Universal Worklist Definition SAP NetWeaver provides centralized task management through a universal worklist (UWL), from which business users can manage, respond to, and delegate daily work items. The UWL can include notifications, alerts, mission-critical workflows, approvals, and ad hoc tasks. Work items can be generated from automated business processes or raised by colleagues. Managing Tasks and Alerts in the Universal Worklist This section describes how to use the UWL to manage and monitor your tasks simply and centrally. Configuring the Universal Worklist This section describes the administration and configuration for the universal worklist (UWL). Managing Tasks and Alerts in the Universal Worklist Use The Universal Worklist (UWL) provides central access to tasks, alerts, and authorizations. You can use the UWL to manage and monitor your tasks simply and centrally. The UWL brings together tasks from different systems. These include: Workflows Alerts Notifications Features The UWL does the following: Provides a uniform layout and central access to your work and required information Summarizes workflow tasks from different systems in a worklist Displays additional information from document and object repositories, if necessary, including attachments and other details
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Universal WorklistDefinition
SAP NetWeaver provides centralized task management through a universal worklist (UWL), from which
business users can manage, respond to, and delegate daily work items. The UWL can include
notifications, alerts, mission-critical workflows, approvals, and ad hoc tasks. Work items can be generated
from automated business processes or raised by colleagues.
Managing Tasks and Alerts in the Universal Worklist
This section describes how to use the UWL to manage and monitor your tasks simply and centrally.
Configuring the Universal Worklist
This section describes the administration and configuration for the universal worklist (UWL).
Managing Tasks and Alerts in the Universal WorklistUse
The Universal Worklist (UWL) provides central access to tasks, alerts, and authorizations. You can use
the UWL to manage and monitor your tasks simply and centrally.
The UWL brings together tasks from different systems. These include:
Workflows
Alerts
NotificationsFeatures
The UWL does the following:
Provides a uniform layout and central access to your work and required information
Summarizes workflow tasks from different systems in a worklist
Displays additional information from document and object repositories, if necessary, including
attachments and other details
Supports decision making and actions
Helps you personalize the display of your tasks
Enables you to define another user as a substitute for your tasks in the event of an unplanned
absence
This guide describes the following:
Navigating the UWL user interface and using the functions on the user interface
Functions provided by the UWL
Personalizing the UWL display
Features in the UWLUse
You can access the UWL user interface to orientate yourself when new or existing tasks need action.
From here, you can start into their actual work on the items.Features
Following are the major user interface features:
Tasks
From this category you can view:
New tasks
All In Progress Items
Tasks received on behalf of someone.
Tasks forwarded to someone.
Tasks for resubmission.
Today's due tasks.
All Overdue Items
Rejected tasks
All Completed Items
For more information, see Tasks .
Note
It depends on the task type and the configuration of the UWL if a particular function (for example,
forwarding a task) is available to you.
More information: Configuring the Universal Worklist
Alerts
From this category you can view:
New alerts
Alerts in progress
Alerts received on behalf of someone.
Alerts delegated to someone
Alerts for resubmission.
Completed Alerts.
Notifications
Notifications are messages that inform you about missed deadlines, for example.
From this category you can view:
New notifications
Notifications in progress
Notifications received on behalf of someone.
Notifications for resubmission
Completed notifications.
Tracking
The category Tracking contains items from Collaboration Tasks, forwarded items, those items you have
chosen to Follow-up on ( Follow-Up Items ), items that have been sent on behalf of you ( On behalf of
me ), and items that you have chosen to track ( Tracked Items ).
From this category you can view:
Items in progress
Items received on behalf of someone
Items for resubmission
Approved workflows you started
Rejected workflows you started
Completed workflows you started
Substitution
Substitution is a feature of the UWL that allows you to take over items from other users (on a due-course
basis as well as in case of an emergency) and to assign items to other users (that is, to give other users
permissions to take over items). These cases are defined by certain substitution rules, which can be
managed through the Substitution screens.
For more information, see Substitution .
Follow-up (Resubmission)
From the details area, you can follow-up on a task. From the follow-up UI, you can enter a date manually
or choose date to assign for follow-up on the task.
For more information, see Resubmit Tasks .
Manage Attachments
On the Manage Attachment screen, you can add and remove an attachment.
For more information, see Managing Attachments .
Adding a Memo
You can add additional information to a Business Workflow task by submitting a memo.
For more information, see Adding a Memo .
Forwarding an Item
You can forward a task / item to another user.
For more information, see Forwarding a Task .
TasksUse
Note
Below is a list of all underlying functions. Whether the functions are available for a particular task or not
depends on the type and category of the task.
To display and review all the tasks assigned to you, choose Tasks .
The Tasks screen in the universal worklist (UWL) contains a table that defines your tasks and their
priorities. It also specifies who assigned you the task and when the task was sent.
The different categories of sub views are displayed as dropdown options in the iView. All categories that
are not empty are displayed with one or two digits after the category.
Editing Tasks
The task list is displayed in tabular format. The tasks in the list come from different sources, for example
from an SAP NetWeaver BPM processes and from alerts.
Note
You can personalize this view as described in Personalizing the UWL .
To execute a task, choose the task in the Subject column.
Displaying Task Details
To display details for a particular task, you must select the relevant task in the table. The details are
displayed in the area under the task list.
Note
Choose the pushbutton on the far left. When the entry is selected, the pushbutton is also selected and the
work item is highlighted.
History Log
To display a list of the actions, select a task and choose Show History . The list is displayed under the
task. The list corresponds to the time stamp.
You can display detailed history information for the Business Workflow entries. The main process log and
the sub process log are listed. The text for the sub process is displayed in a lighter (grey) color.
Delays when Displaying Attributes
Delays can occur when you display an open or new task for the first time. This delay is intentional and is
not a system error. The reason for this is that not all back-end providers can provide all the necessary
information to list the entries in the most efficient way. Consequently, additional information is added to
the list view when it becomes available.
However, in the detailed description view all information is displayed.
Note
There is always a delay when you display entries from SAP Business Workflow.
Displaying Delayed Attributes
When you log on to the portal and access the UWL, some attributes may not be displayed in the task
display. Example: Example: Due Date and/or Sent do not contain any information.
These entries are empty because there are delays when retrieving additional information from the back
end. These additional attributes are called in the background; this can take some time.
If you select a specific entry, all attributes are filled.
If you do not perform an action, the display is automatically refreshed after the time period you
specified in the settings (example: 30 seconds or 60 seconds).
For more information, see: Personalizing the UWL Display
You can also navigate to a different screen and then navigate back; all attributes will then be visible.
Note
It depends on how many entries are in your task list. If you have a large number of entries (for example,
100 or more), it may take longer than expected to refresh the display for the new entries in the list.
People PickerUse
The Universal Worklist (UWL) provides users with the People Picker functionality to search for users,
roles and groups in the portal User Management Engine (UME). You use the People Picker in various
scenarios involving people, for example:
Creating a task - to choose the task assignee
Forwarding a task - to choose whom to forward the task to
Creating a substitution rule - to choose the substitute
You can search for a specific user by:
First and last name separated by comma " , " - < last name, first name >
Unique name
Display name
You can also use search strings with wildcards or an asterisk " * " in the end of the string. For example,
search strings adm , adm* , and adm??istrator return as result all users, groups, and roles with the
name administratorand administrators given that they exist in the UME.
You can view user details by clicking on the user in the results list. In the Name section you can seethe
user's:
Display Name
Last Name
First Name
In the Communication section, you can see the user's:
Telephone
E-Mail AddressMore Information
For more information about the configuration of the People Picker, see Configuring the People Picker .
For more information about UME, see User Management Engine .
Using and Accepting SubstitutionUse
You can assign another user to manage your tasks if you are absent or unavailable.
You can define a nominee to receive your tasks or fill in for you.
You can create multiple substitution rules to cover all eventualities.
You can also accept tasks of other users (if they have assigned them to you).
The nominee can display and manage the rules for task substitution.
NoteSubstitution in collaboration rooms is supported with certain constraints. For more information, see
theSubstitution in Collaboration Rooms section below.
Tasks of a Nominee
A nominee who is a substitute is a portal user who can manage and process work items of another user
in their absence.
The nominee can perform the following tasks:
Receive and process your work items
Monitor all incoming tasks without processing them
Work on more than one of your work itemsPrerequisites
The assignment to the portal user must be unique. Only one portal user can be assigned to a back-end
user.
