Forums » Interstage BPM Applications

• admin admin

  
   

  November 17, 2009 7:59:01 AM PST

  I have found on the internet an application that handles the kind of thing I want to do (RMA Processing) and I would like to try to use this in Interstage BPM.  It says it is a BPEL application.  Will I be able to use that?  Does Interstage BPM execute BPEL, or otherwise import it for use?
  
  
  

  Author: D. Opel Gaenger
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• Keith Swenson

  
   

  November 17, 2009 9:30:36 AM PST

  There is no easy answer to this.  Yes, Interstage BPM imports BPEL process files, but there are many more things to consider.
  
  BPEL is not a complete process diagram.  BPEL just the executable part of the process which sends and receives data.  The question is: is that application designed to send and receive data to the systems that you already have in house?  That is highly unlikely.  For an RMA System, you probably want some access to your sales records and customer records.  You will probably have to customize the application for particular organization and infrastructure, but BPEL does not contain the entire diagram, so it is generally not useful if you need to redesign the process to fit your organization.
  
  In general an application is a lot more than just a process diagram.  The process diagram will specify the process, buy how is that data displayed to users?  How do they input new information?  How is it stored after the process is complete?
  
  Interstage BPM represents the data that goes along with the case as a "Process Instance".  That is, the process instance is a kind of record that holds all the important data about a case.  Everyone involved then can read or manipulate this case data in order to perform their various jobs.  The important thing to represent is the jobs that people have to do in the handling of an RMA. 
  
  Most likely, the people who created the application used a diagram, maybe a BPMN diagram, to describe the jobs that people do.  Then they transformed that diagram to a BPEL process -- which includes only the data manipulation instructions and not the reasons for manipulating the data.  If the application includes access to the original people-oriented diagram, then you might have chance to import it, and customize it to your environment.  But the fact that they claim BPEL support does in any way help or hinder the use of the application.
  
  I know all that is a bit complicated.  You asked specifically about an application based on BPEL, but its being based on BPEL has no real bearing on portability of the application.  Insterstage will be able to import the BPEL, but if that is all you have it is a little like de-compiling a program and will be missing important elements to allow you to customize it.   It is possibly, however, that the applicaiton includes a higher level representation of the process diagram, and you can use that to customize the application.
  
  
  
  

  Author: Keith Swenson
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