XML Expansion Packs [Word 2003 XML Reference] --  Microsoft Office Word 2003 XML Software Development Kit

XML Expansion Packs [Word 2003 XML Reference]

An XML expansion pack is a group of files that constitute an XML solution. You package one or more components that comprise an XML solution by creating an XML expansion pack manifest file. The manifest file describes how the expansion pack files download and register on the user's computer. These components may include any type of file, such as, but not limited to: XML schemas, Extensible Stylesheet Language Transforms (XSLTs), dynamic-link libraries (DLLs), and image files, as well as additional XML files, HTML files, Microsoft® Office Word 2003 or Microsoft Office Excel 2003 documents, and text files. Smart document solutions also rely on XML expansion packs for deployment. The information contained in an XML expansion pack manifest file is written to the user's Schema Library. This means all resources downloaded using the expansion pack are associated with a specific XML namespace and therefore are available to all documents using that namespace.

The key step in building an XML expansion pack is writing an XML expansion pack manifest file. In creating this file, you specify the locations of all the files that make up the XML solution, as well as information that tells Office how to set up the files for your XML solution. The XML schema for a valid manifest file is described in the topic XML Expansion Pack Manifest Schema Structure in the Reference section of this SDK. This section also contains an XML Expansion Pack Manifest File Sample.

An XML expansion pack manifest file manages all the components and files that are part of an XML solution. The XML expansion pack manifest file specifies the location and names of the components that Microsoft Office 2003 needs to install an XML solution and make it functional. In addition, the XML expansion pack manifest file may specify setup information related to these files, including the information Office 2003 needs to install and register COM components.

You create an XML expansion pack manifest file by following the structure of the XML expansion pack manifest XML schema. (For more information about both the schema and the XML expansion pack manifest file, see the XML Expansion Pack Manifest documentation in the Reference section of this SDK.) Then you attach the XML expansion pack to a Word document.

Figure 1. The XML Expansion Packs tab of the Templates and Add-ins dialog box.

Microsoft Office 2003 Editions include built-in security for XML expansion packs to handle any code components that are part of the solution. By default, Office 2003 has XML expansion pack security checking enabled. Therefore, Word does not load an XML expansion pack that contains code components if the code components are unsigned. For more information about the XML expansion pack security process, as well as other security issues related to smart documents, see the Microsoft Office 2003 Smart Document Software Development Kit (SDK).

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