1. Confirm the SharePoint App is Active

In this step, you confirm the SharePoint App is active in your site collection. Without the app properly registered, deployed, and activated, you cannot build application elements such as SmartForms or workflows from a SharePoint list or library. To begin, create a new subsite (optional) for building tutorials. You create a new list to test if the app is already activated to the subsite. If not, there are instructions for completing the registration, deployment, and activation of the app.

Recent changes to SharePoint online include a new user interface (UI). It is most notable in lists and libraries where the ribbon toolbar is no longer present. The new UI (referred to as "modern") is the default experience; however, you can switch back to what is known as classic SharePoint at any time. For more information, refer to the Knowledge Base article: SharePoint Online User Interface changes.
The screenshots and instructions for third-party software are accurate at the time of writing. Third-party vendors may have changed or updated aspects of their systems (such as user interfaces, functionality, and security). As a result, this content may be outdated.
  1. Create a subsite. Add a new subsite to build and store your applications. This step is optional, but may be useful if you have multiple users working on tutorials from the same SharePoint location.
    1. If you do not know how to add a subsite, contact your SharePoint administrator for instructions specific to your environment. Throughout this tutorial, there are references to your SharePoint site. Keep in mind, this refers to your subsite if you create one, or to your root site, if you do not create a subsite.
  2. Confirm the Nintex K2 app deployment and activation. Begin by checking your site to see if the Nintex K2 for SharePoint app is already deployed and activated for the site collection you are working in. Navigate to the Site Contents page and look for the Nintex K2 app icon under the Contents heading. If you see the Nintex K2 app icon, the app is deployed at the site level and you can skip to Step 3, creating a test list. If the Nintex K2 icon is not there, the app is not deployed to the site collection. You must deploy it first to continue. See Adding the for SharePoint app for instructions.
    1. From your site collection home page, navigate to the Site Contents page and confirm you see the Nintex K2 app icon. If you see the icon, the app is deployed to the site collection. You still need to confirm the app is active for the site collection, however.
      If you do not see the Nintex K2 app icon on the Site Contents page, it is likely the app is not deployed to the site collection. See the product documentation for instructions on Adding the for SharePoint app.
      Site Contents Link
      The Nintex K2 app icon
      K2 Five for SharePoint App Icon
  3. Create a test list. From your site collection, create a new List and name it App Test. You do not need to add any other columns or make any other adjustments. You will use this list to confirm if the SharePoint app is active for this site collection. After you create the list, open it. Confirm there is a menu called K2 and it has the Application, Report, and Worklist icons. If the K2 menu is there, the app is active for this site collection. You can continue to the next topic using the link at the bottom of this page. If you do not see the K2 menu or icons, follow the steps in the Adding the K2 for SharePoint app section to activate the Nintex K2 app for your site collection.
    1. The easiest way to determine if the Nintex K2 app is active for your site collection is to create a new list or library, then look for the K2 menu in the menu bar. If the app is active, the K2 menu is added to each new list and library. If the K2 menu is not there, then the app is not active for this site collection and you need to activate it. Begin by creating a test SharePoint list. From your site collection home page, click the New icon, then select List. Name the test list
      App Test
      and click Create.
      Create New List
    2. From the list landing page, you should see the K2 menu. (You may have to click the ellipses to expand the menu options.) Click the K2 menu and confirm you see the Application, Report, and Worklist options. The menu and options indicate the app is active at the site collection level you are working in. Continue to the next topic using the link found at the bottom of this page. If you do not see the K2 menu, follow the steps in the Adding the K2 for SharePoint app section to activate the app.
      In the image below, the list landing page does not show the K2 menu; Nintex K2 is not activated for the site collection.
      K2 Menu Not Shown
      In the image below, the list landing page shows the K2 menu; Nintex K2 is activated for the site collection.
      K2 Menu Shown

If you have followed the steps above and find that the Nintex K2 app is either not deployed or not activated, use the following steps to configure the app. Depending on your environment, you may not have to perform all the steps below. If necessary, contact your SharePoint administrator for help.

Configuring the K2 for SharePoint app consists of the following steps:
Install > Register > Deploy > Activate

First, you must install and deploy the app to the root site collection App Catalog. This step is generally part of the Nintex K2 product installation or upgrade process and may already be complete.
Deploying the Nintex K2 for SharePoint app during installation

After the Nintex K2 product installation or upgrade process completes, you must register the app against the server. The third step is to deploy the app to the site collection(s) where you will allow (or trust) the app (which establishes permissions and connection between Nintex K2 and the site collection). After deploying the app, you can activate it for use in site collections, which simply means enabling features such as service instances, management SmartObjects, and list and library menu options. You can configure the deployment and activate steps to run automatically so that when you add new subsites, Nintex K2 discovers them, then deploys and activates the app for you. Once you have activated the app for a site collection, it is ready for use within the site and subsites.

