Outflows

Outflow settings let you specify which path within a business process a process flow should take. For example, suppose a process contains a user task in which a manager approves or denies a form. The outflow settings let you designate one course of action for an approved form and another course for a denied form.

Once a gateway is connected to other objects in the process, its outflow settings will appear in its settings window, as follows.

Outflow setting for a gateway

To configure an outflow path:

  1. Type the name of the path in Path Name. This name appears on the line that connects the object to the following object.
  2. Optional: Select the This is the default outflow path option to set the outflow path as the default path.
  3. If you do not select the option in step 2, select the Conditional Expression text box and specify the conditions that must be met for the outflow path to be taken.
  4. When the conditions for more than one outflow path are met, the first set of conditions is used. When you are configuring the outflow paths of a gateway, you can drag and drop the different outflow paths to put them in the correct order. To drag and drop a path, use the Move icon in the top right corner of the outflow path description.

Note: When an outflow is the only outflow configured for an inclusive or exclusive gateway and a process instance doesn't satisfy the outflow's condition, the process instance will terminate rather than take the outflow path.