Defining and Editing Workflows 

Use

Recall that each workflow is stored as a record of the Workflows table, and that the actual workflow object is a Microsoft Visio file that is stored in the MDM repository and accessed through the Workflow field of each workflow record.

You can define and edit the workflow object within Microsoft Visio by launching Microsoft Visio and then editing the contents of the Workflow field as described in this section.

There is no explicit command to modify the workflow object. To edit the workflow object, select the applicable workflow record in the Records pane, move the focus into the Record Detail pane, and edit the Workflow field directly.

Microsoft Visio is launched automatically by MDM when you edit the Workflowfield.

Procedure

To launch Microsoft Visio for editing a workflow object:

       1.      Make sure the Workflows table is the current table.

       2.      In the Records pane, select the workflow record whose workflow object you want to edit.

       3.      In the Record Detail tab, double-click on the Workflowfield to launch Microsoft Visio using the MDM workflow stencil and open the workflow object for editing, as shown in the figure below.

 

To define and edit the workflow object within Microsoft Visio:

...

       1.      Use Windows drag-and-drop to drag step shapes from the Workflow Stencil (left pane) into the Microsoft Visio drawing (top-right pane).

When a step shape is selected in the Microsoft Visio drawing (top-right pane), the Step Properties pane (bottom-right) contains a grid with a list of properties for the step.

       2.      Specify the properties for each step in the Step Properties pane, and then press Shift + Enter to save changes to the step you are editing.

You can press Esc to discard unsaved changes and restore the step to its prior state.

       3.      Connect steps using the Connector shape or the Connect step, making sure that each step has the correct number of inputs and outputs.

For more information about each of the workflow step types, see Workflow Steps.

       4.      When you are done dragging, connecting, and specifying all the steps in the workflow diagram, choose File ® Save from the Microsoft Visio main menu to save the edited workflow object in the repository.

To discard unsaved changes and close the workflow, choose File ® Close from the Microsoft Visio main menu, and then choose No when prompted to confirm that you really want to abandon changes.

       5.      Choose File ® Exit to close Microsoft Visio and return to the MDM Client.