Select a FROM Type and then complete the Copy operation by making other appropriate selections. Add, edit, copy, delete, and reorganize Copy operations and scripts for the selected Assign activity.
BPMN Implementation: Script task, None/Start/End throw event
The assign activity updates the content of variables. It updates variables in several ways:
Copies data from one variable to another for a
Copy
operation
Executes a script with a
Script
operation without the need for specifying a copy from/to definition
Constructs new data using XPath (or other language) expressions and functions
Constructs new data using WS-BPEL and other extension functions
You can also use assign to copy endpoint references to and from partner links for dynamic selection of service partners.
If desired, you can validate the value of variables against their XML or WSDL definitions.
Tip:
You can take a shortcut to creating an assign by creating data assignments within a receive, invoke, reply, and people activity. For details, see
Output Variable
.
Keep Source Element Name. See
Validating Variables
Ignore Missing From Data. See Copy Operation with Ignore Missing From Data Attribute.
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Name. See
Selecting Activity Labels
|
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Join Condition. See
Creating a Join Condition for an Incoming Link
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Suppress Join Failure. See
Process Properties
|
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Comment. See
Adding Comments to a Process
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Documentation. See
Adding Documentation to a Process
|
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Setting Visual Properties and Using Your Own Library of Images
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Execution State. See
Viewing the Execution State of an Activity or Link
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Validate. See
Validating Variables
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Extension Attributes and Extension Elements. See
Declaring Extension Elements and Attributes .
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To add an assign activity to the process:
From the
Task
palette, drag a script task to the Process Editor canvas.
You can add a background color to the script task.
Double-click the assign to open the Operations dialog.
Alternately, in the Properties view, click in the Value field of the Copy Operations and select the
Dialog (...) Button
.
Select
New Copy
or
New Script
.
For a New Script, the Script Builder opens where you can create an expression to execute. The script operation avoids the need for defining a from/to specification that a copy operation uses.
For a New Copy, in the From section, select a
Type
.
| |
Upon Selection of this Type...
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An XPath (or other language) expression to perform computations on variables and properties. Must return a string, number or Boolean.
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You can create the expression with an Expression Builder. For more information, see
Using the Expression Builder
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A constant that conforms to an XML schema definition. The type can be indicated inline using
xsi:type
|
Type in literal value (for example, 100)
Select the Literal Contents
Dialog (...) Button to open a larger editing area
Generate literal contents for a complex variable, described in
Using the XML Data Wizard and
Copy Operation Literal Contents Examples .
Assign a dynamic endpoint reference. See Copy Operation Dynamic Endpoint Reference Example.
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Name representing private application data. Use this option only for an abstract process. For more information, see
Creating an Executable vs. an Abstract Process .
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No other choices are allowed
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This selection generates a list of partner links and roles
|
Select a partner link and role defining an endpoint reference
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A WSDL message variable and optional part name
XML schema simple type or element
|
Select a variable name, and optionally, a part name and query. For more information, see
Using the Query Builder . Queries are allowed only in executable processes.
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Select a variable name and property
|
In the To section, select a Type. The To type must be compatible with the From type, as shown.
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Message-type variable with matching type
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A variable containing a schema type
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XML element type variable
|
A variable containing the same element
|
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Must have a matching XML schema type
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If desired, enable the
Keep Source Element Name
check box, applicable only for element-based variables. The source element name is used as the name of the resulting destination element. See
Element to Element Copy Operation with Keep Source Element Name Attribute
.
If desired, enable the Ignore Missing From Datacheck box to avoid a selection failure if the source variable is missing optional data. See Copy Operation with Ignore Missing From Data Attribute.
Click
OK
. You can add multiple operations to an Assign. They are executed in the order shown in the
Operations
dialog and also in the Outline view.
If desired, in the Properties view, set the Validate property to yes to validate all variables used in the assign's Copy operations.
For a shortcut to creating new assigns or adding Copy operations to an existing assign, you can use drag-and-drop features in the Process Variables view. For more information, see
Using Variables in a Copy Operation
.
Copy Operation XML Syntax
<assign validate="yes|no"? standard-attributes>
standard-elements
(<copy keepSrcElementName="yes|no"?
ignoreMissingFromData="yes|no"?>
from-spec (see below)
to-spec (see below)
</copy> |
<extensionAssignOperation>
...assign-element-of-other-namespace...
</extensionAssignOperation>) +
</assign>
The From element can be in one of these forms:
<from variable="BPELVariableName" part="NCName"?
<query queryLanguage="anyURI"?>?
queryContent
</query>
/from>
<from partnerLink="NCName"
endpointReference="myRole|partnerRole"/>
<from variable="BPELVariableName" property="QName"/>
<from expressionLanguage="anyURI"?>expression</from>
<from><literal>literal value</literal></from>
In an abstract process, you can also use:
<from opaque="yes">
Opaque data is private application data that you do not want to expose to your business partners. It is effectively an abstract process placeholder for some real data that you intend to use in an executable process.
The To element can be in one of these forms:
<to variable="BPELVariableName" part="NCName"?
<query queryLanguage="anyURI"?>?
queryContent
</query>
/to>
<to partnerLink="NCName"/>
<to variable="BPELVariableName" property="QName"/>
<to expressionLanguage="anyURI"?>expression</to>
<assign>
<copy>
<from>'yes'</from>
<to part="accept" variable="approval"/>
</copy>
</assign>
<assign>
<copy>
<from>$po.lineItem[@prodCode=$myProd]/amt * $exchangeRate
</from>
<to>$convertedPO.lineItem[@prodCode=$myProd]/amt</to>
</copy>
</assign>
Example 2: XML for a Script Operation
<bpel:assign>
<bpel:extensionAssignOperation>
<bpel:documentation>new script operation
</bpel:documentation>
<ext3:script>abx:createAttachment('request',
'text/plain',
abx:base64Encode("Test attachment") )</ext3:script>
</bpel:extensionAssignOperation>
</bpel:assign>
Tips for Copy Operations
Copy Operation Query and Expression Examples
Copy Operation Literal Contents Examples
Copy Operation Dynamic Endpoint Reference Example
Element to Element Copy Operation with Keep Source Element Name Attribute
Copy Operation with Ignore Missing From Data Attribute
