Workflow in Dynamics AX 2009 : Windows Workflow Foundation, Automating Business Processes

1. Windows Workflow Foundation

There is a relationship between the workflow infrastructure in Dynamics AX 2009 and Windows Workflow Foundation, which is part of the .NET Framework 3.5. Windows Workflow Foundation provides many fundamental capabilities that are used by the workflow infrastructure in Dynamics AX 2009. As a low-level infrastructure component, however, Windows Workflow Foundation has no direct awareness of or integration with Dynamics AX 2009. In Figure 1, the workflow infrastructure (labeled A) is an abstraction layer that sits above Windows Workflow Foundation (labeled B) and allows workflows that are specific to Dynamics AX to be designed, implemented, and configured in Dynamics AX 2009 and then executed by using Windows Workflow Foundation.

In the following list, each numbered item refers to the corresponding part of Figure 9-2.

2. Automating Business Processes

You can use the Dynamics AX 2009 workflow infrastructure to automate aspects of a business process that are part of a larger business process automation effort. There is no single, correct approach to this undertaking, but at a high level, you can follow the steps listed here to figure out and understand your existing business processes, then to determine how these business processes should function, and finally to automate them by using workflow.

The major advantage of the workflow infrastructure in Dynamics AX 2009 is that it provides a significant amount of functionality out of the box, meaning that custom workflows don’t have to be written. Businesses and organizations will have more time to focus on improving their processes instead of writing and rewriting business logic. Additionally, the Dynamics AX 2009 workflow is continually being enhanced in response to feedback from customers, partners, and ISVs to provide even more value in subsequent releases, making the investment in workflow increasingly valuable over time.

Workflow from a Developer’s Perspective

From your perspective as a Dynamics AX developer, workflow is something that you work with to help the users in your business or organization in their efforts to improve efficiency. The ultimate goal for workflow in Dynamics AX 2009 is to make it as easy as possible for business users to fully configure workflows themselves, freeing developers to work on other activities. Currently, developers and business users work together to create and customize workflows, which consumes time and resources for both parties.

Key Workflow Concepts

As a Dynamics AX developer, you need to understand a number of key concepts to successfully help business users implement workflows.

Workflow Document and Workflow Document Class

The workflow document, sometimes referred to as the Business Document, is the focal point for workflows in Dynamics AX 2009. Every workflow template and every workflow element must reference a workflow document because it provides the data context for the workflow. A workflow document is an AOT query supplemented by a class in the AOT (referred to as the workflow document class). The term workflow document is used instead of query because it more accurately portrays what the workflow is operating on. A query can reference multiple data sources and isn’t constrained to a single table. In fact, a query can reference data sources hierarchically. However, if there are multiple data sources within a query, the first data source is considered the primary or root one.

Workflow in Dynamics AX 2009 incorporates the use of an expression builder to enable conditions to be defined that control the behavior of an executing workflow. The expression builder uses the workflow document to enumerate all the fields that can be referenced in conditions. Calculated fields are not supported on queries in Dynamics AX 2009. Therefore, to make derived data available within conditions, you add parm methods to the workflow document class, into which X++ code can be introduced to produce the derived data. The workflow document then returns the fields from the underlying query plus the data generated by the parm methods.

Workflow Categories

Workflow categories determine whether a workflow template is associated to a specific module. (Without these categories, you could see all workflows in the context of every module in Dynamics AX 2009.) For example, a workflow category named ExpenseManagement, which is mapped to the Expense Management module, comes with Dynamics AX 2009. All workflows associated to this module are visible in the Dynamics AX 2009 client within the Expense Management module. If you add a new module to Dynamics AX 2009, you must create a new module and then a new workflow category that references that module.

Workflow Templates

The workflow template is the primary building block used to create workflows. The developer defines the workflow template in AOT\Workflow\Workflow Templates. Defining the workflow template involves setting the various properties (including workflow document and workflow category). The business user later references this workflow template when creating a workflow configuration.

Event Handlers

Event handlers are well-defined integration points that enable you to execute application-specific business logic during workflow execution. Workflow events are exposed at the workflow level and the workflow element level. For more information about event handlers, including where they are used, see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc588240.aspx.

Menu Items

Workflow in Dynamics AX 2009 uses both display and action menu items. Display menu items are used to navigate to either a form in the Dynamics AX 2009 client or to a Web page in Enterprise Portal that displays the details of the record being processed by workflow. Action menu items are used for each possible action a user can take in relation to a workflow. They also provide another integration point for developers to integrate custom code. For more information about the menu items that are used in the workflow infrastructure, see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc602158.aspx and http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc604521.aspx.

Workflow Elements

The elements of a workflow represent the activities that can be configured within a workflow. The business user configures these elements; the developer creates them. An element can be a task, an approval, or a subworkflow.

• Approvals are specialized tasks that allow sequencing of multiple steps and use a fixed set of outcomes.

• Tasks are generic workflow elements that represent a single unit of work. The developer defines the possible outcomes for each task.

• Subworkflows are workflows that are invoked from other workflows.

The workflow structure is made up of sequences of workflow elements.

Providers

Workflow in Dynamics AX 2009 uses the provider model as a flexible way of allowing application-specific code to be invoked for different purposes when a workflow is executing. There are three providers in workflow: due date, participant, and hierarchy. For more information about workflow providers, including where they are used, see http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc519521.aspx.

Workflow Configurations

The business user creates the workflow configurations using the workflow configurations form in the Dynamics AX 2009 client. The business user first selects a workflow template and then configures the approvals and tasks that control the flow of activities through the workflow.

Workflow Instances

A workflow instance is an activated workflow created by combining the workflow configuration and the underlying AOT workflow elements on which the workflow configuration is based (the workflow template, tasks, and approvals).

Work Items

Work items are the actionable units of work that are created by the workflow instance at run time. When a user interacts with workflow, he or she is responding to a work item that has been generated from a task or approval element. Work items are surfaced in the Dynamics Unified Worklist Web part and in the Dynamics AX 2009 client.

Note