WebSphere Lombardi Edition 7.2 > Modeling processes > Advanced modeling tasks > Manage and mapping variables


Create exposed process values (EPVs)

In the Designer in Lombardi Authoring Environment, you can create exposed process values (EPVs) to enable the end users that you specify to set or alter variable values while instances of a process are running. For example, if you create a process to handle expense reimbursement, you may want to enable supervisors to change the allowed amounts for daily expenditures, or the dollar amount that coincides with various levels of approvers. By creating EPVs, you can provide this type of flexibility, allowing end users to adjust specific variable values as constants, thereby affecting the flow of all running process instances, task assignments, and so on.

After you create an EPV, you must link it with a business process definition (BPD) or service as outlined in the following steps. Designated end users can set or alter EPVs in the Process Admin Console. See Lombardi Administration Guide or the online help for the Process Admin Console for more information.

  1. Start Lombardi Authoring Environment and open the appropriate process application or toolkit in the Designer view

  2. Click the plus sign next to the Data category and select Exposed Process Value from the list.

  3. In the New Exposed Process Value dialog, enter a name for the value and click the Finish button.

    The new EPV opens in the Designer, where you can configure the required settings.

  4. In the Common section, enter a description in the Documentation text box so that other developers will understand the purpose of this EPV.

  5. In the Details section, type an email address in the Feedback E-mail Contact text box so that end users can send their feedback regarding this EPV.

    The Manage Exposed Process Values page in the Process Admin Console includes a Feedback link that uses this email address.

  6. In the External Description text box, type the text to describe this EPV to end users.

    The description that you provide here is displayed in the Manage Exposed Process Values page in the Process Admin Console.

  7. In the Exposed Process Value Variables section, click the Add button to add a variable to this EPV.

    For example, if you want to enable end users to adjust the dollar amounts that correspond with various levels of approvers for an expense reimbursement process, you should add a variable for each available level. For this sample scenario, you can add variables named Level1, Level2, and Level3.

  8. In the Variable Details section, supply the details for the variable most recently added or currently selected.

    In the following example, the details for the Level 1 variable have been set:

  9. In the External Name text box, type the name of the variable as you want end users in the Process Admin Console to see it.

    This name appears in the Variable List for this EPV in the Process Admin Console.

  10. In the Variable Name text box, type the name of the variable as you want it represented internally for processing.

    Variable names should start with a lowercase letter, with subsequent words capitalized like so: myVar. Do not use underscores or spaces in variable names. Variable names are case sensitive.

  11. In the External Description text box, type the text to describe this variable to end users.

    This description appears in the Variable List for this EPV in the Process Admin Console.

  12. In the Default Value text box, type a valid default for this variable.

  13. Enable the check box named In-Progress Tasks Use New Values if you want tasks that are currently running to use an updated value when the end user makes a change in the Process Admin Console.

  14. Click the Select button next to Variable Type and select the type that you want from the list.

    Variable types from the System Data Toolkit are listed as well as any custom variable types that you have created or to which you have access via a toolkit. You can also click the New button to create a new variable type. See Create custom variable types for more information.

  15. Repeat steps 9 through 14 for each variable that you add.

  16. In the Exposing section, click the Select button to choose the participant group whose members can manage this EPV and adjust its variable values.

  17. Click Save in the main toolbar.

  18. Open the BPD or service to which you want to link this EPV.

  19. Click the Variables tab.

  20. Click the Link EPV button and select the EPV (that you created in the preceding steps) from the list.

  21. Click Save in the main toolbar.

  22. After you link the EPV to a BPD or service, you can refer to it anywhere in the BPD or service.

    You can reference the name of the EPV and its variables like so: tw.epv.[epv_name].[epv_variable_name]. The auto-complete feature in the Designer assists you with this syntax.

    You can use the EPV in a decision gateway to control the flow of a process. You can also reference the EPV from any JavaScript code in a linked BPD, such as the code within a Server Script service component.

Now when you run the BPD or service to which the EPV is linked, you can go to the Process Admin Console to adjust the variable values in the Manage Exposed Process Values page. See Lombardi Administration Guide or the online help for the Process Admin Console for more information.

You can also add EPVs to a report to enable end users to adjust variable values directly from a report. To add EPVs to a report, simply open the report in the Designer in Lombardi Authoring Environment and select the EPVs that you want using the Add button in the Exposed Process Values section.

Parent topic: Manage and mapping variables

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