Zenflow BPEL Editor Overview

Table of Contents

 

Chapter 1.             Introduction to the Zenflow BPEL Editor 1

Chapter 2.             Starting the BPEL Editor 3

Chapter 3.             Creating a New BPEL Process 5

Chapter 4.             Loading an Existing BPEL Process 9

Chapter 5.             Menus 11

5.1   File Menu  11

5.2   Edit Menu  12

5.3   View Menu. 12

5.4   Insert Menu. 13

5.5   Process Menu. 14

5.6   Window Menu. 15

5.7   Help Menu. 15

Chapter 6.             Buttons 17

Chapter 7.             File View. 19

Chapter 8.             Process View. 21

Chapter 9.             Inserting, Deleting, and Modifying Activities 23

Chapter 10.           Error View. 25

 

List of Figures

 

Figure 3‑1.    Process Attributes Window for Creating a New BPEL Process 5

Figure 3‑2.    Screen for Specifying the WSDL Files To Link To a Process 6

Figure 3‑3.    Zenflow Main Screen. 7

Figure 4‑1.    Screen for Loading an Existing Process 9

Figure 4‑2.    Linked WSDL Files Dialog Box. 10

Figure 5‑1.    File Menu. 11

Figure 5‑2.    Edit Menu. 12

Figure 5‑3.    View Menu. 12

Figure 5‑4.    Insert Menu. 13

Figure 5‑5.    Process Menu. 14

Figure 5‑6.    Help Menu. 15

Figure 5‑7.    Help Menu Display of Zenflow Product Version. 15

Figure 6‑1.    BPEL Editor Window Toolbars 17

Figure 7‑1.    File View Display of Currently Loaded Processes 19

Figure 8‑1.    Process View.. 21

Figure 8‑2.    Scheme View.. 22

Figure 10‑1.  Error View.. 25

 

List of Tables

 

Table 5‑1.    File Menu Options 11

Table 5‑2.    Process Menu Options 14

 


Preface

This document provides an overview of and essential information about using the Zenflow BPEL Editor.



Chapter 1.      Introduction to the Zenflow BPEL Editor

The Zenflow BPEL Editor is a tool designed to help create, update, and visualize BPEL processes.

BPEL is an XML language proposed by the Oasis Consortium. This tool helps with designing processes and generates the corresponding BPEL code.

This version of the tool allows only the generation of BPEL files. This means that WSDL files must be created manually. This feature will be added in a future version of the package.

Zenflow is a BPEL designer compliant with the

Chapter 2.      Starting the BPEL Editor

Once the BSOA BPEL Package is installed, a Zenflow directory will be available. This directory contains the BPEL Editor.

To start Zenflow, run:

   ./zenflow.sh for Linux

   zenflow.bat for Windows.

It can also be started from the Windows® Start menu (Start\Programs\BSOA\BPEL Designer\Zenflow).

The following two options will display: Chapter 3, Creating a New BPEL Process, or Chapter 4, Loading an Existing BPEL Process.

 

 


Chapter 3.      Creating a New BPEL Process

When a new BPEL process is created, the following screen will be displayed.

 

Figure 31.    Process Attributes Window for Creating a New BPEL Process

 

Enter the name of the process and the associated targetNamespace. Specify the following characteristics of the process (optional): suppressJoinFailure, enableInstanceCompensation and AbstractProcess.

For more information about these characteristics, refer to the Oasis BPEL4WS 1.1 standard.


The following screen is then displayed.

 

Figure 32.    Screen for Specifying the WSDL Files To Link To a Process

 

Specify the WSDL of the Web Services orchestrated by this process.

Click on “Add file” and select the WSDL file.

The corresponding namespace is automatically added to the process definition.

When all the WSDL files of the process have been added, click on the "OK" button.


The Zenflow main screen is then displayed.

 

Figure 33.    Zenflow Main Screen

 

This screen has the following elements:

·           Menus (Chapter 5)

·           Buttons (Chapter 6)

·           File View (Chapter 7)

·           Process view (Chapter 8)

·           Error View (Chapter 10)

You can then start specifying processes.

 

 


Chapter 4.      Loading an Existing BPEL Process

 

When loading an existing process, the following dialog box will be displayed.

 

Figure 41.    Screen for Loading an Existing Process

 

Browse for a BPEL file: a dialog box will appear asking for the corresponding WSDL files.


 

Figure 42.    Linked WSDL Files Dialog Box

 

Click on “Add file” and select the WSDL file.

