cap-plugin-adobe-forms

Reusable SAP CAP Node.js plugin that wraps SAP Forms service by Adobe on SAP BTP.

Installation

npm install @salvatorela/cap-plugin-adobe-forms

Configuration

The plugin supports two authentication modes. Destination service is preferred for BTP deployments; direct credentials are useful for local development.

Option 1 — BTP Destination (recommended)

Configure an HTTP destination named ADOBE_FORMS_API with OAuth2ClientCredentials authentication in BTP Cockpit, then reference it in your CAP app:

{
  "cds": {
    "requires": {
      "adobeForms": {
        "destination": "ADOBE_FORMS_API"
      }
    }
  }
}

Recommended destination settings:

Field	Value
Name	ADOBE_FORMS_API
Type	HTTP
Proxy Type	Internet
Authentication	OAuth2ClientCredentials
URL	Adobe REST API base URL from the service key
Client ID	uaa.clientid from the service key
Client Secret	uaa.clientsecret from the service key
Token Service URL	uaa.url + /oauth/token

Option 2 — Direct credentials (local development)

{
  "cds": {
    "requires": {
      "adobeForms": {
        "credentials": {
          "baseUrl": "https://<adsrestapi-host>",
          "tokenUrl": "https://<xsuaa-host>/oauth/token",
          "clientId": "<uaa.clientid>",
          "clientSecret": "<uaa.clientsecret>"
        }
      }
    }
  }
}

For local development with a .env file see TEST.md.

---

Usage

Programmatic API (CAP service handler)

Connect to the service with cds.connect.to and call methods directly:

const cds = require('@sap/cds')

module.exports = cds.service.impl(async function () {
  const adobeForms = await cds.connect.to('adobeForms')

  this.on('generateReport', async (req) => {
    // Render a PDF and return it as a Buffer
    const pdf = await adobeForms.renderPDF({
      templateName: 'MY_FORM',
      payload: {
        Header: { Title: 'Annual Report', Year: 2026 },
        Items: { Row: [{ Label: 'Revenue', Value: '1000' }] }
      },
      locale: 'it-IT'
    })
    return pdf // Buffer
  })

  this.on('listAvailableForms', async () => {
    return adobeForms.listForms()
  })

  this.on('getSchema', async (req) => {
    const { formId } = req.data
    return adobeForms.getFormSchema(formId)
  })
})

Render PDF as base64

Pass options.base64: true to get a base64 string instead of a Buffer (useful for JSON responses or email attachments):

const b64 = await adobeForms.renderPDF({
  templateName: 'MY_FORM',
  payload: { ... },
  options: { base64: true }
})
// b64 is a base64-encoded string

Raw XML payload

If your data is already valid XML, pass it as a string — no conversion is applied:

const pdf = await adobeForms.renderPDF({
  templateName: 'MY_FORM',
  payload: '<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><FormData><Title>Hello</Title></FormData>'
})

HTTP / OData (REST endpoint)

The plugin also exposes a CAP OData service at /adobe/forms. Call it directly via HTTP:

# List all forms
curl -X POST https://<app>/adobe/forms/listForms

# Render a PDF
curl -X POST https://<app>/adobe/forms/renderPDF \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -d '{"templateName":"MY_FORM","payload":"{\"Header\":{\"Title\":\"Test\"}}","locale":"it-IT"}' \
  --output report.pdf

# Health checks
curl -X POST https://<app>/adobe/forms/health
curl -X POST https://<app>/adobe/forms/remoteHealth

Note: options.base64 is only available via the programmatic API. The OData action always returns binary (application/pdf).

---

CAP service

The plugin registers the service at path /adobe/forms.

@path: '/adobe/forms'
service AdobeFormsService {

  @Core.MediaType: 'application/pdf'
  action renderPDF(
    templateName : String(255),
    payload      : LargeString,
    locale       : String(10)
  ) returns LargeBinary;

  action listForms()                          returns LargeString;
  action getFormDetails(formId : String(255)) returns LargeString;
  action getFormSchema(formId  : String(255)) returns LargeString;

  action health()       returns HealthStatus;
  action remoteHealth() returns RemoteHealthStatus;
}

---

API reference

renderPDF({ templateName, payload, locale, options })

Renders a PDF for the given form template.

