Series solutions on document management for officer - Part 1

SharePoint is a portal with the strength functionalities for collaboration and content management. There are a lot of new features to improve the activities of user and support the useful tools for almost kind of user who are using SharePoint 2010. That's perfect! However, Microsoft is always only build a framework and background technology for all their product and their partners will build a product as component or build a solutions to help IT Pros or IT Manager build up a service for their business. So, there are many companies only support the solutions or consult the customer by SharePoint administration expert. I've also consulted for some companies and build the solutions for a part of or whole their departments. The best things I have after finish every contract is how to fullfill the requirment while SharePoint features are not enough to reach all situations.

Luckyly, I am a developer. This is the only one advantage and I have to think about it. if I have a budget I just only buy some widgets or components from 3rd party and select the best product to match the requirements. I think this is not difficult but the most imprtant thing is how to mantain the product id there is many many products from another company and developer like me can not handle! In this series, I will show all you guys see some my opinions to solve a little taks but it's actually useful for IT managers, especially end-users.

This is a first topic to talk about requires' Officer, that is how to move a lot of document to another site. The limitation for free here are:

- Not support move multiple items, that mean these documents (files) still are in original list. They are not deleted after copy to new location.
- Not support overwrite method. If this feature is enable, the file is copied to the destination list will not overwrite instead of adding subfix "-(copy)"
- Not support copy the folders, it's avaible upon request.
- Not support cross-site, that means moving these files to another server farm.
- Not support sending to multiple sites

Here are the list of features in free version:
- Copy multilple items to onother location.
- All file types are supported.
- Support for both Foundation and Office Server
- Not need to install or activate Document Set feature.

Note: at the destination URL, please enter the short path, not including SitePage/Default.aspx or default.aspx

Trial version is available here. Download here. Hope this help.

How to get distinct value from splistitemcollection

In many cases, we need to get the distinct data like SQL or even only get the separately data. it will be complicated if we are working on SharePoint 2010 because of performance. There are at least 2 scenarios we have:

• Max throttling 
• Performance with large list

Now, i also have a small code to get the data for distinct:


SPListItemCollection collection = list.Items;
DataView view = new DataView(collection.GetDataTable());
DataTable result = view.ToTable(true, "[Column Name"]);


By using DataView and DataTable we can get the distinct value from list, but if it's a large list you only get Max Throtting items in a collection, others will be missing. The most important thing is this way is easy to use.

IEnumerable enumerable = list.Items.Cast<SPListItem>().Select(itm => itm["Column Name"]).Distinct();

Or you can use Linq to select the distinct value, this way will not be recommend because of performance but it will return exactly data if the maximum return records were not exceeded the Max Throttling.

It's up to you to choose any way, but hope this help.

SharePoint and SQL intergrations event

We've announced our next exclusive live chat on Facebook! Join Jesse Shiah, CEO of AgilePoint, and Gideon Bibliowicz, Senior Product Manager - Enterprise Lead for Microsoft SharePoint of Microsoft SharePoint, on December 1st at 11am to ask them questions about SharePoint and SQL integration. Any technical questions you have are fair game. Don't miss your chance to go right to the experts and learn how SharePoint and SQL benefits businesses of any size. RSVP on the event page:

http://www.facebook.com/events/179333768823652/

Format DateTime in SharePoint 2010 based on XSLT 1.0

If you were bored with the date time formatted showed in the list by SharePoint and you think it should be changed to how it's easy to view it. The difficulties come from a lot of problems especially XSLT in SharePoint 2010, it was never upgraded from SharePoint 2002, still using version 1.0 until now. That's the bad thing I had when I was working on SharePoint.

Of course, there are many options for you developing on SharePoint product, I mean you can use ContentQuery Web Part to correct the date time format like FaceBook or Google Plus:

However, to do that, now you just follow up this instruction to customize your xslt and see how it shows on the page.

Click here to download the library.