The corresponding namespace is automatically added to the process definition.

When all the WSDL files of the process have been added, click on the "OK" button.

Note that Zenflow remembers the WSDL files that the user has already loaded in the system and will automatically propose them if the namespace is the same.

The main screen of the tool is now displayed. See the following sections for instructions on how to use it.

 


Chapter 5.      Menus

This section provides a description of the menu options available in the BPEL editor.

5.1                       File Menu

The File menu offers the standard choices.

 

Figure 51.    File Menu

 

The following table describes these options.

 

Table 51.    File Menu Options

Menu Option

Description

New process

Creates a new process. See Create a new BPEL process.

Open BPEL file

Loads a new process. See Load an existing BPEL Process.

Close file

Closes the current process (only if it is not the only one open).

Save file

Saves the process to the same file that was previously used. If this is a new file, the File Chooser dialog is opened to allow specification of the desired file name and directory.

Save as

Saves the current process design as a BPEL File.

Exit

Quits Zenflow.

 


5.2                       Edit Menu

This menu contains the usual edit functions: copy, cut, paste, move, delete, and the capability of editing the tool’s preferences.

 

Figure 52.    Edit Menu

 

5.3                       View Menu

This menu offers the user the possibility to change the view:

·           Display or not display the file view.

·           Display or not display the error view.

·           Display the source and process view either tabbed, or split vertically or horizontally.

 

Figure 53.    View Menu


5.4                       Insert Menu

This menu allows the user to insert various types of activities into the process. Only the items that are valid to add, based on the current graph selection, are enabled.

 

Figure 54.    Insert Menu


5.5                       Process Menu

The Process menu is used to define the characteristics of the process. 

 

Figure 55.    Process Menu

 

The following table describes these options.

 

Table 52.    Process Menu Options

Menu Option

Description

Define process

opens the screen to define the process name, target namespace, etc.

Link WSDL file

opens the screen to add WSDL files related to this process.

Variables

opens a screen to define the variables of the process.

PartnerLinks

opens a screen to define the Partner Links of the process.

Partners

opens a screen to define the Partners of the process.

CorrelationSets

opens a screen to define the Correlation Sets of the process.

 


5.6                       Window Menu

The Window menu offers the capability of switching from one open process to another.

 

5.7                       Help Menu

The Help About… menu item will display the Zenflow product version.

 

Figure 56.    Help Menu

 

Information from this dialog should be used when reporting Zenflow related bugs.

 

Figure 57.    Help Menu Display of Zenflow Product Version

 

 

 

 


Chapter 6.      Buttons

 

The BPEL Editor window provides the following two rows of toolbar buttons.

 

Figure 61.    BPEL Editor Window Toolbars

 

·           The first row offers the same options as the “file” and “edit’ menus: create, open, save, saveas, copy, cut, paste, move, delete and restore positions.

·           The second row offers a button for each BPEL statement. The buttons are activated depending on the location in the design of the process.

 

 

 


Chapter 7.      File View

 

File view displays the processes that are currently loaded in Zenflow.

 

Figure 71.    File View Display of Currently Loaded Processes

 

To switch from one process to another, click on the chosen process.  A process can also be closed by clicking on a button.

 

 

 


Chapter 8.      Process View

Process view is the main part of the BPEL designer.

Two viewing modes are available to view the process: the “Process View” and the “Source view”.

 

Figure 81.    Process View

 

 


 

Figure 82.    Scheme View

 

 

 

 


Chapter 9.      Inserting, Deleting, and Modifying Activities

 

Activities can be operated on in one of two ways:

·           by selecting an activity node and then using the main toolbar icons or the “insert” menu to add new activities or delete the current activity, or

·           by selecting a node and using the right-click, context menu which will display menu items for valid operations. Double clicking on a node, or right clicking and selecting the “Properties” menu, will display the properties dialog box for that node.

To insert and position a new activity, click on the “parent” statement of the desired activity then insert it with the corresponding button or the right-click context menu item. For example, to insert a “receive” statement in a sequence, click on the sequence statement block. The “receive” button will then be activated and the statement can be inserted. Move it to the right position in the process using the “arrows” buttons. Double-click on a statement to specify its characteristics: name, value, etc.

 


Chapter 10.          Error View

 

This view displays the errors of the process that is currently being designed.

 

Figure 101.  Error View

 

Double clicking on a particular error will bring up the properties dialog for that task.*