Workflows in SharePoint 2013

Peter Plessers

About me• Peter Plessers• SharePoint Architect• Spikes

• peter.plessers@spikes.be• @SpikesNV

www.spikestogether.com

We love workflows

What has changed?

Agenda• Workflow Architecture

• Workflow Features

• Workflow Development

• Workflows & Apps

Workflow Architecture

Architecture SP2010

SharePoint 2010

Tools

Visual Studio 2010 SP Designer

SharePoint 2010 Workflow

Architecture SP2010

Declarative

.rules

.xoml

.WF 3.5

Code

.dll

.WF 3.5

Architecture SP2013

SharePoint 2013

Tools

Workflow Manager

Visual Studio 2012 SP Designer

Solutions

Contents

Apps Events

SharePoint 2010

Workflow

Workflow Services Manager

DeploymentSubscriptio

n

Instances Interop

Workflow Service Application proxy

Workflow

Service Bus

ACS

Architecture SP2013

Architecture SP2013

Declarative

.xaml

.WF 4.5

Architecture SP2013

Benefits• Move load from SharePoint to workflow farm• Fully declarative workflows• Scalability• Reliability• SharePoint Online (SP Designer + VS)

DEMO

Workflow Manager Installation

Register Workflow Service

Register-SPWorkflowService –SPSite “http://portal.dev.com/” –WorkflowHostUri “http://localhost:12291″ –AllowOAuthHttp

Workflow Features

New Features

New Workflow Activities

Building Blocks• Stage• Loop• App Step• Parallel Block

New Workflow Activities

Workflow Activities• Call Web Service (HttpSend)• Go to stage

New Workflow Activities

Dynamic Value• Nested sets of key-value pairs• Used in combination with ‘HttpSend’

activity• Activities to manipulate DynamicValues

SharePoint Designer 2013

SharePoint Designer• Visual Designer (Visio Add-in)• Copy paste of configurations• Package list / site workflows

DEMO

Removed Workflow Features

No InfoPath forms• Auto-generated ASPX forms

• Task Forms• Initiation Forms• Association Forms

Removed Workflow Features

Missing Workflow Activities• Document Set Activities• Permission Activities• Declare Record• Lookup manager of user

Removed Workflow Features

No Visio Visualization of WF Status• Only available for SP2010 workflows

Removed Workflow Features

Workflow Associations• No longer possible to associate workflows with content types

Built-in workflows• No 2013 workflow version of approval workflow, review workflow, …

Development

Custom Development

• Custom WF activity• Custom Task Form

Custom WF Activity

Custom WF activity• Lookup Assistant activity

DEMO

Custom WF Activity

Problems you might encounter• SharePoint ignores new version of WF

activityRestart VS + check DB

• SharePoint designer breaksClear SP Designer cache

Custom Task Form

Custom task form• Custom application page

DEMO

Workflow & Apps

SharePoint Apps

App Web (from WSP)

HostwebSharePoint-hosted

AppReuse (lists, out-of-box web

parts)Client side technologies and

declarative workflows

Provider-hosted App

“Bring your own server hosting infrastructure”

Get remote events from SharePoint Use CSOM/REST + OAuth

Cloud-hosted apps

Your Hosted

Site

Auto-hosted AppWindows Azure + SQL

Azure provisioned automatically as apps

are installed

Azure SharePoint Web

SharePoint

Web

SharePoint Apps

SharePoint Web

App Web

SharePoint Web

App Web

Azure

Your Hosted Site

SharePointhosted

Cloudhosted

Workflows are deployed to the App Web

How to deploy WFs to host web?Deploy workflows• Deploy workflow to app web• On App Installed Event• Use CSOM to publish your workflow

from app web to host web

From App Web to Host Web• Read workflow definition from app web

WorkflowDeploymentService.GetDefinition(id)

• Publish workflow definition to host web WorkflowDeploymentService.PublishDefinition(def)

• Create task + workflow history list

• Publish subscription WorkflowSubscriptionService.PublishSubscription(s)

Questions?

Contact Info• Peter Plessers

• peter.plessers@spikes.be• @SpikesNV

www.spikestogether.com

THANK YOU