  1. Confirm the app is installed by navigating to the root site collection's App Catalog. You can access this page via SharePoint Central Administration > Apps > Manage App Catalog. Generally speaking, you install the app during the SharePoint integration when installing or upgrading the Nintex K2 product. You should see the app listed under Apps for SharePoint. If it is not, contact your SharePoint technical support team for assistance.
    1. Navigate to the App Catalog associated with the root site collection you are working in. The App Catalog is found in Central Administration > Apps > Manage App Catalog. If necessary, change the web application to the application you are working in. Click the Site URL to open the App Catalog.
    2. Confirm the K2 for SharePoint app is listed. The image below reflects the K2 Five for SharePoint app. The K2 for SharePoint app will have a slightly different title.

      3. If you can see an entry for the app, then its installation is complete and you can continue with the Deploy steps. If the app is not displayed, then you must install it first to the App Catalog.

  2. Install the K2 for SharePoint app. Nintex K2 product installation steps can vary, depending on your environment. Contact your support team for help with installing the app.
    1. For full details, see the product documentation on installing or updating the K2 for SharePoint app. The following instructions will use K2 Five for SharePoint as the demonstration images.
    2. From the App Catalog, navigate to the Site Contents.
      Site Contents
    3. Click New and select App.
      Add an App
    4. Under the Apps you can add heading, click the K2 Five for SharePoint icon. (The app may have a different name, depending on the Nintex K2 product you are working with.)
      Apps You Can Add
    5. On the Do you trust K2 for SharePoint screen, click Trust It.(The app may have a different name, depending on the Nintex K2 product you are working with.)

      The app will be added. During this time, the app icon will be grayed out with a message that reads Nintex K2 is adding the app. When you see the full-color icon, the app has been added. (The app icon may have a different name, depending on the Nintex K2 product you are working with.)
      K2 App Icons
  3. Register the app against the server. This step establishes the connection between the Nintex K2 for SharePoint app and the server, along with authentication protocols. Click the app icon on the Site Contents page to launch the registration process. You will need the URL of your server to complete this step.
    1. From the App Catalog > Site Contents page, click the Nintex K2 for SharePoint app icon to begin the registration process.
    2. On the Configure Link to server page, enter the URL to your server, then click Next.

      3. Nintex K2 will validate the URL. You will see the Configuring server Settings screen. This is where the configuration for authentication protocols, the SharePoint service broker and application settings take place.

      If you see an error indicating a newer version of the app is available, you must update the current app before continuing.
      • From the App Catalog, open Site Contents.
      • Locate the K2 for SharePoint app, then click the ellipses and select Details.
      • On the K2 for SharePoint page, click GET IT.
      • Click TRUST IT on the Do you trust K2 for SharePoint pop-up.
      • The installer will update the app to the current version.
      • Re-run the registration wizard.
    3. Click Finish after you see a green check next to each configuration. You should be on the App Catalog > K2 for SharePoint page.
      Deploying the App
  4. Deploy the app to your site collections     to make it available for activation at the site collection level. You can deploy the app to the root site collection, then activate it later to only those sites and subsites where you want to use it.

    Now that you have registered the app, you will deploy it to any site collections where you want to use it. Unless you have security policies in place that dictate otherwise, deploy the app to the root site collection where you will use it. You can choose which sites and subsites to activate the app for later. This gives more granular control over where you can use the app.

