Create a custom list, add a few columns as shown in Figure 2-59, and save it as Tasty Foods Feedback.

Figure 2-59. The Tasty Foods custom list

The Fooditem Choice column can contain items such as sandwiches, chicken, breakfast, salads, snacks and sides, beverages, coffee, desserts, shakes, etc.

Open Visio 2010 and create a new Visio diagram using Shape Stencils SharePoint Workflow Actions (US units) and SharePoint Workflow Terminators (US units). You'll find these in the Flowchart section.

Create a simple workflow as shown in Figure 2-60, using shapes that compare the data source, send e-mail, and set the workflow status.

Figure 2-60. Simple workflow designed in Visio using SharePoint templates

From the File menu, save the diagram (as a .vsd file) to your local file system.

On the Process tab of the ribbon, click the Export button as shown in the Figure 2-61.

Figure 2-61. Exporting a Visio diagram as a SharePoint workflow

Save the file to your local disk as a Visio Workflow Interchange (.vwi) file.

Close Visio and open the SharePoint Designer 2010 client.

Open the SharePoint site where you created the Tasty Foods Feedback custom list.

From the Site Objects menu, click on Workflows.

Click on the Import from Visio icon on the Workflow tab of the ribbon. In the Choose a Visio drawing to import wizard (Figure 2-62), browse and select the previously exported .vwi file, then click Next to continue.

Figure 2-62. Importing a Visio workflow interchange file to SharePoint Designer

Provide a proper workflow name and choose List Workflow as the type of workflow to import. Select the custom list you created earlier for the feedback and click Finish, as shown in Figure 2-63.

Figure 2-63. Setting the workflow name and selecting the list to attach to the workflow

This creates a simple workflow screen that is built from the workflow framework created from Visio (see Figure 2-64).

Figure 2-64. Visio workflow intechange file (.vwi) loaded in the SharePoint Designer workflow editor

As you can see in Figure 2-64, two conditions are automatically created under the editor as there are two flows when comparing the data (refer to Figure 2-60). This includes the send e-mail process step, change the workflow status, and the end the process step for both flows.

Modify each of the conditions to meet the requirements. For instance, under the If condition (Figure 2-64), set the value to look up from the custom list datasource and choose the field (Comments) for looking up the value. Set the this.test value to "is empty".

If this condition is true, then set the Email "these users" to Current Item:Email Address. Configure Subject and message and then Set workflow status to "Rejected" from the look-up values.

Under the "Else" condition, set Email "these users" to Current Item:Email Address. Configure Subject and message and then Set workflow to "Approved".

Finally, set the Title of the workflow as "Tasty Foods Feedback Workflow" as shown in Figure 2-65.

Figure 2-65. Setting up the workflow conditions in SharePoint Designer

In the Start Options, under View and manage settings for this workflow page, you can choose to start the workflow automatically either when the item is created or when it is changed (see Figure 2-66).

Figure 2-66. Setting workflow start-up options in SharePoint Designer

From the Workflow tab on the ribbon, click the Check for Errors button and then save the workflow (Figure 2-67).

Publish this workflow to the list using the Publish button on the Workflow tab.

Figure 2-67. Save and Publish the workflow to SharePoint list

These steps will validate and publish the workflow to the corresponding list.

Open the SharePoint site and the Tasty Foods Feedback list.

Go to List

Locate the Workflow you just submitted. If the workflow is published more than once, a new version is created.

Return to the list and click Add new item, which pops up the New Item screen as shown in Figure 2-68.

Create two items, one with comments and one without comments. Since the workflow hasn't been set to start automatically, you'll have to start it manually after any item is created. Choose the item on which you'd like to run the Workflow and click the Workflows button on the Items tab, as shown in Figure 2-69.

Figure 2-68. Adding a new item to the feedback form

Figure 2-69. Starting a workflow for the list item

This opens the Start a New Workflow window, displaying the available workflows, as Figure 2-70 shows.

