Working with Form filling spaces

Step 1. Create a Form filling space

Create a new Form filling space in a few easy steps:

1. Go to the Forms app and click the New Form space button, the Plus icon, or the Form space quick action tile.
2. In the Choose space type panel, select the Form space type, or the From template option to create the space from one of the space templates.
3. Enter the space Name.
4. Optionally, you can add tags or an icon.
5. Configure the data collection options:
   • Collect results in XLSX – when enabled, form submission results are automatically collected into a spreadsheet. A separate XLSX file is generated for each form; each row represents a single filled form and columns correspond to form fields. The spreadsheet is stored in the same folder as the completed form copies.
   • Export results to the database – when enabled, completed forms from this space are automatically submitted to a connected external database. A table is created in the database for each standard form immediately after a copy is filled out or on a schedule.
     This option is only available when a database connection has been configured under Settings -> Integration -> Third-party services. For setup instructions, read this article.
6. Click Create.

To change the settings of an existing space, organize the space list, or manage the storage quota, refer to the Editing Form filling spaces article.

Step 2. Add forms to the space

You can create a new PDF form directly in the space or upload a previously created one. Use the Blank PDF form or Template gallery quick action tile at the top of the space, or click the New button above the list and select the necessary option:

• PDF Form – create and edit a PDF form directly in the space using the built-in form editor. Use the submenu to create a Blank form or a form From text file.
• Folder – create a new folder to save the forms.
• Template gallery – choose a template from the template library and click the Create button.
• Upload PDF form – upload a form from the workspace or from your device.

A newly created space displays the Welcome to the Form filling space screen with quick actions: Upload from the workspace to select a ready PDF form available in the workspace, Upload from device, and Share a space to copy a public access link or invite other users.

All available options for working with documents in Form filling spaces are listed here.

Step 3. Add authorized users to the space

Now you need to add guests or users registered in your workspace to the space for filling in forms.

In the Form filling space, the available permission levels are Room manager (Paid), Content creator, Form filler. Both Room managers and Content creators can create and upload new files and folders and manage them, but Room managers can also manage users and access settings. To add a Room manager, you should select a Room admin or a Full admin from the existing workspace contacts.

Form fillers can fill out forms and view only their completed/started forms within the Complete and In process folders.

To invite guests and users:

1. Go to the space Info -> Contacts screen and use the Invite contacts icon.
2. Turn on the Invite via link switcher to create a universal link for self-authorization in the space. If necessary, change the permission level. The link will be copied to the clipboard. In this way, you can invite guests only.
3. Alternatively, use the Add manually section below to add existing workspace contacts or invite new guests personally via email. Type in an email and press Enter or choose an existing contact from the list. If necessary, change the permission level. You can add several emails and then click Send invitation.

By default, guests and users will be added to the space as Form fillers, who can only fill out the forms but cannot edit them. You can select the necessary permission level instead of the default Form filler option. New guests will be added to your Guests list.

The permission levels and the whole invitation procedure are described in the Inviting users to Form filling spaces article.

Step 4. Adjust and share the external link

Your newly created Form filling space already has an external link activated, so you can just copy it. The Info -> Contacts screen displays the Space available via shared link notice explaining that the space is available to anyone with the link and that external users have the Form filler permission for all the forms.

Click the Share room button next to the space name or use the icon next to the Link to fill out option in the Public link section of the Info -> Contacts screen. Send the copied link to third-party users. They will have Form filling permission for all files in the space without registration.

You can also edit the external link:

1. On the Info -> Contacts screen, click the icon next to the Link to fill out caption.
2. Choose the Link settings option.
3. Change the Link name to distinguish various links.
4. Select Who has access: Anyone with the link or Workspace users only.
5. Set a password to protect the link using the Password access switcher. Use the Clean and Copy password options below the field to clear or copy the password.
6. Turn on the Restrict file content copy, file download and printing switcher to disable downloading of the files shared via this link.
7. Click the Save button.

If necessary, you can revoke the shared link using the option from the menu on the Info -> Contacts screen. The current link will be deactivated, and a new shared link will be created.

All available options for external links are listed here.

If you want to embed a Form filling space into your website, read this instruction.

Step 5. Start filling mode

Before a form becomes available for filling, it must be explicitly switched to filling mode. Until then, the form is in edit mode and is hidden from users with the Form filler role.

To start filling mode, open the context menu for the form and select Start filling. Once activated, the form becomes visible and available to all space members.

If a space member opens the form from the Files app and selects the space, the form automatically switches to filling mode and becomes available to all space members immediately.

Step 6. Fill out forms in the space

Now invited users can fill out the forms in the space. Learn more about Form filling.

When a form is opened for filling, it acquires the My draft status. An individual copy is also automatically created for each responder and is saved to the In process folder. This means that the form has been started but has not been completed yet.

When the form is complete, click the Complete & Submit button in the top toolbar of the opened form. Once the Complete & Submit button is clicked, the form copy is moved to the Complete folder. The form owner will receive a notification that the form has been filled out.

Users can download the completed form by using the arrow icon or Download button, fill out the same form again by using the Fill it out again link, return to the space to continue completing other forms by clicking the Back to room button, or contact the form owner via email by clicking the email address.

Step 7. Reviewing completed forms

To review completed forms, admins can use the Complete and In process folders which appear in the space when users start the form filling process.

• The In process folder contains forms which users have started to fill out but haven't yet completed.
• The Complete folder contains forms which users have completed by clicking the Complete & Submit button.
  If the space contains several PDF forms, the Complete and In process folders will include separate subfolders for each form.

  If the Complete and In process folders contain new forms, they are marked with a badge indicating the number of new forms. A badge also appears next to the Forms app in the left-side menu.

The automatically generated spreadsheet with the forms data is also available in the Complete folder. Each row contains the data of one form. The columns correspond to the form fields. You can use the spreadsheet editor tools for building charts, creating pivot tables, sorting and filtering data, etc.

To refresh the spreadsheet with the latest submission data, open the context menu on the XLSX file and select Update XLSX data. This will pull in any new responses submitted since the file was last generated.

If the Export results to the database option is enabled for the space, the completed forms are also submitted to an external database, where a table is created for each standard form. Read the Database connection article for details.