It doesn’t matter if you are new to SharePoint or working with it for many moons. If you need some special SharePoint Designer actions for a workflow designed using the SPD, you should have a look at the open source project on codeplex which is listed as Useful Sharepoint Designer Custom Workflow Activities.
What is possible with the set of actions of this really cool project?
- Send Email with HTTP File attachment – Allows sending emails with attachments retrieved using a web request
- Send Email with List Item attachments – Allows sending list item attachments as files attached to an email
- Start Another Workflow – Starts another workflow associated with a list item
- Grant Permission on Item – Allows granting of specified permission level on a spicified item
- Delete List Item Permission Assigment – Allows deleting of specified permission level assigment for a given user
- Reset List Permissions Inheritance – removes any unique permissions assigned to an item by inheriting list permissions
- Is User a member of a SharePoint group – Checks if a given user is part of given sharepoint group
- Is Role assigned to User – Checks if a user role is already assigned on the current list item
- Lookup user info – allows to lookup properties in site’s user information list for a given login
- NEW! Copy List Item Extended Activity – Allows copying/moving list items and files cross site.
- NEW! Send Email Extended – Enhaced version of the OOTB activity. Allows you to specify the sender. Also does not break links in body.
As you can see, there are some really nice features included, which you would miss in the OOTB Features of SharePoint Designer. My Favorites are
- Copy List Item Extended Activity
- Reset List Permission Inheritance
- Delete List Item Permission Assignment
- Start another Workflow
Installation
An installation instruction is in the .zip file you download. You use some Powershell Scripts like these:
Add-SPSolution "C:\Install\CustomWorkflowActivitiesProject_0.0.2\CustomWorkflowActivitiesProject_0.0.2\CustomWorkflowActivitiesProject.wsp" Install-SPSolution CustomWorkflowActivitiesProject.wsp -AllWebApplications -GACDeployment
And of course you check if they are activated at web application features.
After that they should be available in the SharePoint Designer.
Advanced Workflow Actions for SharePoint Designer 2010
Another codeplex project is also interesting. The advanced workflow actions for SPD.
In this solution there are also some really nice features like
- Create Site Action
- Get Parent Folder Action
- Create XML File Action
- HTTP-Request Action
- Query XML Action
- Query XML-File Action
- Set XML Action
- Update XML Document Action
- Call a Web Service Action
- Execute SQL Action
- Wait for External Data
- Execute PowerShell Script Action
My favorite was the last one: Execute PowerShell Script Action. In this project there are some features which are also available in Nintex Workflow. Well Nintex has some more functions but calling a webservice or Set XML Action is also included.
Installation
You can follow the installation guide from this page. You just use the stsadm.exe or Powershell. After that you have to make sure it is activated at CA at the Webapplication Features.
And of course in your site collection which should use these features.
Now you can use these activities in SharePoint Designer Workflow.
Hope this helps you.
..:: I LIKE SHAREPOINT ::..
