Specifying parameters in URLs

You can use the ViewFormServlet to open a specific form and pass parameters such as a user name or a qualification. When a user enters a URL from an earlier version of AR System (a legacy URL), the system redirects the user to the proper form if the URL uses ViewFormServlet. If the URL does not use ViewFormServlet, users must enter the new URL.

At a minimum, you must supply the server name and form name. If more than one view of a form is available, the system selects a view based on certain criteria, as described in How-form-views-are-selected.

Values in URLs are case-sensitive. For example, ViewFormServlet and viewformservlet are not the same.

Supported parameters

A list of available views for the user is generated based on parameters specified in the URL. At a minimum, you must specify values for form and server. Include additional parameters as necessary, depending on the number of views available for the form and the requirements of the user.

The following table lists supported parameters, their descriptions, and possible values. All parameters and values are case sensitive.

Parameter	Description	Possible Values
form (required)	Name of the AR System form to be accessed.	URL-encoded string
view	View label for the preferred view. See How-form-views-are-selected for information about how a list of possible views is generated for the user.	URL-encoded string
app	Application (container) name. If specified and valid, the file for the view is called from the application-specific directory.	URL-encoded string
server (required)	Name of the AR System server to be accessed. The server used must be an available server listed in the Mid Tier Configuration Tool.	URL-encoded string
mode	Mode in which the form will be opened. If not specified, Search will be used.	Search, Submit
eid	Request ID of a form entry. Provides direct access to a specific request on the form. If specified, the qual value is ignored.	URL-encoded string representing the request ID number
qual	Qualification criteria for a search operation. If specified, the mode value is ignored.	URL-encoded search string (size restricted by URL length)
username	User name used to log on to AR System.	URL-encoded string
pwd	Password used to log on to AR System.	URL-encoded string
auth	Authentication string for the user. See Setting-up-an-authentication-alias.	URL-encoded string

Example URL syntax for accessing forms and search results

The following examples show the URL syntax for accessing forms and search results. In these examples, arsys is used as the default context path.

Example 1-URL that bypasses the Login window and displays the specified form

http://<midTierServer>/arsys/servlet/ViewFormServlet?form=<formName>&server=<serverName>&username=<userName>&pwd=<password>

Warning

If you use the pwd parameter in a URL, passwords are exposed by the browser in the locator and in bookmarks or favorites. For URLs that include the pwd parameter, use https://.

Example 2-URL that displays search results in the specified form

http://<midTierServer>/arsys/servlet/ViewFormServlet?form=<formName>&server=<serverName>&qual=%27Assigned+To%27%3D%22<firstName>+<lastName>%22+AND+%27Status%27%3D%22Fixed%22

After the user logs in, the system displays the form with results of the following search:

'Assigned To'="Firstname Lastname" AND 'Status'="Fixed"

When you search with a URL, there is no update in the Run Recent menu in the toolbar of the form. However, if you do a Query By Example (QBE) by opening a form, the Run Recent menu is updated with the recent search item.