Generate Form XML
The Nintex Simple Form Builder (GenerateFormXML) is a console application that will convert a basic XML file into a Nintex Form. The application uses the XmlDocument document class from the .Net Framework to assemble XML control fragments and insert them into a blank desktop layout.
As input the application uses a paired down XML file that lists the controls, specifies the control dimensions, and key values for each type of control. This application is limited to the following form elements:
- Label control
- TextBox control
- ListBox control
- Checkbox control
- Image control
The sample demonstrates how to take input (in this case a bare-bones XML file), to create Nintex XML elements that describe a Nintex form.
For example, you may need to convert a large number of HTML form files to Nintex Forms. A possible workflow would perform a transformation on the HTML form to the bare-bones XML used by this application, generate Form XML, then load the form into a SharePoint list, and bind the input fields to SharePoint List columns.
For more information on how the application works its restrictions, see Overview of the GenerateFormXML Code Sample
Summary of Nintex Simple Form Builder (GenerateFormXML)
The overall process to generate form XML follows these steps:
- Author a bare-bones form XML document. For more information, see Author a Bare-bones Form XML Document.
- Prepare and run the application. For more information, see Prepare the GenerateFormXML Code Sample.
- Load the generated form XML. For more information, see Load the Generated Form XML.
Note: The XML fragments are from Nintex Forms Version 2.9.1.0. Updates may result in variations to the form XML. Your form may load on import, but your controls may not render if the XML has changed.
Using the Sample
The sample contains two folders. One folder XmlParts contains XML fragments and a file, form_input.xml, that is an example of a well-formed XML input into the application. You will want to place XmlParts in a location accessible the console application. The console app in 2013_ONPREM_NF_GenerateFormXML uses the XML fragments and reads the input XML. The sample will not run without making sure the paths in the Program.cs have been configured and point to valid path names. For the steps on configuring the sample, see Prepare the GenerateFormXML Code Sample.