Creating variables for processes that involve users

In the LiveCycle Process Design perspective, the form data, which is data captured by a form, is represented by a process variable (or simply, a variable). The variable you create is used to specify the form that is displayed to the user when you configure the Assign Task operation (see Configuring forms to be displayed to the user). The variable you specify as input for your process indicates the form that is displayed in Workspace ES to start a process.

The form data that is captured is not validated against a provided schema during execution of the process. A provided schema simply allows you to access the data for your process during design time. The form data is captured and stored in a process variable you create. The variable allows you to use the form data in situations such as these:

To store and pass form data entered by one user involved in the process to another, which can be used for process routing decisions or any other operations that use process data
To use the data to render an output type to a user involved in the process
To store form data submitted from a form to modify or access within the process
To store the location of a form that was used to collect the data

Depending on the type of form you want to use in your process, you use must create a process variable of one of the following data types:

Form: This data type stores the data from a form created in Flex Builder (see Creating Form variables). It can store any XML data.

xfaForm: This data type stores the form data, which is XML data formatted as an XDP data file, from any PDF document created using Designer ES or an Acrobat PDF form created in Acrobat. When the Forms service is available on your server, you can use the xfaForm variable to store form data from an XML form (see Creating xfaForm variables).

Document Form: This data type stores an Adobe PDF form or Acrobat PDF form internally as a document value (see Creating Document Form variables). For example, you will use this data type for PDF documents that use Acrobat digital signatures.

The Form, xfaForm, and Document Form data types use service operations that are configured using a Render Service and a Submit Service. You can modify different parameters in both the Render Service or Submit Service. For example, you can configure how a form is displayed to a user by modifying parameters in the Render Service.

Creating variables for processes that involve users

See also