1) Copy the content of file after downloaded, paste it into the file named "thread.xsl" in folder 14/Template/Layouts/Xsl

2) Go to the line for template called "StatusBar" (<xsl:template name="StatusBar">) and remove all the code for Modified date time. Or replace by:

<xsl:call-template name="Bamboo_FormatDateTime">
    <xsl:with-param name="theDate" select="$thisNode/@Modified."/>
    <xsl:with-param name="theDateFormat" select="$thisNode/@Modified"/>
</xsl:call-template>

3) Save and reset IIS

Note: 
- You can put the code anywhere if you want to show the time stamp more friendly.
- Just StatusBar column has defined "Modified." field in the schema, it's original value of Modified column. So, if you do not find out the value of "Modified." that means, in the schema file, the field did not create a reference to original value Modified.
- You also don't care about the LCID of site or user locate, because the value of "Modified." always return the value in 1033 regional and the format function based on this column to show friendly.

Unlock uploading file in SharePoint 2010

By default, SharePoint locked the uploading file with some extensions, these extensions may cause the damage your server and user will take advantage of uploading to send a script, virus and even the code executable and control your server from remoting. So, SharePoint has been locked by default to be sure your server to be protected safety.

You will get an error if you try to upload the file with restrictive high level:

However, in some case, you need to unlock to upload the file for internal process, or only in local. It's very simple by remove the extension out the locked list.

Go to Central Administration -> Web Application, on the Ribbon click on Blocked File Types, the remove the extension necessary. This is only effected on each Web Application. To be more safely, put it back the blocked list after finished the uploading, only open if it is really necessary.

Share a SharePoint Blog Post/Discussion Board to many Social Networking

Once the discussion board and blog has been published on the internet, the Administrator wish always sharing the interesting thing to everyone through Social Networking such as Facebook, Twitter,... There are many people  know your site if the post was shared to many ways, many sites...

Look at the picture:

Step by step:

1) Regist an account on http://sharethis.com

2) Login by this account, create an Get a button, then customize the number of networking, size, template,...

3) Get a code.

4) Open file thread.xsl in 14/Hive location LAYOUTS/XSL folder. Point to line at: 650 and paste this code:

<xsl:if test="(@BaseViewID='1' or @BaseViewID='2')">
// THE CODE FROM sharethis.com
</xsl:if>

THE CODE FROM sharethis.com as picture below:

5) Save and reset IIS.

Fix Blog Comment bug for SharePoint 2010

SharePoint Bug:

Scenarios: Turn on anonymous access to the comment list with full functioning such as Delete/Add/Edit and View item.

Work As Design and Problem: If you logged into site by Anonymous,  of course, you can post the comment, edit and delete the comment. However, these comments which has created by Anonymous, all anonymous can view these comments although they are not approved. Especially, anonymous can be edit/delete the comment which posted by another anonymous. And then, if you logged into by authenticated account, you will not see these comment because they are not approved yet. That's so funny.

Resolve: If user log-in the site by anonymous and post the comment, item needs to be approved before showing on the page. So, after user click post comment button, they will see nothing change on the page. It's a little confuse but it should be.

More thing, although edit permission is turned on for anonymous but it should not be use in this scenarios, because no one knows who is edited and editing/deleting to be complicated. So, we must check if anonymous access and the comment has been approved, just show as normal.


Just change a little thing. Go go 14/hive and open folder Layouts/xsl, open the file blog.xsl and go to line at 418, insert the line:

<xsl:if test="($Userid &lt; 0 and $thisNode/@_ModerationStatus = 'Approved') or ($Userid &gt; 0)">
//SharePoint Code

and insert the line at 448 a close tag

</xsl:if>

See attach:

Warning: if follow this instruction, the WAD of SharePoint default will not keep correctly, this is also new view for end user and I think it should be change like this and make sense for all cases.

Access denied for Anonymous users with custom xslt

SharePoint Bug

Sometime I had a stress with SharePoint customization, especially on XSLT data transform.
My scenarios is:
- Create a custom view for any list.
- Customize XSLT to render UI for my stituation.
My Problem is:
- With authenticated users, it works fine and smoothly
- Got a notice: Access denied. You do not have permission to perform this action or access this resource for Anonymous users.

