IBM BPM, V8.0.1, All platforms > Programming IBM BPM > Developing client applications for BPEL processes and tasks > Developing EJB client applications > Developing applications for human tasks

Manage work items

During the lifetime of an activity instance or a task instance, the set of people associated with the object can change, for example, because a person is on vacation, new people are hired, or the workload needs to be distributed differently. To allow for these changes, you can develop applications to create, delete, or transfer work items.

A work item represents the assignment of an object to a user or group of users for a particular reason. The object is typically a human task activity instance, a process instance, or a task instance. The reasons are derived from the role that the user has for the object. An object can have multiple work items because a user can have different roles in association with the object, and a work item is created for each of these roles.

For example, a to-do task instance can have an administrator, reader, editor, and owner work item at the same time.

The actions that can be taken to manage work items depend on the role that the user has, for example, an administrator can create, delete and transfer work items, but the task owner can transfer work items only.

Procedure

• Create a work item.

  FilterOptions fo = new FilterOptions();
  fo.setSelectedAttributes("TKIID");
  fo.setQueryCondition("NAME='CustomOrder'");
  EntityResultSet result = task.queryEntities("TASK", fo, null, null);
  
  if (result.getEntities().size() > 0)
  {
    Entity entity = (Entity) result.getEntities().get(0);
    TKIID tkiid = (TKIID) entity.getAttributeValue("TKIID");
    // create the work item
    task.createWorkItem(tkiid, WorkItem.REASON_ADMINISTRATOR,"Smith");}

  This action creates a work item for the user Smith who has the administrator role.

• Delete a work item.

  FilterOptions fo = new FilterOptions();
  fo.setSelectedAttributes("TKIID");
  fo.setQueryCondition("NAME='CustomOrder'");
  EntityResultSet result = task.queryEntities("TASK", fo, null, null);
  
  if (result.getEntities().size() > 0)
  {
    Entity entity = (Entity) result.getEntities().get(0);
    TKIID tkiid = (TKIID) entity.getAttributeValue("TKIID");
    // delete the work item
    task.deleteWorkItem(tkiid, WorkItem.REASON_READER,"Smith"); }

  This action deletes the work item for the user Smith who has the reader role.

• Transfer a work item.

  FilterOptions fo = new FilterOptions();
  fo.setSelectedAttributes("TKIID");
  fo.setQueryCondition("NAME='CustomerOrder' AND
    STATE=STATE_READY AND
    WI.REASON=REASON_POTENTIAL_OWNER AND
    WI.OWNER_ID='Miller'");
  EntityResultSet result = task.queryEntities("TASK", fo, null, null);
  
  if (result.getEntities().size() > 0)
  {
    Entity entity = (Entity) result.getEntities().get(0);
    TKIID tkiid = (TKIID) entity.getAttributeValue("TKIID");
    // transfer the work item from user Miller to user Smith 
    // so that Smith can work on the task   task.transferWorkItem(tkiid, WorkItem.REASON_POTENTIAL_OWNER,"Miller","Smith");}

  This action transfers the work item to the user Smith so that he can work on it.

Developing applications for human tasks

Related concepts:
Authorization and work items

Related information:
Authorized roles for actions on task instances