Figure 2-70. Starting a new workflow

Click on the Tasty Foods Feedback workflow link, and then on the Start button on the next screen. This will execute the rules underlying the workflow and apply any changes to the respective columns

Notice that under the Tasty Foods Feedback column (Figure 2-71), the status is set based the on the comments provided by customer. The status would be Approved when the customer fills in the Comments field and Rejected when the customer doesn't add any comments.

Figure 2-71. Workflow status after items are added

Create a table named tblServerStatus with columns as shown in Figure 2-72 in the VisioServices database you created earlier.

Figure 2-72. Server Status Table in SQL Server

Populate a few rows of information into this table as in Figure 2-73.

Figure 2-73. Populating data for the server status table in SQL Server

Create a stored procedure named uspGetServerDetails that will execute the SQL query to retrieve the values from the table in Figure 2-73. Listing 2-2 shows the code.

USE [VisioServices]
GO
/****** Object:  StoredProcedure [dbo].[uspGetServerDetails]    Script Date: 06/11/2010
22:10:31 ******/
SET ANSI_NULLS ON
GO
SET QUOTED_IDENTIFIER ON
GO
-- =============================================
-- Author:           <Author,,Name>
-- Create date: <Create Date,,>
-- Description:      <Description,,>
-- =============================================
CREATE PROCEDURE [dbo].[uspGetServerDetails]

AS
BEGIN
    -- SET NOCOUNT ON added to prevent extra result sets from
    -- interfering with SELECT statements.
    SET NOCOUNT ON;
   -- Insert statements for procedure here
    SELECT ServerName, ServerIP, ServerStatus from tblServerStatus
END

Writing the WCF Service library and Hosting it in IIS

Open Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, choose to create a new project, and from the available templates select Visual C#

Rename the default Service1.svc file and the interface class to ServerStatus.svc and IServerStatus.cs respectively. Ensure that all the references under the project reflect this name change.

After completing these steps, your project should look like the one in Figure 2-74.

Figure 2-74. Setting up a WCF service application project in Visual Studio 2010

Open the Web.config file and add an entry under the connectionStrings section—your SQL Server connection string as follows:

<connectionStrings>

<add name="VisioServicesConnectionString" connectionString="Data
Source=ServerName;Initial Catalog=VisioServices;Integrated Security=SSPI;User
Id=userId;Password=pwd" providerName="System.Data.SqlClient"/>
  </connectionStrings>

Open the ServerStatus.svc.cs file and paste the code from Listing 2-3 in it.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Runtime.Serialization;
using System.ServiceModel;
using System.Text;
using System.Data;
using System.Data.Sql;
using System.Data.SqlClient;
using System.Configuration;
namespace WcfDataProvider
{

    public class ServerStatus : IServerStatus
    {
        [OperationBehavior]
        public DataTable GetServerStatusDetails()
        {
            DataSet dataSet = new DataSet();
            SqlConnection connection = new
SqlConnection(ConfigurationManager.ConnectionStrings["VisioServicesConnectionString"].Co
nnectionString);

            SqlCommand command = new SqlCommand("uspGetServerDetails", connection);
            command.CommandType = CommandType.StoredProcedure;
            SqlDataAdapter dataAdapter = new SqlDataAdapter(command);

            dataAdapter.Fill(dataSet);
            connection.Close();
            return dataSet.Tables[0];
        }
    }
}

Now copy the code in Listing 2-4, open the IServerStatus.cs file and paste the code in it.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Runtime.Serialization;
using System.ServiceModel;
using System.Text;
using System.Data;
namespace WcfDataProvider
{
    // NOTE: You can use the "Rename" command on the "Refactor" menu to change the
interface name "IServerStatus" in both code and config file together.
    [ServiceContract]
    public interface IServerStatus
    {
        [OperationContract]
        DataTable GetServerStatusDetails();
    }
}

Build the WCF project in release mode and make sure you have no errors.

Create a local folder in your file system under C: and name it wcfServicehost.

Make a folder called bin.

Copy the WcfDataProvider.dll file to the bin folder.

