A checklist for enabling browser forms with Forms Services and SharePoint 2007
This is a checklist to follow if you are having problems with publishing InfoPath 2007 browser-enabled forms to Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007. A typical error message you receive in this case is
"This form template is browser-compatible, but it cannot be browser-enabled on the selected site"
... with an ugly yellow color. Here's what to check before you're going crazy:
- Install Microsoft Office Forms Server 2007 (independent product) on the SharePoint box if the Office server suite you use is lower than Enterprise (or if you are using Windows SharePoint Services 3.0). The Forms Services support is included in the Enterprise Office Server suite.
- After installed Forms Server, you'll have a InfoPath Forms Services section at the Application Management page. To go here, click on Start -> Administrative Tools -> SharePoint 3.0 Central Administration and choose the Application Management tab on the top of the page. Click on Configure InfoPath Forms Services in the InfoPath Forms Services section and check both "Allow users to browser-enable form templates" and "Render form templates that are browser-enabled by users" checkboxes, then OK this page
- Open your SharePoint site, click on Site Actions -> Site Settings, select Site collection features under Site Collection Administration and activate InfoPath Forms Services support
- Start designing your form with the InfoPath 2007 client. In InfoPath, click on Tools/Form Options, select the Compatibility category and check the "Design a form template that can be opened in a browser or InfoPath", then click OK. In the case if you miss this one and your form is browser-compatible, you get a warning message while publishing your form saying that "The server is running InfoPath Forms Services, but the compatibility settings for this form template is InfoPath only".
- Make sure that your form is browser-compatible. You can use the design checker task pane in the InfoPath 2007 client to perform this task.
- Publish your form onto a SharePoint 2007 library. In the wizard, at step 3, check the "Enable this form to be filled out by using a browser" checkbox and finish publishing.
- At the end of the publishing wizard, select "Open this document library" and click on Close. This will open the document library in the browser. Click on Settings/Form Library Settings, then click on Advanced Settings and select the "Display as a Web page" option in the Browser-enabled Documents category. If you don't choose this option, the form will be opened in InfoPath if it's installed on the client. Otherwise, it's going to be opened in the browser.
Hope that helps!
