How to configure Internet Options to avoid "401" and "Value cannot be null” errors when using K2 Designers

  • 24 February 2022
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How to configure Internet Options to avoid "401" and "Value cannot be null” errors when using K2 Designers

KB000294

PRODUCT
K2 blackpearl
TAGS
K2 Designer for Visual Studio
LEGACY/ARCHIVED CONTENT
This article has been archived, and/or refers to legacy products, components or features. The content in this article is offered "as is" and will no longer be updated. Archived content is provided for reference purposes only. This content does not infer that the product, component or feature is supported, or that the product, component or feature will continue to function as described herein.

 

Introduction

The K2 Designer relies on the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser settings to properly contact any service or site. Symptoms indicating that the browser may not be configured properly include:
  1. When testing the workflow Web Service URL using the K2 Designer for Visual Studio, you receive the following error:

    The request failed with HTTP status 401: Unauthorized


    [Figure 1. The request failed with HTTP status 401: Unauthorized]
  2. You get the following error when trying to browse the MOSS server node in K2 object category servers:

    Value cannot be null. Parameter name: textToFormat

    [Figure 2. Value cannot be null. Parameter name: textToFormat]
Both errors can typically be resolved by modifying the Internet options settings in the browser installed on the machine being used to develop your solutions.
 

 

 

Error Resolution

The following steps are for configuring the browser for integrating with the SharePoint server:
  1. Open Internet Explorer
  2. From the Internet Explorer menu, select Tools > Internet Options
  3. Click on the Advanced tab, and then scroll down to the Security section

    [Figure 3. Internet Explorer 7]


    [Figure 4. Internet Explorer 6]
  4. Click on the Enable Integrated Windows Authentication check box
  5. Click OK
  6. Close Internet Explorer

You must also add the K2 Workspace and SharePoint URL to the “Local Intranet” OR to the “Trusted sites” in Internet Explorer

Option 1: Local Intranet Zone: This is only if you are accessing the sites in the local intranet
Option 2: Trusted Sites: This option will cover all external and intranet sites.
 

Local Intranet Zone Configuration

To add the K2 Workspace and MOSS site to the Local Intranet Zone, perform the following steps:
  1. Open Internet Explorer
  2. From the Internet Explorer menu, select Tools > Internet Options
  3. Click on the Security tab, and then select the Local Intranet Zone
  4. Click Sites
  5. Click Advanced to open the list of sites in the Local Intranet Zone
  6. Type in the K2 Workspace URL and click Add
  7. Type the MOSS URL and click Add
  8. After the site has been added, click Close and then OK twice to exit the Internet Options dialog

    [Figure 5. Local Intranet]

Trusted Sites Configuration

To add the K2 Workspace site to the Trusted Sites, perform the following steps:
  1. Open Internet Explorer
  2. From the Internet Explorer menu, select Tools > Internet Options
  3. Click on the Security tab, and then select the Trusted Sites
  4. Type in the K2 Workspace URL and click Add
  5. Type in the MOSS URL and click Add
  6. After the site has been added, click Close

    [Figure 6. Trusted Sites]
Once the configuration settings have been done, you can proceed without closing and reopening the K2 Designer.
 

Problems when deploying processes to single server Installations

 
Important: If the loopback check is disabled and then an upgrade to the framework revision is done, the upgrade may enable the loopback check. This will require that the steps below be performed again.
Follow these steps to disable the “loopback” check:
  1. Click Start | Run and then type “regedit”, and click “OK”
  2. In Registry Editor, locate and then click the following registry key: ”HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlLsa”
  3. Right-click “Lsa”, point to New, and then click the “DWORD” value
  4. Type “DisableLoopbackCheck”, and then press “Enter”
  5. Right-click “DisableLoopbackCheck”, and then click “Modify”
  6. In the Value data box, type 1, and then click “OK”
  7. Quit Registry Editor, and then restart your computer
For more information on these steps please refer to the following Microsoft KB article: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;896861
 
Caution : Be advised that only those familiar with editing the registry should perform this step. If used incorrectly or if incorrect changes are made, this may cause your installation of Windows not to function correctly and may require the operating system to be reinstalled. K2,net 2003 and the Microsoft corporation do not accept any liability for loss of data or damage to systems or intellectual property should the system fail or not function correctly as a result of editing the registry. You are advised that you edit the system registry entirely at your own risk

You may receive an exception when deploying processes to single server installations from the K2 process designers where the following conditions are true:
 
  • All K2 and non-K2 components are hosted on a single server running Windows Server 2003 SP1 or greater (SQL databases may be located on a different server)
  • You are using host headers or fully qualified domain names (FQDNs) for accessing Web sites that are hosted on the local server
When deploying from the K2 Web Designer the exception is similar to the following:
Task Error: System.Exception: Error occurred adding the feature to the farm. ---> System.InvalidOperationException: Showing a modal dialog box or form when the application is not running in UserInteractive mode is not a valid operation. Specify the ServiceNotification or DefaultDesktopOnly style to display a notification from a service application.
When deploying from K2 Studio or the K2 Designer for Visual Studio, you are prompted for credentials to access a Web site. Supplying the correct credentials does not work and the deployment fails.

There are two methods for resolving this problem, both of which are detailed in the Microsoft Knowledge Base article 896861 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/896861). Method 1 adds specific host names to the registry that are able to perform a loopback call by mapping host headers or FQDNs to the local server name. Method 2 disables all loopback checks. Method 1 is recommended as a security best practice for production and QA environments, while Method 2 (creating the DisableLoopbackCheck registry entry) is sufficient for virtual environments that do not join your company’s domain.

 


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