Workflow Process Nodes

There are seven different types of nodes all with different shapes: manual, action, condition, approval, gate, group and hierarchy nodes.

1. Manual
2. Action
3. Condition
4. Approval
5. Gate
6. Group
7. Hierarchy

Each of the different nodes can enhance the effectiveness of the Workflow and be used to fit the environment and behaviors of specific workflows, to review the differences between each kind of node.

Base Standard Types of Process Nodes

1. Type of Node
2. Representation
3. Description

The TACTIC Open Source platform includes 7 node types. TACTIC Project adds 10+ nodes that are powerful, easy-to-use and engineered for jobs. Read below to understand the nodes you can include in your workflow.

Standard TACTIC Nodes

Manual node are the default nodes that represent tasks within a Workflow, users assigned to a Manual node are expected to complete the task. Manual nodes usually involve work that needs to be done, such as asset ingestion, or a submission on worked assets. Action Node

Action node can automatically execute an action based on a script once the preceding task is completed. For example, if its preceding Approval Node is “Approved”, or a Manual Node is set to “Complete”, the action node will be set off right away, and changes its following node will be set to “Pending”. An action node triggers the approval of a process by going to the next step in the workflow, or if rejected, a job could be cancelled or be kicked back to a previous step in the workflow.

Approval nodes allow assignment to user groups that are required to approve the process. If the status of an Approval node is changed to “Rejected”, the preceding task status will be changed from “Complete” to “Revise” automatically. Similar to other nodes, if the status is changed to “Approved”, the following node will be in “Pending” status. The approval node is similar to a Task node, the main differentiator is the round shape. The round shape is a visual indicator that there’s an approval process at that stage in the workflow. The approval node is task based, which means it requires a user to approve or not approve a process.

Condition node are used when the path of a process needs to be determined by checking specified conditions using a script. It can also automatically change statuses of other nodes. The condition check should either return True or False, or a list of the output streams. For example, if the conditional checks return “False”, it will set the status of the previous node to “Revise”. A Condition node is used at a point in the workflow when a decision has to be made and the trigger for the next process will be determined. For example, if a user is required to fill out a form that includes a price entry requirement. The condition in this case would be; if the price entered is larger than what is set, go to a specific stream in the workflow, if the price is lower than than what is set, the condition node will follow the other stream in the workflow. Notifications and status’ within the TACTIC workflow engine will be updated accordingly.

Enhanced process nodes

Gate node: a gate node is a marker of interest within the workflow. On the gantt schedule, gates will appear as milestones. Often reports will report on only the state of the gates in order to produce summary reports without having to delve into the intricacies of the workflow.

Visual utilities

Group node

As workflows get more complex, users may want group nodes to visualize sections of a workflow. Groups may be arranged by a type of user or task type for example.

To add grouping to your workflow, select the GROUP node from the list of nodes in the left side bar.

Once the GROUP node has been selected, a default blue transparent window will appear.

• To move the group window over a certain area, hold your cursor on the upper left corner where it shows the name.
• To enlarge the window size, drag the small square on the bottom right hand corner.
• Change the Group Name in the right side panel
• Change the Group Color using the Color picker.

Changing Node Color

Users have the options to color code the nodes using the Workflow Editor. To change the color of a node, click the desired node then select TASK SETUP button from the node panel that appears on the right.

Click on the Color box provided and use the color picker to select the desired color. The number in the Color box will change, and the node on the canvas will reflect the colour change.

Connectors

Workflow process nodes are linked together with connectors. Connectors are places on the workflow where two nodes will communicate with each other. The connectors introduce a dependency between process nodes. A process node can have multiple incoming and outgoing connectors. A connector implies that communication must occur between two nodes. In general, the incoming process node will complete its work and send out a message outgoing connectors that it is complete. This will cause connected process nodes to process their work.

• Two process nodes can be connected together simply by dragging from one connector hook on the side of a node to another.
• A connector can be connected to another process node simply by dragging an existing connector onto another node.
• A connector can be deleted by dragging an existing connector and dragging it to an empty location on the canvas.
• Connectors have their own info box which will appear when they are selected. The info box will slide on the right side of the screen.