Workflow Creation

Purpose

This article will provide detailed instructions on how to create, test, and publish Workflows under the Workflow tab of the Process Design Studio tool.

Workflow Information

Once inside the Workflow tab of the Process Design Studio Tool, and having clicked on the + New Workflow button, follow the instructions below for a correct Workflow creation.

Add your Workflow´s Name and Description. It can be associated with any of the Business Processes previously created. 

This section can be hidden to provide more space  by clicking Hide Fields.

Actions

Actions are work commands that will interact with different sources within VisualVault and process information as a way of automating business processes. They are the main components of the Workflow's structure.

Each action added to the diagram is configured individually and accordingly to its purpose on the Workflow. 

• To start configuring an Action, simply drag it from the Actions list on the left and drop it under the correspondent “+” connector of the diagram.

Variables

Variables are short templates that can be created with different data types and then used on various Actions.  They will only be available for Actions within the Workflow where they were created.  The Variables tab is on the left side of the screen, right after the Actions tab.

There are two kinds of Variables that can be created within a Workflow: WF Variables and Data Set Variables.

Workflow Variables

Single Variables can be used as a source of data for comparison and data fulfillment within the Workflow.

In order to create a WF Variable, click on the Add Variable button and select Workflow Variables option.

Add a name to your Variable, select the type of data it will contain, and finally add its value.  Leave the Value field empty if you intend to fulfill the Variable later with the execution of the Workflow.

You can add as many Variables as needed by following the same steps.  A list will be created under the Variables tab and they can be removed by clicking on the trashcan icon on the right side of the item.

Data Set Variables

Group of Variables that will be later used as a source of data for comparison and data fulfillment within the Workflow.

In order to create a group of Variables, click on the Add Variable button and select Data Set Variables option.

Add a name to your Data Set and click on Next.

Name the Variable, select the type of data it will contain, and finally add its value.  Leave the Value field empty if you intend to fulfill the Variable later with the execution of the Workflow.

You can add as many Variables to your Data Set as needed by following the same steps.  A list will be created Inside the Data Set item, and each variable can be removed or edited by clicking on the ellipsis button on the right side. Click Save.

Data Set Variables will be listed in the same tab as WF Variables. You can create multiple Data Sets and they can be accessed or deleted by clicking on the ellipsis button on the right side.

Status Bar

The bar on the top of the page will show the status of the Workflow you are working on.

• Draft/Published Version: This button will indicate whether you are working on a Draft Version of the Workflow or the Published one.  The Published Version option will only be available after the Workflow is published at least once. 

• WF Version: The workflow version shows how many times a workflow has been published.

• Published: This field will show the date the Workflow was last published. 

• Publish: This button will allow you to publish the Workflow either the first time or after any modification on an existing one. Workflows will only be able to function once they are published.  Drafts are not functional.

If the Workflow was properly set up, once you click on Publish, this message will pop up.

If you would like to save the Draft instead of publishing it, click on Save, on the top right of the screen.

The first time you save a Draft, this message will pop up.

Every time you save a Draft on an already created or published WF, the message below will appear.

Sidebar

The dark bar on the left side of the screen contains access buttons for some Workflow functionalities as well as some customizable view options.

Customizable View: On the bottom, there are zoom in and zoom out options, as well as a full-screen option to expand the diagram area.

Test Workflow

Only after the Workflow is published, it can be tested to make sure it works properly.  This cannot be done if the Workflow was created as a draft but not published.  In order to create a test, click on the Test Workflow icon.

Click on + Create Test Data.

Add a name to your test.

The first tab will show all WF Variables available on the Workflow and their value in case any was added.

If you would like to run your test using a different value on your WF Variable, click on the pencil icon to edit it

The Value box will open for editing.  Add the new information and click outside the box.  The new data will be saved only for the specific test you are creating, it will not modify the value on the original WF Variable established on the main Workflow creation page.  Go to the next tab if Data Set Variables are to be edited or click on Save for creating your test.

The second tab contains all the Data Set Variables available on the Workflow.  If you would like to revise any of the Data Sets for the test you are creating, click on the arrow to the right.

If you would like to modify or add a value to the Data Set, click on the pencil icon to the right.

More rows can be added to the Data Set by clicking on + New Row.  Each row is an instance that can be used as a source of data for a Loop action.  This action will read each line until it finds the information that will meet the Loop condition. 

Each line can be edited individually by clicking on the pencil icon to the right and then Save on the same line after the data was added.

Lines can be removed by selecting them on the left and clicking on Delete Row.  After finishing the Data Set Variables configuration for your test, click on Save.

The successful test creation pop-up will appear and you will be redirected to the Test Data page after clicking OK.

Multiple Tests can be created by clicking on + Create Test Data and following the same steps.  In order to delete a test, select the item on the left and click on Delete Test Data.