Substitution rules must be maintained only using UWL, to avoid inconsistent behavior of the rules.Procedure
Managing the Substituted User Selector
An assignee can select which tasks will be displayed in his task list by sleecting in the Substituted User
Selector one of the following radio buttons:
My Items - only the assignee's original tasks are displayed
Items on behalf of... - only the tasks assigned to you by a different user are displayed. If more than
one user assigns tasks to you, you can choose the user whose tasks you want to see.
All Items - all tasks (assignee's original and assigned tasks) are displayed
By default, the My Items radio button is selected. The other radio buttons cannot be selected by default.
To remove the Substituted User Selector , you must change the UWL iView properties. However, the
user will not be able to see his assigned tasks since the default selected radio button is only My Items.
For more information on UWL iView properties, see Configuring iView Properties .
Create Substitution Rules
1. Click and choose Manage Substitution Rules .
2. In the My Substitution Rules table, choose Create Rule .
Step 1: Define Rule
You can define the tasks you want to assign to a nominee. You can define that a nominee either
receives your tasks (for example, when you are on vacation) or fills in for you (for example, in your
absence).
1. Use the selection option to select a nominee or enter a nominee. Choose Select .
2. Select which task types you want to assign to the user.
Standard way: Default: All (the nominee is the substitute for all tasks)
Note
Professional covers functional tasks, Disciplinary HR-related tasks. Collaboration tasks only
support the All tasks setting.
If you are using multiple systems, make sure profiles' names and definitions are maintained
consistently across all systems.
3. The nominee can receive your task or fill in for you.
1. To send the work items in the nominee list, choose Receive My Tasks .
2. To add a user as a substitute for your tasks in your absence, choose Fill In For Me .
This requires the nominees to perform an additional step to see the work items in their
task list.
NoteThe nominee must choose Accept (in the Other Users' Substitution Rules table) to display
the work items in their task list.
4. Choose Next .
Step 2: Set Rule Activation
This step provides an option for enabling or disabling the rule.
5. To enable the rule, choose On . Additional options are available for enabling the rule at once
(upon saving) or later (select a date from the calendar).
6. Choose Save .
3. Entries are displayed in the nominee's task list.
Manage Substitution Rules
You can see who you have assigned as your substitute in the My Substitution Rules table. Here you
can manage the substitution rules.
The following options are available for managing substitution rules:
Option Description
Activate Activates the substitution status.
Deactivate Deactivates the substitution status. This action removes the work items from the
assignee list.
Note
The turn on/off functionality is supported by Java Workflow and BPM. To have this
functionality working for all systems, at least one of the two systems mentioned
above should be set up.
Delete Removes the selected rule.
Update Synchronizes with provider data if there are changes to the rules in the provider
system and changes in the system configuration.
Redo Attempts to redefine the rule for a particular system.
Option Description
Rule
Activation (displayed as
a link)
Displays errors during creation of rule.
Status Displays connection errors or information about the connection status. For more
information, see the FAQs and Error Messages section below.
Other Users' Substitution Rules
This table displays all the substitution rules, which are created by other users and for which the currently
logged on user is the nominee. You will be able to see the Take Over option if the Fill in for me type of
substitution rule was selected when the substitution rule was created.
The following are the options available for managing substitution rules created by other users:
Option Description
Accept The substitute can accept the items of the original user. The work items of the original user are
displayed in the substitute's work list as soon as the substitute explicitly accepts them. This is mainly
for a scenario in which the original user is unexpectedly absent, particularly if this will be for an
extended period of time.
End
Take
Over
When a rule of type Fill in for me has been taken over by the assignee, this button will be available
instead of the take over. When this button is pressed, the items will disappear from the assignee's
work list.
Substitution in Collaboration Rooms
Substitutes who are not members of a collaboration room can only display the tasks (created in a room)
that are assigned to their nominee.
Example
User A defines user B as a substitute.
User A is a room member, user B is not.
User A has tasks in the room and outside the room (general tasks).
User B (substitute) can display and process the tasks of the sender (user A) including the tasks created in
the room. However, the substitute cannot display the other tasks in the room.
Restrictions
None of the created substitution rules have an end date.
Back-End Workflow Systems:
You cannot assign more than one task to a nominee.
Collaboration Tasks:
A future start date for a substitution is not supported.
Substitution only supports tasks under All .
FAQs and Error Messages
Question Reply
How can I display a user's entries? The entries are in the dropdown list under Entries in Task .
You can personalize the view by adding the Substituted for display
attribute. This way you will be able to distinguish if a task is a
substituted and who is the original user if the task is substituted.
Can the substitution be transferred
from one nominee to another?
Example: If the nominee is absent,
do his nominees receive my tasks?)
No
What is the difference between
substitution and forwarding a task?
In substitution, both the original user and the nominee can see and
process the tasks; a forwarded work item is only visible to the
nominee.
Can a nominee decline a
substitution assignment?
No, especially not if it is of type Receive My Tasks .
For the Fill In For Me type, a nominee can decide not to accept
tasks.
Is the nominee notified of their
assignment as substitute? Is the
original user notified when a
nominee accepts?
No (to both questions)
A system is not available at the time
I create a rule. Can I insert the rule
once the system is functioning
again?
Yes, by using the Retry function.
Why is the Deactivate function
disabled?
The activate/deactivate functionality is supported by Java Workflow
and BPM. Make sure at least one of those is deployed and
configured.
Question Reply
Can I define the same rule for the
same nominee for different time
periods?
No, this is not allowed.
What happens if I deactivate the Fill
In For Me rule when a nominee has
already accepted the tasks?
The acceptance is canceled. If the rule if activated or recreated, the
nominee must accept it again.
What happens if I deactivate or
remove a rule while one of the
nominees is working on my work
item?
The resultant behavior depends on the constraint defined by the
provider.
Can nominees see rules assigned to
them in the future?
Only the assignment active at the time of logon is displayed (and
can be accepted).
What happens if a system does not
support the substitution?
The system displays an error message on the status.
Error Message Possible Solution
System does not support
substitution methods
Older workflow systems (before 6.40 SPS12) that have not opened
a substitution API.
Problems connecting to the system The cause of the connection problem may be that a system is not
available. There may be security problems with the logon (for
example, user assignment).
You can repeat the action.
System does not support this task The system does not support substitution for a particular task.
Example: The collaboration task only supports tasks under All .
Provider returned internal error General error from provider, such as an invalid user ID
You can repeat the action.
Substitution role not defined in
system
While getting a rule definition that has already been defined
(update), a rule that is already defined in another system is not
available in this system. Example: The system has been added or
was not available before.
You can repeat the action.
Question Reply
The system does not support the
domain definition.
The system has no time period support for the rule. Example: You
cannot define the rule in the collaboration task for a future time
period.
Substitution rule already exists and
is effective for the nominee
The user is not authorized to create the same task for the same
nominee. Activate or deactivate the rule or remove the existing rule.
System does not support multiple
task assignments for the same
nominee
Example: The user can only assign one task to a nominee in
workflow.
The collaboration task does not support additional tasks.
Invalid portal user ID for system
(rare)
Check whether a user assignment is required or the user ID is too
long.
Internal error/Unknown task (rare) Cannot resolve task selected for the rule.
System connection timeout Configurable timeout value, which is always visible on the UWL
administration screen.
Forwarding TasksContext
Using the Forward function you can forward a task in your Universal Worklist to one or more people for
completion.
Note
It depends on your task type if the Forward function is available to you or not.
Procedure
...
1. In the menu of the task you want to forward, select the menu entry Forward .
2. Either enter the name of the person you want to forward the task to, or choose Select and use the
person search to select the corresponding person as the nominee.
Note
You can specify more than one person as the nominee.
In the person search, you can display details about each user by clicking the user name.
3. You can create a note for the forwarded task for the nominees.
4. Click Send .
The task is displayed in your Universal Worklist under Forwarded Tasks .
Resubmitting TasksUse
You can postpone a task until a later point in time, or resend it. On this date, the task reappears in your
worklist. The task does not appear in your worklist until the resubmission date.
NoteIt depends on your task type if the Resubmit function is available to you or not.
Procedure
1. In the menu choose the option Resubmit .
2. You can either enter the resubmission date manually or select it from the calendar.
Note
This date must be in the future.
3. Confirm the resubmission.
The task appears in the Tasks for Resubmission sub view.
Constraints
The back-end system must have at least the same technical release (Release 7.0). Older releases do not
support the resubmission function.
Managing AttachmentsProcedure
You can use the attachment manager to add and delete attachments. To call the attachment manager, go
to See Also in the detailed area of a task and choose Manage Attachments .
