If you are new to InfoPath 2007 or are 'used' to working in InfoPath 2003 (even with SP1) you will have tough time adjusting to the fact that InfoPath forms can be browser enabled. And I say this is because as a Developer as much as we like to learn new things we always wants to go back and develop the applications 'old' way. InfoPath Forms Services allows developers to design and develop forms in forms designer and with the use of a simple 'design checker', it can assure you that the form is going to work as designed. The biggest advantage that this feature provides is that the end users are not required to have InfoPath clients. Now, Microsoft would still require users to have CAL for MOSS as a whole, but more important, this provides flexibility to end users of working from any PC (as long as network security allows access to SharePoint portal). One more thing that I would like to point out that Forms Services is a part of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server Enterprise Edition. If you are running on plain vanilla WSS 3.0, a separate product called Forms Server is available that can work in the same fashion as Forms Services in MOSS 2007.

So how does this works? An InfoPath form template consists of one package with an .xsn extension. An InfoPath client parses these files and transforms the XML files into HTML files for  display. Forms Server converts the files in the package to .aspx, .css, and .jscript files to render them in a browser.

This blog outlines the steps required to configure Forms Services in MOSS 2007 so that SharePoint sites can render InfoPath forms in HTML. This blog assumes that you have administrative privledges to configure both Central Administration and Site Setting of individual site collection.

First RDP to server running Central Administration. Remember, there can only be 1 Central Adminisration site in a given server farm. Go to Application Management and then click on Manage Web application features.


You want to Activate the "Office SharePoint Server Enterprise Web Application features" feature.

Once you have activated the feature at Farm level, the Next step is to configure it at Site Collection level. For this, login to your Site Collection (inside a web application), and go to Site Settings and under Site Collection Administration, click on Site collection features.

 

Activate the Office SharePoint Server Enterprise Site Collection features.

Thirdly, come back to Central Administration site and go to Application Management tab again. Only this time, you will see a new section called InfoPath Forms Services. This was enabled when we activated the Enterprise features that includes Forms Services. Click on Configure InfoPath Forms Services.


You want to ensure that under User Browser-enabled Form Templates section you have Allow users to browser-enable form template and Render form templates that are browser-enabled by users checked.

Now, it is also possible to force users to open form in a browser even if they have InfoPath clients installed on their machine. In order to do this, browse to your forms library under your site. Then Lists Settings go to Forms Library Settings. In General Settings section click on Advanced Settings.

This opens up Forms Library Advanced Settings page. In the browser enabled document section, ensure that you select "Display as a Web page".

 Thats it. The steps outlined above can be used to configure Forms Services on a MOSS EE environment.