Converting InfoPath forms including all attachments to a single PDF file

Posted at: 11:15 on 19 August 2010 by Muhimbi

Attachment Over the next few days I will be writing about the new features in our the PDF Converter for SharePoint 4.0 and PDF Converter API and Server Platform. As this release is a big one it won’t all fit in one post, so stay tuned and consider subscribing to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter.

In today’s post I will explain the new functionality that allows files attached to InfoPath forms using the File Attachment control to be converted to PDF together with the main InfoPath form. All files will be merged into a single PDF file that contains both the InfoPath form and all attachments.

 

This all works amazingly, in summary the functionality is as follows:

  1. Automatic attachment conversion is enabled by default. Change the InfoPathConverterFullFidelity.ConvertAttachments setting in the Muhimbi service’s config file to False to disable conversion of attachments.
     
  2. You don’t need to know anything about the form that is being converted, nor do you need any programming knowledge, this functionality is truly universal. All attachments located on the views that are being converted are automatically picked up, including attachments in Repeating Sections and Repeating Tables. Attachments located on views that are not being converted are automatically skipped.
     
  3. All document types supported by the Muhimbi PDF Conversion engine are recognised. Files that are not supported are automatically skipped. For a full list of supported file formats see the Specification tab on the main product page.
     
  4. Naturally attached PDF files are merged in as well, which is great for such attachments as scanned receipts or received faxes.
     
  5. Do not attempt to attach an InfoPath form inside another form. This will result in an error.
     
  6. This functionality works hand-in-hand with the new Export Multiple Views functionality that I will outline in an upcoming post.
     
  7. As all this work is carried out inside Muhimbi’s core conversion engine, any additional conversion settings such as watermarks and security settings are automatically applied to all pages of the combined PDF file.

 image Convert Expense Reports with attached receipts to a single PDF

 
So, a very useful new feature that provides powerful new functionality to our customers. As always, upgrades are completely free. Don’t hesitate to leave a comment below if you have any questions or contact us to discuss any of our products.

.




Labels: , , , , , ,

14 Comments:

  • Can you post the finished product of what it looks like once its converted?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 23 July, 2012 18:06  

  • Happy to send you a copy, please email support@muhimbi.com

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 23 July, 2012 18:15  

  • We have thousands of Infopath forms in Sharepoint 2003, could we use this tool to convert those maybe via unc path ?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 05 September, 2012 00:58  

  • Yes you can, please contact support@muhimbi.com for details.

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 05 September, 2012 06:46  

  • Hi, I have tried to implement this feature. However, the resulting pdf file contains only the icon of the attached file but not the attached file. The icon isn't linked to the attached file.

    Do you know how this issues can be solved?

    Thanks,

    Beatriz

    By Anonymous Beatriz, At 07 November, 2012 06:08  

  • Hi Beatriz,

    The attachment is added to the end of the PDF. You can scroll down or navigate there using the bookmark pane of your PDF reader.

    BTW, There is no need to send the same question to our support desk and blog comments. I know it is rare nowadays, but we do get them all and respond asap. :-)

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 07 November, 2012 09:10  

  • i want to use the code in infopath form in button sumbit can it is possible or can u guide for it

    thanks
    biswadev

    By Blogger Unknown, At 16 April, 2013 12:46  

  • Hi Biswadev,

    When using InfoPath, what will give you the best and most easy experience is to create a very simple SharePoint Designer or Nintex Workflow that is triggered when the form is saved into the Document Library. You can even check the status of an InfoPath exported field in your workflow before you make the decision to convert to PDF. There are many examples in the User Guide included in the download and on-line at http://blog.muhimbi.com/2009/12/batch-print-infopath-forms-using-pdf.html

    If you prefer to directly invoke our webservices interface from InfoPath for some reason then you will need to use C# or vb.net from 'code behind' in combination with Visual Studio.

    Adding web references differs slightly between InfoPath versions. For details see the following 2 blog posts:

    http://blog.muhimbi.com/2011/01/invoking-pdf-converter-web-service-from.html

    http://blog.muhimbi.com/2009/12/converting-office-files-to-pdf-format.html

    If you have any other questions then please contact us at support@muhimbi.com so it handled by our support desk.

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 16 April, 2013 15:30  

  • how can i convert infopath form in Webpart in sharepoint 2013

    By Blogger Unknown, At 05 September, 2014 13:46  

  • Hi Davindra,

    I am sure we a solution for you, but I don't understand your question.

    Please contact support@muhimbi.com with details.

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 05 September, 2014 14:06  

  • Do you have a way to convert InfoPath 2013 forms to JSONLint?

    By Blogger Gregg, At 17 September, 2018 22:48  

  • Hi Gregg,

    I know what InfoPath is, I know what JSONLint is, what I don't know is how or why they would ever be used together. I am sure you have a good reason though.

    The short answer is 'No'. Our software converts filled out InfoPath forms to PDF, Word, Excel or HTML.

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 18 September, 2018 10:07  

  • hi there,
    We're looking for a solution to batch print several items (each item opens up in InfoPath) to pdf. Basically, the user selects a group and then hits a button and then the entire selected items get converted to pdf and gets saved in a folder in SharePoint Online. Is that possible with your software?

    By Anonymous Anonymous, At 15 October, 2018 20:57  

  • That is indeed possible, although I'd start testing with individual files first to make sure they come out correctly. Then work with support@muhimbi.com to fine tune or optimise.

    It is simply a matter of installing our App as per https://support.muhimbi.com/hc/en-us/articles/228090827-Installing-the-PDF-Converter-for-SharePoint-Online-App

    You also have the option to use our software from Microsoft Flow (just search for Muhimbi PDF when inserting new steps), SharePoint Designer workflows or our API.

    Drop support@muhimbi.com a line when you have questions.

    By Blogger Muhimbi, At 16 October, 2018 11:04  

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

Subscribe to News feed

Headlines
Archives