Workflow Setup
Overview
- Workflows are modules that you build yourself to track a process in BOS Enterprise.
- Each workflow has its own statuses, actions, input fields and Output Templates, set up here.
- Users then work in the workflow module itself (see Workflows Reference).
- A new workflow starts with four statuses: Pending, Active, Complete and Cancelled. You can rename them, add more and set their colours.
- Actions are the steps users run from the workflow's Actions (button): add a note, an appointment, a file or a form, create or link a transaction, and change the status.
- An action can depend on other actions, so that it only becomes available after those actions run.
- Workflow modules are added to the menu under the Workflow heading of Menu Items (see Menus).
- Users need access to each workflow module (user access or supervisor access).
User Settings
Note
The defaults are the values for new databases, new users and new Transaction Types. Your database may have different values.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Setups > Workflows – Access Allowed | Checkbox. If checked, you can open Workflows (WF Setup). | Unchecked |
| Workflows & Workspace > Workflows – User access (Select Modules) | Select the workflow modules the user can open. Users with access also appear in the Remind list of those modules. | Not applicable |
| Workflows & Workspace > Workflows – Supervisor access (Select Modules) | Select the workflow modules in which the user is a supervisor. A supervisor can also change the status of a workflow when the status is read-only, and sees the item arrows (previous and next item). | Not applicable |
| Workflows & Workspace > Workflows – Show Preview | Checkbox. If checked, the preview rows are shown in the Timeline and Transactions views when a workflow module opens. | Unchecked |
Info
- The access lists can also be set per workflow from Menu (button) > Set User Access or Set Supervisor Access.
- These options appear only for users with the setting Setups > Settings & Defaults – Access Allowed.
- Access is stored by the workflow's name.
Workflows Screen
Info
The list on the left shows the workflows (Code and Name). Click Edit before changing a workflow: until then, the tabs are read-only and their right-click menus are unavailable.
Buttons Explained
| Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Menu | Opens a menu with these options:
|
| Edit | Makes the workflow and its tabs editable. |
| New | Creates a workflow with the four default statuses and the Settings tab. |
| Save | Saves the changes. Changes are also saved when you move to another workflow or run another option. |
| Copy | Copies the workflow after you confirm ("Copy <Name> Setup?"). The copy is named "<Name> - Copy" and includes the statuses, actions, input fields, settings and entities, but not the Output Templates. |
Fields Explained
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | The workflow's name. It is the module's title, the name in the menu and the name used for user and supervisor access. |
| Code | A short code (up to 10 characters). It is the heading of the workflow module and the module name on reminders. |
| Entities | Click the button to link the workflow to entities. A new workflow record gets the first linked entity. |
Settings Tab
Info
These settings belong to the workflow. Each change is recorded in the changelog.
| Setting | Description | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Global Settings > Link to Customer/Supplier | Adds a company to the workflow. The options are:
| No |
| Global Settings > Link to Staff | Adds a staff field to the workflow. The options are:
| None |
| Global Settings > Link to Items | Checkbox. If checked, the workflow has an item field (Product). | Unchecked |
| Global Settings > Link to Items – Category | The Item Category the item field lists. | Not set |
| Global Settings > Reference Field 1 to 3 – Caption | The captions of the reference fields Ref1 to Ref3. A reference field appears only when it has a caption. | Blank |
| Global Settings > Reference Field 1 to 3 – Lookup List | Click Edit... to type the values for the reference field's list, one per line. | Blank |
| Global Settings > Caption – Linked Item | The caption of the item field. | Product |
| Global Settings > Caption – Linked Staff | The caption of the staff field when Link to Staff is All. | Staff |
| Global Settings > Disable Status Field | Checkbox. If checked, you cannot change the status in the header; the status changes through actions. | Unchecked |
| Global Settings > Hide Reminders | Checkbox. If checked, the Reminders section is hidden. | Unchecked |
| Global Settings > Caption – Items (Timeline) | The caption of the Timeline view and of the items section. | Timeline |
Status Tab
Info
A new workflow starts with Pending (Default: New Workflow), Active, Complete (Default: Close Workflow) and Cancelled. These statuses belong to the workflow, so they can differ from one workflow to the next.
Status Tab Buttons Explained
| Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Adds a status. |
Status Tab Fields Explained
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| ID | The status's system-generated number. |
| Description | The status's name (up to 30 characters). |
| Colour | The colour of the status in the list and in the header. |
| Group | The Status Group: Pending, Active, Complete or Cancelled. |
| Default | The options are:
|
| Editing | What users can change while a workflow has this status. The options are:
|
| Order | The order of the statuses. |
| Menu (...) | Right-click a status for these options:
|
Actions Tab
Info
Actions appear on the workflow's Actions (button), in the order set here. The Preview row under an action lists its dependencies.
Actions Tab Buttons Explained
| Button | Description |
|---|---|
| Add | Adds an action. |
Actions Tab Fields Explained
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| ID | The action's system-generated number. |
| Description | The action's name on the Actions menu, and the reference of the item it adds. |
| Menu Item | How the action appears on the Actions menu. The options are:
|
| Type | What the action does (see Action Types Explained below). |
| Change Status to | The status the workflow gets when the action runs. The options are:
|
| Note | A note. Note, Appointment and Input Form actions copy it to the item they add. |
| Order | The order on the Actions menu. |
| Preview | The action's dependencies. |
| Menu (...) | Right-click an action for these options:
|
Action Types Explained
| Type | Description |
|---|---|
| Note | Adds a note item and opens the note editor. |
| Appointment | Adds an appointment item with the fields Resource, Location, Start Time and End Time, which are created when you select this type. Saving the item creates or updates an event in the calendar. |
| Load a File | Asks for a file, copies it to the documents folder and adds it as an item. The general setting Folder – Documents must be set. |
| Input Form | Adds an item with the input fields set for the action (Edit Input Fields), for the user to fill in. |
| Link a Transaction | Opens a window to link an existing transaction to the workflow. Only Transaction Types that have a create-transaction action in this workflow can be selected. |
| A Transaction Type | Creates a transaction of that type from the workflow (customer or supplier, contact, rep, item and Ref1 as the reference) and links it. You need access to create that Transaction Type. |
Dependencies
- Set Dependencies opens a list of the workflow's actions: move the actions that must be run first from Available Actions to Visible Actions.
- The list leaves out the action itself, submenus, and actions that already depend on this action.
- On the workflow's Actions menu, the action stays unavailable (greyed out) until every action it depends on is run on that workflow.
Output Tab
The Output Templates for the workflow module, set up as explained on Output. Deleting a workflow deletes its templates; copying a workflow does not copy them.
Input Fields Tab
Extra fields for the workflow header, set up as user-defined fields. They appear in the header of every record in the workflow.
Input Fields Action
- The input fields of one action, opened with Edit Input Fields.
- The heading shows "Input Fields - <action>".
- For an Appointment action, the fields are created by the program and their names cannot be changed.