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Example Approval

Along with library modules several example modules and applications are provided, demonstrating the main features of the solution. This includes a series of example applications for usage in different Usage Scenarios. They all share the same business process described in the next section.

Business context: Approval#

Approval Process

Take a look on the process model above. Imagine you are building a system that responsible for management of all approval requests in the company. Using this system, you can submit requests which then get eventually approved or rejected. Sometimes, the approver doesn't approve or reject, but returns the request back to the originator for correction (that is the person, who submitted the request). Then, the originator can amend the request and resubmit it or cancel the request.

An approval request is modelled in the following way. The subject describes what the request is about, the applicant is the person whom it is about (can be different from originator). Finally, the amount and currency denote the costs of the request. All requests must be stored for compliance purposes.

The request is initially created in DRAFT mode. It gets to state IN PROGRESS as soon as the process is started and will eventually get to ACCEPTED or REJECTED as a final state.

For sample purposes two groups of users are created: The Muppet Show (Kermit, Piggy, Gonzo and Fozzy) and The Avengers (Ironman, Hulk). Gonzo and Fozzy are responsible for approvals.

Process Run#

Let's play the following run through this process model.

  • Ironman submits an Advanced Training request on behalf of Hulk
  • The request costs are provided in wrong currency and Gonzo returns the request to Ironman for correction (EUR instead of USD)
  • Ironman changes the currency to USD and re-submits the request
  • Gonzo is out of office, so Fozzy takes over and approves the request

Running Examples#

To run the example please consult the Usage Scenarios section.

Note

Since the process application includes Camunda BPM engine, you can use the standard Camunda webapps by navigating to http://localhost:8080/camunda/app/. The default user and password are admin / admin.

Story board#

The following storyboard can be used to understand the mechanics behind the provided implementation:

TIP: In this storyboard, we assume you started the single node scenario and the application runs locally on http://localhost:8080. Please adjust the URLs accordingly, if you started differently.

  • To start the approval process for a given request open your browser and navigate to the Example Tasklist: http://localhost:8080/polyflow/. Please note that the selected user is Ironman.

  • Open the menu (Start new...) in and select 'Request Approval'. You should see the start form for the example approval process.

New approval process start form

  • Select Advanced Training from one of predefined templates and click Start. The start form will disappear and redirect back to the empty Tasklist.

  • Since you are still acting as Ironman there are nothing you can do here. Please switch the user to Gonzo in the top right corner and you should see the user task Approve Request from process Request Approval.

Task list with task description

  • Examine the task details by clicking Data tab in Details column. You can see the data of the request correlated to the current process instance.

Task list with task data

  • Click on the task name and you will see the user task form of the Approve Request task. Select the option Return request to originator and click complete.

Example User Task Form Approve Request

  • Switch to Workpieces and you should see the request business object. Examine the approval request by clicking Data, Audit and Description tabs in Details column.

Example Archive View

  • Change user back to Ironman and switch back to the Tasklist and open the Amend requesttask. Change the currency to USD and re-submit the request.

Example User Task Form Amend Request

  • Change user back to Fozzy, open the Approve Request task and approve the request by selecting the appropriate option.

  • Switch to Workpieces and you should still see the request business object, even after the process is finished. Examine the approval request by clicking Data, Audit and Description tabs in Details column.

Last update: May 5, 2023