---
title: Reporting.XDesignXDocument
summary: API reference for Reporting.XDesignXDocument.
status: draft
owner: SAIF Case Management
last_reviewed: 2026-08-21
library: SAIF.Services.Printing
reference_type: embedded
---

# Reporting.XDesignXDocument

`XDesignXDocument` inherits `SAIFXDocument` (from the SAIF framework) and wraps an XML document tree so that its root element can be serialized into the proprietary tag format expected by xPression Design templates, via `ToXpression()`. It is the document-level counterpart to `XDesignXElement`, which performs the actual element-by-element markup rendering.

## Purpose
- Serialize an in-memory XML document tree into the bespoke xPression Design markup format consumed by `clsPrint.previewDocument`/`distributeDocument` when rendering a report/letter (see [Render a letter or report](../../operations/render-report.md)).

## Context
- Namespace: `SAIF.Services.Printing.Reporting`
- Assembly/package: `SAIF.Services.Printing` (embedded, front-end referenced)

## Public members
| Member | Signature | Purpose |
| --- | --- | --- |
| `ToXpression()` | `Public Function ToXpression() As String` | Renders the document's root `XDesignXElement` (and all descendants) into the xPression proprietary tag format expected by xPression Design templates. |

## Inherited public members

Members in this section are inherited from `SAIFXDocument` in `SAIF.BOF.Framework`. They are available on this type through inheritance.

| Member | Signature | Purpose | Origin |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Base `SAIFXDocument` XML document members (e.g., root element access, load/save) | (inherited from `SAIFXDocument`) | Provides the underlying `XDocument`-like tree structure that `XDesignXDocument` extends with xPression-specific serialization.† | `SAIF.BOF.Framework` — `SAIFXDocument` |

## Behavioral notes
- `ToXpression()` depends on the primary/foreign "key" propagation implemented in `Reporting.XDesignXElement`, where descendant elements inherit ancestor keys as sibling tags ahead of their own children.*

## Constraints and usage notes
- This is a bespoke serialization scheme specific to the shape expected by xPression Design templates, not a generic XML utility.

> **Note:** Statements marked with * were inferred from code structure, naming conventions, or
> contextual evidence where direct confirmation was not available in source artifacts. Statements
> marked with † were retrieved from dependency library documentation via the Legends CLI RAG
> service. They describe inherited behavior from the indicated origin library and should be
> verified if the dependency version changes.

## Sources
- `SAIF.Services.Printing\Reporting\XDesignXDocument.vb`