To remove an attachment, select it in the table displaying the attachments for the entry.
Choose Remove .
The table shows the columns Subject , Type , From , and Size .
To add attachments, use the Upload function below the table. To upload a file, you must first select it by
choosingBrowse .
Adding a MemoContext
You can submit additional information as a memo to a Business Workflow task.
Note
If the option to add a memo ( Add Memo ) is not present under the section You Can Also , the
portal administrator can enable this feature for users.
Procedure
...
1. Under the section You Can Also , click on Add Memo .
2. Write a memo for the task and add a title.
The title of the memo can be any header text. If you do not enter any text, the title defaults to the
formatMemo_<Date>_<Timestamp> .
3. Choose Send .
ResultsYou can view the memos related to the tasks when you choose View Memos under the You Can
Also section.
Editing SAP Office Mails in the Universal WorklistUse
In the Universal Worklist (UWL) you can receive, read, forward, and delete mails sent to you using SAP
Business Workplace (transaction SBWP) using the SAP Office Mails tab page.
You can open the attachments to SAP Office Mails. All detailed information on the mail is displayed under
the mail inbox.Procedure
Forwarding SAP Office Mails
1. In the Universal Worklist switch to the SAP Office Mails tab page.
2. In the context menu of the mail select the Forward menu entry.
NoteThe Forward function is only available using the context menu and you can always only forward
one mail. The restrictions possible for receivers in the backend system for forwarding the mail is not
supported in the UWL.
The forwarding executed in the UWL is reflected immediately in the backend in the SAP Business
Workplace.
Deleting SAP Office Mails
1. In the Universal Worklist switch to the SAP Office Mails tab page.
2. To delete a mail, choose the menu entry Delete in the context menu of the mail.
3. To delete multiple mails, select the mails to be deleted and choose the Delete pushbutton.
The deletion executed in the UWL is reflected immediately in the backend in the SAP Business
Workplace.
Tracking TasksContext
In the universal worklist's inbox, on the Tracking tab, all tasks/requests by the tracked-by users are
displayed.
Procedure
...
1. In the inbox of the universal worklist go to the Tracking tab.
All tasks by the tracked-by users are displayed. The numbers in brackets to the right of the
category titles represent the ratio of the number of new items (x) relative to the total number of new
items and those in progress.
2. Select the task you want to track, to display details on the task/request.
3. With the default filters, you can, for example, display the uncompleted tasks only or the completed
tasks only.
Personalizing the UWL DisplayUse
Use personalization options to define the display options to be used for the standard Universal Worklist
display. These personalization options allow you to create views that contain only the worklist information
that is relevant to you. You can either modify the display attributes of one of the default views, or create
your own, user-defined view.Procedure
1. To call the personalization options, use the small icon in the upper right corner of the iView ( ).
2. Choose Personalize View . The Personalize Tasks view is displayed.
Note
The personalization tray is only visible if the iView tray is visible.
Create a New User-Defined View
1. To create a new view, choose Duplicate .
2. Enter a name for the new user-defined view.
3. Choose Apply , and define the properties of the view as described below.
Change or Define View Properties
Change Attribute Display
To remove an attribute tab from the view, select the one you want to remove and choose Remove
From Current View .
To add an attribute tab to the display, select it in the dropdown menu next to the Add button.
Choose Add .
To move the column position of an attribute tab, select the attribute tab and then move it left or right in
the tab sequence using the left (<<) or right (>>) arrows, until it is in the position you want.
For each selected attribute you can specify more detailed personalization:
Horizontal alignment
Width
When you are finished with your personalization changes, choose Save to return to the worklist display.
Otherwise, choose Cancel to terminate the personalization activity without change.
To restore the default view of the worklist and remove the current personalization, select the Restore
Defaults button in the left frame.
Flag Started Tasks
In the universal worklist (UWL) you can display that a task has already been started. The result, or status,
is not known at the time of display in the UWL.
1. To display started tasks as flagged, in the Personalize Tasks display, choose the entry Started in
the dropdown menu next to the Add pushbutton.
2. Choose Add .
Started tasks are then displayed with the symbol in the UWL.
After refreshing the UWL the symbol disappears from in front of the task because it has either been
completed in the started application, and the task is no longer displayed under new tasks or tasks to be
completed in the UWL. Or because the task has not yet been completed and remains as a task yet to be
processed in the UWL.
Change Sorting Properties
In this personalization section you determine the order of the task items displayed.
In the first group box you select the column with the highest sorting priority. You can specify if the sorting
should be ascending or descending. You can add two additional sorting columns to sort items that have
equal value in the previous sorting column.
Set Further Options
Here you can specify:
Number of work items to be displayed on a page
Automatic page refresh rate
This rate refers to the update of the view in the Universal Worklist. It does not involve any access to
the back end system.
The preview gives you the opportunity to specify:
The number of days before the due date when a task item turns red, to indicate severe time concern.
The number of days before the due date when a task item turns yellow, to indicate warning of due
date.
The names and characteristics of view filters that allow you to select or delete certain tasks based on
selection criteria, such as keywords within attributes.
Setting the Page Display
Here you can specify:
Whether to display the page header or not
Whether to display the page footer or not
Reset Changes
Chose Restore Defaults to return to the original display (without your personalizations).
Using Collaboration TasksUse
Collaboration tasks allow you to build and initiate custom workflow processes. Each workflow process
potentially produces work items which are displayed in the Universal Worklist (UWL).
From the collaboration task wizard screens, you can:
Create Tasks (Single-Step Task)
Task List (Multiple-Step Task)
Request For Feedback
Request For Nomination
Sub Process in the Universal Worklist
You can also do the following:
Export collaboration room tasks to Microsoft Excel.
Collaboration tasks are deployed as a portal service and are packaged as part of the Knowledge
Management (KM) and Collaboration platform. They use some KM components including the Scheduling
Service and the Notification Service. Leveraging the KM platform, collaboration task acts as a
subcomponent of the UWL. In the Universal Worklist you can easily create, trigger, and monitor workflows
using the wizard. You can also receive work items generated by ad hoc processes.Prerequisites
You must be a portal user with assigned appropriate portal role to access the Universal Worklist.
You must also know what process you are trying to implement and who the participants are.
As a process initiator your email address must be properly configured in your SAP User Management
Engine (UME) data.Procedure
Accessing the Collaboration Task Wizard
The following figure shows the different applications on the portal from where you can access the
collaboration task:
Figure 1:
Creating a Task from UWL Task List, Collaboration Launch Pad, or the
Collaboration Room
To launch the collaboration task wizard from the UWL and the Collaboration Room, choose:
From the Collaboration Launch Pad choose Create Task , you then have the following options:
Create Single-Step Task
Task List
Create Feedback Request
Create Nomination Request
If you launch the wizard from the Collaboration Launch Pad or from a Collaboration Room, the information
about which users have been selected is automatically propagated. The names of the selected users
appear in theAssigned To field.
If you launch the wizard from a Collaboration Room, the Collaboration Room ID is propagated to the
workflow wizard and to the workflow instance. A link to the Collaboration Room is displayed both on the
wizard screen and the item detail screen.
You can select multiple members and groups and create tasks for all in the room.
Creating a Task from UWL Task Detail Area
From the UWL task detail area choose Create Ad Hoc Request .
The UWL task ID/work item ID is propagated to the workflow wizard and to the workflow instance. A link
to the work item screen is displayed both on the wizard screen and the work item detail screen.
See Sub Process for more information.
Creating a Task from Within a Guided Procedure
From the You Can Also section of the Guided Procedure user interface, choose New Ad Hoc Process .
The collaboration task instance wizard creates a sub process of the Guided Procedure and has access to
the process context to the Guided Procedure.
Additionally, the UWL task ID/work item ID is propagated to the workflow wizard and to the workflow
instance. A link to the work item screen is displayed both on the wizard screen and the work item detail
screen.
Note
Work items created by Java workflow tasks from the Guided Procedure are not collaboration tasks. They
will not appear in the UWL if Collaboration Tasks is the filtering criterion for the sub view.
Result
The process participants (nominees, recipients, nominators, approvers) see the workflow entry in their
task list.
When the recipients execute work items, notifications are sent to those users who were specified
as Trackers when the task was created. The trackers can also view the status of an workflow
under Tasks in the Universal Worklist and view details of the appropriate process. All steps that have
been executed in the process so far are displayed.