Make sure Network Service and IIS_IUSRS users have Read & Execute permissions on the root folder.

Create a file named VisioWcfService.svc under the wcfServicehost folder and add the following text:

<% @ServiceHost Service="WcfDataProvider.ServerStatus" %>

Create a Web.config file in the same folder and copy the code from Listing 2-5 to it.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
  <configuration>
    <system.serviceModel>
      <services>
        <service behaviorConfiguration="WcfDataProvider.ServerStatusBehavior"
name="WcfDataProvider.ServerStatus">
          <endpoint address="" binding="basicHttpBinding"
contract="WcfDataProvider.IServerStatus" />
                    <host>
            <baseAddresses>

<add baseAddress="http://localhost:<portnumber>/visiowcfservices.svc" />
            </baseAddresses>
          </host>
        </service>
      </services>
      <behaviors>
        <serviceBehaviors>
          <behavior name="WcfDataProvider.ServerStatusBehavior">
            <serviceMetadata httpGetEnabled="true" />
            <serviceDebug includeExceptionDetailInFaults="false" />
           </behavior>
        </serviceBehaviors>
      </behaviors>
    </system.serviceModel>
   <connectionStrings>
      <add name="VisioServicesConnectionString" connectionString="Data
Source=vajra;Initial Catalog=ServerName;Integrated Security=SSPI;User
Id=uid;Password=pwd" providerName="System.Data.SqlClient"/>
    </connectionStrings>
  </configuration>

After completing the above steps, your folder structure and files should look similar to those in Figure 2-75.

Figure 2-75. WCF service host folder

Open IIS and create an application pool by providing a Name, .NET Framework version, and pipeline mode.

Create a new web site. Choose the app pool you just created, provide a site name, and choose the local folder where you copied the .dll file as the physical path. Under binding, provide a Port number that's not in use.

Open the browser and type the URL http://localhost:<portnumber>/VisioWcfServices.svc; to see the output shown in Figure 2-76.

Figure 2-76. Accessing the WCF service

Creating the custom data provider project

Open Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, create a new project, and from the available templates pick Visual C#

In the next screen, enter the SharePoint site URL for debugging and choose Deploy as a farm solution for the trust level. Click on Finish.

Right-click on the project, select the properties, and make sure the Assembly name and default namespace fit your situation.

Right-click on the project again and click on Add Class. Name the class as VisioDataService.cs.

Right-click on the project and choose Add Service Reference....

From the wizard, click Discover and make sure there's a reference to the WCF service you built earlier. Alternatively, you can enter the WCF URL (http://localhost:<portnumber>/VisioWcfServices.svc) in the Address text box. Provide the namespace as WcfDataService and click OK.

Right-click on the project and choose Add Reference.... From the Add Reference window .NET tab, choose the System.Web component and click OK.

Right-click on the project again and choose Add Reference.... From the Add Reference window Browse tab, browse to the folder C:WindowsassemblyGAC_MSILMicrosoft.Office.Visio.Server14.0.0.0__71e9bce111e9429c and choose the file Microsoft.Office.Visio.Server.dll and click OK.

At this stage, the project structure should resemble the one in Figure 2-77.

Figure 2-77. WCF consumer project structure

Open the VisioDataService.cs file from the VisioDataService project and copy the code in Listing 2-6 into the file. Make sure you have the correct namespaces as per your project settings.

Open Microsoft Visual Studio 2010, create a new project, and from the available templates pick Visual C#

In the next screen, enter the SharePoint site URL for debugging and choose Deploy as a farm solution for the trust level. Click on Finish.

Right-click on the project, select the properties, and make sure the Assembly name and default namespace fit your situation.

Right-click on the project again and click on Add Class. Name the class as VisioDataService.cs.

Right-click on the project and choose Add Service Reference....

From the wizard, click Discover and make sure there's a reference to the WCF service you built earlier. Alternatively, you can enter the WCF URL (http://localhost:<portnumber>/VisioWcfServices.svc) in the Address text box. Provide the namespace as WcfDataService and click OK.

