Configuring Events

  • Updated

This article describes configurations possible against modeling elements of the type Event. 

An event is a modeling element that is used to indicate that something “happens” during the course of a process. Events affect the flow and usually have a cause or an impact on the application.

In processes, there are three archetypes of events:

1. Start events, which indicate where a process will start.

2. End events, which indicate where a path of a process will end.

3. Intermediate events, which indicate where something happens somewhere between the start and end of a process.

Within these three types, events come in two types:

1. Events that catch a trigger. All start events and some intermediate events are catching events. 

2. Events that throw a trigger or a result. All end events and some intermediate events are throwing events. Typically the throwing trigger carries information into the catching event.

The markers are unfilled for triggers that catch, and the markers are filled for triggers and results that throw.

The article below will go through the possible configurations for message event, timer event, signal event and link event. 

Message event

In the BPMN standard, Start, End, and Intermediate Events can have the type "Message". 

When to use message events

Message events are useful as they enable processes to send emails to Process Automation users in different roles or groups as well as send emails to external users based on form data. They can also be used to send process messages which can be used to trigger connected workflows and start other process applications. For example, messages can be used to notify a user that the process has progressed to a certain phase, to send an automatic response that a registered case has been received, to inform an interested party that the process has passed a milestone, or to inform one or more interested parties that the process has ended.

Throwing message events 

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Throwing message events are used to send messages. They are represented by a darker email symbol. The event is configured either as an Email message or as a Process Message which will be thrown/sent when the event is triggered.

Catching message events 

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Catching message events are used to receive messages. They are represented by a lighter email symbol. The event is configured to receive a specific process message and when this message is sent, the event will be triggered.

You can only have one condition connected to an event at a time. If you connect more than one, only the first will be executed.

Configure a throwing message event

  1. Double-click on the intermediate event and select Add new event trigger.  
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  2. Select a Throwing event.
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  3. Select Configure message
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  4. From the Configure message window, you can choose to send either an Email message or a Process message from the tabs at the top of the window. 
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  5. If you want to configure an email message the interface lets you:
  • Add recipients from four quick categories
  • Compose your email subject and body
  • Add a Reply to address
  • Add a From name
  • Add attachments

Add recipients

Message events have the capability of sending e-mails to the role members set in the process model, to groups within a workspace, to an e-mail address that has been filled out in a form field, or to custom email addresses.

If you want to add multiple e-mail addresses via a form field, they need to be separated with a comma (,).    

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Select multiple categories to add them. It is possible to combine several email addresses from roles, groups, form fields, and custom addresses. If an email address is present in two places, for example in a role and in a group, only one email will be sent to that person.

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Compose an email

The email body text editor has some basic formatting functionality as well as the ability to edit HTML.

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It is possible to add variables in the e-mail text that reference information from the process instance or from form fields. For example, in a process, you may have a form with a field for reviewer's  comments allowing the reviewer to document the outcome of a review. The text entered in the reviewer's comments field can be inserted into the e-mail text through a variable and sent to the recipient of your choice. 

Read more about how to reference variables in the article, Variables.

Add a reply-to address

This sets a reply-to address that will show up in the recipient's address field if they want to respond to the message sent by Process Automation. This allows users to configure a reply to an address of their own instead of noreply@bariumlive.com

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Add from name

This sets a sender name that will show up in the email header. 

The default From name will be the name of the application.

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Attach files

Files up to 20MB can be attached to an email thrown by a message event. It is possible to attach files to emails sent from message events in three different ways:

  • Option 1
    You can send files taken from attachment form fields by selecting the form field. These files can be of any format.blob1478506375148.png

  • Option 2
    You can send an entire data object form as a PDF file by modeling the data object as an input to the send message event.blob1478506572486.png

    Doing this will cause it to show up in the attachment field automatically and sending the message will convert the form to PDF and make it available as an attachment to the email.
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  • Option 3
    You can send generated documents as either a PDF or a docx file by modeling them as inputs to the send message event.
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    If you want the document to be converted to PDF instead of the default docx format, simply double-click on the document template modeled as an input and choose PDF generation.
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    Generated Documents modeled as inputs to the send message event will show up in the attachment field automatically and sending the message will make it available as an attachment to the email.blob1478507239548.png

    If the total size of a message exceeds 25 MB, the message will not be sent and an error will be generated in the Event log.

Show and edit HTML

It is possible to create a custom and styled e-mail message by clicking on the Show and edit HTML button.

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This will present the HTML mode of the editor and allow you to add or edit the e-mails HTML code and attributes.
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You can use standard HTML tags (preferably <Tables>) and add CSS style attributes to set the color, size, and formatting of text and more.

Example:

Configure a catching message event

It is possible to use a process message to start a process, to learn how to configure that, read the article Start process with process message

Catching message events allow you to await a signal from another system before the process moves forward. The signal will need to contain the instance Id and the message name. More information is available in API Documentation - Instances

  1. Double-click on the intermediate event and select Add new event trigger.  
    Event_menu.png

  2. Choose a Catching event trigger.
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  3. Click on Configure message
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  4. From this window, you can set the Message name.
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  5. There are options to add Message Fields and Roles to the message.

    This is not yet a supported feature in intermediate-catching message events. Message fields mapped to a form will not be updated.

    If you leave the key in a message field empty, you will not be able to deploy the application.

