Add Forms to Package Template

You can package and deploy Forms with its associated and child artifacts from one environment or repository to another environment or repository.

The Overwrite option available in the Form Exists property overwrites the existing Form Definition of the workflow in the target environment with the latest while installing or updating the package even if the latest Form version is in Draft state. When you overwrite the Form Definition for the first time, it gets backed up. But if you roll back, then the backed up Form definition gets replaced with an existing Form definition.

The locked Forms will also get overwritten.

To add Forms to Package Template

1. Log on to the Enterprise Console.

2. In the Enterprise Console, click the Menu button, and then click Forms.

   The Forms window appears.

3. Select the form that you want to package.

4. Right-click on the form, and then click Add to Package Template.

   The Add to Package Template dialog box appears.

   For more information about adding artifacts to Package Template, see Adding Artifacts to a Package Template.

   You can set the configuration properties of Forms in the Add to Package Template window. The left side of the configuration window shows the package template and its configurations. You can set the configuration properties of the Forms package in the Settings form on the right side of the Add to Package Template window.

The status of the forms or folders created through the Forms page will be in Draft status. To add a form or a folder to a package template, you must first publish the form or the folder. Also ensure the form that you want to package is not disabled.

You can package and install a form to the target environment even if it is in a locked state, but in the target environment the locked state of the installed form is not retained.

Runtime Initialization Settings

You can configure runtime initialization settings for forms. For more information about configuring runtime initialization settings, see Runtime Initialization Settings.

Configuration Settings for Forms

Forms has a unique set of configuration settings required to install, update, and uninstall the package. You can view and edit the configuration settings from one of the following windows:

• Source Environment > Package Template window

• Target Environment > Manage Package window

Settings

You can define the configuration settings of Forms artifact in the Settings tab. Set the properties in this tab to take appropriate actions while installing, updating, or uninstalling the package.

Note: The Control Id field displays the complete position of the control in the form. For example: If the control with Id "H3" is used within a panel form with Id "P1", then the Control Id will be displayed as "P1.H3".

In the package template, an orange icon will appear for the Forms prompting you to rebuild it when the form is published, unpublished, or edited after it is added to the package template. Similarly, in the target environment if the form installed by the package is published, unpublished or edited, then while uninstalling the package the forms settings will be retained.

When a form in the package template is modified, ensure to perform a rebuild on the particular form. You can right-click the form from the left hand side configuration tree view in the package template, and click Complete Rebuild or Control Rebuild to rebuild the form.

• Complete Rebuild: Click Complete Rebuild to rebuild the particular form artifact in the package template. During complete rebuild, the install, update, or uninstall settings do not change. However, the settings done to resolve any control properties in the target section of the Settings form get cleared.

• Control Rebuild: Click Control Rebuild to rebuild only a modified form artifact. All settings done to resolve any control property in the target section of the Settings form does not get changed. Only the new values of the modified control get updated in the package. However, if you want to rename a control in the form, use the Complete Rebuild option.

Install

Use this tab to set the configurations for installing the package.

• Inherit Artifact Type Settings: Use this property to define whether the settings inherited from the artifact type or the settings configured at the artifact-level must be considered.

  • Yes: Select this option if the form must inherit the settings configured for the artifact type. If this option is selected, then the artifact type settings take precedence.

  • No: Select this option if the form must consider the settings configured at the artifact-level.The following options are available:

    Property	Description
    Install Form as Draft	Use this property to install the form. Yes: Select this option to install the form in the Draft status in the target environment. No: Select this option to install the form in the Published status in the target environment.
    Form Exists	Use this property to take appropriate action when the forms in the package is already present in the target environment. Existing forms will not be overwritten, hence you can choose to install it with a different version. Install as next major version: Select this option to install the forms as a next major version. Install as next minor version: Select this option to install the forms as a next minor version. Install as next version: Select this option to install the form as a next version. Overwrite latest (published) version: Select this option to overwrite the latest published version of form in the target environment. An existing Form Definition gets replaced with the Form Definition contained in this package. Do not install: Select this option if you do not want to install the form, as it is already present in the target environment.

