Cannot find wss feature.xml snippet...

To get the snippet for wss workflows:

Using the Code Snippet Manager (if not seen, Ctrl-K, B or Tools -> Customize -> Commands, Tools, drag the Code Snippet Manager to the Tools menu), add c:\program files\microsoft visual studio 8\xml\1033\snippets\Windows SharepointServices Workflow to get the deployment xmls for the workflow (feature.xml, workflow.xml etc).

SmartPart: could not load

Problem: After adding a SmartPart on a webpart page, go to select a user control in the dropdwn of the tool pane, some user controls show 'Could not load '.

Soln: Select the user control anyway and click 'Apply', this would provided a detailed error message as to what's wrong. If there is a missing assembly reference (if the UC references it, but missing from web.config etc), then add the assembly reference to the web.config.

SPD does not open file

Installed a fresh copy of Sharepoint Designer on a new VM. Connect to the site with no problem. See all the files. However, when double-clicking to open a file, NOTHING HAPPENS! Very intruging.

Soln: Must activate the copy of SPD! They are not kidding when they say 'some features are not available'....why not just say 'you can't open the files unless you activate the software' or 'you need to activate NOW'....duh

Allow anonymous

To enable anonymous to a moss site:

First enable it on Central Admin -> Application Management -> Authentication Providers, choose the zone, check 'Enable anonymous access'. This does not yet allow an anonymous user to the site itself though. Must also ALLOW anonymous on the site itself: Site Settings -> People and Groups, on the left nav choose 'Site Permissions'. On the Permissions list, 'Settings' -> Anonymous Access, choose the 'Entire Web Site' radio botton....

Take out the need for approval before publishing page

Just messing around with the Publishing Portal on my local VM. I decided I don't need to approval my own changes so I decided to take out the approval feature:

Go to the 'Pages' document library -> Document Lirary Settings, remove the workflow. Now there is a 'Publish' button when i going back to the page I was working on.

infopath dataconnection: AllowOverWrite="0"

If you don't allow overwrite of the form with the same name, it would cause an error 'an error occurred while submitting the form' if there exists an infopath form of the same name.

Soln: use the now() function to make the filename unique. cheesy but a quick fix if you don't care about the name.

After updating Infopath Browser Enabled Form Template, new field became read-only on old/existing forms

Problem: After updating Infopath Browser Enabled Form, the newly added field became read-only on old forms. If you open the existing forms in notepad, you will not see your new field in the xml.

Soln: This happens when you choose 'Do nothing' on version upgrade. To make the fields selectable/editable, republish the form with the following options. Go to Tools -> Form Options -> Versioning -> On version upgrade, choose "Automatically upgrade existing forms". Once the new version is uploaded in Central Admin, go back to your old forms, you should see your new fields as editable.

Moss - importing profiles from Active Directory

While trying to configure import user profiles from AD, encountered the following warning message:

'This directory service setting has not been validated because the current user is not authenticated to the directory. It may be a valid setting. Do you want to save this directory service connection setting?'

This could happen when in configurating the Import Connection, 'Use Default Account' is selected. This default account refers to the application pool account. If this is a local account user profiles cannot be imported. In the Authentication Information section in the bottom of the Edit Connection page, click 'Specify Account' and specify a domain account. Go back to the 'User Profiles and Properties' page and 'Start full import'.

Message: Cannot open log for source 'ExceptionManagerInternalException'. You may not have write access.

Message: Cannot open log for source 'ExceptionManagerInternalException'. You may not have write access.

Came across this message when trying to write to the event log using Microsoft.ApplicationBlocks.ExceptionManagement.dll in the Infopath (IFS) form codebehind. However, if you are an administrator of the box (web server where this is running on), you won't have a problem writing to the event log. Since we cannot grant all users administrator rights, that option is out.

Solution: by default, a sharepoint site uses impersonation. Use the SPSecurity class:

SPSecurity.RunWithElevatedPrivileges(delegate()
{
ExceptionManager.Publish(ex);

});

As a side note, do not mess with the existing settings in web.config of the sharepoint site. Taking out impersonate="true" messed up our BDC and other things....

Infopath Submit Error

Came across this error today while trying to use ExceptionManager to write to the eventlog:
Message: The form cannot be submitted to the following location: http://d7014yleimoss:2007/Investments/10118.xml. There is a problem with the Web server. Make sure the Web server exists, try again later or contact the Web server administrator.

Happily this didn't take me time to figure out.

Solution: The user role was created to be able to submit the form, BUT the user was not granted 'contribute' access to to the Forms Library 'Investments'. Grant the logon user the 'contribute' access in the Forms Library Settings and the form submitted successfully.