval in a library with existing items marks those items Approved.[2]
For this proposed workflow, a readable file, major number or Approved badge is insufficient. Require the documentation owner's version-specific approval evidence and applicability fields. A recently edited filename is only a retrieval clue.
Filled example: one instruction, four versions
The fictional Office Documentation Owner maintains document MRD-01, "Meeting-room display connection overview." Its scope is internal office users and equipment group Display-N. The register uses date-only values: effective-from is inclusive; superseded-from is exclusive. An explicitly recorded "None scheduled" end leaves an approved interval open; an absent field means hold. This convention is owner-defined for the example, not an automatic SharePoint rule.
| Version / repository label | Owner receipt | Effective from | Superseded from | Scope |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A / Approved, historical | DEMO-OWN-A | 2026-09-01 | 2026-09-20 | Internal / Display-N |
| B / Approved, released | DEMO-OWN-B | 2026-09-20 | 2026-10-10 | Internal / Display-N |
| C / Approved, released | DEMO-OWN-C | 2026-10-10 | None scheduled | Internal / Display-N |
| D / Pending, draft | None | Unassigned | Unassigned | Internal / Display-N |
Receipts A, B and C are dated August 28, September 18 and October 2 respectively. Each synthetic receipt binds MRD-01, the exact version, scope and interval. D was modified October 3, after C's October 2 edit; that recency does not make D eligible.
The companion register gives every row a stable version locator: ILLUSTRATIVE-LIB/MRD-01/A#connection-overview, with B, C or D substituted for A. These are fictional source references, not live links. All four sources are accessible in this tabletop; a real implementation must establish permitted access and successful version-specific retrieval rather than assuming it.
In this conservative tabletop, hold an approved row whose receipt is dated after its recorded effective start. Select a version only when its verified owner receipt covers the document and scope, approval predates or matches the applicability date, and:
effective_from <= applicability_date < superseded_from
Omit the right comparison only for an explicitly open-ended interval. Require exactly one eligible version. Do not break a tie by filename, version number or edit time.
Decision table: calculate the boundaries
Here, "applicability date" means the date the requester intends to use the instruction, not the date the coordinator opens the ticket. Ask if that date is unclear.
| Requested use date | Equipment / audience | Result | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-09-19 | Display-N / internal | A | Before A's exclusive end |
| 2026-09-20 | Display-N / internal | B | B starts as A ends |
| 2026-10-04 | Display-N / internal | B | C is approved but not effective; D lacks approval |
| 2026-10-09 | Display-N / internal | B | Last date before B's exclusive end |
| 2026-10-10 | Display-N / internal | C | C starts as B ends |
| 2026-10-11 | Display-N / internal | C | C remains effective |
| 2026-10-04 | Display-S / internal | Hold | No matching equipment scope |
The companion calculation script reproduces these results from the register. They are simulated selections, not service outcomes or proof that a repository enforces effectivity. The review package contains those supporting files; no live download or integration is claimed here.
Reply-draft reference and rejected shortcut
For the October 4 request, the prepared reference is:
Illustrative internal draft; not sent. Request DEMO-REQ-04; intended use 2026-10-04; internal / Display-N; source MRD-01/B; locator ILLUSTRATIVE-LIB/MRD-01/B#connection-overview; owner evidence DEMO-OWN-B. Interpretation and circulation await the human Service-desk Lead's approval.
Reject the competing draft reference, "Use MRD-01/D because it was edited most recently." D has neither an owner receipt nor an effective interval. Do not copy operational directions from it, and do not quietly replace B with C because C has approval.
Keep the selected version reference with the reply draft. If the intended use date changes to October 10, re-run selection and rebuild the draft reference before review. That is a new applicability check, not permission to retire B or restore an old repository version.
Hold checklist and human resolution
- If two approved intervals overlap, hold the draft and show both version IDs and conflicting dates to the Office Documentation Owner.
- If no interval applies, or the scope/date is unclear, request the missing applicability decision. Do not extend a previous interval yourself.
- If approval evidence is missing, inherited only from a repository badge, or bound to different dates or scope, hold for a matching owner receipt.
- If the exact source cannot be retrieved through permitted access, hold. Do not substitute a cached excerpt or change permissions.
Record each hold against the request: discrepancy, affected versions, owner, required evidence and restart state. Model confidence cannot resolve an authority gap. In a simulated overlap where B ends October 12 while C starts October 10, neither draft advances until the documentation owner confirms corrected intervals and matching receipts. Then re-run the date/scope check and have the Service-desk Lead review the resulting reference. The example's resolution state is "awaiting owner decision," not an invented successful fix.
A proposed Virtual Employee may read permitted sources, compare those explicit fields and prepare a private draft. It may not approve, edit, restore or publish instructions, alter access, send replies or operate equipment. Consequential approval remains with the named human Office Documentation Owner and Service-desk Lead within their respective authority.
Start with one controlled instruction history. Fill the register, confirm the date convention with its owner and test the day before, day of and day after a release boundary before connecting the preparation role to real requests.