After completing a process, you can see all the steps along with the comments entered by the process
participants displayed under Completed Tasks in the Universal Worklist. This list is visible to users
tracking the task.Example
You collaborate with other users by assigning tasks to them. Instead of sending Emails to other users,
you use the collaboration task wizard to create tasks consisting of unstructured or semi-structured
processes and assign them to several users. Task nominees access and complete the tasks through the
UWL.
In another scenario you select an approval work item from Business Workflow. By using the collaboration
task the you create a workflow consisting of a feedback step and an approval step. The approval step will
automatically perform the approval action on the Business Workflow work item.
Creating TasksUse
You can create tasks using the task wizard. This takes place in a simple one page screen allowing for
creation of a task for which the workflow controls the lifecycle of the task.
You may issue the task to a group of users as a whole or each individually. Alternatively, you can define a
sequence of separate multiple step tasks (see Task List ) that can be assigned to a single user of
separate users. Once created, additional properties can be set up using the task Details page.
Completed tasks my require an additional approval step or the process can be finished by a task
completion step.
Some of the frequently used terms which are present on the collaboration task user interface, which are
also listed in this guide, are listed below:
Task
A task is a request for a work process to one or more users. These users are called nominees . In this
document the user creating the task has also been referred to as the creator or initiator of the task.
Tracker
A task also has users responsible for tracking the progress of the work item, these users are called the
trackers. The user creating the task is a tracker by default. For a simple one step task, also known as a
quick task, the tracker is an approver for that task as well.
A tracker can:
Monitor the progress of the task
Receive notifications on the updates/about the completion of the task
Nominator
User who designates work to other users.
For information about the nomination process, see Request for Nomination .
Nominees
Nominees are users who have been nominated to act on a task.Process
Create a Task
1. In the UWL view, choose Create Task .
2. Select Task from the Task Type dropdown list.
3. In the task wizard enter the required information. For details on the fields, see section Wizard
Details below. The required fields are marked with an asterisk (*).
4. Choose Send to send the task to the nominees.
Wizard Details
Parameter Description
Title Title or subject to identify the task. It is a required field.
Assigned To Select the IDs of the users you want to assign the task to. You also have an
option to decide whether the nominees can decline the tasks, and also decide if
you want to separate the tasks for each nominee.
Priority Specifies the priority of the workflow. This affects the urgency of the tasks that
will be generated by the workflow.
Due Define the deadlines for the process step by entering due date and time.
Choose the calendar icon to select the due date or enter manually
inmm/dd/yyyy format. Select the time from the dropdown selection or enter
manually in hh:mm format. (Note: the date and time you enter here refer to the
date and time on the server machine).
You can also select the ASAPoption. The ASAP option indicates that the task
has to be completed as soon as possible. No dates are specified.
Description An overall task description. This information will be visible to all process
participants.
Trackers Tracking and final approval are performed by the user in this field. You can also
nominate more than one user to track and approve the task.
The nominated trackers can view and participate in the task progress from their
task list.
Task Requires
Final
Approval
The task consists of a task completion step or is a combination of task
completion and approval of task completion.
This is an optional field.
Allow
Nominees to
Decline Task
Nominees can decline a task.
Parameter Description
Separate
Task for Each
Nominee
In case of multiple nominees, each nominee can be assigned a different task.
Notification None No
notification
is sent.
When
Complete
A notification is sent on completion of the task.
On Updates,
Completion,
and if
Overdue
Notification is sent when the task is completed, updated, or when the task due
dates are reached.
Edit
Attachments
Launches the Attachment view. You can attach arbitrary documents to
workflow instances. These documents are visible to all workflow participants.
You can also delete attachments.
Choose Upload to upload items from your local PC.
To add documents or links within in the portal, choose Add . Follow the
instructions on the screen to add documents.
Task Actions
A nominee (user to whom a task is assigned) can confirm or decline a task.
NoteA user can decline a task only if the Nominees Can Decline Task option is selected by the task creator.
The following figure shows the possible steps a task nominee can perform after the task has been
assigned.
Confirm Task
Figure 1:
Rejecting a Single Step Task
When a single step task is rejected by a tracker it is sent back to the task nominee(s). The progress of the
task is automatically set to 50% and its status is set to In Progress . The task nominee can then submit
the task again to the tracker by choosing Complete Task . The status of the task changes
to Completed . To break the cycle the tracker can either delete or approve the task.
Delete Tasks
Once a task is deleted, all related tasks are also deleted. See example below for further clarification.
Example
User 1 creates a feedback task, assigns it to user 2 and user 3.
User 2 completes the task.
User 3 declines the task.
User 1 receives the task declined by user 3. User 1 deletes the task.
At this point, the task (item) from user 2 is also deleted, user 1 is not able to see it from tracking anymore.
Rejecting a Task Versus Declining a Task
The terms rejecting and declining a task can be confused in the context of collaboration tasks.
An approver of an approval step in a task may choose to reject - this means that they do not approve of
the previous action item(s) and require these previous steps to be redone and resubmitted for approval.
When a nominee declines a task, this means that the nominee refuses to participate in the task. That is,
the nominee has (probably) not examined any steps in the task or has not performed any of the work on
his assigned step. In this case, the task trackers are notified of the declination, and must reassign the task
to another user.
Result
The approvers/recipients/nominees see the workflow item in their task list.
Depending on the notifications selected in the creation wizard, the workflow's users tracking the task will
receive status notifications as the workflow nominees perform work or respond to approve/reject tasks.
The workflow creator can also view the status of an active workflow by going to the Tasks screen in the
Universal Worklist and viewing details of the appropriate process. All steps that have been executed in
the process so far are displayed.
After completion of a process all steps along with the comments entered by the process participants are
displayed under Completed Tasks in the Universal Worklist of the initiator of the workflow.
For more information:
Task List
For descriptions of the UWL user interfaces, see: Using the Universal Worklist .
Task ListUse
The task list wizard allows you to create tasks which you can assign to specific users. Your workflow can
comprise multiple requests for approval or tasks, or both.
Task Type
Select Task List from the pre-configured Task Type dropdown menu. From here you can add a series of
tasks to a list for tracking.Process
Add a Task
You can add a task directly to the table, or click Add Task to add multiple steps to the task.
1. Insert a task directly into the table:
1. Insert the task directly into the table and press enter to add another step.
1. Specify the task tape as Action Item or Approval .
2. To change the recipient, choose People Picker option.
3. To edit the task or to add a description to the task steps, choose Edit .
2. To move a step up or down, choose Move Up / Move Down .
3. To delete a step, select it and choose Delete .
4. Select Issue Tasks Sequentially if you want each task in the sequence to be completed
before the next task is issued.
Note
Each task of the sequence must be completed before the next task is assigned.
If this option is unchecked, parallel tasks are created for each step without any sequential
dependencies.
Example
If the multiple-step process consists of step 1, step 2, and step 3, the user will only see step 1
in their task list. The other tasks will only appear sequentially once the previous task has been
completed.
Note
It is not possible to add, delete, or rearrange steps for a task list if the task steps were not
created sequentially.
2. Add a task from the Add Task option:
1. Click Add Task to create a new step in the process flow.
2. Enter the required information. See the Adding a New Step to the Task table below.
3. Choose Save to complete and send the task.
Adding a New Step to the Task
Parameter Description
Task Title Task Title. Required entry.
Task Type Please select:
Action item
Approval
Parameter Description
Assigned To Either enter the nominee or select from the list.
Allow Nominees
to Decline Task
A user can decline a task.
Description Details for the task or note to nominee
(optional).
Completion
Status
All Nominees Respond The task is only considered complete
when all nominees have responded.
At Least The minimum number of responses from
the nominees to complete the task process.
Task Actions
Declining a Multiple-Step Task (Task List) - Sequentially Created
Declining a multiple-step task list that has been created sequentially will return the process flow to the last
action item step before the approval step.
Example
An action item is assigned to user 1 and user 2, both complete the task. If user 3 declines the task, the
task reappears in the UWL of users 1 and 2. They have to then redo their steps and resubmit for
approval. If no action items step exists, the workflow will be finished and the task history will show that the
task was declined.
A step is assigned to multiple users and has a minimum threshold of approvals assigned (that is,
nominees are user 1, user 2, and user 3, and two of the three are required to approve before this step can
be completed). In this case:
Two of the three users must approve before this step is considered approved.
If two of the three users reject it, the step is rejected and consequently the task will either return to the
last action item nominees or, if no previous action item exists, the task will be concluded and the
history will reflect that the task was declined.
