Workflow form generates error: "exception deserializing dictionary"

Products

• Workflow Solution

Issue/Introduction

An error is returned when trying to process a form that in part reads as follows:

Error Message:
The input stream is not a valid binary format. The starting contents (in bytes) are: 3C-3F-78-6D-6C-20-76-65-72-73-69-6F-6E-3D-22-31-2E ...
Message Stack:
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.SerializationHeaderRecord.Read(__BinaryParser input)
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.__BinaryParser.ReadSerializationHeaderRecord()
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.__BinaryParser.Run()
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.ObjectReader.Deserialize(HeaderHandler handler, __BinaryParser serParser, Boolean fCheck, Boolean isCrossAppDomain, IMethodCallMessage methodCallMessage)
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.BinaryFormatter.Deserialize(Stream serializationStream, HeaderHandler handler, Boolean fCheck, Boolean isCrossAppDomain, IMethodCallMessage methodCallMessage)
at System.Runtime.Serialization.Formatters.Binary.BinaryFormatter.Deserialize(Stream serializationStream)
at LogicBase.Framework.SerializableTypeConverter.GetObject(ObjectStorageContainer storageContainer, ObjectStorageObjectData values, Type valueType, ObjectStorageErrorHandler errorHandler) in c:\Stuff\projects\platform2006\core\LogicBase.Framework\ObjectStorage\ObjectStorageTypeConverters.cs:line 266
at LogicBase.Framework.ArrayTypeConverter.GetObject(ObjectStorageContainer storageContainer, ObjectStorageObjectData values, Type valueType, ObjectStorageErrorHandler errorHandler) in c:\Stuff\projects\platform2006\core\LogicBase.Framework\ObjectStorage\ObjectStorageTypeConverters.cs:line 891
at LogicBase.Framework.ObjectReadStream.GetValue(String name, Type type) in c:\Stuff\projects\platform2006\core\LogicBase.Framework\ObjectStorage\ObjectStorageInterface.cs:line 638

Environment

ITMS 8.x

Workflow 8.x

Cause

There is an extended attribute in AD (an attribute that is not default in AD but added by another application) that is returning information to Workflow that Workflow doesn't know how to handle.  Symantec has been unable to duplicate the error as an unknown application extended the directory and/or the attribute that caused this issue.

Resolution

We were able to get around the issue by removing from the Workflow all attributes that were not absolutely needed.  For instance, instead of simply selecting the "user" tree in AD, we selected only the key attributes within the tree that were needed.  One of the several hundred attributes removed was the problem.  The"best practice" is to only select the needed attributes.