Workflow Terminology

The Workflow is the definition of the process flow, as shown here in the diagram below. This is what you will create in the Workflow Studio builder.

Open

All Workflows start with something happening, which is known as a Trigger. You can have an automatically started Workflow, based on Assets, Requests, or Job triggers, or a manually started Workflow.

In the Workflow above, this Workflow is triggered when an Asset is created.

Each box in the Workflow may be referred to as a Node.

The Nodes are all Connectors - you can have an Asset Connector, a Job Connector, a Request Connector, an Email Connector, or a Branch Connector.

A Branch occurs when the flow is split into smaller flows. Each small flow is called a branch. Think of the workflow as an upside tree, with a Trigger root and Branches growing down and spreading out across the page.

Unlike a real-world tree, Workflow Branches all come back together at some later stage. With a Parallel Branch connector, all branch flows are completed. With an Exclusive Branch connector, only one flow is completed.

Instances

When you run a Workflow, it creates an Instance of the Workflow. So to see what happened when the Workflow has run in the past, you need to look at the Instances (see below)

Workflow Status

The diagram below illustrates the different states a Workflow may be in.

Initially invalid, it is saved automatically as Draft as soon as it becomes valid. It will continue to save any changes automatically after that. While it is in draft, it may be deleted. This deletes the workflow forever and cannot be undone.

Once you are ready to use the workflow, you publish it and the Workflow becomes Enabled. You can temporarily stop the Workflow from being run by disabling it, making it Disabled. You can then re-enable it sometime in the future.

Once published, a Workflow cannot be deleted, only Archived. An archived workflow cannot be run again. Any past instances of an archived workflow can be viewed.

Editing the Workflow brings up the Builder view, which allows you to change the Workflow definition, or bring up the Instance view, which allows you to view any currently running workflow instances and the history of past runs.

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