    To deploy the K2 for SharePoint app, we recommend you have Global Admin or Tenant Admin rights. You can only deploy the app from the App Catalog.
    1. On the App Catalog > K2 for SharePoint page, scroll down to the Administration heading. Click Manage App Deployments (SharePoint). (You can collapse the welcome section to make it easier to find, if you like.)
    2. You should be on the Manage App Deployments > K2 for SharePoint page. Begin by entering the URL of the root site collection you are deploying the app to into the Enter a site collection to deploy to text box,
      then click Add (the button is just right of the text box). The site collection will be displayed in the Site collections to deploy to box.
      Even if you created a subsite earlier, the best practice is to deploy the app at the root level. From there, you can activate the app to specific site collections or subsites if desired. At the root level, the app is available across all sites.
    3. In the Managed Paths section, click to highlight All Paths, then click the Add button just right of the Available managed paths box. See the image above for reference, if needed.
      4. If you have managed paths within your SharePoint environment, you can select which paths should have the app deployed to automatically. We recommend using the All Paths option so that the app deploys to any site collections or subsites when created. You can use the activation settings to control which site collections or subsites have the app automatically activated.
    4. In the Site Templates section, leave the default settings in place. You will not filter the app deployment by site template. At the bottom of the screen, click OK. When you see the Do you trust K2 for SharePoint screen, click Trust It. After the app deploys, you will redirect back to the App Catalog > Site Contents page.
  5. Activate the app     to the sites and subsites where you want to use it. This gives you more granular control over where you can use the app. Activating the app enables the app features such as system SmartObjects, as well as the group options located in the ribbon toolbar for lists and libraries. You will need your SharePoint site URLs for this step.
    At this point, you have deployed the app as a Global Admin, SharePoint Online or Tenant Admin. Activating the app requires site collection administrator permissions at a minimum. Confirm you have the necessary permissions before proceeding. Contact your SharePoint administrator if you have questions regarding your permission level.
    1. On the App Catalog > Site Contents page, click the K2 for SharePoint app icon. The icon may look slightly different than the image below, depending on your environment.
    2. Under the Administration heading, click the Manage App Activations link.

      3. On the Configure Activation Settings page, there are three sections to note. Under the Deployment section, there is an option to Enable auto-activation on sites where the app is deployed for any new site collections or subsites. By default, this option is set to TRUE, but you can deselect if you need to have more granular control over where the app is active.

      The Activation text box is where you will enter the URL for the site collection you want the app activated for. We recommend activating the app at the root site collection. The Uninstall box displays site collections where the app is currently activated. Here, you can select a site collection and remove the app, if desired.

      When you remove a site collection from the App Activation Settings, you are resetting SharePoint back to its pre-Nintex K2 app configuration. Any Nintex K2 artifacts (such as SmartObjects, SmartForms and workflows) that existed will still exist on the server, however they will no longer be visible from the site collection.

    3. Begin by entering a site collection URL into the Activation text box, then click Activate. This may take a few minutes, depending on how many subsites you have within the site collection structure.

      4. The activation process begins. During this time, you will see a green check appear next to the SharePoint Service Broker section and then the Activation section as those features active. After both checks appear, your site collections and subsites will display under the Activate All heading, if you activated at the root site collection level. You should see a status of Activated. Click Close. Click Close once again to exit the Configure Activation Settings page.

  6. Confirm the app activation by returning to the test list you created in the first part of this topic. Click the LIST tab, then confirm the group and icons are there. If you can see the group and icons, congratulations! You have successfully configured the K2 for SharePoint app and it is now ready for use. If for some reason, you cannot see the group or icons, review the steps in this topic to determine if you missed a step. From there, contact your SharePoint technical support team for assistance.
    1. Navigate back to your SharePoint site or subsite and open the App Test list you created earlier. Confirm there is now a K2 menu that has Application, Report and Worklist icons displayed. The app is now ready for use!
      K2 Menu and Options
  7. How to update the app activation for new site collections    . This step describes how to activate the Nintex K2 app for immediate use. During the Nintex K2 app deployment, you have the option to automatically apply the app to any new site collections. Nintex K2 schedules this "job" from a timer and depending on the settings, may not run for several minutes, or even hours. If you need to use the Nintex K2 app immediately in the new site collection, you can manually "push" the activation out to the site. From the Site Contents page, click the Nintex K2 app to launch the administration page. Under the Administration heading, click Activate Site Collection. The app activates for the current site collection and is ready for use.
    1. After adding a new subsite or site collection, navigate to its Site Contents. Click the app to launch the K2 for SharePoint page.
      2. If you do not see the K2 for SharePoint app in the Site Contents, the app is not deployed to the root site collection. Deploy the app first, then active it.
    2. Under the Administration heading, click Activate Site Collection.
      You should see the activation processing screen. When complete, the app is ready for use. Remember, you must have site collection administrator permissions at a minimum to activate the app at the site collection level. You can also manually activate the app to a new subsite or site collection from the App Catalog. Follow the Activate steps for this scenario.
Review

In this step, you confirmed the activation of the Nintex K2 for SharePoint app. You have registered, deployed and activated the app to your SharePoint site collection. We recommend deploying the app to the root site collection level with the All Paths option. Any site collections or subsites added will have the app available with out further intervention. You can also enable the auto-activation option, which enables the app to any new site collections or subsites. After confirming the app deployment and activation with your test list, you see the K2 menu.

Next Step: 2. Create Supporting Lists and Groups in SharePoint