Declining a Multiple-Step Task (Task List) - Created in Parallel
Declining a task list that was created in parallel concludes that step and the rejection will be reflected in
the task history. However, all of the other parallel steps must be concluded as well before the task is
considered complete.
Example
Examples:
Approval Step 1 is approved → Approval Step 2 is rejected:
When Step 2 is rejected, the workflow will conclude - the task status will be set to Completed and the
task history will show the rejection.
Action Item 1 is confirmed → Approval Step 2 is approved → Approval Step 3 is rejected:
In this case, when Approval Step 3 is rejected, the task will return to the assigned user(s) for Action
Item 1. At this point, the task status will remain In Progress and the nominee(s) for Action Item 1 must
again complete their tasks and subsequent approval must be reobtained from the approver(s) of both
Steps 2 and 3. The task history will reflect all the rejections.
Action Item 1 is confirmed → Approval Step 2 is approved → Action Item 3 is confirmed → Approval
Step 4 is rejected:
In this case, when Approval Step 4 is rejected, the task will return to the assigned user(s) for Action
Item 3. The nominees for Action Item 3 must redo their task and resubmit it to the approver(s) of Step
4. The task status will be In Progress until Approval Step 4 is approved.
Figure 1:
Result
The approvers/nominees see the workflow item in their task list.
Depending on the notifications selected in the creation wizard, the workflow's users tracking the task will
receive status notifications as the workflow nominees perform work or respond to approve/reject tasks.
The workflow creator can also view the status of an active workflow by going to the Tasks screen in the
Universal Worklist and viewing details of the appropriate process. All steps that have been executed in
the process so far are displayed.
After completion of a process all steps along with the comments entered by the process participants are
displayed under Completed Tasks in the Universal Worklist of the initiator of the workflow.
Request for FeedbackPurpose
You can gather feedback from other users. The initiator or creator of the process defines the topic on
which the user wants to get feedback. The initiator defines the users who will provide feedback.
There is also a quick response (survey-like) option available.Process Flow1. Choose Create Task.2. Select Request for Feedback from the dropdown list.
Feedback Wizard Details
In the Tasks table you can see a description of the general parameters on the user interface. Additional
parameters for feedback are described below:
Information on Request for Feedback Specific Parameters.
Parameter Description
Recipient Add one or more approver/recipient. You can enter the user ID
of the approver/recipient or search for a user ID. If a search is
started: Enter a character string of the user ID, for example,
the starting letters. You can also search with placeholders (*):
m finds Meyer, Mayer, Mayr
*ay finds Mayer, Mayr, Faye, Way Choose Find. Select the approver/recipient from the Search
Result list and add to the selection column. Choose OK. You can also enter notes which will be private to
each approver/recipient.
Allow Nominees
to Decline
Request
Recipients can decline this request.
Responses Reply Anonymously When checked, all
recipients' identities are
hidden when viewing the
feedback history.
Recipients are not able to
forward the feedback
request.
Include Quick Response Option When checked, includes an
option on the recipient's
screen to enter a one click
(survey-type) response.
Completion
Status
Minimum number of responses required to complete this
request The task creator can specify either "All Recipients", if
feedback is required from all recipients, or enter a minimum
number of responses required to complete the request.
Features You can provide feedback as end-user notes or attachments, or by selecting one entry
from a pre-configured set of feedback categories (quick response option). You can configure whether users can refuse to provide feedback or not.
You can configure whether feedback can be provided in a quick response option or not. An aggregation of the feedback is provided for quick response feedback.
You can configure whether feedback is anonymous or not, that is, the information regarding which user gave which feedback is not visible to the process initiator.
The progress bar is not displayed for any tasks other than the standard tasks, for example, single-step tasks.
Possible Task Processing Steps for Recipient
The following figures show the possible steps for a recipient of a feedback request. The recipient can give feedback with or without the quick response feature.
The recipient can decline to give feedback.
The recipient can forward the request to other users without completing the task.
Possible Task Processing Steps for a User Tracking the Task
The following figures show the possible steps a user tracking a task can perform during the feedback
request process. A user tracking a task can add task nominees.
A user can delete a task.
Result
You can gather feedback from other users and also view the responses in a survey-like display (if the
quick response feedback option was selected).
Example
A user in the HR department wants feedback from employees on a new HR tool. The employees who
provide feedback can comment on the new tool and may also have the option to give quick responses.
Request for NominationPurpose
You can use this wizard to recommend (nominate) a user for a task.
Using the request for nomination you can assign users to tasks which must then select a person from its
organization to participate in a work group. The user who selects people for a work group is called the
nominator. A person selected for a work group is a participant.
Once the tasks are complete and the work group has been specified, the system automatically creates a
contact list. The list contains the participants of a work group.Process Flow1. Choose Create Task.2. Select Request for Nomination from the dropdown list.
Wizard Details
In the Tasks table you can see a description of the general parameters on the user interface. Additional
parameters for nominating are described below:
Information About Nomination-Specific Parameters
Parameter
Description
Nominator Choose Select to search for users
that are to be selected as
nominators for the nomination
process.
Allow Nominators to Decline
Request
Decline to be the nominator.
Nominees Notify Nominees An e-mail notification is sent to nominees as part of the
nomination process. If this option is not selected, nominees
are not informed that they have been selected to participate
in the group.
Parameter
Description
Requires Nominees' Approval - Nominees receive an
approval work item to confirm that they agree with being
nominated.
Features
You can configure the following: Allow users that have been selected as nominators to decline nomination request. Nominees receive notifications about their nomination. Nominees can either accept or decline nominations Contact list (collaboration contact record) is created
When a group is created, the group nominees are added to the contact list. The number of nominees required to complete the process.
Possible Steps for Nominees
The following figure shows the possible steps for a nominee after receiving a nomination request. The nominee can accept the nomination.
The nominee can decline the nomination.
Tip
This action is only possible if the nominator selected the Requires Nominee Approval option when
creating the nomination.
Tip
Anonymous nominations cannot be declined.
For nominations that need to be confirmed by the nominee, declining or confirming a nomination
completes an assigned step. The history log reflects the activities.
Example A user wants to create a work group that consists of representatives from different
organizations. Each organization can nominate a person. A new distribution list is created. All those people nominated are added to the distribution list.
You can also assign the person group to a user group. Nomination task with three nominations which all three must complete.
In this case the task is complete when all three participants have completed their task. The completion
of the task is not dependent on the task being confirmed or declined by the nominee. The history
reflects the decisions of the nominee. A nomination task with three nominations of which at least two must agree.
In this case the task is complete when two of the nominees confirm the nomination. The completion of
the task is not dependent on the task being confirmed or declined by the nominee.
Sub ProcessPurpose
The UWL Sub Process is a task attached to a UWL item - parent item. The UWL Sub Process task is a
multiple step task, it can be sequential or parallel. The process of approval/rejection of a UWL Sub
Process is exactly the same as for the multiple steps task . The only additional step of a UWL Sub
Process task is, when the Sub Process task is complete, the final step's action can be mapped back to
the parent item, if the map back to parent check box has been selected when the sub process task was
created, and the UWL is notified about the completion of the UWL Sub Process task.
The steps involved in creating sub processes consist of task completion steps and approval steps. If the
last step of the process is an approval step and the wizard has been launched for an approval work item
from SAP Business Workflow the following functionality is provided. The creator of the work item can
configure that the approval from the last step is automatically executed as an approval of the Business
workflow work item.
The UWL work item can be a SAP Business Workflow work item or a Collaboration Task work item.Process Flow
It is possible to create a process which refers to any UWL work item. This process can be conceived as a
sub process of the workflow to which the UWL work item belongs.
You can access the sub process creation steps from the Universal Worklist, or from the Collaboration
launch pad. Procees as follows:
From the UWL:1. From the portal screen choose Home® Work.2. Choose Create Ad-Hoc Request to start the sub process.
Accessing from the Collaboration launch pad:1. From the portal screen click Collaboration. Choose Create Tasks. Choose the task
directly from the available options.
Tip
You will see the link (Collaboration) if you have Collaboration installed on your portal.
2. Choose Create Task to start the workflow creation process.
Tip
There are no mechanisms in place which lock the original work item until the spontaneously created
sub process completes.
Options on the Sub Process Task Wizard
Options Description
Map Decision to
Parent Task
If this option is selected then the last action is mapped back to the original work item. For
more information, see the example below.
Options Description
Display Link to
Business Object
Note: this option is visible only when a Collaboration Task is launched from an SAP
Business Workflow work item.
As the creator of the sub process task, you can choose to select this option. if selected, the
link to Business object will be displayed in the sub process item's detail screen.
