Resource Actions

When clicked, this displays a menu with six resource-related actions: Approval, Checklist, Information, Notification, ResourceSet and Task.

Approval

The Approval action can be used in a workflow when a resource is required to approve the output of a preceding action, typically a request. For example, a Leave Approval Workflow Process can have an Approval action by a Manager, or a Purchase Requisition Workflow can have an Approval action by an Accounts

Checklist

The Checklist action can be used in a workflow to send a checklist to a resource(s) with a provision to complete and submit it. Questions that need to be answered by resources can be sent as checklists.

Information

The Information action can be used in a workflow to send information relating to the workflow execution, such as the result of the preceding action, to a resource(s).

Notification

The Notification action can be used in a workflow to send a notification to a resource(s) in the form of email, IM messages or SMS.

ResourceSet

The ResourceSet action can be used in a workflow when a resource(s) is required to set the resource who will execute the next action from a list that is provided.

Task

The Task action can be used in a workflow to assign a task to a resource(s).

Engine Actions

This displays a menu of eight workflow-engine related actions: COM-Object, Email, ResourceVariable, Rule, Script, Shell, TimerTriggerAction and Workflow.

COM-Object

This action can be used in a workflow to run a COM Object. This action calls the Run method of the COM object. The value returned by this is matched with the return values set for this action, and accordingly conditional routing takes place.

Email

The Email action can be used in a workflow to send email to a resource(s) by building a query. The workflow engine evaluates this query and sends an email to all the resources resulting from the query. If nil resources are selected, the email will be sent to all the resources.

ResourceVariable

The ResourceVariable action can be used in a workflow to dynamically set the resource(s) who will execute the next step during the execution of the workflow. This action is similar to the ResourceSet action in Resource Actions, the only difference being that here the engine sets the resources without manual intervention.

Rule

The Rule action can be used in a workflow to create complex rules or expressions wherein the result will be 'True' or 'False'. Depending on the result the engine decides the path of the workflow.

Script

The Script action can be used in a workflow to run Jscript.NET or VBScript.NET scripts. When this action is included in the workflow it calls the Run method in the script. The value returned from the Run method of the script is compared by the workflow engine with the return values for this action. The link matching this value is picked up for execution.

Shell

The Shell action can be used in a workflow to execute shell commands (batch or executable files). When this action is included in the workflow it executes the shell command and captures the output of this process. The captured output can be used to determine the path for the workflow, i.e. the shell action allows conditional routing.

TimerTriggerAction

The TimerTriggerAction can be used in a workflow to trigger an action after a specified time. It can be used to put on hold workflow execution and to introduce a delay in the workflow. Conditional routing can be performed for different timeouts.

Workflow

The Workflow action can be used in a workflow to run another workflow.

Data Base Actions

This displays a menu with one database-related action: StatusChange.

CStatusChange

The StatusChange action can be used to update the internal status of the workflow in the database.

Miscellaneous

This menu displays one action: Synchronize.

Synchronize Action

The Synchronize action can be used in a workflow to synchronize the execution of different actions. The workflow engine does not proceed with the execution of further actions until all the actions leading to this action are completed.

Link

This tool links the selected action with another action in the workflow. When clicked, it opens a popup in which you can specify the actions to link.

"Workflow. NET", a web based dynamic customizable business rules engine - using Microsoft .NET framework.