Internally the plugin:

1. Fetches the form details (GET /v1/forms/{templateName}) to retrieve the available XDP templates
2. Selects the template whose language matches the locale language code; falls back to the first template if no match is found
3. Converts payload to XML and base64-encodes it
4. Calls POST /v1/adsRender/pdf with xdpTemplate and templateName (from the selected template), then returns the decoded PDF as a Buffer

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
templateName	string	yes	Form name as returned by listForms
payload	object | string	yes	Data to fill the form. JS objects are serialized to XML automatically. Strings are sent as-is (must be valid XML).
locale	string	no	Locale in ll, ll-LL or ll_LL format (e.g. it, it-IT). Defaults to en_US. Used to select the matching language template variant.
options.base64	boolean	no	If true, returns the PDF as a base64 string instead of a Buffer. Defaults to false.

Payload structure — JS objects are converted to XML with the root element FormData:

// Input
{
  Header: { NumeroDelibera: 'TEST-001', Anno: 2026, Data: '2026-04-23' },
  TabellaStringhe: { Riga: [{ Testo: 'Prima riga' }, { Testo: 'Seconda riga' }] }
}

// Serialized XML sent to the API
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<FormData>
  <Header>
    <NumeroDelibera>TEST-001</NumeroDelibera>
    <Anno>2026</Anno>
    <Data>2026-04-23</Data>
  </Header>
  <TabellaStringhe>
    <Riga><Testo>Prima riga</Testo></Riga>
    <Riga><Testo>Seconda riga</Testo></Riga>
  </TabellaStringhe>
</FormData>

Returns: Buffer (PDF binary)

---

listForms()

Returns all form templates available in the Adobe Forms tenant.

GET /v1/forms

Returns: array of form objects, each with formName, metaData, schema, and templates.

---

getFormDetails(formId)

Returns full details for a specific form, including the XSD schema and XDP templates.

GET /v1/forms/{formId}

Parameter	Type	Description
formId	string	Form name (URL-encoded automatically)

Returns: form object with formName, schema, templates, metaData.

---

getFormSchema(formId)

Returns the XSD schema of a form decoded as a plain string.

Internally calls getFormDetails and decodes schema.xsdSchema from base64.

Parameter	Type	Description
formId	string	Form name

Returns:

{
  formName:   'DELIBERA',
  schemaName: 'Schema',
  xsd:        '<?xml version="1.0"...>',  // decoded XSD
  metaData:   { objectId, versionNumber, creationDate, ... }
}

---

health()

Returns local plugin health without making any outbound call.

Returns: { status: 'UP', service: 'SAP Forms service by Adobe' }

---

remoteHealth()

Resolves the destination (or direct credentials) and performs a real call to the configured healthPath (default: GET /v1/forms) to verify end-to-end connectivity.

Returns:

{
  status:          'UP' | 'DOWN',
  service:         'SAP Forms service by Adobe',
  destinationName: 'ADOBE_FORMS_API',
  endpoint:        '/v1/forms',
  reachable:       true | false,
  authenticated:   true | false,
  details:         '...'
}

---

Error codes

Code	Thrown by	Description
ADOBE_FORMS_API_FAILED	all API calls	HTTP error from the Adobe REST API (includes status)
ADOBE_FORMS_CONFIG_MISSING	startup	Required credential fields are missing
ADOBE_FORMS_XDP_NOT_FOUND	renderPDF	No XDP template found for the form (or the selected language variant)
ADOBE_FORMS_SCHEMA_NOT_FOUND	getFormSchema	The form has no schema.xsdSchema field
ADOBE_FORMS_DESTINATION_NOT_FOUND	all API calls	BTP destination resolved to null (destination mode)
ADOBE_FORMS_OAUTH_FAILED	all API calls	OAuth token endpoint returned an error (direct mode)

---

Testing

See TEST.md for instructions on running unit tests and integration tests against a real BTP instance.

# Unit tests (no credentials needed)
npm test

# Integration test against real BTP service
node --env-file=.env test/integration.js