I am a "SharePointism", so the first thing I looked into the SharePoint log file. it's very lucky, I got the message: "Error while executing web part: System.UnauthorizedAccessException: Access is denied. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80070005 (E_ACCESSDENIED))     at Microsoft.SharePoint.Library.SPRequest.UpdateWebPartCache(String bstrWebUrl, Boolean bAllUsers, String bstrID, Byte[]& ppsaData, Boolean fOMCall)     at Microsoft.SharePoint.WebPartPages.SPWebPartManager.CacheWriteInternal(Guid storageKey, Byte[] cacheData, Storage storage, Boolean omCall)     at Microsoft.SharePoint.WebPartPages.BaseXsltListWebPart.get_CustomizedXsl()     at Microsoft.SharePoint.WebPartPages.BaseXsltListWebPart.LoadXslCompiledTransform(WSSXmlUrlResolver someXmlResolver)     at Microsoft.SharePoint.WebPartPages.DataFormWebPart.GetXslCompiledTransform()     at Microsoft.SharePoint.WebPartPages.DataFormWebPart.PrepareAndPerformTra..."

Just guess that because I turned on the "Data Web Part Caching" and it seems turned on automatically. So, I disable (remove the checked) for this button. And....oh la la... it still doesn't work. However, we should not do like that because the message from SharePoint is not able to update "Cache". So, I tried to change the value CacheXslStorage="false" and ViewFlag="8", but it still end up with "Access denied".

However, i will work fine if there is an authenticated user view the blog detail first, then everybody can view this post without error. Maybe it's WAD or Bug of SharePoint 2010.

Update: We should not apply the cusomize xslt to ListXsltViewWebPart by UI in toolpane. We should open site by SPD, then change the property named "GhostedXslLink" is our customized xsl. This xsl is in layout/xsl folder of 14/hive. The content of this xsl file has reference to customized xslt.

Hope this help

Something in SharePoint (2007 & 2010)

There is a funny thing in SharePoint (in all versions)

1) List

With normal list the URL like http://server_name/site_name/Lists/List_Name
With documents list the URL like http://server_name/site_name/List_Name

2) Site

With normal site, all lists have the full controls on the list such as deleting, saving template,...
With blog site, the Posts list does not have permission to delete or save as the template and after save the blog site as template, we cannot restore the site correctly. All views of Posts list are generated as a list with the same name.

How to get all subsites if logged by Reader or Contributor

Sometime, we need to go through all sub-site of site collection to do something, however, it's very easy if you are logged in by Designer or Full Control. Because these account have full rights on subsites and the problem happens with Contributor or Reader. Look at the code:


SPWeb parent = SPContext.Current.Web;
foreach (SPWeb web in parent.Webs)
{
          try
          {
                    table.Merge(this.GetDataFromURL(new Uri(web.Url), schemaName, itemLimit));
           }
          catch (Exception ex)
         {
                //logger.Warn("DataBind::", ex);
         }
         finally
        {
              web.Dispose();
       }
}

The code runs without error but you will get the Access denied on the page and the stack trace shows full message like: "Unable to evaluate expression because the code is optimized or a native frame is on top of the call stack." That's very bad practice. Because of requirement, there are some subsites that Contributors or Readers do not have permission to read. However, we must get the data from remaining subsites which they have the right to read the data.

The code will change to:


SPWeb parent = SPContext.Current.Web;
parent.Site.CatchAccessDeniedException = false;
foreach (SPWeb web in parent.Webs)
{
          try
          {
                    table.Merge(this.GetDataFromURL(new Uri(web.Url), schemaName, itemLimit));
           }
          catch (Exception ex)
         {
                //logger.Warn("DataBind::", ex);
         }
         finally
        {
              web.Dispose();
       }
}


We need to set property "CatchAccessDeniedException = false" for SPSite object. SharePoint will know that catch any site does have permission to read. As a result, you never get "Access denied" exception on page but you also never get data correctly, because the collection of Webs will throw exception if any subsite strict from user does not have permission.

The best practice for this issue is to get all subsites which Current user has the right to read, the code to change again:


SPWeb parent = SPContext.Current.Web;
parent.Site.CatchAccessDeniedException = false;
foreach (SPWeb web in parent.GetSubwebsForCurrentUser())
{
          try
          {
                    table.Merge(this.GetDataFromURL(new Uri(web.Url), schemaName, itemLimit));
           }
          catch (Exception ex)
         {
                //logger.Warn("DataBind::", ex);
         }
         finally
        {
              web.Dispose();
       }
}


Method "GetSubwebsForCurrentUser()" of  SPWeb just gets all subsites which current user is to be able to access, atleast, reading the data.