Show TOC

Procedure documentationAssigning a Custom User Interface to a Task Locate this document in the navigation structure

 

You assign a user interface (UI) to a task to allow the user to access and execute that task. You can assign UI components of different UI technologies. This document describes how you assign your own task execution UI implemented in an arbitrary technology.

In principle, you can make use of any UI technology that is able to access a Java-based API and that can be deployed to the Application Server Java (AS Java). In order to do this, the BPM API offers methods to read the complete data of a task. The task instance ID is passed to the UI via HTTP parameter taskId. Additionally, input and output data that are mapped from and to the embedding process, can be read. Tasks in SAP NetWeaver BPM always run through a well-defined life cycle starting from creation and ending with completion or failure. The BPM API offers life cycle operations that allow you to change the status of a task.

For more information on how to use the BPM APIs to build your own task execution UI, see Building an Execution UI with the BPM API.

Note Note

The interaction between the custom UI component and the BPM system is restricted to data interaction through the BPM API, for example, for completing the task. Closing the task execution UI, refreshing or reloading the task execution UI page or caching the data that the user has entered is not handled by BPM but must be externally handled.

End of the note.

Prerequisites

  • You have the following data down pat:

    • Relative URL of your Web application that act as task execution UI

    • Input and output data type

    • Fault data type for exception handling

    For implementing the task input, output and fault interface, refer to the Service Data Objects (SDO) standard. Use the BPM API to handle the data transfer and the task life cycle (complete, fault, delegate, nominate).

  • The UI component you want to assign runs on the same Application Server Java (AS Java) as the Process Server, that is, where the process definition with the task is deployed.

  • You have created a task to which you want to assign the UI.

Procedure

  1. In the Developer Studio, choose   Window   Open Perspective   Other...   Process Development   and choose the OK pushbutton.

  2. Expand your project in the Project Explorer view.

  3. Expand Process Modeling, then expand Tasks.

  4. In the context menu of a task, choose Open.

    The task editor opens.

  5. On the Overview tab page, under User Interface, choose the Choose... pushbutton.

  6. In the dialog box that appears, select Custom Technologies and then choose the OK pushbutton.

    The UI wizard for assigning a custom UI opens.

  7. Enter the relative URL of the Web application that acts as task execution UI.

  8. Select data types for the input and output data. Optionally, you can select a fault data type for exception handling.

    You can also select Browse... to search through the available data types.

  9. Choose the Finish pushbutton and save the task.

Result

When a user now opens a corresponding task from the universal worklist (UWL) or the BPM Inbox, the Web application whose URL you configured at design time is opened and initialized with the current task instance. If the task is opened in the UWL, it will be claimed automatically and the user who opens the task becomes the actual owner of the task. In the BPM Inbox, users can first claim the task via the Claim pushbutton before working on the task in the task execution UI.

More Information