Creating PDF Documents with Submitted XML Data

Last update: June 24, 2024

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Samples and examples in this document are only for AEM Forms on JEE environment.

Creating PDF Documents with Submitted XML Data

Web-based applications that enable users to fill interactive forms require the data to be submitted back to the server. Using the Forms service, you can retrieve the form data that the user entered into an interactive form. Then you can pass the form data to another AEM Forms service operation and create a PDF document using the data.

NOTE

Before you read this content, it is recommended that you have a solid understanding of handling submitted forms. Concepts such as the relationship between a form design and submitted XML data are covered in Handling submitted Forms.

Consider the following workflow that involves three AEM Forms services:

A user submits XML data to the Forms service from a web-based application.
The Forms service is used to process the submitted form and extract form fields. Form data can be processed. For example, the data can be submitted to an enterprise database.
Form data is sent to the Output service to create a non-interactive PDF document.
The non-interactive PDF document is stored in Content Services (deprecated).

The following diagram provides a visual representation of this workflow.

cd_cd_finsrv_architecture_xml_pdf1

After the user submits the form from the client web browser, the non-interactive PDF document is stored in Content Services (deprecated). The following illustration shows a PDF document stored in Content Services (deprecated).

cd_cd_cs_gui

Summary of steps

To create a non-interactive PDF document with submitted XML data and store in the PDF document in Content Services (deprecated), perform the following tasks:

Include project files.
Create Forms, Output, and Document Management objects.
Retrieve form data by using the Forms service.
Create a non-interactive PDF document by using the Output service.
Store the PDF form in Content Services (deprecated) by using the Document Management service.

Include project files

Include necessary files into your development project. If you are creating a client application using Java, include the necessary JAR files. If you are using web services, ensure that you include the proxy files.

Create Forms, Output, and Document Management objects

Before you can programmatically perform a Forms service API operation, create a Forms Client API object. Likewise, because this workflow invokes the Output and Document Management services, create both an Output Client API object and a Document Management Client API object.

Retrieve form data using the Forms service

Retrieve form data that was submitted to the Forms service. You can process submitted data to meet your business requirements. For example, you can store form data in an enterprise database. However, to create a non-interactive PDF document, the form data is passed to the Output service.

Create a non-interactive PDF document using the Output service.

Use the Output service to create a non-interactive PDF document that is based on a form design and XML form data. In the workflow, the form data is retrieved from the Forms service.

Store the PDF form in Content Services (deprecated) using the Document Management service

Use the Document Management service API to store a PDF document in Content Services (deprecated).

See also

Including AEM Forms Java library files

Setting connection properties

Forms Service API Quick Starts

Create a PDF Document with submitted XML data using the Java API

Create a PDF document with submitted XML data by using the Forms, Output, and Document Management API (Java):

Include project files

Include client JAR files, such as adobe-forms-client.jar, adobe-output-client.jar, and adobe-contentservices-client.jar in your Java project’s class path.
Create Forms, Output, and Document Management objects
- Create a ServiceClientFactory object that contains connection properties.
- Create a FormsServiceClient object by using its constructor and passing the ServiceClientFactory object.
- Create an OutputClient object by using its constructor and passing the ServiceClientFactory object.
- Create a DocumentManagementServiceClientImpl object by using its constructor and passing the ServiceClientFactory object.
Retrieve form data using the Forms service
- Invoke the FormsServiceClient object’s processFormSubmission method and pass the following values:
  - The com.adobe.idp.Document object that contains the form data.
  - A string value that specifies environment variables, including all relevant HTTP headers. Specify the content type to handle by specifying one or more values for the CONTENT_TYPE environment variable. For example, to handle XML data, specify the following string value for this parameter: CONTENT_TYPE=text/xml.
  - A string value that specifies the HTTP_USER_AGENT header value, such as Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; SV1; .NET CLR 1.1.4322).
  - A RenderOptionsSpec object that stores run-time options.
  The processFormSubmission method returns a FormsResult object containing the results of the form submission.
- Determine whether the Forms service is finished processing the form data by invoking the FormsResult object’s getAction method. If this method returns the value 0, the data is ready to be processed.
- Retrieve form data by creating a com.adobe.idp.Document object by invoking the FormsResult object’s getOutputContent method. (This object contains form data that can be sent to the Output service.)
- Create a java.io.InputStream object by invoking the java.io.DataInputStream constructor and passing the com.adobe.idp.Document object.
- Create an org.w3c.dom.DocumentBuilderFactory object by calling the static org.w3c.dom.DocumentBuilderFactory object’s newInstance method.
- Create an org.w3c.dom.DocumentBuilder object by invoking the org.w3c.dom.DocumentBuilderFactory object’s newDocumentBuilder method.
- Create an org.w3c.dom.Document object by invoking the org.w3c.dom.DocumentBuilder object’s parse method and passing the java.io.InputStream object.
- Retrieve the value of each node within the XML document. One way to accomplish this task is to create a custom method that accepts two parameters: the org.w3c.dom.Document object and the name of the node whose value you want to retrieve. This method returns a string value representing the value of the node. In the code example that follows this process, this custom method is called getNodeText. The body of this method is shown.
Create a non-interactive PDF document using the Output service.

Create a PDF document by invoking the OutputClient object’s generatePDFOutput method and passing the following values:
- A TransformationFormat enum value. To generate a PDF document, specify TransformationFormat.PDF.
- A string value that specifies the name of the form design. Ensure that the form design is compatible with the form data retrieved from the Forms service.
- A string value that specifies the content root where the form design is located.
- A PDFOutputOptionsSpec object that contains PDF run-time options.
- A RenderOptionsSpec object that contains rendering run-time options.
- The com.adobe.idp.Document object that contains the XML data source that contains data to merge with the form design. Ensure that this object was returned by the FormsResult object’s getOutputContent method.
- The generatePDFOutput method returns an OutputResult object that contains the results of the operation.
- Retrieve the non-interactive PDF document by invoking the OutputResult object’s getGeneratedDoc method. This method returns a com.adobe.idp.Document instance that represents the non-interactive PDF document.
Store the PDF form in Content Services (deprecated)using the Document Management service

Add the content by invoking the DocumentManagementServiceClientImpl object’s storeContent method and passing the following values:
- A string value that specifies the store where the content is added. The default store is SpacesStore. This value is a mandatory parameter.
- A string value that specifies the fully qualified path of the space where the content is added (for example, /Company Home/Test Directory). This value is a mandatory parameter.
- The node name that represents the new content (for example, MortgageForm.pdf). This value is a mandatory parameter.
- A string value that specifies the node type. To add new content, such as a PDF file, specify {https://www.alfresco.org/model/content/1.0}content. This value is a mandatory parameter.
- A com.adobe.idp.Document object that represents the content. This value is a mandatory parameter.
- A string value that specifies the encoding value (for example, UTF-8). This value is a mandatory parameter.
- An UpdateVersionType enumeration value that specifies how to handle version information (for example, UpdateVersionType.INCREMENT_MAJOR_VERSION to increment the content version. ) This value is a mandatory parameter.
- A java.util.List instance that specifies aspects related to the content. This value is an optional parameter and you can specify null.
- A java.util.Map object that stores content attributes.
The storeContent method returns a CRCResult object that describes the content. Using a CRCResult object, you can, for example, obtain the content’s unique identifier value. To perform this task, invoke the CRCResult object’s getNodeUuid method.

See also

Including AEM Forms Java library files

Setting connection properties

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