Wrestling with Windows Workflow Foundation

Simon Thurman

Jeremy Stimson

Objectives

• Workflow Concepts

• Impact on Application Architecture

• Demonstrate through Technology

Agenda

• Workflow Overview• Scenarios• Technology• Framework

• Office12

• Demonstrations

Hello WorldWorkflow

What Is a Workflow?

A set of A set of activitiesactivities that coordinate that coordinate peoplepeople

and / or software ...and / or software ...EscalateToManagerExample activities … Example activities … CheckInventory

Like a flowchart … Like a flowchart …

……organised into a organised into a workflowworkflow..

Or a state diagram ... Or a state diagram ...

Workflow Scenario Spectrum

• Participants: people, roles

• Flow style: flexible, dynamic

• Data: unstructured, documents

• Participants: apps, services

• Flow style: prescriptive, protocols

• Data: structured, transactional

Information Worker• Document Review …Information Worker• Document Review …

System WorkflowSystem WorkflowHuman WorkflowHuman

Workflow

Windows Workflow Foundation

Business to Business• Supply Chain Mgmt …Business to Business

• Supply Chain Mgmt …

Line of Business Apps• Quote to Cash, Sales Automation …

Line of Business Apps• Quote to Cash, Sales Automation …CRM ERP

IT Management• New Hire Provisioning, Trouble Ticket …

IT Management• New Hire Provisioning, Trouble Ticket …

.NET Developer• Pageflow, Service Coordination …

.NET Developer• Pageflow, Service Coordination …

Why Workflow Technology?

Long running and stateful behaviour

Transparency

Flexible control flow

Architectural AbstractionsArchitectural Abstractions

Workflows technology provides abstractions

convenient to describe real-world workflows

Workflow Technology Value-AddWorkflow Technology Value-Add

Windows Workflow Foundation

• Single workflow technology for Microsoft products, partners and customers• A framework to build on – not a server or application

• Key features• Enables long running workflows in any application or server

• Extensible activity framework

• Unified model for human and system workflow scenarios

• Visual designer for graphical and code-based authoring

• Availability• Exposed via WinFX – powers Office ‘12’ workflow

Extensible framework and tools for building workflow into Windows applications

WF Runtime Engine and Services

Host Process

Windows Workflow Foundation

WF Base Activity Library

My custom workflow

Runtime Services: pluggable implementations with defaults

Persistence Communication Tracking …

Runtime Engine: provides intrinsic behaviours to activities

TrackingInfrastructure

State Management

WorkflowExecution

DynamicUpdate

Hello WorldWorkflow

When Do You Write Custom Activities?

• Out-of-the-box Activities get you started …

• Write custom activities for• modelling advanced control flows

• modelling various workflow styles

• integrating with technologies

• aligning with standards

• Out-of-the-box activities built using the same framework that’s available to developers

Why Rules?

Modelling PowerModelling Power

ApproachabilityApproachability

Ease of ChangeEase of Change

Workflow Rules

• Conditions on activities• If-Else

• While

• Replicator

• Conditioned Activity Group (CAG)

• <Your custom activity>

• Policy activity• Contains and executes a RuleSet

• RuleSet execution provides priority-based, forward-chaining semantics

Rules

Model-driven development

Model-driven developmentRules and Application Development

FormsForms

DataData

ApplicationApplicationlogiclogic

Rules andRules andpoliciespolicies

ApplicationApplicationcodecode

Workflow Workflow modelmodel

ServiceServicess

Flexible Control Flow

Rules-driven Activities

Step2

Step1Rule1Rule1

Rule2Rule2

DataRules + data statedrive processing order

•Data-driven•Simple conditions, complex policies •Constrained Activity Group

State Machine Workflow

State2

State1EventEvent

EventEvent

External events drive processingorder

•Reactive, event-driven•Skip/re-work, exception handling•Graph metaphor

Sequential WorkflowStep1

Step2

Sequentialstructure prescribesprocessing order

•Prescriptive, formal•Automation scenarios•Flowchart metaphor

State Machine

WinFXWinFX

Workflow and BizTalk Server

Windows Windows Workflow Workflow

FoundationFoundation

MessagingMessagingDesigDesig

nnToolsTools

BusineBusinessss

ActivityActivityMonitoMonito

rrandand

AdminAdminToolsTools

OrchestratioOrchestrationn

TransformatiTransformationon

AdaptersAdapters

BizTalk ServerAcceleratorsAccelerators

• Premium BPM serverPremium BPM server• Distinct server productDistinct server product• Use in B2B, EAI, BPM scenariosUse in B2B, EAI, BPM scenarios• Deployable solutionsDeployable solutions• Manageability, scale-outManageability, scale-out

• Workflow frameworkWorkflow framework• Exposed via WinFX Exposed via WinFX • Broad set of scenarios Broad set of scenarios • Used to build solutionsUsed to build solutions• Enables manageabilityEnables manageabilityand scale-out in solutionsand scale-out in solutions• Use for building workflow Use for building workflow into apps or workflow-enabled into apps or workflow-enabled serversservers

Visual Studio DesignerVisual Studio Designer

• Future version will migrate to Future version will migrate to Windows Workflow Foundation Windows Workflow Foundation for orchestrationfor orchestration

WorkflowWorkflow

Office Workflow Vision

Facilitate human processes by attaching business logic to items and documents in Windows SharePoint Services, while providing

context and tracking progress

Empower information workers using Office Server with out-of-the-box solutions and self-service tools to support a broad range of

routing & tracking scenarios without IT involvement

Empower organisations to build a broad range of sophisticated workflow solutions that take advantage of the full functionality of

the Windows Workflow Foundation (WWF) platform and integrate into the SharePoint and Office experiences

Visual Studio & Workflow SDKVisual Studio & Workflow SDK

Out-of-the-BoxOut-of-the-BoxSolutionsSolutions

(with customisation)(with customisation)

FrontPage FrontPage WorkflowWorkflow

Routing & ApprovalRouting & Approval

Tracking ApplicationsTracking Applications

List ModerationList Moderation

Document ExpirationDocument Expiration

Pro

fessio

nal D

evelo

per

Pro

fessio

nal D

evelo

per

En

d U

ser

En

d U

ser

Custom Tracking AppsCustom Tracking Apps

Document ProcessesDocument Processes

Custom Form ActionsCustom Form Actions

LOB LOB IntegrationIntegration

Industry-specific Industry-specific ProcessesProcesses

Authoring Scenario Pyramid

Office