Allow Users to Access cForms Records

Blog•on October 20th, 2010•2 Comments

I use cForms on a number of my websites as my go-to form application. I create everything from rental forms, registration forms, and contact forms.

Oftentimes, my clients want access to the information that users are entering into the online forms. I have found that the email function has not always been reliable. So, I have moved to saving everything to the database. So my clients want to be able to access this database to see who has signed up or contacted them.

Here is a way to set this up for your client:

  1. After installing cForms to your WordPress-based website, go to cForms ‘Global Settings’ within the menu area.
  2. You will see one option at the bottom for ‘Database Input Tracking.’  Expand that area.
  3. Check the box to enable database tracking.  This will create an area in your database where all cForms user inputs will be stored.
  4. Also, check ‘enable global rss.’  This is a great feature that sets up an RSS feed for when someone fills out your form.
  5. You can provide this RSS feed to your client who can add that to any RSS reader they use.  They will then see every time information is added.
  6. The next step is to add the ‘Capability Manager’ plugin to your WordPress website.
  7. Create a user profile for your client.  If they will not be making content updates to the website, I recommend added them as a ‘Subscriber’ so that they don’t have access to areas where they could mistakenly delete website content.
  8. Now, under the Users menu, choose the ‘Capabilities’ option.
  9. Make sure you are making changes to the ‘Subscriber Level’ and check the box for ‘Track cForms.’
  10. Now, your client has access to view records in the database.
  11. My suggestion here is to provide your client with the RSS feed.  When your client sees a new entry, they can click on the entry and it will lead them to the WordPress sign in page.  They enter their username & password that you have set up and they have access to just the track cForms area.  They can download all information into a .csv file or view individual records.
  12. Just make sure they know that they are able to delete fields when they track cForms and so to be careful.

Another suggestion is to use a Database Backup plugin (WordPress Database Backup is my favorite) that emails a DB backup every hour, day, or week to your attention.  You will need to choose to have all cForms data included in that backup.  This way, you will have a backup of anyone who has ever filled out a form on your website.  And plus, you need to be backing up your database anyway.

If you have any questions about this process, send me a comment in the box below and be sure to check the box to be included on any subsequent comments.

How to Backup your WordPress Database

Blog•on April 21st, 2010•1 Comment

If you’ve been running a blog or CMS website on WordPress for any amount of time, you’re probably due for a backup of the database.  If that scares you, fear not.  There are a number of plugins that can assist you in regularly backing up your database.

One that I just came across and have begun utilizing on my sites is the WP-DB-Backup plugin.  This plugin allows you to backup your database within the Admin area of your site.  Once you have installed this plugin, go to the menu area under Tools and click ‘Backup.’  Here, you will be given the option to save a backup to your FTP area, to your own computer, or have a backup sent to you by email.  You can also set the backup to occur daily, weekly, monthly, etc.

This is a great tool to protect yourself should something happen on the back end of your website.  At least you will have a backup of all your site content.