Embedding SharePoint Docs in Articulate Rise Courses
Jun 27, 2023
I have previously embedded MS forms into Rise courses in Articulate. We initially had issues with a handful of people viewing the iFrame (they got a 'companyname.sharepoint.com could not connect' error) but this was resolved when we added 'https://forms.office.com' and the root URLs of the LMS and eLearning course launcher for the LMS to our 'Exceptions' list in MS Edge (our default browser) for our users.
Now however, I'm trying to embed a Document housed within a Document Library in a subsite of our internal company SharePoint into a Rise course.
Embed code as follows:
<iframe src="https://companyname.sharepoint.com/:w:/r/sites/Department/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc=%7B9fb5639f-3bc7-4d0d-85cf-b228cdac8e69%7D&action=view" width="90%" height="480px"></iframe>
This time everyone in testing gets the 'companyname.sharepoint.com could not connect' error. I've tried to add the root URL for the SharePoint document library to the Exceptions list in my Edge browser in case this was caused by the same issue as before, but this doesn't resolve it.
I have also tried simply pasting the document URL into the embed area but this shows a 'Sign in' link for Microsoft Online rather than displaying the document (our systems use SSO so users should never be required to login).
It's worth noting that in the SharePoint document options there is actually an 'Embed' option. That spits out the following code but when I try to enter this in Rise, I get an error in Rise Embed block saying 'Please enter a valid URL or iframe'.
Embed code from SharePoint:
<iframe src="https://companyname.sharepoint.com/sites/SiteName/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc={9fb5639f-3bc7-4d0d-85cf-b228cdac8e69}&action=embedview" width="476px" height="288px" frameborder="0">This is an embedded <a target="_blank" href="https://office.com">Microsoft Office</a> document, powered by <a target="_blank" href="https://office.com/webapps">Office</a>.</iframe>
11 Replies
Hi Emily,
Can you try removing this part from the Embed code coming from Sharepoint (including the dot)?
This is an embedded <a target="_blank" href="https://office.com">Microsoft Office</a> document, powered by <a target="_blank" href="https://office.com/webapps">Office</a>.So the embed code should just be:
<iframe src="https://companyname.sharepoint.com/sites/SiteName/_layouts/15/Doc.aspx?sourcedoc={9fb5639f-3bc7-4d0d-85cf-b228cdac8e69}&action=embedview" width="476px" height="288px" frameborder="0"></iframe>Try it out and see if that helps!
Also, if anyone in the community is familiar with Sharepoint, feel free to share your input regarding how best to embed the content. Thanks!
Christopher you are a genius! This worked! Thankyou so much you have saved me a massive headache!
Hi Folks!
I've tried this workaround, and it still throws this error. Any suggestions?

Hi Jon,
Based on the error, it looks like the URL that you entered may be restricted or invalid. Try copying and pasting the URL into your browser to see if it will open. You'll also want to make sure that the URL is accessible externally.
If your URL is accessible, please share your iframe code here or in private by opening a case so we can check why it isn't loading properly.
Hello there,
I am experiencing a similar issue.
I have created a SharePoint page that I would like to include in a Rise course with embed code and am getting the message "companyname.sharepoint.com refused to connect."
I'm kind of winging it with the embed code; I used the direct link to the page as the iframe src.
Alternatively, I would be happy with being able to embed a pdf document into the course. The big picture is that I'd like learners to be able to scroll through the document while inside Rise -- a solution that works in a manner similar to SharePoint's File and Media web part.
Is this possible? If so, how?
In cases like these, I've learned that embedding is always perilous and that it is better to just link out to the document in a separate browser window. Even if you get it to work today, some security update is likely to break it down the road.
In this case Sharepoint doesn't like being embedded in another website's domain.
The problem that I've experienced trying to connect to SharePoint, is that Rise and our LMS exist outside of the company firewall.
So even if the SP URL is correct, it will not connect as the request is coming from outside the company firewall.
That's not exactly what I wanted to hear, but I'm not surprised.
What about a PDF?
You could try this method: https://community.articulate.com/discussions/rise-360/embed-a-pdf-into-a-rise-course#reply-648884
The caveat to that method is that your PDF will be stored on and accessed from a public server hosted by Articulate. I imagine if that the author who uploaded the PDF cancels their Articulate 360 license that it could get deleted.
Here is an example from a test I just did of what the URL would look like:
https://articulateusercontent.com/rise/courses/GI-A0ERv86WBIeGVfV1HM9j-Qzpyor9i/nLWDnyd5y4YHN1H_-IDF_Working_with_a_Cornerstone_IDF_log_file.pdf
This worked! Thanks, Will!