Creating WF Process Workflow for your Blueprint
Let’s take example where we have Blueprint which will help to create Data Entities from database table. We will also assume we have two commands in the blueprint
- Add Database connection
- Add Data Entities
Now without having database connection one cannot create Data Entities. This can be very well communicated to developer using WF process workflow in your blueprint.
To see this, I have created Blueprint named “CreateDataEntitiesBP” which has following
It has two commands ‘AddDBConnection’ and ‘AddDataEntities’ created.
It has menus which use above two commands.
So on right click of unfolded project you get menu as shown below
If you want to know how to achieve this in Blueprints please visit here.
If you click on Workflow in menu you will get default workflow which is attached to every new blueprint.
Blueprint provides you way to change this workflow according to your requirement. You can add sequential activities here and even can configure dependent activities. To add your own WF process workflow for your blueprint, click on “Add WF Process” menu on your Blueprint project.
This will add new workflow project in Blueprint solution. This workflow project will have file “project.workflow.xoml” which will contain the workflow. By default it will have sequential activity with BlueprintProcessActivity Overview added in it.
This BlueprintProcessActivity will have following important properties
Name: Name of activity
Description: Description of activity.
Details: Name of “.mht” file which explain this Activity in detail. This will appear in right side of workflow window.
Sequence: Sequence of Activity within Workflow.
ShortDescription: Short description of activity. This will appear in left side of workflow window
Add two more Activities in this workflow other than default Overview Activity.
Create two .mht files ‘AddDataEntities’.mht and ‘AddDBConnection’’.mht. Put these files in Blueprint’s project Content\Workflow directory. Change “Details” property of two newly added activities to show these files in workflow window. Change Sequence property to 0 and 1 so that they will appear in sequence.
Now Build WFProcess project. Build action will copy “project.workflow.xoml” file in solution directory of Blueprint project. This “.xoml” file is the one which represents workflow for our blueprint so it has to be there in Blueprint project’s folder Content\Workflow, so Add file “project.workflow.xoml” in this folder.
Build Blueprint project and test it using new Visual Studio Instance. Now Workflow will appear as shown below.
If you recollect we had used Sequence 0 for ‘AddDBConnection’’ and 1 for ‘AddDataEntities’, ‘AddDataEntities’ activity is appearing as child of ‘AddDBConnection’’.
If required, you can also create Activities at same level in tree to do this we need to use Parallel Workflow Activity instead of sequential. We have used it to have “Overview” and ‘AddDBConnection’’ activities at same level.
Best part of WF Process workflow in blueprints which I like is, it automatically takes care of disabling activity as long as all its parent activities are marked as complete by checking the checkbox shown.
All Activities which are ready to execute are shown with Green color whereas all blocked activities are shown with red color. If I checked ‘AddDBConnection’’ now, ‘AddDataEntities’ will become green.
In this way you can provide guidance based on workflow in your blueprint and this will notify developer about exact steps which he/she has to carry out and in what sequence, to use the blueprint. According to me this really adds value to improve developer’s productivity.