Timer event

Add timer settings on events to trigger start events, create delays and/or timed breaks according to form variables, relative to other task or instance data, or depending on time schedule.

The timer trigger does not work on non-interrupting boundary events. On start events, only the schedule settings are available. This is because the instance must be started before you can create timers depending on the instance content.

Once a timer has been activated, it is not possible to reschedule it.

When to use timer events

Timer events can trigger features at a specific time. You can pause a process, cancel activities, and configure timer events to react on fixed dates and times or on information in a process or form.

How to configure timer events

  1. Double-click on the intermediate event and select Add new event trigger.  
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  2. Select the timer event. 
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  3. Click on Configure timer events
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  4. The Settings timer window opens. Here you have the sections Simple, Advanced and Schedule, read about the available settings below. 
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  5. Complete your settings and Save.

Simple

In the Simple tab, you can set the trigger to relate to the time the intermediate event first was accessed. 

Set your numeric value and then choose your time frame:

  • Minute
  • Hour
  • Day
  • Week
  • Weekday
  • Month
  • Year

The system always displays a written description of the timer configuration under the settings. If you want help to configure a timer, you are always welcome to contact our support

Advanced

In the Advanced tab, you can set the triggers to relate to a series of different time frames according to a series of different values.

The syntax of the settings are: [Number] [Time unit] [According to] [Action] at [Time]

The selections you can use are:

Number:

  • Any number at all or see the section How to set a timer trigger depending on a form field below.

Time unit:

  • Minute
  • Hour
  • Day
  • Week
  • Weekday
  • Month
  • Year 

According to:

  • After
  • Before (this setting can only be used with the action Form field)

Action:

  • Other task created - Use the eye-icon to visibly select the "other task"
  • Other task completed - Use the eye-icon to visibly select the "other task" 
  • Other task deadline - Use the eye-icon to visibly select the "other task" 
  • Form field
  • Instance created
  • Reaching this stage

Time:

  • The Time setting is not mandatory and the default value depends on the action creation/completion time. If you use the Time unit Hours, Time can not be set.

The system always displays a written description of the timer configuration under the settings. If you want help to configure a timer, you are always welcome to contact our support

I.e. as in the example below, "This event will trigger one day after the instance is created"

Schedule

In the Schedule tab, the timer can be configured to trigger a schedule. 

You can choose the interval types Daily, Weekly, Monthly, and Yearly. See more details below.

Daily

Set the time of the day you wish the timer to start. 

If you want the timer to include weekends (Saturday and Sunday) mark the checkbox seen in the section.

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Weekly

Enter the time and the weekly specific days you wish the timer to begin. 

Monthly

Enter the time and the day(s) of the month you wish the timer to start.

Here you have a selection to choose a relative day through the drop downs or specific days through the calendar view.

In the drop-downs, you can choose first, second, third, fourth, fifth and last day, weekend day, week day or specific week day.

If a day does not exist for the current month, the timer will not trigger. I.e if you choose the fifth monday, that day will not occur for every month.

Yearly

Enter the time, month(s) and day(s) you wish the timer to start. For the day selection, see details under Monthly above.

The system always displays a written description of the timer configuration under the settings. If you want help to configure a timer, you are always welcome to contact our support

How to set a timer trigger depending on a form field

If you want to set a trigger with a numeric value specified in a form, click on the icon to the right of the value input box. A new row appears asking you to specify which data object and field name you want to collect the data from.

This can only be done in the Advanced tab.

Signal event

Signal events can be handy in many process scenarios to steer the process flow. In the BPMN standard, Start, End, and Intermediate Events can be of the type Signal. 

Process Automation currently only supports catching and throwing intermediate signal events as well as catching interrupting boundary events that exist within the same pool and at the same process level. 

If you need to reach another process you can use a Subprocess or a Call activity.   

When to use Intermediate Signal Events

One example is when you want to synchronize activities in complex processes. Another example is using them for an interruption if you want to stop one or several participants from performing tasks due to an event in the process that requires the process flow to change significantly. In the below example, if Task A is completed before Task C then Task C will be canceled and the lower process flow will thus never reach Task D.

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How to use Intermediate Signal Events

Throwing Intermediate Signal Event is used to send signals. The event is configured with a Signal Name that will be thrown when the event is triggered. One or several Catching Signal Events can listen for the signal.

Catching Intermediate Signal Event is used to receive signals.  The event is configured with a Signal Name to listen for and when such a signal occurs, the event will be triggered. 

Catching Intermediate Signal Events can also be used as interrupting boundary events. 

Configure a signal event

  1. Double-click on the intermediate event and click on Add new event trigger.


  2. Add a Throwing or Catching event trigger to the event. 


  3. Specify the name of the Signal that you want to send (throw) or listen for (catch). In the example below, the throwing intermediate signal event is configured to send the signal CANCEL.

Link event

Link Events can be modeled, configured, and run in process applications allowing your process to flow between connected link events in your process model.

When to use Link Events

Link Events can be used when you need to connect to points in the process that are far away from each other and do not want to have a sequence flow across the whole process. 

Add Link Events

  1. Add two intermediate events to your process where you would like the link to connect your process.


  2. Add the event trigger Throwing Link.


  3. Click on Select link target and all intermediate events accessible for connecting are highlighted.  Select your catching event and confirm the selection.

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