Start, Intermediate, and End Events (BPMN Executable)

An event is something that happens during the course of a process. Events include the start and end of an activity, and any other intermediate happenings (such as a change of state or receipt of a message) which will affect its sequence or timing.

In BPMN Executable, various different types of start, intermediate and end events can be created depending on the context, and their type is indicated by their symbols. PowerDesigner supports all the types of events defined in BPMN 2.0:

None - Untyped events, which indicate start points, state changes, and final states.
Message - Receiving and sending messages.
Timer - Cyclic timer events, points in time, time spans, or timeouts.
Escalation - Escalating to a higher level of responsibility.
Conditional - Reacting to changed business conditions or integrating business rules.
Link - Off-page connectors. Two corresponding link events equal a sequence flow.
Error - Catching or throwing named errors.
Cancel - Reacting to canceled transactions or triggering cancellation.
Compensation - Handling or triggering compensation.
Signal - Signaling across different processes. A signal thrown can be caught multiple times.
Multiple - Catching one out of a set of events. Throwing all events defined.
Parallel multiple - Catching all out of a set of parallel events.
Terminate - Triggering the immediate termination of a process.

You can create events in the contexts shown above in the following ways:

Start events - can be created directly in the diagram, in a pool or lane, in a standard or transaction sub-process (standard starts only), or in an event-based sub-process. Use the Start Event tool in the bottom toolbar. To change the type, click the Properties tool in its context toolbar and select the appropriate type.
Note Start events are not permitted in ad hoc sub-processes.

Note To make an event-based sub-process start event non-interrupting (with the dashed outer circle), deselect the Interrupting property.
Intermediate catch events - can be created directly in the diagram, in a pool or lane, or in any type of sub-process. Use the Intermediate Catch Event tool in the context toolbar or the bottom toolbar to create the event. To change the type, click the Properties tool in its context toolbar and select the appropriate type.
Intermediate boundary events - can be created on the edge of a task or of any type of sub-process. Use the Intermediate Catch Event tool in the context toolbar or the bottom toolbar, and click on the border of the task or sub-process. To change the type, click the Properties tool in its context toolbar and select the appropriate type.
Note To make an intermediate boundary event non-interrupting (with the dashed outer circles), deselect the Interrupting property.
Intermediate throw events - can be created directly in the diagram, in a pool or lane, or in any type of sub-process. Use the Intermediate Catch Event tool in the context toolbar or the bottom toolbar, select the Properties tool from its context toolbar, select Intermediate Throw Event to change to the throw type, and then select the Properties tool again and select the appropriate type of throw event.
End events - can be created directly in the diagram, in a pool or lane or in any type of sub-process. Use the End Event tool in the context toolbar or the bottom toolbar. To change the type, click the Properties tool in its context toolbar and select the appropriate type.
Note End events are not permitted in ad hoc sub-processes. Cancel end events are only permitted in transactions.

Executable events can have the following properties:

Property	Description
Name/Code/Comment	Identify the object. The name should clearly convey the object's purpose to non-technical users, while the code, which is used for generating code or scripts, may be abbreviated, and should not normally include spaces. You can optionally add a comment to provide more detailed information about the object. By default the code is generated from the name by applying the naming conventions specified in the model options. To decouple name-code synchronization, click to release the = button to the right of the Code field.
Interrupting	While most events interrupt the process modeled, event sub-process starts and intermediate boundary events can be specified as non-interrupting by deselecting this property. Non-interrupting events are marked by dashed outer circles.
Message	[message events] Specifies the message that is associated with the event (see Messages (BPMN Executable)).