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Create a web form

Last updated on Oct 4, 2024

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Web forms are a great way to present your customers with a self-service method of signing a contract. You can create a simple sign-up form containing only a signature requirement as well as a complex multi-field document that collects user data and requires internal counter-signatures.

Start by creating your form as a PDF, and then use the Create a Web Form tool in Acrobat to generate an online version that anyone can sign.

To access the Create a web form tool, do one of the following:

In the Acrobat desktop app, go to the Tools center, scroll down to the E-Sign section, and then select Create a web form.
Sign in to Acrobat online, select the E-Sign menu in the top navigation bar, and then select Create a web form.

Steps to create a web form

Select the Create a web form tool as explained earlier. The Create a web form file selector page is displayed.
Add a file:

Upload (by search or drag-and-drop) the primary file that you are using to build your web form agreement.

The selector on the right of the Select a file button allows you to choose from the source where the file resides. The default is your local system.

Once a file is selected, the configuration page loads.
Name your web form (ideally something intuitive). The web form name is the default name of all resulting agreements generated from the web form.
(Optional) Add additional files if needed.

The initial file selected to start the web form is already attached.

Upload any additional file(s) that you require to build your online form.
- Multiple files can be uploaded.
- All files uploaded are concatenated into one agreement.
- The order the files are listed dictates how the final agreement will look.
  
  You can click and drag the files to sort them.
Add participants
- List the participants required to complete the form and select an action for each participant:
  
  Sign: Signs the form and may also enter data.
  
  Approve: Reviews and approves the form; may also enter data or sign.
  
  Fill form: Enters required data and submits the form, but typically doesn’t sign.
  
  Copied (cc): Receive notifications as form completion progresses.
The first participant listed accesses the form through your website, so their email address is not included (as it is unknown and will change for every signer).

Any additional participants constitute your internal counter-signers:
- Click the Add participant button to include additional participants (up to 36 max).
- Enter the email addresses for each "internal" participant.
- Assign the action for each participant.
(Optional) Configure the authentication for each participant by clicking the key icon to the right of the participant.

Email is the default authentication method for confirming the identity of each participant and is sufficient to obtain a legal signature in most cases.

You can increase security for a given participant by adding a second authentication method they will need to satisfy before they can interact with the form.
- Password: Requires the participant to enter a password to access the Web Form
  
  You supply the password
  
  You need to share this password with the participant out of band
- Knowledge-based authentication (KBA): Requires participants to provide their name, address, and the last four digits of their SSN (optional) then answer questions to verify their identity
  
  Powered by RSA and only available in the U.S.
  
  KBA is a pay-for-use service. Contact Sales to add this option to your account
(Optional) Add a password to secure the completed/signed agreement PDF.

You can optionally apply a password to the PDF copy of the completed (signed) document by clicking the pencil icon next to Add password (at the bottom of the page).
- If configured, the password must be successfully entered before the PDF will open for viewing
- When configured, the text under the setting header changes to show Password required to view completed form
Click Next in the upper-right corner of the window.
Add fields to the Web Form.

You can now add the necessary fields to the Web Form.

Click and drag the fields from the right menu of field types.
- Fields configuration can include:
  
  Appearance
  
  Validations
  
  Conditional visibility
  
  Calculated values
- Be sure to place at least one signature for each participant with the Sign action
  
  Don't forget your internal counter-signers
When all of the fields are in place, click the Create button in the upper-right corner of the window

Note:

Web forms are created in an Active state.

Once the Create button is clicked, the URL becomes accessible and the form can be signed.
View the Web Form confirmation page.

A confirmation page is shown verifying that the Web Form has been successfully created.

From this page, you can:
- Share the URL: Copy the URL to share the form with others as a link (ie: in email or as an href under an image on your web site)
- Embed Code: You have the option to copy the embed code in either HTML or JavaScript to embed your form as a viewable object on your web page
Additional options include:
- Previewing this web form: Opens the form in the first participant view
  
  This is a great way to test your web form as it will complete normally (provided all participants complete their actions)
- View your web forms: See all of the web forms connected to your user and their current status
- Create another web form: Opens the initial configuration page to create a new web form

Managed web forms from the Home or Documents tab

After the web form is created, you can manage it from the Home tab on the Acrobat desktop or the Documents tab in Acrobat online.

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Single click the web form you want to access
- This opens the context menu on the right side of the window

The context menu on the right side contains five distinct sections:

