Workflows in the integrated development experience

Learn what a Reltio workflow consists of in the integrated development experience, how process IDs work, and when a workflow requires Java development.

A Reltio workflow runs a business process such as data change request (DCR), potential match, and delete reviews as a series of steps. Reltio provides out-of-the-box (OOTB) workflows for each tenant, and your team can also create custom workflows based on your business requirements. In the integrated development experience, you can create, update, and deploy these workflows to your Reltio tenant.

A workflow consists of a BPMN (Business Process Model and Notation) file and the Java logic that its steps call. The following table describes the components:


Component	Purpose	Format
Business Process Model and Notation (BPMN)	Defines the steps and their sequence	XML file (`.bpmn20.xml`)
Java classes	Provide the logic that the workflow steps call	Java source files in the custom workflow repository
Java tests	Check the Java classes. Reltio's review checklist requires tests that cover at least 80% of your code.	Java test files in the custom workflow repository
Java archive (JAR)	Contains your Java classes after Reltio builds them, so that you can register them on the tenant	JAR file

Deploying a BPMN file and registering a JAR require ROLE_WORKFLOW_MANAGER.

Workflows in the business configuration tree

In the business configuration tree of the Reltio IDE extension view, each tenant has a Workflows folder beside Business Config.


Item	Contents and actions
Process Definitions	Lists all workflows of the tenant: deployed workflows, both OOTB and custom, your new custom workflows, and workflows from the connected repository. From this list, open, edit, preview, or duplicate a workflow, create a workflow, or deploy a new or updated workflow.
JAR Deployments	Lists the JAR files that are registered on the tenant. Hover over a JAR file to see its registration details. The Unregistered folder lists the JAR files that are available for the tenant but not registered yet. Register them from that folder. The editor does not open the contents of a JAR file.
Java Classes and Java Tests	List the Java source files and test files of the custom workflow repository, grouped by module. A module is a Maven module, a folder in the repository that Reltio builds into one JAR file. These items appear only when the repository is connected.

OOTB and custom workflows use different icons. Hover over a workflow to see OOTB workflow or Custom workflow, its name, its process ID, who deployed it (Deployed by), and when (Deployed). Hover over a JAR to see its name, description, module, who registered it (Registered by), and when (Registered).

Process IDs

Each workflow has a process ID, which identifies the workflow on the tenant. In the integrated development experience, you enter the process ID when you create or duplicate a workflow. The process ID must meet the following rules:

It starts with a letter or an underscore.
It contains only letters, digits, underscores, dots, and hyphens.
It has 64 characters or fewer.
It is not the process ID of another new workflow for the tenant. The comparison ignores capitalization.

For example:

supplierOnboardingReview is valid. Reltio's built-in workflows use the same format, for example dataChangeRequestReview.
2ndApproval is not valid, because it starts with a digit.
supplier review is not valid, because it contains a space.

The process ID then determines what happens when you deploy:


Process ID	Result of the deploy
New	Adds a separate workflow to the tenant. Existing triggers, such as data change requests, continue to start the workflows they started before. Start the new workflow with the Workflow API.
Same as a deployed workflow	Creates a new version of the deployed workflow, after you confirm. Anything that started the deployed workflow, such as a data change request, now starts the new version, for every entity type that uses the workflow. Process instances that are already running are not changed.

When Java development is required

Reltio provides Java logic for common workflow steps, such as routing a task to a reviewer and applying an approved change. The following table shows when a workflow needs a new Java logic and Reltio review, and what you do in each case:


Use case	Example	New JAR and Reltio review	What you do
The steps use only Reltio's Java logic	Add a second reviewer to a review	Not required	Update the BPMN file, and deploy it.
A step uses Java logic that is already registered on the tenant	Reuse a class from an earlier custom workflow	Not required	Update the BPMN file, and deploy it.
A step needs new behavior, or existing Java logic must be updated	Call an external system	Required	Write or update the Java logic in the custom workflow repository, and open a pull request for Reltio review. After Reltio builds the JAR, register it on the tenant, and then deploy the BPMN file.

For the steps, see Create or update the Java logic.

Create workflows with the AI agent

The AI agent in the integrated development experience includes Reltio workflow guidance, so it can create workflows for you from a description you provide.

When you describe a workflow to the AI agent in a natural language prompt, the AI agent works through these steps:

It collects the details: Include what starts the workflow, who reviews it, which decisions the reviewers make, and which entity types it applies to. The AI agent asks, in one message, for any required detail that it cannot find in your request or the workspace.
It determines whether the workflow needs Java logic: If Reltio's Java logic and the JARs registered on the tenant cover every step, the AI agent creates only the BPMN file.
It creates the required workflow files: First, it creates the BPMN file and then if the workflow needs new or updated Java logic, it also adds the Java classes and tests to the custom workflow repository. If the repository is not connected, the AI agent asks you to connect it first.
It asks before it submits or deploys anything: For Java logic, it asks whether to open a pull request, which requires access to the custom workflow repository from your editor. Before it deploys the workflow, it asks you to confirm.

If a Reltio skill is missing, the AI agent tells you before it creates anything. To restore the skills, open the Command Palette, and run Reltio: Resync agent assets (skills, Velocity Packs & LCA knowledge base). The reltio.installAgentSkills setting must be turned on.

Get started with workflows

To work with workflows in the integrated development experience, complete the following tasks:

View the workflows: Fetch the workflows and JAR files of the tenant.
Connect the custom workflow repository: Connect the repository once for each tenant, when a workflow needs new or updated Java logic.
Create or update a workflow: Create or update the BPMN file and, when needed, the Java logic, and then deploy the workflow.

If a step fails, see Troubleshoot workflows.

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