Imixs Workflow ...the open source workflow technology for business applications

Modelling

Security

The Security Tab defines the read- and write access a user will get after the activity is finished. The Security Activity defines the Access Control List (ACL) to the workitem. This is one of the most important features of the Imixs Workflow System.

Actors

Inside the Security Activity 'Actor objects' simplify modeling. A Actor Object is a workitem attribute which maps to a coresponding role inside the application. These actor Object can be used to model dynamic roles.

Actors assume an essential role in a user-centric or a human-based workflow. Actors are users who actively interfere in a process. For example, protagonists launch actions or perform individual tasks. On the other hand, actors can also be passively involved in a workflow. - for instance, as recipients of an e-mail notification. As actors most often assume an abstract role during modeling, the roles have to be described in a workflow system. In the Imixs Workflow Modeler, you can integrate these roles into the model through so-called mapping. To accomplish this, so-called NameObjects are defined through the workflow profile.

Actors define a single attribute/field within the WorkItem, i.e., the user data being available later. This concept allows easy access of these roles during modeling of an activity.

Creating NameObjects

To define Actors in your WorkflowModel, open the model file and switch to page "Profile" in the main editor. There you can include NameObjects in the model or remove existing models. As NameObject, just click on button "Add" and enter the attribute name/field name that is later used in the workflow application. You can also support viewing of the professional name that often deviates from the field name. To accomplish this, insert this name before the field name and separated by a | character ("professional name | field name").

Example:

Supervisor | namBoss
Delegate | namDelegate

There are two different modes the permissions can be changed during a workflow step:

Update Mode

This option will not change the existing read and write permissions but adds additional permision settings. This option is helpful if you will not change the permissions essentially, or if you can not be sure which settings a workitem will have in this process status. Every Read- and Writeaccess settings will be added to the existing ones. When you leave call fields empty this option will result in no changes of the permissions inside a workitem.

Renew Mode

This option will replace any permissions to the permissions settings defined in the activity. You can define read and write access settings and any existing settings inside a workitem will be removed and replaced with the new ones. This option is also helpful if you want to clear any existing read or write restrictions to an workitem inside the process step.