Load PDF as template source for interactive forms based on given filename

[Former Member]

My scenario is:

1. I fill out page 1 of a blank interactive form and digitally sign it. When I submit, it creates a PDF file named a.pdf on the server.

2. Then later on someone else wants to pull up that previously created PDF and fill out the 2nd page of the form and digitally sign it. (at this stage the form should have the information I filled out earlier.) When the form is submitted, it creates another PDF file.

I have been searching around it seems like if i have a web dynpro view I can pass a filename as a parameter to have the view show that PDF as an interactive form. However, I haven't been able to succeed.

Please help. thanks in advance.

[Former Member]

Hi Mick,

I guess your scenario looks similar to upload/download tutorial given in SDN sample tutorials list.

Just check that tutorial.

Regards,

Bhavik

[Former Member]

no everything is totally online. every pdf form should be display as an interactive form online. I got no 1. figured out no problems.

anyway i will check that tutorial out again - i'm pretty sure i have gone throgh it.

[Former Member]

Hi Mick,

What you can do is, using pdfObject you can fetch the data from pdf file created on the server. This pdf file contains data filled by you.

Now, load this data for the adobe form which you are displaying to enter additional data.

When this form shows it contains previous data added by you.

Manipulation with pdfObject tutorial would be helpful for this.

Regards,

Bhavik

[markus_meisl]

Hi Mick,

Bhavik's suggestions are quite helpful.

I think there are also a couple of things to consider in your scenario:

- How important is it to you that the second person work on the same PDF that he first person used? (Instead you can retrieve the data (both of the original form and from the first person) from the server and generate a new PDF that looks the same as the first one, but has the filled-in fields in read-only mode and only the new ones editable. (I think this is what Bhavik suggested.)

If it really needs to be the same one, there are special Designer Library objects entitled for example 'Sign and lock' to ensure that the second person cannot change the first person's data.

- How important are the digital signatures to your process? In NW '04, digital signatures are supported on the client side, i.e. the signature stays inside the PDF. We cannot process it on the server. If that is sufficient for you, great.

Regards,

Markus Meisl

SAP NetWeaver Product Management

[Former Member]

Thanks you both Bhavik and Markus

Ideally I'd like to use the data retrieval approach. But is it possibly to retrieve the digital signature signed by the first person? If yes, is the first signature still valid when repopulated in the document? Digital Signatures are very important in the process.

Also, Markus, when you mentioned about generating a new PDF that looked like the first one, did you mean filling out the templateSource with the retrieved data? and How do I make the filled-in fields readonly when they are editable in the template file? Do I do this in the code?

Ultimately, if digital signatures can be retrieved and are valid through out the process then most of my major problems are solved.

Thanks

[Former Member]

Ok, tried retrieving data from a PDF and every field came back except the signature field (it came back as blank). Markus, is this what you meant when you said NW04 couldn't process digital signatures on the server. If so, this approach won't fulfill my requirements.

Looks like the only is to save the interactive form as a PDF with the filled-in fields readonly and used that PDF as a new template for the next person to fill-in their portion. Is this even possible? I haven't an example for it. any advice is appreciated. Again maintaining digital signatures is important. thanks a lot

[markus_meisl]

Hi Mick,

I guess what you experienced would be the result of the lack of support for digital signatures. The only way to retrieve them - so to speak - in NW 04 is to keep the PDF and look at the signature's properties in Adobe Reader, which would tell you about the status of the document.

You can use the PDF itself as the 'bearer' of information in such a workflow by using special SAP form objects form the Adobe LiveCycle Designer 7.0 Library palette (Web Dynpro tab). There is one called Sign&Lock, which allows you to have the first person fill in their fields and upon signing this part lock these field for further editing. Then the second person can add their part.

Again, the signature information stays inside the PDF. While server-side signing was planned for NW 2004s (mySAP ERP 2005), there are a couple of issues that won't be fixed until the shipment of Adobe Reader 8 at the end of 2006, which means SAP will not recommend to use the dig sig functions before then. Further information will be available in an SAP Note.

By the way, all available functions of the ADS are in the PDFObject documentation (in the javadocs in the Dev Studio or at https://media.sdn.sap.com/javadocs/NW04/SP12/webdynpro/com/sap/tc/webdynpro/pdfobject/api/IWDPDFObje....

Regards,

Markus