Manifest Files and XML Expansion Packs on a Server [Office 2003 SDK Documentation]

Article
01/16/2009

In MicrosoftOffice 2003 you can easily deploy XML expansion packs that you include with your smart document solutions on a server. This topic discusses how to use the manifest file to specify where the files comprising your expansion pack are located when they are installed on a server. You can put expansion packs on either an Internet (external) server or an intranet server. Nothing changes in Office 2003 Service Pack (SP) 1 when deploying a smart document to an internal server. However, when installing a smart document on an external server, Office 2003 SP 1 simplifies deployment. In all cases, the location of the expansion pack files is located in the <filePath> element in the manifest file. How this is accomplished varies depending on whether you want to deploy to an internal or external server and what version of Office 2003 you install. The following sections describe each case and provide code examples.

For the sample XML code, imagine the fictitious company Contoso Pharmaceuticals created an XML expansion pack that downloads a single file – a schema, book.xsd – onto the user's computer from a server and that both the manifest file and book.xsd are uploaded to http://contoso/book.

Note It is assumed that you are familiar with manifest files and know that they must be signed digitally using the XMLSign tool.

Office 2003 and manifest files on a server

To point to XML service packs on an intranet server in Office 2003

Using relative paths:

If you place both the XML manifest and the expansion pack on Contoso's intranet server, http://contoso/book, and you want to use a relative path inside the <filePath> element, then that file must reside in the same directory as the XML expansion pack manifest file, because Office 2003 uses the location of the manifest file to resolve all relative paths in the manifest

Sample manifest file with a relative path on an intranet server in Office 2003.

<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri> 
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath>book.xsd</filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>
<!-- XML Signature goes here -->
</manifest>

Using abolute paths:

If you prefer to use an absolute path instead, then insert the full path to the expansion pack file inside <filePath>.

Sample manifest file with an absolute path on an intranet server in Office 2003.

<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri> 
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath><filePath>http://contoso.com/book/mySchema.xsd</filePath></filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>
<!-- XML Signature goes here -->
</manifest>

To point to XML service packs on an external Internet server in Office 2003

To deploy an XML expansion pack on the Internet in Office 2003, you must create a Microsoft Windows Installer package that installs the same files and registry keys installed when you use an XML expansion pack manifest file.

Office 2003 SP 1 and manifest files on a server

To point to XML service packs on an intranet server in Office 2003 SP 1

Nothing changes about the manifest file on an intranet server between Office 2003 and Office 2003 SP 1. When you update to Office 2003 SP 1 you can continue to deploy smart documents over the intranet without making any changes. The sample manifest file code presented in the next example is identical to the intranet sample manifest code shown for Office 2003

Using relative paths:

Sample manifest file with a relative path on an intranet server in Office 2003 SP 1.

<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri> 
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath>book.xsd</filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>
<!-- XML Signature goes here -->
</manifest>

Using abolute paths:

Sample manifest file with an absolute path on an intranet server in Office 2003 SP 1.

<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri> 
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath>http://contoso.com/book/mySchema.xsd</filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>
<!-- XML Signature goes here -->
</manifest>

To point to XML service packs on an external Internet server in Office 2003 SP 1

New to Office 2003 SP 1, you can deploy expansion packs on the Internet without creating a Windows Installer package. With the introduction of a new element in the XML Expansion Pack Manifest Schema in Office 2003 SP 1, deployment on an Internet server is now very similar to deployment on an intranet server with a manifest file. You can use either a relative path or an absolute path in the manifest file to locate expansion pack files on the Internet.

Using relative paths:

Office 2003 SP 1 introduces a new element, <signedSrcRoot>, to the XML Expansion Pack Manifest Schema that allows you to use relative paths when putting an expansion pack on an Internet server. The <signedSrcRoot> element defines the server from where all expansion pack files must be downloaded. You can put the location of the expansion pack file in the <filePath> element using a path that's relative to the value in the <signedSrcRoot> element. The <signedSrcRoot> element must be located directly before the first <solution> element in the manifest file. This element is required when using relative paths.

Sample manifest file with a relative path on an Internet server in Office 2003 SP 1 .
```
<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri>
    <signedSrcRoot>http://contoso.com/book</signedSrcRoot>
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath>mySchema.xsd</filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>

</manifest>
```

Using absolute paths:

If you choose to use an absolute path to define the location of an expansion pack file, the <signedSrcRoot> element is optional since there are no relative paths to resolve.

Sample manifest file with an absolute path on an Internet server inOffice 2003 SP 1 .

<manifest xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/xmlexpansionpacks/2003">
    <version>1.0</version> 
    <uri>http://contoso.com/book</uri>
    <!-- the signedSrcRoot element below is optional with absolute paths -->
    <signedSrcRoot>http://contoso.com/book</signedSrcRoot>
    <solution>
        <solutionID>FB1</solutionID>
        <type>schema</type>
        <alias lcid="1033">RealBook</alias>
        <file>
            <type>schema</type>
            <version>1.0</version>
            <filePath>http://contoso.com/book/mySchema.xsd</filePath>
        </file>
    </solution>
<!-- XML Signature goes here -->
</manifest>

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