Working with Convert Value in SharePoint List

  • 7 December 2018
  • 1 reply
  • 6 views

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I am a SharePoint Designer/Administrator and I am really new to creating Workflows and using Nintex. I am working my way through the Nintex training and I am stuck. The project rental application in the Nintex for SharePoint Training requests that my solution must do the following:

  • Solution must change the selected floor choice from a string to a number value

In the Rental Agreement project there is a field on the form where the user selects either Floor 1, Floor 2 or Floor 3. I am supposed to convert those responses to be number 1, 2 or 3 using configure action. Despite watching about 3 videos and reading what I can find I am coming up blank on how to make a choice option field with multiple choices become a number based off what is submitted by the user.

Convert Value gives input screen which I understand is the value to be interpreted but when I just put in the FloorNumber from the Insert Properties, Item Contents it failed.

The error is: Error parsing value. Value 'Floor 3' is not compatible with the selected output variable type Number (double).

I hope that there is someone that can give me some input on how to use Convert Value in this manner.

Any input here would be greatly appreciated.


1 reply

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I'm in the same position, facing the same issue, and a little stunned that there have been no responses in almost a year.  I'm guessing you figured this out, but for the benefit of anyone else who may be baning their heads against a wall, these are my findings.

When reading through the lesson project I found this step - converting a "string" to a number - to be an odd one given the parameters of the business process.  Typically, in a workflow of this nature, you'd provide the user with a selectable set of options, generally via a drop-down choice field (e.g. 1st Floor/2nd Floor/3rd Floor or Floor 1/Floor 2/Floor 3) as this provides consistency in the data and values you can leverage elsewhere in the WF.  I couldn't figure out where the converted value would even be used.

After generating error after error (the same as the initial poster's), I've found that this process only works if converting from a Single Line Text Field (i.e. string) that only contains a numeric value (i.e. "1", "2", or "3").  Under those circumstance you may use the Convert function to presumable provide the standardized data you need to leverage elsewhere in the project, such as when determining the Rental Rate.  This may not be the only circumstances where this is functional, it's just the only one I've found.  Using this approach of a Single Line Text field containing a single numeric value and Converting it to a number within the workflow I now have a fully functioning workflow and just a bad , IMO, process concept.

Personally, if I were creating this automation for a customer, I'd still skip this in favor of utilizing a choice field that offered standardized options that I could leverage later without conversion, but for the tutorial it's a reasonable example.  The only thing lacking is the inclusion of the limitations in the videos that describe the function.

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