User Classification Web page

Scenario: An organization has a Web application in ASPX pages for classifying a user. To utilize the logic capability of Workflow 7.0, the organization recreates the application as a Webforms-type project in Workflow Designer. However, one page in the application is so complex that it would be better not to recreate it in the workflow project, but call it as a stand-alone ASPX page.

See About the External Dialog Step component.

Process: This process is created as a Webforms-type project.

The following screen shot shows the process:

The process starts with an Add New Data Element component that initializes a text array for the classification data. This variable will be overwritten with values returned by the External Dialog Step component.

The first Form Builder gets information about the user to be classified.

The External Dialog Step component calls a locally deployed ASPX page that is displayed seamlessly in the process.

The following screenshot shows the component editor:

The External URL property is set the the URL of the published ASP page. This property tells the component what page to access.

The Session Id Query Variable Name property names the session ID of the open Webforms process. The external page is configured to recognize this variable as the session ID and to use it to reconnect to the process.

The Web Service Name is the name of the webservice generated by the component that the external page uses to reconnect to the process.

The Variables To Expose For Get property lists all available variables in the process. The component exposes the variables that you select to the external page.

The Variables To Expose For Set property also lists all available variables in the process. The component expects to receive the variables that you select from the external page, and it will overwrite the existing values upon return.

In this case the component has only one output path: Submit. This path is configured to require the Username and Classifications variables.

The ASPX page, called ClassificationPage, is configured to allow a connection from the workflow project and to map its UserName and Classifications values into the process variables of the same names. It is also configured to call the webservice created in the External Dialog Step component (in this case ExternalStepWebService), and to provide values for the Variables To Expose for Set (in this case UserName and Classifications).