Metadata: At the top of the menu is the metadata for the web form:
- Image of the forms' first page
- The title of the form
- The date the web form was created
- Name value of the userID that created the web form
- Email value of the userID that created the web form
- Status - The current status of the web form (Enabled / Disabled)
- The role of the first participant (the web form recipient)
  - Any CCd parties will also be listed by email value
Actions menu - This section contains all of the actions you can take regarding the web form (parent template). You may need to click the See More link at the bottom right of the section to see all values:
- Open Web Form - Opens the web form for viewing only. No fields are available
- Get Code - Provides a quick interface to copy the URL/HTML/JavaScript code for the web form
- Edit Web Form - Opens the web form in the authoring environment
- Download PDF - Downloads the whole (blank) PDF
- Download Form Field Data - Downloads a CSV file of the field-level content for all child agreements spawned from this parent web form that have completed
- Download Individual Files - Provides the option to download the individual PDF files if multiple files were used to create the web form
- Share - Shares the web form with the user email you provide. Shared web forms can be viewed on the Manage page, but do not allow editing
  - A PDF copy of the web form (without added fields) is emailed to the sharee
- Hide/Unhide Web Form - Hide/Unhiding the web form simply removes (or adds) the web form to your normal Manage page view
- Add Notes - Allows the user to make personal notes for the web form
Counter Signers - A list of the counter signers defined for the web form
- These values can not be edited
Agreements summary/filter - The Agreements section shows three values:
- All - Shows all (child) agreements that have spawned from the web form (parent template) that have (at least) a verified signature from the first participant
- In Progress - A filter that shows all agreements that have an in progress status
- Completed - A filter that shows all agreements spawned from the web form that have reached a terminal state (Complete/Canceled)
Activity (for the web form parent template) - The Activity > link at the bottom of the context panel opens a chronological list of the enablement actions taken against the (parent) web form (eg: Creation, Disabled, and Enabled events)

Edit a web form

The creator of a web form has the authority to edit the fields of the form.

Fields can be added, removed, moved to new locations, and reconfigured.

Editing does not allow:

Changing the web form name
Changing the underlying file (eg: change the underlying file, page order, page orientation)
Changing the participants (eg: email address, order, role, authentication method)

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab.
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Single-click the web form you want to edit.
- This opens the Actions menu on the right side of the window
Click the Edit Web Form action.
The web form is loaded directly in to the authoring environment.

Add, move, remove, and configure any fields that need to be updated.
When the edits are complete, click Save in the upper-right corner of the window.
- The web form saves the new format
- Your view is returned to a view of the opened form with the action panel open to the right
- A success message displays at the bottom of the window:

Disable a web form

When you disable a web form, it is no longer accessible by signers but is visible in the Home or Documents section. You can reactivate a disabled web form at any time and resume normal function.

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab.
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Single-click the web form you want to disable.
- This opens the Actions menu on the right side of the window
Click the Disable button next to where you see Status: Active.
A small panel pops out to allow you to select the experience that you want to provide for any user that attempts to access the web form URL:
- Redirect signers to another web page - You can redirect the signers to another web page, like a current version of the web form
- Enter a custom message to signers - You can enter a message that will be displayed in place of the web form
  
  You can add hyperlinks to the message by enclosing them in brackets [ ]
  
  You can add labels by using the | (pipe) symbol after the URL
  
  e.g: [https://www.sign.adobe.com/ | Acrobat Sign] displays as Acrobat Sign.
Click Disable.
- The web form Status becomes Disabled.
- The redirect message / URL is inserted under the Status.
- The Edit Web Form action is removed from the Actions list for the web form.
- A success message displays at the bottom of the window:

Reactivate a web form

Disabled web forms can be reactivated at any time and resume function.

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab.
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Single-click the Disabled web form you want to reactivate.
- This opens the Actions menu on the right side of the window
Click the Enable button next to where you see Status: Disabled.
A small panel pops out to verify that you want to enable the web form:
Click Enable.
- The web form Status becomes Enabled.
- A success message displays at the bottom of the window:

Hide a web form

If you would like to remove a web form from the Home or Documents tab view, you can hide it.

Hiding a web form only hides it in your users' view. Other users that have access to the web form (via share) will still be able to see it.

Caution:

If you are the owner of the web form, best practices suggest that you should Disable the web form before you hide it from your view.

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab.
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Single-click the web form you want to hide from view.
- This opens the Actions menu on the right side of the window
Click the Hide Web Form action in the left menu.
- You may need to click the See More link to extend the menu and see the action.
A small panel pops open to verify that you want to hide the web form:

Note:

If you are the owner of the web form, and it is still in an active status, a confirmation page is triggered to inform you that the web form is still enabled.

You can then cancel the Hide action, or complete it.

Caution:

Hidden web forms that have not been disabled are still active and can be signed if someone visits the URL.
Click Hide.
- The web form is removed from view.
- A success message is displayed:

Unhide a web form

Sometimes you need to unhide a web form.

Navigate to the Home or Documents tab.
Select Web Forms in the left navigation pane.
Click the Filters button.
- This opens the filter menu.
Check the Display hidden content option and click Apply.
- You may want to set a date range filter to limit the number of returned records. The Modified Date is when the web form was disabled. Configure the date range to find that value.
The page refreshes to show the filtered for content.
- Any filters applied will be shown as a tag next to the Filter button
  
  Click the x on any filter to remove it
Single-click the web form you want to unhide.
- This opens the Actions menu on the right side of the window
Click the Unhide Web Form action in the left menu.
- You may need to click the See More link to extend the menu and see the action.
A small panel pops out to verify that you want to unhide the web form:
Click Unhide.
- The web form is removed from view (because you are still viewing the filtered list).
- A success message is displayed:
Click the X on the Hidden content filter to remove the filter.
- This exposes the web forms that are in your normal (unfiltered) view.