Workflow Relevant Data (or, in XPDL, Data
Field) represent the variables of a Process Definition or Package
Definition. They are typically used to maintain decision data (used in
conditions) or reference data values (parameters), which are passed
between activities or sub-processes. The workflow relevant data list
defines all data objects, which can be used within the workflow process.
The attribute TYPE
explicitly specifies all
information needed for a workflow management system to define an
appropriate data object for storing data, which is to be handled, by an
active instance of the workflow process.
Workflow Relevant Data can be defined in a Workflow Process (the Workflow Process Relevant Data) and in a Package (the Package Relevant Data). The scopes differ in that the former may only be accessed by entities defined inside that process, while the latter may be accessed by entities inside any process defined within that model.
Workflow Relevant Data has a scope that is defined by the directly surrounding meta-model entity and is not nested. The visibility of its identifier is also defined by that entity.
Attributes of Workflow Relevant Data are:
Table 6.17. Relevant Data
Name | M/O | Description |
---|---|---|
Id | M | Used to identify the workflow relevant data. |
Data Type(s) | M | Data Type. |
Name | O | Text used to identify the workflow relevant data. |
Is Array | O | Indicates if it is an array. |
Initial Value | O | Pre-assignment of data for run time. |
Length | O | The length of the data. |
Description | O | Short textual description of the defined data. |
When parameters are passed to a called subflow outside the current model definition, it is the responsibility of the process designer(s) to ensure that data type compatibility exists across the parameter set.
Workflow relevant data naming must be unique within a process model. If such data is passed between processes as parameters, the convention at this version of specification is that copied semantics will be used. Responsibility rests with process designers / administrators to ensure consistent name / datatype usage within process definitions / models to support sub-flow operations (including any required remote process interoperability).
There is an icon in Package's part of the Toolbar and icon
in process's part of the toolbar, and also on
appropriate menus, for displaying all workflow relevant data for the
selected Package/WorkflowProcess.
![]() | Like other similar table property panels, amongst others, there are also buttons "New" and "Edit" for adding new or editing existing Workflow Relevant Data. The picture on the left shows property panel for editing Workflow Relevant Data. When defining (or editing) an workflow variable, the following attributes can be set: id (mandatory attribute), name, initial value , length, IsArray (array indicator), Type, description and extended attributes. The attribute Type explicitly specifies all information needed for a workflow management system to define an appropriate data object for storing data, which is to be handled, by an active instance of the workflow process. If you are at process level, and you create (override) some workflow relevant data with the same Id as the one from the package level, only one of them (the one from the process level) can be used as a reference from other entities. E.g. you can choose just the one from the process level to be the actual parameter for some application or subflow. |