Walkthrough: Add an Application Page to a Workflow

Article
04/28/2015

This walkthrough demonstrates how to add an application page that displays data derived from a workflow to a workflow project. It builds on the project described in the topic Walkthrough: Creating a Workflow with Association and Initiation Forms.

This walkthrough demonstrates the following tasks:

Adding an ASPX application page to a SharePoint workflow project.
Obtaining data from the workflow project and manipulating it.
Displaying data in a table on the application page.

Note

Your computer might show different names or locations for some of the Visual Studio user interface elements in the following instructions. The Visual Studio edition that you have and the settings that you use determine these elements. For more information, see Customizing Development Settings in Visual Studio.

Prerequisites

You need the following components to complete this walkthrough:

Supported editions of Microsoft Windows and SharePoint. For more information, see Requirements for Developing SharePoint Solutions.
Visual Studio.
You also have to complete the project in the topic Walkthrough: Creating a Workflow with Association and Initiation Forms.

Amending the Workflow Code

First, add a line of code to the workflow to set the value of the Outcome column to the amount of the expense report. This value is used later in the expense report summary calculation.

To set the value of the Outcome column in the workflow

Load the completed project from the topic Walkthrough: Creating a Workflow with Association and Initiation Forms into Visual Studio.
Open the code for Workflow1.cs or Workflow1.vb (depending on your programming language).

To the bottom of the createTask1_MethodInvoking method, add the following code:

createTask1_TaskProperties1.ExtendedProperties("Outcome") = 
  workflowProperties.InitiationData

createTask1_TaskProperties1.ExtendedProperties["Outcome"] = 
  workflowProperties.InitiationData;

Creating an Application Page

Next, add an ASPX form to the project. This form will display data obtained from the expense report workflow project. To do this, you will add an application page. An application page uses the same master page as other SharePoint pages, meaning that it will resemble other pages on the SharePoint site.

To add an application page to the project

Choose the ExpenseReport project, and then, on the menu bar, choose Project, Add New Item.
In the Templates pane, choose the Application Page template, use the default name for the project item (ApplicaitonPage1.aspx), and choose the Add button.

In the XML of ApplicationPage1.aspx, replace the PlaceHolderMain section with the following:

<asp:Content ID="Main" ContentPlaceHolderID="PlaceHolderMain" runat="server">
    <asp:Label ID="Label1" runat="server" Font-Bold="True" 
        Text="Expenses that exceeded allotted amount" Font-Size="Medium"></asp:Label>
    <br />
    <asp:Table ID="Table1" runat="server">
    </asp:Table>
</asp:Content>

This code adds a table to the page together with a title.

Add a title to the application page by replacing the PlaceHolderPageTitleInTitleArea section with the following:

<asp:Content ID="PageTitleInTitleArea" ContentPlaceHolderID="PlaceHolderPageTitleInTitleArea" runat="server" >
    Expense Report Summary
</asp:Content>

Coding the Application Page

Next, add code to the expense report summary application page. When you open the page, the code scans the Task list in SharePoint for expenses that exceeded the allocated spending limit. The report lists each item together with the sum of the expenses.

To code the application page

Choose the ApplicationPage1.aspx node, and then, on the menu bar, choose View, Code to display the code behind the application page.

Replace the using or Import statements (depending on your programming language) at the top of the class with the following:

Imports System
Imports Microsoft.SharePoint
Imports Microsoft.SharePoint.WebControls
Imports System.Collections
Imports System.Data
Imports System.Web.UI
Imports System.Web.UI.WebControls
Imports System.Web.UI.WebControls.WebParts
Imports System.Drawing
Imports Microsoft.SharePoint.Navigation

using System;
using Microsoft.SharePoint;
using Microsoft.SharePoint.WebControls;
using System.Collections;
using System.Data;
using System.Web.UI;
using System.Web.UI.WebControls;
using System.Web.UI.WebControls.WebParts;
using System.Drawing;
using Microsoft.SharePoint.Navigation;

Add the following code to the Page_Load method:

