About the HotDocs Server COM API
The HotDocs Server COM API is the fundamental interface for integrating host applications with HotDocs Server. It contains a set of COM objects which allow you to present interviews in a Web browser, mark unanswered variables, populate variables in an interview with existing answers, assemble documents, and perform many other tasks relevant to Web-based document assembly.
COM Application Interface
This interface includes the following objects (similar to the .NET Application Interface), which you can use when developing your host application:
Objects
|
Object |
Description |
 Answer |
This object contains methods and properties relating to answers . An Answer is a set of Values for a particular HotDocs Variable. |
| AnswerCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to answer collections. An AnswerCollection is a group of Answer objects, which HotDocs Server uses when it assembles a document. |
| Application |
This object contains methods and properties relating to applications. The Application object, representing the HotDocs Server application itself, exposes core HotDocs Server features in a more stateless fashion. |
| Assembly |
This object contains methods and properties relating to assembling documents. An Assembly represents a single template that HotDocs Server is currently assembling, waiting to assemble, or has already assembled. |
| AssemblyCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to assembly collections. An AssemblyCollection represents a group of Assembly objects (templates) that HotDocs Server is either waiting to assemble, or has already assembled. |
| Component |
This object contains properties relating to components. A Component represents a single HotDocs component, such as a variable or a dialog. |
| ComponentCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to component collections. A ComponentCollection represents a HotDocs component file, which is a collection of Component objects like variables and dialogs. |
| ComponentProperties |
This object contains methods and properties relating to component properties. ComponentProperties represents a collection of ComponentProperty objects. Each HotDocs component (e.g., variable, dialog, etc.) contains a ComponentProperties collection that defines the component. |
| ComponentProperty |
This object contains properties relating to a component property. A ComponentProperty represents a specific property of a HotDocs component. |
| Dependency |
This object contains properties relating to dependencies. This object represents a single dependency (file) that is required by a template. A dependency may be a template, component, image, or any other kind of file required by the template. |
| DependencyCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to dependency collections. This object represents a collection of Dependency objects, which are required by a given template. This collection may be accessed through the TemplateInfo object. |
| FileCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to the file collection. This object represents an ordered set of strings representing file paths. It is used to manipulate the assembly queue and the set of inserted files encountered during an assembly. |
| HtmlOutputOptions |
This object contains methods and properties relating to the output options when converting to HTML. An HtmlOutputOptions object is used to specify details of the conversion to HTML from some other format. |
| InterviewResponse |
This object contains methods relating to the handling of interview response data. An InterviewResponse provides a method for converting HTTP POST data into an XML string suitable to be passed to the AnswerCollection.SetXMLAnswers method. |
| PdfOutputOptions |
This object contains methods and properties relating to the output options when converting to PDF. A PdfOutputOptions object is used to specify details of the conversion to PDF from some other format. |
| Session |
This object contains methods and properties relating to sessions. A Session represents an instance of HotDocs Server for an individual user of your host application. |
| TemplateInfo |
This object contains methods and properties relating to template info. This object lets you gather information about the files on which a given HotDocs template depends. |
| TextOutputOptions |
This object contains properties relating to the output options when converting to plain text. A TextOutputOptions object is used to specify details of the conversion to plain text from some other format. |
| UtilityTools |
This object contains methods relating to utilities. The UtilityTools class contains static methods for converting files, managing temporary files, and other general utilities. |
| Value |
This object contains properties relating to values. A Value is the most basic building block of a HotDocs Answer. This is where individual pieces of data, such as text strings, dates, and numbers, are stored. |
| VariableCollection |
This object contains methods and properties relating to variable collections. A VariableCollection provides a "data dictionary" of all variables used in a template. On disk, the VariableCollection is contained in the template's .HVC file, which is created by HotDocs when a template is published for use with HotDocs Server. |
| Manager |
[Deprecated] This object contains methods and properties relating to managing groups (clusters) of assembly servers. |
Enumerations
| Enumeration | Description |
 ansFileFormat |
This enumeration lists the file formats in which answer files can be saved |
| ansType |
This enumeration lists the possible data types that can be stored in HotDocs Answer objects |
| appendOptions |
This enumeration lists the modes in which one word processor document can be appended to another |
| CMPOpenOptions |
This enumeration lists the modes used for opening component files with the ComponentCollection.Open method |
| DependencyType |
This enumeration lists the kinds of external files upon which a HotDocs template may rely |
| HDAssemblyOptions |
This enumeration lists options that can be applied to assembly via the AssembleDocument2 method |
| hdCmpType |
This enumeration lists the types of components that can be present in a ComponentCollection |
| HDInterviewOptions |
This enumeration lists options that can be applied to an interview requested via the GetInterview2 method |
| HDSupportFilesBuildFlags |
This enumeration lists options that can be specified when calling BuildSupportFiles to publish templates dynamically on the server |
| HotDocsVersion |
This enumeration lists the versions of HotDocs that can be distinguished by the GetHotDocsVersion methods on the Application and Session classes
This enumeration was deprecated in HotDocs Server 11. |
| interviewFormat |
This enumeration lists the formats in which browser-based interviews may be requested from HotDocs Server |
| PdfOutputFlags |
This enumeration lists options that can be specified when requesting PDF output files |
| PdfPermissions |
This enumeration lists permission flags that can be assigned to PDF files |