månadsarkiv: december 2014

Update multi-value lookup column values in SharePoint 2010 using managed CSOM

Anatoly Mironov:

Reblogging this useful code sample for updating multi-value lookup columns using CSOM in C# in SharePoint 2010, but also valid for SharePoint 2013.

Originally posted on Bin's Dev Notes:

I received a task that needs to update multi-value lookup column value in SharerePoint 2010 using C#.  While it is easy to set columns of simple data types, with lookup column it is a bit more complicated.  Searching Web gives me following link which is helpful. However, that only works with single value column.   After a bit trial and error, I worked out following code that is functioning.

1

public void UpdateLookup(string siteUrl, int id, string lookupColumnName,

List multiLookupValues, string listName, string lookupListName)

{

using (ClientContext ctx = new ClientContext(siteUrl))

{

ctx.Credentials = new NetworkCredential(_username, _password, _domain);

var list = ctx.Web.Lists.GetByTitle(listName);

var item = list.GetItemById(id);

var lookUpList = ctx.Web.Lists.GetByTitle(lookupListName);

CamlQuery query = new CamlQuery();

query.ViewXml = CreateCaml(multiLookupValues);

var items = lookUpList.GetItems(query);

ctx.Load(item, i => i[lookupColumnName]);

ctx.Load(items);

ctx.ExecuteQuery();

var lookupValues = new ArrayList();

FieldLookupValue[] values = item[lookupColumnName] as FieldLookupValue[];

foreach (ListItem listItem in items)

{

var lookupValue = new FieldLookupValue { LookupId = listItem.Id };

lookupValues.Add(lookupValue);

}

item.ParseAndSetFieldValue(lookupColumnName…

View original 49 more words

Bypass all custom jslink

bypasscustomjslink-001

Client Side Rendering (CSR) and jslink are great for customizing lists and forms in SharePoint. In my current project we use it a lot of it. A disadvantage of that path, although, is that it might occur javascript errors, during the development phase, but also in production. We do, of course, our best to leverage the best jslink code, but unfortunately we have to live with the fact that errors can occur, especially when we use it for NewForm, EditForm, DisplayForm and View (in list and grid).

If an error occurs, it won’t stop the rest of javascript (it is wrapped in try and catch by SharePoint), but the fields will still not function as intended. It can also be some “corrupt” or old data in the field value that will “break” the jslink code.

I would like to suggest one little fix, an idea I’ve come up to in my jslink-heavy project:

Use a custom url parameter to stop all custom jslink execution.

The query string parameter can be called bypasscustomjslink=true

In every custom jslink, start with this line of code:

That’s it. If you have this in place, you can just manually add this to your url in browser:

or

Then all the customized fields and views will be uncustomized until bypasscustomjslink=true is removed. While viewing and editing list items in this uncustomized mode, you can access and repair data as if you never had adjusted it with jslink.

Using this does not mean you can “relax” and start writing crappy code. You still have to produce good code and anticipate all possible errors. bypasscustomjslink is just a convenient “emergency exit” aimed for developers and support to quickly solve problems without needing to reset the JSLink property on fields and list views.

Client Side Rendering with Async dependencies

Yesterday I asked a question on SharePoint StackExchange:

I also asked Elio Struyf on Twitter:

Good idea, Elio Estruyf! Now I want to try it out.

Preparations

In this case I’ll be using my example from my blog post yesterday:

Drag and Drop Image using Client Side Rendering

I have created a new list and added a lookup field to my previous list. What I get is a Title of the lookup item, but not my custom field called DragAndDrop. In my test I will try to load the DragAndDrop Image using an ajax call and rendering it after Client Side Rendering is done with my item.

To be complete, I want to show some screenshots for my lookup field:

csr-async-001csr-async-002

It will result in this OOTB rendering:
csr-async-003

Trying out CSR with async dependencies

While working with jslink, first of all I want to show a loading image instead of an empty html element, to show that something is loading:
csr-async-004

Here is the skeletton of the jslink file:

Making an ajax call

Next step is to initiate an ajax call. I am trying to avoid the jQuery dependency. There is so much you can do with the built-in javascript functions. For making an ajax call I am using SP.RequestExecutor.js

Here is the result:

csr-async-005

The code should be quite self explaining:

Next steps and further considerations

It seems to work, although I have some considerations:

  1. What happens if the data from the ajax call is retrieved before Client Side Rendering is done (then the container is not rendered yet). Even if the risk for that is low, it should be handled properly.
  2. It would be good to have a consistent look and feel in the Display form and in the list view. To make it possible, following should be done:
    1. We must create references to html elements (containers) with unique ids, need to implement logic for generating ids and keeping track of the right elements.
    2. Ajax calls should be bundled, otherwise it will hugely impact the performance, even in a list view with 30 items.

Drag and Drop Image using Client Side Rendering

I continue my series about Client Side Rendering (CSR) and jsgrid. Today I want to try a custom field where users can drag and drop images. The inspiration comes from:

What I want to achieve is:

  1. A custom field that is rendered with jslink
  2. Users can drag and drop small pictures (thumbnails) into the field
  3. A base64 image representation is saved as the field value
  4. Optionally implement pasting images using Clipboard API

Step 1 Create a field with a custom jslink

Create a field of type Note. I am using the PnP Core Extensions to make it quickier:

dnd-001‘

My jslink file is very simple to begin with:

This will result in the following display form. Just outputting “hello” indicates that my field is jslink are registered correctly:

dnd-002

Step 2. Ensure base64 works in the field

Not all fields will work. I have tried many of them and found that the field type Note with Plain text works for saving base64 images.

First download some sample icons at flaticons.com

dnd-003

Convert an icon to a base64 image using dataurl.net:

dnd-004

Save the string into the Drag And Drop Image field:

dnd-005

Now update the view template in the CSR overrides:

Well, it works:

dnd-006dnd-007

 Step 3. Implement drag and drop

Let’s start with the edit template:

I have wrapped the image element with a div (id=drop_zone). Now I need some css to show it:

Now there is a clear “drop zone”:
dnd-008
To make it as simple as possible, let’s follow oroboto’s drag and drop code. Here we go:

That’s not bad, not bad:

dnd-009

The last thing in this step is to save the base64 value

Step 4 Support pasting images

Drag And Drop is cool. But what about pasting images. Wouldn’t it be nice? The functionality is called Clipboard API. You can check which browsers support this on caniuse.com. The simplest example I’ve found is on stackoverflow: How does onpaste work

The code I use is as follows:

Here is how pasting works:
dnd-011

Step 5 Error handling (Not done yet)

I need to ensure that

  • only images are allowed
  • only small images are allowed, otherwise base64 will be to heavy
  • proper handling of old browsers, we don’t need to support them, but the users should get good information about what they need to make it work
  • a help icon is shown, when clicked a help callout is shown about how it works

Step 6 Support Quick Edit (Not done yet)

We need code that works in Quick Edit:

  • need to write code for jsgrid
  • need handling of multiple drop zones on the same page (unique ids and smart handling of pasting)

Summary

This post is about discovering what’s possible to do with client side rendering and using today’s technologies like html5 and new javascript apis. I hope you’ve got some inspiration how normal sharepoint fields combined with Client Side Rendering (CSR) api can create more value in your project, in Office 365 and in SharePoint On Premises. Please leave feedback in comments.

Fulll source code

And finally, here comes the most up-to-date full source code for this custom Drag And Drop Image field: