InfoPath Dev

HI! I need to get data from an infopath formular via a workflow into an own database. the user shall fill out the formular, submit it to sharepoint and a workflow should then read the data provided by infopath and add it into that database. my question is: HOW to do this best? I am new to sharepoint and wanted to know if i should use a Sharepoint Designer Workflow or one made in VS2k8. My plan was to add an activity that parses the infopath formular for the data and send that to a webservice that inserts it into the database. Is that a correct way to do this? How would YOU do it? (please explain detailed as i am a sharepoint newbie :) ) thanks!!

Hi GentleDepp and welcome,

We do this using our Database Accelerator Web Service. The InfoPath form submits to the Web Service which maps the data in the form (er, formular) to a SQL database. The Web Service also stores the data into SharePoint. You can read more about it here: http://www.qdabra.com/en/products/DBXL.aspx . We'd also be happy to show you a demo. We have a new Workflows Webinar coming up in a week. If you are interested in learning about SharePoint Workflows, Forms-based Workflows and how to integrate with Web Services, please send e-mail to CourseManager @ Qdabra.com to register for the class. Cost is just $75 for the 90 minute course.

Best regards,

Have a look at the example in my blog post to see how to access a SQL Server database directly from a SharePoint Designer Workflow without having to write your own Visual Studio Custom Action or Workflow.

You can use the same idea to parse an InfoPath form in order to get the data. There is an example about iterating through an InfoPath form in this post.