In order to execute your test, select it on the left and click on Run Test.

A successfully ran message will appear.  Click on OK and proceed to check the result of the test on the Execution History tab.

Executions History

In order to check the results of the tests ran and the executions performed on the Workflow, click on the Executions History icon.

This page will show you all the performed tests with start and finish dates as well as the Version number of the Workflow.  If the list is too extensive you might prefer to use the date range search criteria in order to find specific tests.  This search option can be accessed by clicking on Show Date Range Filters +.

Fill in the criteria and click on Search.

In order to access all the details from the test, click on the eye icon to the right.

The Workflow diagram will show the path taken in green.  Details about the configuration of each action, as well as the changes applied to the variables, will be available on the Step Properties window to the right.  This window is for information only.  Action’s properties cannot be modified within the test result.

The red dot after WF Variables Values indicates at least one WF or Data Set variable has been modified by the execution of the Workflow.  Click on it to see the changes.

You can change between WF Variables and Data Set Variables tabs to see the changes done on each type. 

The WF Variables tab will show the Initial and Final Values on the same page.

For Data Set Variables, click on the eye icon.

Change between Before and After tabs to see the changes on each instance.

Workflow Events

This is the space to configure which Event and conditions will automatically trigger the Workflow execution. Here you can also set the creation of WF variables based on the sources selected.

This setting is only available for Draft version, if the Workflow version you are working on is Published, then the creation button will be grayed out.

Once the tab is accessed, click on + New Event.

Add your Workflow Event’s name and select the Event you would like to use as a trigger for the execution.

Add a description if needed.  Once the Event Source is selected, all its details will be loaded on the page, however, they cannot be modified.  After the mandatory fields are completed, click on Next.

As described under Rule Builder, this step is meant to set the rules, based on the comparison of different sources, that will enable or not the initiation of the Workflow. In order to start building the comparisons, click on + New Row.

Select the first source of the comparison.

• Fields: Select any of the Event Fields
• Predictive Analytics: Select any Endpoint result from a Data Model

Select the type of comparison you would like to apply between sources.

The comparison options available on the drop-down list will be subjected to the type of data contained in the first field.

• = : Equal
• <> : Not Equal
• > : Greater Than
• < : Less Than
• >= : Greater Than or Equal
• <= : Less Than or Equal
• Range
• contains
• notcontains
• begins with
• ends with

Select the second source of the comparison.

• Value: Determine a specific value
• Predictive Analytics: Select any Endpoint result from a Data Model
• Event Field: Select any of the Event Fields
• Data View Field: Select any of the Fields of a Data View

More comparison lines can be added by clicking on + New Row, and also deleted by selecting them on the left side of the item and clicking on Remove Selected. 

If you select incompatible fields for comparison, you will receive an error message on the top of the screen and won't be able to continue.  Make sure you select fields that contain the same kind of data. 

Operators

 When more than one line of comparison is added, they can be separated with operators in order to indicate the server exactly what needs to be searched and compared, as well as in which order.

• And: all comparisons, or sets of comparisons, followed by AND need to be TRUE in order for the query to be TRUE. 
• Or: if at least one of the comparisons, or set of comparisons, followed by OR is TRUE, the query will be TRUE.
• Parenthesis: are available in case you need to set priority between the different lines or set of lines. Once you open parenthesis at the beginning of a line, it needs to be closed at the end of the same line or at the end of the group of lines you would like to prioritize.

The last step is not mandatory, but it allows you to map sources to fulfill WF Variables that can be then used inside the Workflow. Click on + New Row.

Select the Data Source

• Event Message: Select any Event Field
• Data View: Select any of the Fields of a Data View
• Endpoint: Select any Endpoint result from a Data Model

Select the WF Variable that will be fulfilled with the data.

The list is divided in:

• Variables: WF Variables already created inside the Workflow you are working on.
• Event Source Fields Variables: These are suggestions of Variables that can be created based on the fields of the Event you chose as a source for Workflow execution.

If there were no WF Variables previously created, or a new one needs to be added, and none of the suggestions of the list are useful, new WF Variables can be created by clicking on Edit Workflow Variables on the top of the screen.

Already created WF Variables, if any, will be listed and you can create a new one by clicking on + Add Variable.

Create it as any other WF Variable and click on Save. You can create as many Variables as needed.

Once the mapping is done, click on Create. You will be redirected to the Workflow Events page.

Possible Errors at Publish & Save

If there is an action that has not been configured correctly or it has a mandatory field missing, this error message will appear when trying to publish. Even though it will not publish the Workflow, it will save it as a Draft.

If you forgot to add the Finish action at the end of your Workflow diagram, this error message will appear. Simply click on Back and add the Finish.