Try
    ' Reference the Tasks list on the SharePoint site.
    ' Replace "TestServer" with a valid SharePoint server name.
    Dim site As SPSite = New SPSite("http://TestServer")
    Dim list As SPList = site.AllWebs(0).Lists("Tasks")
    ' string text = "";
    Dim sum As Integer = 0
    Table1.Rows.Clear()
    ' Add table headers.
    Dim hr As TableHeaderRow = New TableHeaderRow
    hr.BackColor = Color.LightBlue
    Dim hc1 As TableHeaderCell = New TableHeaderCell
    Dim hc2 As TableHeaderCell = New TableHeaderCell
    hc1.Text = "Expense Report Name"
    hc2.Text = "Amount Exceeded"
    hr.Cells.Add(hc1)
    hr.Cells.Add(hc2)
    ' Add the TableHeaderRow as the first item 
    ' in the Rows collection of the table.
    Table1.Rows.AddAt(0, hr)
    ' Iterate through the tasks in the Task list and collect those  
    ' that have values in the "Related Content" and "Outcome" fields 
    ' - the fields written to when expense approval is required.
    For Each item As SPListItem In list.Items
        Dim s_relContent As String = ""
        Dim s_outcome As String = ""
        Try
            ' Task has the fields - treat as expense report.
            s_relContent = item.GetFormattedValue("Related Content")
            s_outcome = item.GetFormattedValue("Outcome")
        Catch erx As System.Exception
            ' Task does not have fields - skip it.
            Continue For
        End Try
        ' Convert amount to an int and keep a running total.
        If (Not String.IsNullOrEmpty(s_relContent) And Not 
          String.IsNullOrEmpty(s_outcome)) Then
            sum = (sum + Convert.ToInt32(s_outcome))
            Dim relContent As TableCell = New TableCell
            relContent.Text = s_relContent
            Dim outcome As TableCell = New TableCell
            outcome.Text = ("$" + s_outcome)
            Dim dataRow2 As TableRow = New TableRow
            dataRow2.Cells.Add(relContent)
            dataRow2.Cells.Add(outcome)
            Table1.Rows.Add(dataRow2)
        End If
    Next
    ' Report the sum of the reports in the table footer.
    Dim tfr As TableFooterRow = New TableFooterRow
    tfr.BackColor = Color.LightGreen
    ' Create a TableCell object to contain the 
    ' text for the footer.
    Dim ftc1 As TableCell = New TableCell
    Dim ftc2 As TableCell = New TableCell
    ftc1.Text = "TOTAL: "
    ftc2.Text = ("$" + Convert.ToString(sum))
    ' Add the TableCell object to the Cells
    ' collection of the TableFooterRow.
    tfr.Cells.Add(ftc1)
    tfr.Cells.Add(ftc2)
    ' Add the TableFooterRow to the Rows
    ' collection of the table.
    Table1.Rows.Add(tfr)
Catch errx As Exception
    System.Diagnostics.Debug.WriteLine(("Error: " + errx.ToString))
End Try

try
{
    // Reference the Tasks list on the SharePoint site.
    // Replace "TestServer" with a valid SharePoint server name.
    SPSite site = new SPSite("http://TestServer");
    SPList list = site.AllWebs[0].Lists["Tasks"];

    // string text = "";
    int sum = 0;

    Table1.Rows.Clear();

    // Add table headers.
    TableHeaderRow hr = new TableHeaderRow();
    hr.BackColor = Color.LightBlue;
    TableHeaderCell hc1 = new TableHeaderCell();
    TableHeaderCell hc2 = new TableHeaderCell();
    hc1.Text = "Expense Report Name";
    hc2.Text = "Amount Exceeded";
    hr.Cells.Add(hc1);
    hr.Cells.Add(hc2);
    // Add the TableHeaderRow as the first item 
    // in the Rows collection of the table.
    Table1.Rows.AddAt(0, hr);