The link View Business Object is displayed under the You can also area, if there is a valid
link to the business object of the parent item. The link, when clicked, displays the detail of
the business object.
Tip
In order to launch the link to the business object, the assignee of the sub-process item must
have the user mapping to the SAP back end system. If the user mapping has not been
done, an ITS login screen appears.
Result
You can create a sub process consisting of multiple steps assigned to a user or to a different set of
process participants in the process flow.Example
A user can start a sub process from the UWL. The link New Ad Hoc Request on the preview screen or the
detail screen of the selected UWL work item launches the Workflow wizard.
In the wizard you can define whether the final action of the UWL sub process is mapped back to its
respective UWL work item. For defining this there is a checkbox Map decision to parent task. This
mapping is valid if the last step is an approval step.
Once a UWL sub process has been created two restrictions are imposed on the related UWL work item: You cannot complete the UWL work item before the completion of its UWL sub process. You cannot start a second UWL sub processes from the same UWL work item until the
active UWL sub process is completed.
Exporting Room Tasks to ExcelUse
Use this function to export all tasks relating to a collaboration room to a Microsoft Excel sheet.Procedure
1. Navigate to the collaboration room ( Collaboration choose corresponding room ).
2. Choose Tasks .
The task list is displayed.
3. On the All Tasks tab, choose Export to Excel .
A new browser window opens with the MS Excel sheet embedded.
Note
Irrespective of which attributes of the tasks are displayed in the task list (personalization), the table
contains the following entries in the Excel format: Subject , Due , Priority , Progress , Assigned
to ,Tracked by , Sent , By , Escalated by , Status .
For more information about personalizing the task list, see Personalizing the UWL Display
4. To save the data (tasks) in Excel format, choose File Save As... .
Configuring the Universal WorklistUse
The Universal Worklist (UWL) gives users unified and centralized way to access their work and the
relevant information in the Enterprise Portal. It collects tasks and notifications from multiple provider
systems in one list for one-stop access.
Administration and configuration for the Universal Worklist (UWL) is described in this section.Integration
The successful registration is confirmed with the existence of a connector registration
( BPEMUWLConnector ) for the alias used during registration.
3. Choose Home Work Universal Worklist .
4. Choose the dropdown button in the top right corner of the universal worklist, and select Display
Connection Status.
The connection status for the connector BPEMUWLConnector is displayed in a separate
window. Status must be Successful .
Register Work Item TypesProcedure
The work item registration process involves identifying each system by its alias, and then generating the
XML description of how to process the work item types to be received by UWL from each system.
1. Log in the portal as administrator ( http://<host>:<httpport>/irj ).
2. Navigate to System Administration System Configuration Universal Worklist and
Workflow .
3. Open the Universal Worklist Administration page . You see:
o A list of system aliases for which the work item types are registered and a list for those not yet
registered.
Actions on the
System Alias /
Connector Type List
Register Register the system.
Re-register Register again if you have
o added a new task, updated or changed the task at the back end
o changed task definition for the task types
o changed configuration in transaction SWFVISU
Note
You must re-register after there have been changes (if categories have
been changed, added or modified) to the Alert management framework.
4. To register work item types and initiate generation of the corresponding XML work item processing
descriptions, select one of the following buttons:
o Choose Register Item Types for All Systems to perform the registration for all configured
systems.
o Choose Register Item Types for Only New Systems to perform registration for systems
whose XML processing description has not been downloaded before.
Note
Communication time can require a few minutes for each system. Reduce the amount of
communication time required by registering new systems only , unless the Business Workflow
task definitions have changed in the system backend.
UWL Configuration WizardUse
The UWL Configuration Wizard allows you to change the UWL custom attributes and the user interface
look and feel using a UI based wizard, as opposed to making changes to the XML file and uploading it.
Recommendation
The configuration wizard covers the scenarios listed below. For other configuration changes, we
recommend you to use the XML file for making the changes and uploading it back.
For the present release, the following configurations are possible:
Defining custom attributes for a task ID
Defining default Action to launch when an item type is clicked
Changing the look and feel of UWL user interface (Navigation Node configuration)
Adding and Managing Tabs on the UWL user interface
Note
Changes made to the above configurations are applicable to all users in that system.
Accessing the Configuration Wizard
In the portal, navigate to System Administration System Configuration Universal Worklist
- Administration .
Under Universal Worklist Content Configuration select Click to configure item types and
customize views using a wizard .
Defining Custom Attributes for a Task IDUse
You can add custom attributes to the item type. Usually a set of default attributes are defined for the item
type. These default attributes are part of the view that is associated with the item type.
Adding Custom Attributes
To add the custom attributes:
1. Specify the task ID (example of a task ID: TS000078) of the item type or select the configuration in
which the item type is defined.
Wizard prompts with a list of back end systems defined in the portal.
2. The system then searches through the defined list of systems and if a back end business object is
found associated with the task ID then the attributes for that business object are fetched and listed.
3. You may select the attributes you want to add to the item type as custom attributes.
In the XML files, these attributes are added to the item type and to the view associated with the item
type.
Note
You can add only those attributes that are listed in the list of attributes (note: these are the attributes
that are fetched form the back end). If however, the wizard does not find any business object
associated with the selected task ID, then you can add attributes manually.
4. Once you select the custom attributes (when they are fetched from the back end), you can
customize the view to define the placement of attributes.
Adding Attributes Manually
1. If you add the attributes manually, you can select one of the four types (String, Integer, Double,
Date) for the attribute.
Note
In either case, adding manually or selecting from the provided list, you have to specify the display
name and description of the attribute. The display name is the column under which the attribute is
displayed.
Note
For manually defined attributes, you can also delete attributes.
2. Once you define the attributes, you can customize the view to define the placement of the attributes.
Status
Once you have defined the custom attributes and saved your changes, the status page shows the
changes you have made to the configuration.
Choose View Configurations and select the configuration name (that you changed in the previous steps
is now visible in the list). The XML file details are listed below the table.Result
The customization allows you to define the column order, for example, whether or not you want to show
an attribute, and so on.
Defining Default ActionUse
You can define the desired action to be launched when a particular item type is selected.
The choices are:
iViewLauncher
Object Based Navigation (OBN)
SAP Application Launcher
WebDynpro Launcher
Details page
For more information on these launchers, see Action Handlers .
Procedure for Defining the Default Action
1. Select the item type to define the corresponding action definition.
2. Select the launcher from a list of launchers.
Note
Most of the launchers have certain mandatory properties that have to be filled in before you can
save the changes.
Changing the Look of UWL User InterfaceUse
UWL main page consists of several tabs, with each tab associated with tasks of different categories
(Alerts, Notifications, and so on). Under each tab, there are drop downs which are have additional options
about viewing item types with certain status (Completed, In process.). You can determine which tabs you
want visible and the ones which should be hidden from the user's view.
NoteHidden tabs cannot be viewed unless you move it from hidden to view status.
You can also customize the view that is associated with each drop down entry. Each of the drop down
entry is also shown as an entry in the table (with the customize button next to it).
Tab Reordering
To decide on the order of appearance of the UWL tabs, perform the following steps:
1. Select the option to change the look and feel of the main UWL page.
2. Select a tab and move it left / right using the appropriate arrow buttons.
Note
If the tab is at the left most location, is will not move left anymore. Similarly for the right position.
3. Save the changes (click Save and Return ).
On the summary page you can see and verify the name of the configuration that was changed. The
changes should now be applicable to user sessions.
In the configuration file, the ordering of the Navigation Node should have changes as defined.
Choosing Tabs to Display
To decide which tabs to display, perform the following steps:
1. Select the option to change the look and feel of the main UWL page.
2. Select a tab and choose Remove tab from View .
This action removes the tab and moves it to the drop down Available Tabs Not Displayed .
Note
You can remove all but one tab. The removed tabs are added to the drop down.
NoteYou may also select a tab from the drop and choose Add tab to View . This should add the tab
back to the view.
3. Save the changes (click Save and Return ).
On the summary page you can see and verify the name of the configuration that was changed.
Choose View Configuration to see all the available configurations in the system. Choose the
changed configuration to see the tabs that were removed, these have the visible tag set
to false (default is true ).
4. The settings are now applicable for all UWL users.
Changing the Contents in the Drop Down List
To Select the contents of the drop down:
1. Select the option to change the look and feel of the main UWL page.
You can select any tab. Under each tab, there is a table, Contents of the drop down , with each
row representing an entry in the drop down.
