Adding OneNote OCR text to Copilot Graph

Hi @Jim Frey
Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.

To better assist you, could you please confirm details below:

• Is the OneNote notebook stored in your personal folder or a shared team site?
• Can you search and find the OCR text when using OneNote on your computer?
• Which app are you using Copilot in when trying to access the OCR text (like Word, Teams, or Outlook)?

In the meantime, you could try some steps below:

1. Copy the OCR text into the page
   Copilot may not see text inside images. If possible, paste the OCR text directly into the OneNote page as regular text.
2. Use Copilot Notebook
   You can create a Copilot Notebook and add the OneNote page or the copied text. This helps Copilot understand and use the content better.
3. Check file sharing settings
   Open the OneNote file in SharePoint or OneDrive, click the Share button, and check who has access. Make sure you and others can view the file.
4. Ask your admin to check SharePoint permissions
   Copilot needs permission to read files. Your admin can check:
   • If the SharePoint site and library allow Copilot access
     • If there are any sensitivity labels or restrictions
       • If your account has the right Copilot license
5. Ask your admin about Microsoft Syntex OCR
   If your company uses Microsoft Syntex, it can help Copilot read text from images. This needs to be turned on by an admin.

Note: Please understand that our initial response does not always resolve the issue immediately. However, with your help and more detailed information, we can work together to find a solution.        

 Your detailed response will help us diagnose and investigate the issue more efficiently. If I misunderstood what you’re looking for, feel free to let me know or share a screenshot. I’d be happy to help further!

 Thank you for your cooperation. I'm looking forward for your reply.

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• Is the OneNote notebook stored in your personal folder or a shared team site?
  • shared team site
• Can you search and find the OCR text when using OneNote on your computer?
  • yes it works well on onenote for windows
• Which app are you using Copilot in when trying to access the OCR text (like Word, Teams, or Outlook)?
  • copilot the standalone webpage

Thank you for your help.

Hi @Jim Frey
I hope this message finds you well. Please accept my sincere apologies for the delayed response.

Currently, Copilot’s standalone “Work” mode does not index OCR text from images embedded in OneNote pages, even though OneNote itself can recognize and search this content. This limitation stems from how Copilot relies on Microsoft Graph Search, which does not ingest OCR data from OneNote images by default.

To address this, we recommend the following approaches:

1.Manual Copy-Paste

Use OneNote’s “Copy Text from Picture” feature to manually paste OCR text into the page. This makes the content visible to Copilot immediately.

• Pros: Simple and effective.
• Cons: Labor-intensive and duplicates content.

2.Copilot Notebook/Context Injection

Add the OCR text or OneNote page to a Copilot Notebook or session context to improve response accuracy.

• Pros: Preserves original notes.
• Cons: Feature availability may vary.

3.Verifying permissions

Ensure the OneNote file stored on SharePoint is properly shared and that Copilot licenses are active. This step ensures Copilot can access the content.

4.Enabling Microsoft Syntex OCR (Admin-Level)

This enterprise-grade solution automatically extracts and indexes image text across SharePoint, making it accessible to Copilot.

• Pros: Scalable, supports 150+ languages, integrates with Microsoft Search.
• Cons: Requires admin setup, licensing, and may incur Azure usage costs.

Final recommendation

For immediate needs, manual copy-paste is a practical workaround. For long-term scalability, enabling Syntex OCR is the most robust solution. It ensures Copilot can retrieve image-based text from OneNote stored on SharePoint, while maintaining security and compliance.

Thank you for your cooperation.

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