InfoPath cannot find or cannot access the following web server
I recently had a user state they could not publish an InfoPath form to a SharePoint Form library that was not setup for InfoPath Forms Services. Since that required an Enterprise CAL it was not enabled until a license was purchased.
During the troubleshooting I walked through their form and verified it was set to the correct Compatibility level. I went into the Form Library that was created and verified "Open in Client Application" was also selected, but each time the error was that InfoPath couldn't find the server.
Having reproduced this on several sites and even different web applications and several farms, I knew it had to be either proxy or network related. I've seen numerous post about that exact error, but could not pinpoint a fix. I progressed down the path of it being a proxy issue, a LAN setting, etc., but I was wrong!
A big clue came when I notice the "New Document" was active even though I had not published a Form yet. When I clicked on it a Word document opened. Further investigation on the Advanced settings for the library showed [file].docx was the Template. That was strange.
I verified this on a different farm that it was incorrect. It should have been .../Forms/template.xsn. But every single Form library on the Site Collection was this way so I knew someone modified the Site Content Type of Form. I was right. In my case, a previous admin had modified the Default Site Content Type "Form" to be a generic Word document. Nowhere was this documented in the configuration of the farm, so let me point how important it is to document your changes in the farm in the event you get run over by a bus, or by your Admin replacing you because you were horrible at documenting anything. Also, please don't ever change the default Site Content Type, make a new one.
So why was it done? Who knows, but I'm giving the person the benefit of the doubt it was an attempt to block the use of InfoPath Forms in SharePoint. If I ever run into that person again, it is going to be with a bus.
The fix was simple. Go to the Site Collection Administration settings. Under Galleries, select Site content types. Look for Form and click on it. Click on Advanced Settings.
Instead of this;
I then created a new Form library and everything was published successfully. Now how exactly does that error message relate to an incorrect Form content type Microsoft?
During the troubleshooting I walked through their form and verified it was set to the correct Compatibility level. I went into the Form Library that was created and verified "Open in Client Application" was also selected, but each time the error was that InfoPath couldn't find the server.
Having reproduced this on several sites and even different web applications and several farms, I knew it had to be either proxy or network related. I've seen numerous post about that exact error, but could not pinpoint a fix. I progressed down the path of it being a proxy issue, a LAN setting, etc., but I was wrong!
A big clue came when I notice the "New Document" was active even though I had not published a Form yet. When I clicked on it a Word document opened. Further investigation on the Advanced settings for the library showed [file].docx was the Template. That was strange.
I verified this on a different farm that it was incorrect. It should have been .../Forms/template.xsn. But every single Form library on the Site Collection was this way so I knew someone modified the Site Content Type of Form. I was right. In my case, a previous admin had modified the Default Site Content Type "Form" to be a generic Word document. Nowhere was this documented in the configuration of the farm, so let me point how important it is to document your changes in the farm in the event you get run over by a bus, or by your Admin replacing you because you were horrible at documenting anything. Also, please don't ever change the default Site Content Type, make a new one.
So why was it done? Who knows, but I'm giving the person the benefit of the doubt it was an attempt to block the use of InfoPath Forms in SharePoint. If I ever run into that person again, it is going to be with a bus.
The fix was simple. Go to the Site Collection Administration settings. Under Galleries, select Site content types. Look for Form and click on it. Click on Advanced Settings.
Instead of this;
It should be this:
I then created a new Form library and everything was published successfully. Now how exactly does that error message relate to an incorrect Form content type Microsoft?