• Associated Artifacts Not Present: Use this property to take appropriate action when the associated artifacts of the forms are not present in the target environment.

  • Install as draft: Select this option to install the forms in the Draft status, even if the associated artifacts are not present in the target environment.

  • Do not install: Select this option if you do not want to install the forms as its associated artifacts are not present.

• Workflow Version: See Forms Association for information.

  Note: Consider, the latest published form exists in the target environment, and the Overwrite latest (published) version option is selected. During package installation, the backup of the existing form is taken and stored in the database. And, the form in the target environment is overwritten with the packaged source definition.
  
  During Overwrite, the form name and the description does not get updated in the artifact Package Name (Version) column.

Update

Use the settings in this tab to update an installed package.

• Delete Form: Use this property to delete the form that is present in the target environment.

  • Yes: Select this option to remove the form from the target environment.

    Form is modified: Use this option to retain or delete the form in the target environment even after the package is updated. This property is applicable only if Delete Forms is set to Yes and the form is modified.

    • Retain: Select this option to retain the form along with the modifications, in the target environment.

    • Rollback to original state: Select this option to roll back the artifact to the backup taken. All modifications that were done to the Form after it was installed in the target environment will be reverted. However, the Form will remain in the target environment

    • Delete: Select this option to delete the form from the target environment.

  • No: Select this option to retain the form in the target environment. On selection of this option, the Install Forms as draft, Forms exist, and Associated artifacts not present options appear.

    Only when the Delete Form option is set to No, the Inherit Artifact Type Settings option is enabled.

• Inherit Artifact Type Settings: Use this property to define whether the settings inherited from the artifact type or the settings configured at the artifact-level must be considered.

  • Yes: Select this option if the form must inherit the settings configured for the artifact type. If this option is selected, then the artifact type settings take precedence.

  • No: Select this option if the form must consider the settings configured at the artifact-level. The following options are available:

    Property	Description
    Install Form as Draft	Use this property to install the form. Yes: Select this option to install the form in the Draft status in the target environment. No: Select this option to install the form in the Published status in the target environment.
    Form Exists	Use this property to take appropriate action when the forms in the package is already present in the target environment. Existing forms will not be overwritten, hence you can choose to install it with a different version. Install as next major version: Select this option to install the forms as a next major version. Install as next minor version: Select this option to install the forms as a next minor version. You can install the form as a next minor version up to 12 times only. Install as next version: Select this option to install the form as a next version. Overwrite latest (published) version: Select this option to overwrite the latest published version of form in the target environment. An existing Form Definition gets replaced with the Form Definition contained in this package. Do not install: Select this option if you do not want to install the form, as it is already present in the target environment.

• Associated Artifacts Not Present: Use this property to take appropriate action when the associated artifacts of the forms are not present in the target environment.

  • Update as draft: Select this option to update the forms in draft status, even if the associated artifacts are not present in the target environment.

  • Do not update: Select this option if you do not want to update the forms as its associated artifacts are not present.

  Note: Consider, the latest published form exists in the target environment, and the Overwrite latest (published) version option is selected. During package update, the backup of the existing form is not be taken if available; and taken if not available. And, the form in the target environment is overwritten with the packaged source definition.
  
  During Overwrite, the form name and the description does not get updated in the artifact Package Name (Version) column.

Uninstall

Use this tab to configure the settings when the package is being uninstalled from the target environment.

• Delete Forms: Use this property to retain or delete the forms in the target environment even after the package is uninstalled. If the forms is a dynamic form and it is associated to a list, then you cannot delete the dynamic form until the list is deleted.

  • Yes: Select this option to remove the form from the target environment when the package is uninstalled.

  • No: Select this option to retain the form in the target environment even after the package is uninstalled.

• Form is modified: Use this property to retain or delete the forms in the target environment even after the package is uninstalled. This property is displayed only if Delete Forms is set to Yes. However, if Delete Forms is set to No, this property is not displayed.