Right-click on the project and choose Add Reference.... From the Add Reference window .NET tab, choose the System.Web component and click OK.

Right-click on the project again and choose Add Reference.... From the Add Reference window Browse tab, browse to the folder C:WindowsassemblyGAC_MSILMicrosoft.Office.Visio.Server14.0.0.0__71e9bce111e9429c and choose the file Microsoft.Office.Visio.Server.dll and click OK.

At this stage, the project structure should resemble the one in Figure 2-77.

using System;
using System.Data;
using System.Threading;
using System.Xml;
using System.Web;
using Microsoft.Office.Visio.Server;
using VisioDataService.WcfDataService;
namespace Altsis
{
    public class VisioDataService : AddonDataHandler, IAsyncResult
    {
        private object _asyncState;
        private bool _completeStatus;

        WaitHandle IAsyncResult.AsyncWaitHandle
        {
            get { return null; }
        }
        object IAsyncResult.AsyncState
        {
            get { return _asyncState; }
        }
        bool IAsyncResult.IsCompleted

{
            get { return this._completeStatus; }
        }
        bool IAsyncResult.CompletedSynchronously
        {
            get { return false; }
        }
        public override IAsyncResult BeginGetData(HttpContext httpContext, AsyncCallback
callback, object asyncState)
        {
            asyncState = asyncState;
            ThreadPool.QueueUserWorkItem(new WaitCallback(GetData), callback);
            return this;
        }
        public override DataSet EndGetData(IAsyncResult asyncResult)
        {
            return this.Data;
        }
        public override void Cancel()
        {
            // Not implemented
        }
        private void GetData(object state)
        {
            AsyncCallback asyncCallback = (AsyncCallback)state;
            try
            {
                ServerStatusClient oServerStatus = new ServerStatusClient();
                DataTable dt = oServerStatus.GetServerStatusDetails();
                this.Data.Reset();
                this.Data.Tables.Add(dt);
                this.Data.AcceptChanges();
            }
            catch (Exception ex)
            {
                this.Error = new AddonDataHandlerException(ex.Message);
            }
            asyncCallback(this);
            _completeStatus = true;

        }
    }
}

Now build the project. Once the build is successful, right-click on the VisioDataService project, then click on Package to create the WSP file under the project bin folder.

Deploy the WSP using either STSADM or Windows PowerShell commands to add the solution to your SharePoint site.

Open Central Administration

Click on Trusted Data Providers and then on Add a new Trusted Data Provider.

Under Trusted Data Provider ID, enter the fully qualified assembly signature (in my case it is Altsis.VisioDataService,VisioDataService, Version=1.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=<publickeytoken>). Please see http://blah.winsmarts.com/2009-12-SharePoint_Productivity_Tip_of_the_day.aspx for a convenient way to extract assembly signatures.

Under Trusted Data Provider Type, enter the value 6 (for Visio Custom Data Providers).

Under Trusted Data Provider Description, enter a valid description such as Visio Custom Data Services Provider and click OK.

Your service provider is now ready and will display in the available service provider list.

Open the Web.config file that belongs to your SharePoint web application and paste the settings in Listing 2-7 under the system.serviceModel section.

<bindings>
      <basicHttpBinding>
        <binding name="BasicHttpBinding_IServerStatus" closeTimeout="00:01:00"
            openTimeout="00:01:00" receiveTimeout="00:10:00" sendTimeout="00:01:00"
            allowCookies="false" bypassProxyOnLocal="false"
hostNameComparisonMode="StrongWildcard"
            maxBufferSize="65536" maxBufferPoolSize="524288"
maxReceivedMessageSize="65536"
            messageEncoding="Text" textEncoding="utf-8" transferMode="Buffered"
            useDefaultWebProxy="true">
          <readerQuotas maxDepth="32" maxStringContentLength="8192"
maxArrayLength="16384"
              maxBytesPerRead="4096" maxNameTableCharCount="16384" />
          <security mode="None">
            <transport clientCredentialType="None" proxyCredentialType="None"
                realm="" />

