Workflow Modes

Standard Workflow Processing (Transactional)

Any new process is initiated through a workflow message. These messages are posted to queues for processing. After a message is received on the JMS queue, an event (associated with the message) and document are created from it and stored in the distributed cache. The process to be executed is decided based on the event and document type and subtype (defined in the workflow manager configuration file).

If the process is to be executed in the transactional mode, the event is persisted to the database and the document to the file system. The name of the file is associated with the event in the database. The event is then posted to a workflow queue for processing.

The event type and subtype determine workflows triggered for an event, and the workflow reads the message associated with the event from the file system and starts a new process. This file is the main input parameter to the workflow. Each workflow has a set of activities which in turn have input and output parameters.

Activity-state changes are stored to the database. Activities can generate documents (written to the file system) that act as output parameters for that activity and input parameters to a subsequent activity in the flow.

In-Memory Workflow Processing

TIBCO MDM supports an in-memory workflow execution mode where workflow process states are managed only in-memory. The following are the features of in-memory workflows:

• Provides a way to get higher throughput
• Reduces the required space as you might record much less data
• Reduces the need to run purge more often

Except for the batch activities, such as import and mass update all other activities can run in-memory. You can control when to commit the CheckpointWorkflow activity and to switch over to regular workflow by firing a subflow.

For more information on how in-memory workflow works, refer to In-Memory Workflows - How it Works.