Oracle Workflow Components
Oracle Workflow contains six major components:
·
Workflow Builder
·
Workflow Engine
·
Workflow Monitor
·
Workflow Definitions Loader
·
Workflow Directory Services
·
Notification System
Workflow Builder
Workflow Builder is the component that
provides a graphical user interface for creating, reviewing, and maintaining
workflow definitions. A workflow definition includes the workflow processes,
attributes, notifications, messages, and functions that make up the workflow.
Like Oracle Applications, Workflow Builder has a Navigator to help you find the
various components of your workflow definition.
Workflow Engine
Workflow Engine is the component that executes and enforces the
defined workflow processes. When a workflow process starts or a step is
completed, the Workflow Engine is signaled. The Workflow Engine receives and
reads a signal from the defined workflow processes and then determines and
executes the appropriate next step. To send a signal or to communicate with the
Workflow Engine, Oracle Applications provide several standard Workflow Engine
application programming interfaces (APIs).
Workflow Monitor
Workflow Monitor is the component of Oracle Workflow that allows
you to review the state or status of an item through any particular workflow
process. Workflow Monitor can also be used by application administrators to
push through certain items that have errored out. Workflow Monitor provides an
overview of a given item in the workflow and helps with tracking.
Workflow Definitions Loader
Workflow Definitions Loader is the component that allows you to
download or load workflow definitions to and from the database or text files.
Workflow Directory Services
Workflow Directory Services is the component that identifies the
directory repository to be used, tells Oracle Workflow how to find the users,
interprets the roles of each user, and sends notifications to those users when
necessary.
Notification System
The Notification Mailer is a program that concurrently sends
emails and receives responses from the Oracle Workflow Notification System. It
will send out notifications and process responses by calling the response
functions and completing the notification. Unlike Oracle Alert response
processing, you do not need Oracle Office to use this functionality.
Review Questions
1.
What does a Workflow Builder do?
2.
What does a Workflow Engine do?
3.
What does a Workflow Monitor do?
4.
What does a Workflow Definitions Loader do?
5.
Does Oracle Office need to be configured to run Workflow Notification?
