What is Content Type Hub and How to Configure in SharePoint 2013 ?

What is the Purpose of it ?

Introduced in SharePoint 2010

How to Configure the Content Type Hub?

Let us see, how to use the content type hub in SharePoint 2013.

Let us see that with step by step procedures.

1. Let us create our SiteCollection for the Content Type Hub

                                        Create Site Collection

Once its created, Click on Site SettingsàManage Site Collection Features.

Activate Content Type Syndication Hub feature

You  can see the created Site Columns 

  Now Create a new content Type  add these Site Columns to It

   Add Existing Site Columns

Click on Manage publishing for this content type and Select Publish and click ok 

Note: This Link only gets enabled if we activate Content Type Syndication Feature.

Click it Manage publishing for this content type and Select Republish and click ok

Now go to Site Setting à Under Site Collection Administration àContent Type Publishing.

You can see the published content types here.

 If you are not able to see that immediately, there is a timer job which needs to run. This timer is configured as Hourly basis by default. We can execute this time manually also. The timer is “Content Type Subscriber”. 

Create new Site Collection or  Web Application   Goto Site Settings  Site Content Types

This is the way of Configuring the Content Hub

Below are some of the limitations/FAQ about content type hubs:


1. Which field types are supported? Custom fields and external data columns are not supported(you cannot create external data columns in the content type gallery).
 
2. What happens if a web application is member of two different Content Type Hubs? The default Managed Metadata Service(MMS) gets the priority and will be your content type hub. However, if you customize the service application associations for the web application, you can select the appropriate MMS application proxy for the content type hub.
3. What happens if a user changing a synchronized Content Type inside the Target Site Collection? The subscribed content types are marked 'read only' in the target site collection. Users are unable to manage/change the synchronized content types inside the target site collection. Changes to the content type should always be made in the content type hub and republihsed to push the changes to the subscribed sites.
4. What happens with content types within the sub-site structure? 
Content type subscription is a site collection level feature, so you consume the content types in the top root web and it flows down the sub-sites.
5. Are Workflows supported and if yes what are the limitations? Unfortunately workflows are not supported. However, once you have your content type published to the target site collection, you can create and associate workflows to the subscribed content types in the target site.
Update:  on associating workflows with published content types. As always, you are able to still create list workflows in the target site collection instead of associating with the content type if required.
 
6. What happens with document templates? Document templates associated with the content type are also published along with the subscribed content type.
 
7. What happens with Document Set content Types? Yes, you can subscribe to document set content types. In this case, all the dependent content types with the document set & the document set itself will be published to the target site. However, you should have the Document set feature activated in the target site.
8. What about feature dependencies? Feature dependencies are not activated automatically in the target site collection. Thus, they need to be activated manually before the subscription process, else the content type publishing job will fail in the target site collection for that subscribed content type. Best example is when you subscribe to document set content types
Thanks