    // Iterate through the tasks in the Task list and collect those 
    // that have values in the "Related Content" and "Outcome" 
    // fields - the fields written to when expense approval is 
    // required.
    foreach (SPListItem item in list.Items)
    {
        string s_relContent = "";
        string s_outcome = "";

        try
        {
            // Task has the fields - treat as expense report.
            s_relContent = item.GetFormattedValue("Related 
              Content");
            s_outcome = item.GetFormattedValue("Outcome");
        }
        catch
        {
            // Task does not have fields - skip it.
            continue;
        }

        if (!String.IsNullOrEmpty(s_relContent) && 
          !String.IsNullOrEmpty(s_outcome))
        {
            // Convert amount to an int and keep a running total.
            sum += Convert.ToInt32(s_outcome);
            TableCell relContent = new TableCell();
            relContent.Text = s_relContent;
            TableCell outcome = new TableCell();
            outcome.Text = "$" + s_outcome;
            TableRow dataRow2 = new TableRow();
            dataRow2.Cells.Add(relContent);
            dataRow2.Cells.Add(outcome);
            Table1.Rows.Add(dataRow2);
        }
    }

    // Report the sum of the reports in the table footer.
       TableFooterRow tfr = new TableFooterRow();
    tfr.BackColor = Color.LightGreen;

    // Create a TableCell object to contain the 
    // text for the footer.
    TableCell ftc1 = new TableCell();
    TableCell ftc2 = new TableCell();
    ftc1.Text = "TOTAL: ";
    ftc2.Text = "$" + Convert.ToString(sum);

    // Add the TableCell object to the Cells
    // collection of the TableFooterRow.
    tfr.Cells.Add(ftc1);
    tfr.Cells.Add(ftc2);

    // Add the TableFooterRow to the Rows
    // collection of the table.
    Table1.Rows.Add(tfr);
}

catch (Exception errx)
{
    System.Diagnostics.Debug.WriteLine("Error: " + errx.ToString());
}

Warning

Be sure to replace "TestServer" in the code with the name of a valid server that's running SharePoint.

Testing the Application Page

Next, determine whether the application page displays the expense data correctly.

To test the application page

Choose the F5 key to run and deploy the project to SharePoint.
Choose the Home button, and then choose the Shared Documents link on the QuickLaunch bar to display the Shared Documents list on the SharePoint site.
To represent expense reports for this example, upload some new documents into the Documents list by choosing the Documents link on the LibraryTools tab at the top of the page and then choosing the Upload Document button on the tool ribbon.
After you upload some documents, instantiate the workflow by choosing the Library link on the LibraryTools tab at the top of the page and then choosing the Library Settings button on the tool ribbon.
In the Document Library Settings page, choose the Workflow Settings link in the Permissions and Management section.
In the Workflow Settings page, choose the Add a workflow link.
In the Add a Workflow page, choose the ExpenseReport - Workflow1 workflow, enter a name for the workflow, such as ExpenseTest, and then choose the Next button.

The workflow Association form appears. Use it to report the expense limit amount.
In the Association form, enter 1000 into the Auto Approval Limit box, and then choose the Associate Workflow button.
Choose the Home button to return to the SharePoint home page.
Choose the Shared Documents link on the QuickLaunch bar.
Choose one of the uploaded documents to display a drop-down arrow, choose it, and then choose the Workflows item.
Choose the image next to the ExpenseTest to display the workflow Initiation form.
In the Expense Total text box, enter a value that's greater than 1000, and then choose the Start Workflow button.

When a reported expense exceeds the allocated expense amount, a task is added to the Task List. A column named ExpenseTest with the value Completed is also added to the expense report item in the Shared Documents list.
Repeat steps 11 - 13 with other documents in the Shared Documents list. (The exact number of documents is not important.)
Display the expense report summary application page by opening the following URL in a Web browser: http://SystemName/_layouts/ExpenseReport/ApplicationPage1.aspx.

The expense report summary page lists all of the expense reports that exceeded the allocated amount, the amount they exceeded it by, and the total amount for all reports.

Next Steps

For more information about SharePoint application pages, see Creating Application Pages for SharePoint.

You can learn more about how to design SharePoint page content by using the Visual Web Designer in Visual Studio from these topics:

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