Product Technical Components

Overview

WorkflowGen is a Microsoft Active Server Pages .NET (ASP.NET 4) application. It includes:

  • .aspx files

  • .css, .js, .gif and .jpg files

  • .NET assemblies (.dll files)

  • A relational database (MS SQL Server)

  • A Windows service used for directory synchronization, overdue actions management, etc.

The WorkflowGen application is hosted on a new or an existing IIS website and is separated into two distinct modules:

  • The User Portal for end-users

  • The Administration Module for process designers, administrators, and process managers

Process actions can be handled by WorkflowGen applications such as EFORMASPX, which displays .NET web forms and stores the filled-out data once the forms are submitted. These applications are built-in, but you can develop custom applications using the SDK requirements and specifications.

Web applications

WorkflowGen main ASP.NET 4 application

This application contains the core application. The User Portal and Administration Module are both in that main application.

  • \wfgen: User Portal

  • \wfgen\admin: Administration Module

  • \wfgen\bin: Contains all the core assembly files that are needed to run WorkflowGen

  • \wfgen\App_Data: Contains design, runtime, log, and temporary files, and template files for processes, notifications, and forms

  • \wfgen\App_GlobalResources: Contains the .resx files that are needed for globalization. If you want to add a new language support to WorkflowGen, you have to create the new .resx files in this folder.

  • \wfgen\js: Used to store the different JavaScript files that are needed to run WorkflowGen

  • \wfgen\wfapps: Contains all the SDKs, web forms, and web services used by your WorkflowGen processes

  • \wfgen\ws: Contains the WorkflowGen web service API

  • \wfgen\App_Themes: Contains the styles of the User Portal and the Administration Module. The styles are completely customizable for both modules, since each module has its own corresponding CSS file. To create your own skins, see the User Portal Customization section in the WorkflowGen Integration Guide. You can change the currently selected skin on the General tab in the Administration Module Configuration Panel.

ASP.NET workflow applications (\wfgen\wfapps)

Use the \wfgen\wfapps\webservices folder to store your own SDK web applications. See the WorkflowGen Integration Guide for more information.

Workflow web forms

The \wfgen\wfapps\webforms folder is used to store the web forms used in the process workflows.

WorkflowGen Windows services

WorkflowGen engine service

The following automatic task executions are provided by this Windows service:

  • Action overdue exceptions

  • Notification management

  • Deletion of inactive delegations

  • Deletion of ghost activities (a list of activities initialized but never started)

This service is installed by the setup pack and is started automatically after installation. The default suggested installation path is DRIVE:\Program Files\Advantys\WorkflowGen\Services\bin\WfgWorkflowEngineService.exe.

WorkflowGen directory synchronization service

The automatic users and groups synchronization is provided by this Windows service. This service is installed by the setup pack and started automatically after installation.

The default suggested installation path is DRIVE:\Program Files\Advantys\WorkflowGen\Services\bin\WfgDirectoriesSyncService.exe.

The synchronization service can also be executed from a command line (see Synchronizing a directory in command line for more information).

WorkflowGen data

File data

The \wfgen\App_Data\files\runtime folder contains the data that are related to each process instance. The data that are generated by the workflows are stored in this folder. If the Process data storage option is selected to store file content in the database, then "file" type data are stored directly in the database and not in the directory structure.

The \wfgen\App_Data\files\design folder contains the data that are uploaded directly in the process definition, and when the processes are instantiated, those data are copied to the runtime folder. If the Process data storage option is selected to store file content in the database then "file" type data are stored directly in the database and not in the directory structure.

The \wfgen\App_Data\files\charts\images folder contains the temporary files of the graphical charts.

Log files

The \wfgen\App_Data\LogFiles folder contains the logs created by WorkflowGen (directory synchronization, WorkflowGen authentication module).

Templates

The \wfgen\App_Data\Templates folder contains the templates used by WorkflowGen (notifications, charts, portlet, form designer styles and tools, processes).

Database

The WorkflowGen database contains:

  • Users and groups that can be synchronized with an existing directory

  • Process definitions and runtime data

  • Information on the follow-up of ongoing and completed requests, as well as associated data (approvals, amounts, documents, etc.)

  • Statistics on ongoing and completed requests

The processes can be imported from or exported to an XML file that contains the process definition based upon the XPDL 1.0 standard format of the WfMC (Workflow Management Coalition).

All data files, including the web form projects with their XML data and other attachments are stored on the server disk and auto-archived chronologically.

Third-party software and licenses

The following software is distributed with WorkflowGen (Apache 2.0, BSD, MIT and other compatible licenses):

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