Note that this is a mere simulation of the real drop down. Nothing happens when an entry is
selected.
2. To add / remove an entry from the drop select / deselect the table row. If a row is deselected, the
corresponding entry is removed from the drop down. If the entry is selected, the entry appears in the
drop down.
3. You may change the drop down entries in each of the tabs and save the changes all together.
Customizing the View for Each Entry
1. Select the option to change the look and feel of the main UWL page.
You can select any tab. Under each tab, there is a table, Contents of the drop down , with each
row representing an entry in the drop down.
2. Choose Customize to launch the customization page.
The customization should work like the personalization .
3. Save the personalization to return back to the Navigation Node Configuration page.
NoteMake sure that the configuration name is saved with a priority High . If the original configuration had
a priority Low , then a new configuration should have been created and saved with a priority high.
The original one with priority low should remain as it was.
Adding and Managing TabsUse
From the configuration you can add and manage new tabs to be displayed on the UWL user interface.
When creating a new tab, you also have the option to define new drop down section entries for this tab.
The view that gets associated with each new drop down is the DefaultView which is available within UWL.
You can customize the default view as a separate step.
Functions on the interface
Functions Description
Customize View You can customize the attributes and properties of the drop down entries. For details on
this customization page, see Personalizing the UWL Display .
Functions Description
Remove tab from
current view
The tab you select shall be removed from the view. It can be added back later (choose
from the drop down selection Available tabs not displayed )
Add tab to view See details below.
Create a new tab See details below.
Creating a New Tab
To create a new tab follow the steps below:
1. From the main UWL configuration wizard page, choose Customize the look for UWL Main
Page .
2. On the customization page, choose Create a new Tab .
The Add new Tab page is displayed.
NoteIt is mandatory to enter the Display Name . Tool tip is optional.
The tab will be visible or not depending on the user choice for Tab visible by default .
If you must define the entries for the drop downs:
3. Choose Add entry for drop down .
4. Choose Visible by default to have the tabs displayed on the UI.
NoteIt is mandatory to enter the Display Name . Tool tip is optional.
5. Save your settings.
You now return to the main look and feel customization page. Depending on your selection the tab
will appear next to visible tabs if Visible by default was selected else will appear under the drop
down Available tabs not displayed .
Adding a Tab to View
You can choose a tab to display on the user interface from the list of existing tabs.
Choose from the drop down selection of the existing tabs, if there are any.
Optional ConfigurationDefinition
This section describes the optional configuration steps for setting up UWL.
You can have UWL in your own role
Add UWL to specific role
You can create custom worklists:
View for specific task
View for user decision
View for making multiple choices simultaneously
You can configure how the work item launches using:
SAP Transaction (SAPGUI for HTML or ITS MiniApp or IAC)
UWL iView
Business Server Page
WebDynpro Application
You can connect to a remote system and receive KM Recent Notifications using:
WsActionInboxConnector UWL connector
UWL Content ConfigurationUse
You can upload predefined configuration files.
UWL Content Configuration includes definition of:
Item Types - The type of an item determines how it is executed, and if other actions can be applied.
It also describes additional information like custom attributes.
List Views - A view describes how the items of a specific type should be displayed in the worklist:
visible attributes, sorting order, filter conditions, and many more visualization properties.
Navigation - The navigation defines the list views offered to the end user. The first level of the
navigation hierarchy represents the basic item categories.Prerequisites
You have access to portal Universal Worklist iView.
You have access to the Universal Worklist Administration iView.
You have a predefined configuration (for example one shipped by Manager Self Services Business
Package).
This predefined configuration (for example uwl.webflow.mss ) XML contains ItemTypes that are defined
independent of any particular system.Process
This section describes the procedure for uploading the predefined configuration.
Administering Item Types and View Definitions
You can administer the Universal Worklist Configuration Content (in XML) from the following three
functions.
Function Description
Download
Configuration
Select the configuration name for which you want to download configuration. Click on the
link on the subsequent page to view / download file.
Delete
Configuration
Delete the selected configuration.
It is recommended to keep a back up before deleting a configuration.
Choose OK to proceed with deletion.
Download DTD Choose to download DTD for the selected configuration.
Uploading New Configurations
You can upload the XML configuration files from this page.
1. Specify the configuration name. Do not upload any configuration as
"uwl .webflow.<systemalias> ". That will overwrite (write, not ride) the generated system
configuration with the same name. Give a new configuration name, for
example uwl.webflow.mss ".
NoteThe backend items are mapped using the tag < ItemTypeCriteria > and
its systemId and externalTypeattributes. The configuration name and item type name are not
relevant. The override (customization) effect will be automatically archived through the override
priority.
2. Choose valid XML or ZIP file. Enter the path or browse for the XML file.
3. High priority : mark this checkbox if you are customizing UWL itemTypes and Views. However if
any other application inside SAP is uploading its configuration file, it will not affect your
customizations. It is recommended that these SAP groups should use medium priority or not check
the override priority checkbox.
4. Adapt to System : Specify the system which you want to apply the configuration XML to in the
upload iView dropdown option Adapt to System . If uploaded as " None - use as is ", the
configuration XML will be applied to the system referenced in the XML itself. If no system is
referenced, it will be applied to all systems.
Note
The configuration XML becomes completely independent from systems and need not to be modified
for specific installations.
5. Choose Upload . Once the upload has completed, you will receive a successful message. If you do
not receive a successful message, you will have an error message providing you with the syntax
error in the XML file. Fix your XML file and upload again.
Note
If the upload is specific to a system, system name will be added automatically to the configuration
name at the end.
6. You must clear the cache now. See Clearing Cache section below.
Resetting Personalization
You can remove the end user View personalization here. Leaving the fields empty applies for all users or
views.
If there are already personalized (by end user) List Views present in UWL and these List View definitions
are reloaded, then you are shown the list of the other personalized views and optionally these could be
deleted
Field Description
Login ID End user login ID.
View
Name
Name of the view for which the personalization are to be removed To remove all, enter asterix "*".
Choose Remove Personalizations .
Uploaded configuration can be verified in the Current Configurations area in the Universal Worklist
Content Configuration iView.
Clearing Cache
1. Choose Cache Administration Page .
2. Select the System Alias for which you want to clear the cache or clear expired items.
3. Choose the appropriate option.
Function Description
Clear Cache Removes all items from the cache. The items will be re-retrieved from the providers. Use
with caution.
Function Description
Clear Expired
Items
Removes only expired items from UWL Cache
Configuring the People PickerUse
The Universal Worklist (UWL) provides users with the People Picker functionality to search for users,
roles and groups in the portal User Management Engine (UME). You use the People Picker in various
scenarios involving people, for example:
Creating a task - to choose the task assignee
Forwarding a task - to choose whom to forward the task to
Creating a substitution rule - to choose the substitute
You can also use the User Management Engine (UME) functionality to configure companies to enable
users from more than one company to work together and use the UWL in a common portal. When you
configure company properties in the UME, the UWL People picker searches for users, roles and groups in
UME and additionally applies restrictions to filter results based on company and company related
settings.
To use the UME Companies functionality you have to make sure one of the following two cases is valid:
The value of the UME property ume.tpd.imp.class is different than the value of
thecom.sap.security.core.tpd.SimpleTPD property
The value of the UME property ume.tpd.imp.class is equal to the value of
thecom.sap.security.core.tpd.SimpleTPD property and the value of the UME
property ume.tpd.companies is different than 0
For more information about UME properties for companies, see Editing UME Properties .
For more information about configuring companies in UME, see Configuring Delegated User
Administration Using Companies .
The general case is that if the logged user belongs to a specific company, they can search for users,
roles, and groups in the same company only. However, there are exceptions to this restriction that are
useful for administrators and company representatives:
To grant users the rights to search in all companies assign the UWLSearchUnrestricted UME action
to the respective user that needs to perform search.
For more information, see Administration of Users and Roles .
Search results can include users, groups, and roles from companies different than the one of the
currently logged user given that the users listed are Contact for Company <name of
company> of the logged user.
To make a certain user a Contact for Company <name of company> for any other company,
you need to add a custom attribute in their user profile and fill in a value corresponding to the
respective company name. The attribute name needs to be Contact for Company . You create this
attribute just once for the user profile. Next, you enter one or more companies that the user will be a
contact for. To enable users to be contacts for more than one company, use multiple values for
the Contact for Company attribute. Separate the companies with a comma ', '.
For more information on user profile attributes, see Adding Custom Attributes to the User Profile .
Following are the specific restrictions for each search type.
