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Participating in or launching a workflow
Basic features of work item pages
Symbols and toolbar buttons
Launch a workflow
Select response, enter comments
Work with attachments, fields, and workflow groups
  Specify attachments
  Specify field values
  Specify workflow groups
View milestones
Complete work
Save work-in-progress
Move a work item to your Inbox
Reassign work
Return work
Discard changes
View workflow map & status
   

Basic features of work item pages

In the Inbox or a work queue, open a work item by clicking the work item's Subject text. When you open a work item, the page displays the instructions and other information you need to complete a particular step in a workflow—for example, data field values, attachments, response options, and other controls. The workflow author determines the appearance of the work item page by specifying an appropriate step processor.

A work item page can include the following:

  • Toolbar:  Use the toolbar buttons to execute various actions available on the step processor page. See below for a description of each button, and see Symbols and toolbar buttons for a description of the icons that appear on work item pages.
  • Instructions:  The instructions box displays information for executing this step, if the workflow author specified such.
  • Tabs: These provide access to the information and data you need to complete this step.
    • General tab:  This area provides general information about the work item. If a deadline was defined for this step, the date and time of the deadline displays unless the deadline or reminder time for the deadline has passed.

      Responses: If there are Response options, choose the one you want from the list. The choice you make usually determines how the workflow progresses after you complete the work (for example, which step is executed next).

      Comments: In the Comments area, you can optionally enter comments that the tracker and participants at subsequent steps can view.

      For further information, see General tab, select response, enter comments.

    • Attachments, Data fields, Workflow Groups tabs:  If the Attachments, Data fields, or Workflow Groups tabs are displayed, see the appropriate instructions for information about how to use these items to complete the work. See Assign a file or document to an attachment, Specify field values, and Assign users to workflow groups.

      NOTE The work item page displays attachments, data fields, workflow groups, and responses only when they are used in that work item. For example, if the work item does not include any attachments, the Attachment tab is not displayed.

    • Milestones: If there are milestones defined in the workflow, the milestone level site preference determines which milestones display on this tab. For example, if the site preference is set to 5, reached milestones of levels 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 will be listed.

Command buttons for work item pages

The following commands are available on a work item page.

NOTE If you have read only read access to a work queue, you can open items from that queue, but you cannot make any changes. The only command buttons available in this case are Cancel and Status (if the workflow definition allows Status to be viewed at this step).

  • Complete Save your changes and route the work to the next step in the workflow.
  • Save Save your work-in-progress. This option allows you to continue your work at a later time. If the work item is currently in a work queue, you can optionally move it into your Inbox. This command does not route the work to the next step.
  • Reassign Assign a work item to another participant
  • Move to Inbox Move a work item from a work queue to your Inbox.
  • Return Return work in your Inbox to its former holder, such as:
    • The participant who reassigned the work to you.
    • The work queue from which you moved the work.
  • Status Launches the Tracker application in a separate browser window, if allowed in the workflow definition. Tracker displays status information including milestones reached, steps completed, and steps in progress.

    If you are assigned as a tracker for the workflow, Tracker displays the Properties tab, on which you can make changes.

    NOTE If you make changes to the work item in Tracker, those changes will not be reflected when you return to the work item page.

  • Cancel Close the work item page without saving your changes.

NOTE  If the browser session times out before you have completed, saved, or re-routed the work item, any changes you made on this page are lost when the browser re-connects to the workflow server. Upon re-connection, you might see the following message:

"Cannot continue process because required information is not available. Return to home page."

If you see this message, you must re-open the work item page; if you do not see this message, the work item page is still displayed.

In both cases, you must re-enter any changes you made prior to the browser session timeout.