<message clientCredentialType="UserName" algorithmSuite="Default" />
          </security>
        </binding>
      </basicHttpBinding>
    </bindings>
    <client>
      <endpoint address="http://varun.altsis.com:77/VisioWcfServices.svc"
          binding="basicHttpBinding"
bindingConfiguration="BasicHttpBinding_IServerStatus"
          contract="WcfDataService.IServerStatus" name="BasicHttpBinding_IServerStatus"
/>
    </client>

Designing the Visio Diagram

Open Visio 2010 and create a blank diagram. Choose the Network

From the Insert tab, Add a Container block from the diagram parts, and add three servers: Web Server, Database Server, and Application Server. Give a name to the Container block as shown in Figure 2-78.

Figure 2-78. Designing a Visio diagram for test servers

Right now, there is no data source configured. While your Visio diagram is open, press Alt+F11 to open Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications. In the Project window, double-click on ThisDocument under Visio Objects to open the code view. Paste the code in Listing 2-8 into the code area.

Sub LoadData()
    Dim diagramServices As Integer
    Dim vsoDataRecordset As Visio.dataRecordset

    Dim connectionString As String
    Dim commandText As String

    diagramServices = ActiveDocument.DiagramServicesEnabled
    ActiveDocument.DiagramServicesEnabled = visServiceVersion140
    Application.ActiveWindow.Windows.ItemFromID(visWinIDExternalData).Visible = True

    commandText = "SELECT ServerName, ServerIP, ServerStatus FROM tblServerStatus"
    connectionString = "Provider=SQLOLEDB;Data Source=<YourDataSourceName>;Initial
Catalog=VisioServices;Integrated Security=SSPI;"
    Set vsoDataRecordset = ActiveDocument.DataRecordsets.Add(connectionString,
commandText, 0, "Server Status Details")
    vsoDataRecordset.DataConnection.connectionString =
"DataModule=Altsis.VisioDataService,VisioDataService;"

    ActiveDocument.DiagramServicesEnabled = diagramServices
End Sub

The Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications window should look like the one in Figure 2-79.

Figure 2-79. Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications

Press F5 or click on the Run button on the menu to execute the LoadData() subroutine. Pressing Alt+F11 will toggle back to the Visio diagram. Under the External Data tab, the data will be loaded as shown in Figure 2-80.

Figure 2-80. The Visio diagram loading external data using VBA code

Drag and drop row data to the respective shapes or set the Text property to the shapes that match the ServerName column and use the option Automatically Link all.

Set the data graphics to display ServerIP and ServerName as Text, and ServerStatus as Color by Value (Figure 2-81), such that if the value is 0 (server is down) the server shows red and if the value is 1 (server is live), it show green.

Figure 2-81. Setting up Data Graphics for the Visio diagram

Your final Visio diagram before saving should look like the one in Figure 2-82.

Figure 2-82. Visio diagram after applying data and data graphics

Save the Visio diagram to the local file system.

From the File menu, click on Save & Send

Open the SharePoint site and open the Visio Library Document library. Click on Add document, browse to the saved .vdw file, and click OK.

Click on the .vdw file to open the diagram in the browser to display the results from the database.

Change the values in the database and notice the server status. If the cache age values on the general settings of the Visio Graphics Service are set to zero, the values reflect instantly on the diagram (Figure 2-83).

Figure 2-83. Visio diagram loaded using a custom data provider

Make sure the following are correct to avoid the error shown in Figure 2-84.

Assembly details are accurate when you add the custom data providers in the Central Administration.

The WCF services are properly hosted and can communicate with the Custom Data Providers.

Your configuration files (Web.config) have the right binding settings for the WCF.

As discussed earlier, you might encounter the double-hop issue while connecting to data sources via WCF. If so, you might need to set the credentials under the Secure Store Service.

Figure 2-84. External data connection refresh error