Add a workflow to a content type
Applies To: Office SharePoint Server 2007
This Office product will reach end of support on October 10, 2017. To stay supported, you will need to upgrade. For more information, see , Resources to help you upgrade your Office 2007 servers and clients.
You can add a workflow to a site content type or directly to a list or document library content type. When you add a workflow to a site content type, the workflow is available for any list or library on the site that uses that content type. When you add a workflow to a content type for a list or library, the workflow is only available to that list or library. Before you can add a workflow to a content type, the workflow must be activated.
Before performing this procedure, read:
Adding a workflow
When you add a workflow to a content type, you name the workflow, select workflow tasks, specify reviewers, configure start parameters, and select completion activities.
Important
You must be a member of the Farm Administrators SharePoint group to perform these procedures.
Add a workflow to a list or library content type
Navigate to the document library or list where you want to add the workflow.
On the Settings menu, click List Settings.
On the Customize page in the Permissions and Management column, click Workflow Settings.
If no workflows are associated with list or library, the Add a Workflow wizard starts. If other workflows are currently associated with the list or library, click Add a Workflow.
On the Add a Workflow page, in the Workflow section, in the Select a workflow template list, select the name of the workflow that you want to use.
In the Name section, type a unique name for the workflow. This name will be used to identify the workflow to site users.
In the Task List section, specify a tasks list to use with this workflow.
Note
You can use the default tasks list or you can create a new one. If you use the default tasks list, workflow participants can find and view their workflow tasks easily by using the My Tasks view of the Tasks list. If the tasks for this workflow will reveal sensitive or confidential data that you want to keep separate from the default tasks list, you should create a new tasks list.
In the History List section, select a history list to use with this workflow. The history list displays all of the events that occur during each instance of the workflow.
Note
You can use the default history list or you can create a new one. When SharePoint lists exceed 2000 items, site performance may be impacted. If your organization will have numerous workflows, consider creating a separate history list for each workflow to avoid potential performance problems.
In the Start Options section, specify how (automatically or manually), when (item update, creation, or both), or by whom a workflow can be started. Note that the available start options are determined by the workflow template and will differ from one workflow to another.
Note
By default, users with Edit Item permissions can start a workflow. If you specify that Require Manage List permissions are needed to start the workflow, only list administrators (that is, anyone with Manage List or Web Designer permissions) can start an instance of the workflow. Most workflows do not require this restriction. However, you can use this setting for workflows with tasks that only certain people should be able to perform, such as deleting documents.
In the Update List and Site Content Types section, specify whether you want to add this workflow to all content types that inherit from this content type.
Click Next to configure workflow-specific settings, as necessary.
After you have configured workflow-specific settings, click OK to finish adding a workflow to a list or library content type.
Add a workflow to a site content type
Browse to the site where you want to add a workflow to a content type.
In the Site Actions section, click Site Settings.
On the Site Settings page under Galleries, click Site content types.
On the Site Content Type Gallery page, in the Site Content Type column, click the content type to which you want to add a workflow.
On the Site Content Type page, in the Settings section, click Workflow settings.
On the Change Workflow Settings page, click Add a workflow.
Follow the instructions to configure the workflow instance as noted in the previous procedure, starting with step 4.
Note
By default, the Routing, Collect Feedback, and Collect Signatures workflows are already associated with the Document content type in Office SharePoint Server 2007.