  • Retain: Select this option to retain the form along with the modifications even after the package is uninstalled.

  • Rollback to original state: Select this option to roll back the artifact to the backup taken. All modifications that were done to the Form after it was installed in the target environment will be reverted. However, the Form will remain in the target environment

  • Delete: Select this option to delete the form from the target environment.

    Note:
    - During package uninstall, with the Rollback to original state option selected, the overwritten from definition is replaced with backup data, and the backup from the database gets deleted.
    - During rollback, the form name and the description does not get updated in the artifact Package Name (Version) column.
    - When a Form is locked by another user, you cannot overwrite or install new versions of the same Form through the package.
    - When a Form in the package is in the Published state, and you select Install Form as Draft option as Yes, while install or update, the Form will be in the Published state when you overwrite it.
    - When all the Form versions are in the Draft state, the latest Form version is overwritten when you overwrite the Form.

Associated Artifacts of Forms

The Associated Artifacts tab displays all the associated artifacts of the selected forms.

The following artifacts can appear as Associated Artifacts if you are using any one of the following artifacts while designing the forms:

• Parent Folder

• Lookup

• SOA Assembly

• Data Grid Configuration

• Data Grid View

• Report Viewer with the Embed and Pop-up option

• Report Viewer with the Export option

• Invoke Workflow

• Associated Workflow

• Container Control

• Forms Tree Control

When you set the Include Associated Artifacts option to Yes, while adding the form to a package template, then the associated artifacts are added to the package template, and it also allows you to view the associated artifacts of the form in the tree view of the package. If you set the Include Associated Artifacts option to No, then the associated artifacts are not added to the package template, and are also not visible in the tree view of the package.

Note: If a SOA Assembly is registered through a Web Service and a physical path (dll), by default the Web Service is a static method and the physical path can be a static or non- static method. While packaging forms that does not use SOA Assembly, by default the static objects of the registered SOA Assembly is considered as an associated artifact.

Child Artifacts of Forms

The Child Artifacts tab displays all the child forms or folders that are published.

Forms can include the following child artifacts:

• Folder

• Child Form

Include Child Item

For more information, see Include Child Item.

The child item can also be another folder. When you add the child item, all the associated artifacts, child artifacts, and security artifacts of the child item also gets added to the package template. You can add up to top three levels of child item. To know more about adding a folder as child item, see Child Folder.

Security Artifacts

The Security Artifacts tab displays all the security artifacts of Forms, if any. You can enable the security settings of the forms that you want to include in the package. For more information about including security artifacts, see Include Security Artifacts.

Forms Settings Grid

This section is applicable only when you have Forms with Hyperlink or Image controls.

While installing, the package does not validate the images of the forms control in the target repository or environment. You can take appropriate action using the Forms Settings Grid property when forms include controls such as hyperlink or images. You can use the Forms Settings Grid to make any correction to the source property value by providing the correct information in the given target property value during the design or install time. If you do not specify the target property in the Forms Settings Grid during design time, you can specify the settings during the install time in the target properties or else it will take the values specified in the source property value during installation.

• For more information about control settings of a hyperlink, see Resolving Hyperlink.

• For more information about control settings of an image, see Resolving Image.

Resolve Version Details for Invoke Workflow

During package installation, you can resolve the version details of Invoke Workflow artifacts.

For more information about resolving version details of Invoke Workflow, see Resolving Invoke Workflow.

Rebuild Scenario

When you rebuild a form that was edited after adding it to the package template, the package template retains the old data in the settings form, but considers only the latest record. This does not affect the functionality of the forms that is rebuilt. For example, consider a form that contains a Hyperlink control which points to an employee URL. After adding the forms to the package template, consider that the Hyperlink control is modified to customer URL. When you rebuild forms, the Settings form will contain the employee URL but upon installation, will consider the customer URL.

Pop-Up control will always point to the latest version of the form.