There are two slightly different types of Related item columns one is what is called a ‘Lookup Column’, This allows you to link to any items from a particular location in the current subsite. The other option is a ‘Related Items’ column which allows you to link to almost any item in SharePoint however it does have a few significant drawbacks.

Lookup Column Setup

Setting up the column

1. To set up this column select the task list you’re wanting to customize by clicking anywhere on one of the tasks until the ‘List’ Menu appears at the top-left of SharePoint.
2. Open the List menu and click Create Column which should open a pop-up.
3. Where it says Column Name enter a relevant name for the type of content that this column will link to.
4. Next choose the type of column, as you can see there are a lot of options and each has its use. We’re going to select “Lookup (information already on this site)” as this is the type that links to any content from a location.
5. Next we want to change the drop down below “Get information from:“, in my case I changed it to “Doc – Uncontrolled” as I want to link to documents, however select any area you’re wanting to link to.
6. Next you will most likely want to change the drop-down below “In this column:” as this will be the data shown in the column, in my case I changed it to Title however your choice will depend on what you’re linking to.
7. Depending on how you will use this column you may want to enable “Allow multiple values” which will allow you to select multiple documents, or whatever content you’ve chosen to display. This will however remove the ability to sort by this column.
8. Next Click OK to create the new column.
9. Now you will need to add this column to any view you use so that you can see it, to do this click Modify View inside the List menu.
10. now Check the name of the new column you just created and click OK to apply the change and it will be added to the right end of the current view of the task list.

Related Items Column

Setting Up the Column

1. To setup this type of column for ‘most’ lists is very easy, it is generally already a part of the list by default however it’s not by default visible in any views.
2. Firstly go to the view you wish to add the related Items column to.
3. Click LIST in the ribbon to open the List menu bar, then click Modify View.
4. Under the Columns heading check the Related Items box.
5. Click OK to apply changes, you should now see a column called related Items in the view you just changed.

Adding Related Items

1. To add related items to tasks, click the ellipsis in the row containing the file you wish to add a related item to then click the ellipses in the pop-up to open the more items menu.
2. Click SHOW MORE to reveal further options and you will see the Related Items section, click ADD RELATED ITEM.