Search by a User
A guest user performing a search by user will get an empty results list
A user from Company A , for example, can see in their results list only users from the
same Company A
A user from Company A can see in their results a user from Company B only if the user
from Company B is aContact for Company A
A user having the UWLSearchUnrestricted action assigned can see users from all companies
Search by a Role
A guest user performing a search by role will get empty results list
A user from Company A gets a results list with all roles that have assigned users from Company A .
Roles that have no users belonging to the company of the currently logged user are excluded from the
result list
A user from Company A gets a results list with a role that has user B from Company B assigned
only if user B is a Contact for Company A
A user with the UWLSearchUnrestricted action assigned can see roles with assigned users from all
companies
Search by a Group
A guest user performing a search by group will get empty results list
A user from Company A gets a result list with all groups that have assigned users only
from Company A . If certain group has one or more users belonging to different company, then this
group is excluded from the search results
A user with the UWLSearchUnrestricted action assigned can see groups with assigned users from
all companies
Setting UWL Service ParametersProcedure
Once the configuration steps shown in the preceding sections are completed, the Universal Worklist
operates without additional configuration. The configuration procedure described in this section is for the
modification of default parameters.
1. On the portal choose System Administration System Configuration .
2. Then in Detailed Navigation choose Universal Worklist and Workflow Universal
Worklist - Administration .
3. Open the tray for the optional UWL service configuration.
4. To change the parameters, click Edit .
5. Edit the default configuration parameters as required.
6. Save configuration settings.
Parameter Description
Default Execution
Mode *
Pessimistic - Before task is launched, check at provider system if the item is still
valid.
Optimistic - No validity check (saves time).
Webflow User
Format *
You can map the data from SAP Business Workflow user to portal using the following
identifiers:
Full Name
User ID
Not Displayed
Parameter Description
Default Cache
Validity Period *
in minutes; after this expiration time, the current item list is updated from the provider
system.
Note
This parameter applies only to provider systems that are not enabled for delta pull .
Default: 5 minutes
Maximum Number of
Threads Created in
the Thread Pool *
The maximum number of Java threads created to contact the component systems.
With this parameter, you can control the number of threads to be created.
More information: Out of Memory Error .
Timeout Value for
the Connected
Systems *
Value in seconds, after which the connection for the systems is timed out. An error in
the system connection status is shown and the items are not retrieved. The UWL will
try to reconnect after five minutes.
Number of Users per
Pull Channel
Default: 40. The number of users together for whom the new item changes will be
fetched in a go.
For details on the Delta Pull Mechanism see Enabling Delta Pull Mechanism .
Path to the UWL
iViews
Contains the location of the UWL iViews called by UWL overview (main) under the
' every user role '.
Default value:
portal_content/every_user/general/uwl
Display Support
Information
False : Support information is not displayed.
True : Support information is displayed.
All parameters marked by an asterisk "*" are required parameters.
Maintain Item CacheDefinition
UWL caches items from different provider systems. This caching is done periodically as specified in the
configuration XML for a particular item type.
You must clear the cache under the following cases:
ItemTypes are customized.
Systems are removed from portal landscape or a system configuration is removed from the UWL
systems configuration page.
Cache Admin IView
To clear the cache, use the Cache Admin IView. Cache can be cleared for all systems or a particular
system.
Select the dropdown list for System Alias , only those registered systems which have items in UWL
cache appear in the list. If a system does not have any items in UWL cache it does not appear in the
list.
Choose Clear Cache .
Choose Clear Expired Items to remove all expired items from the cache.
Configuring iView PropertiesProcedure
This is an optional configuration procedure to configure the UWL iView display, the other being editing the
configuration XML file.
Recommendation
Editing the properties through com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.uwl_iview is the recommended way to change
and configure properties.
On the Portal, choose:
Content Administration Portal Content Content Provided by SAP End User
Content Standard Portal Users iViews com.sap.netweaver.bc.uwl.iviews
Universal Worklist
Right-click on Universal Worklist and select Open Properties .
NoteTo see all Universal Worklist properties, select Show All from the Property Category drop-down
option.
Configure the UWL iView properties shown in the following table.
iView Property Description
Display Connection
Status
Indicate if connection status icon link should be displayed.
Options:
None - do not display at all.
Show - display icon, but do not indicate any errors.
ShowIndicateError - display warning icon when error occurs.
iView Property Description
Display Preview Flag to indicate preview panel is displayed or not with the UWL list view. Set the
default for all users, this can also be personalized by the user.
Display substituted user
selector
Provides support to allow substitution of tasks by other users. If substitution is
not desired it can turned off through this property.
Display UWL Support
Information
Displays the Support information section for all UWL iViews.
For related information, see Removing Actions From the UWL Display .
List of UWL Actions to
exclude
List of actions that you do not want to be displayed on the UWL page. For more
information, see Removing Actions From the UWL Display .
Maximum number of
Dynamic views to be
added
If the Dynamic View should be disabled then it should be done by modifying the
UWL View (See the DTD for details).
The default is 7, if a number is entries which is less then 1, then 1 is used.
sap_uwl_viewname Change the default view of the UWL iView
System Configuration
Group
Define the name of the group of backend systems to be accessed by this UWL
iView. The backend systems for the group are defined with the procedure
described inRegister the SAP Systems .
UWL Navigation Style To hide the navigation area of the UWL, the style can be set to none for this
property.
Wait duration before
calling provider on
loading preview
Introduce a delay in getting all the preview information (in seconds). This feature
increases performance.
Note
This property is available for WebDynpro version only.
Wait duration before
calling providers on
loading of UWL
This feature helps introduce a delay in getting item data in the UWL table. The
user interface displays partial data while waiting. It promotes faster browsing of
items in the UWL table with the preview area.
The longer delay time is especially useful when items have large number of
attachments which usually take a longer time to upload.
Note
No delay is introduced if zero seconds is indicated.
Enabling Delta Pull MechanismUse
Delta Pull mechanism of UWL enables new, modified and deleted items to be fetched from the back-end
systems at regular time interval, by default every 60 seconds.
Once items are retrieved, they are updated in the UWL cache.
Workitems are fetched when the UWL session begins and stop to be fetched when the user logs off or
their session expires.
You can enable Delta Pull for those connectors that support it. WebFlowConnector and
BPMUWLConnector support delta pull. Custom connectors can also support delta pull.Controlling the Delta Pull Mechanism from UWL
From the steps listed below you can enable / disable and specify the time interval between invocations.1. Launch the UWL configuration screen.
You can access the UWL administration pages from Portal System Administration System
Configuration Universal Worklist and Workflow .2. Navigate to the property editor as follows:
From the Universal Worklist Systems choose the system for which you want to edit the
properties.3. Choose Edit.4. See the table below for description of parameters related to the delta pull properties
and set as needed.
Property Description
Delta Pull Channel Refresh
Period (in Seconds)
This is the period at which workitems are fetched from back end to
UWL cache. Default: 60 seconds.
No delta pull calls take place if you leave the field empty or enter a
negative number.
Delta Pull Channel Snapshot
Refresh Period (in Minutes)
This property is obsolete. Do not use.
5. Choose Save to save your changes.Setup necessary from Business Workflow to Enable Delta Pull Mechanism
Some configuration settings are required if you use the UWL and the Extended Notifications for SAP
Business Workflow.
Define the following two batch jobs:1. Background job (for example UWL_DELTA_PULL_1 ), consisting of a single step of ABAP
reportRSWNUWLSEL in FULL mode, using a report variant.
Run the job once a day.
2. A background job (for example UWL_DELTA_PULL_2 ), consisting of a single step of ABAP reportRSWNUWLSEL in DELTA mode (default mode is delta, so report variant is optional).
Run the job every one to three minutes (depending on the performance of the back end SAP
system).
Note
No additional back end configuration is required to enable Delta Pull Mechanism for alerts.
Removing Personalized InformationUse
This UWL Administer Personalized Information iView provides the system administrator with the
capability to delete personalized information for one or all personalized UWL views.Procedure
To delete personalized view information:
1. On the portal, choose System Administration System Configuration .
2. Under Detailed Navigation choose Universal Worklist and Workflow Universal
Worklist - Administration .
3. Scroll down to Universal Worklist Content Configuration and there click the link to administrate
item types and view definitions.
4. Go to the Reset Personalization tab.
5. Enter the logon ID of the user whose personalized information of a view you want to remove.
6. To display all personalized views for the specified user in the table below, choose Show Views .
Select the view in the table for which you want to delete the personalized information.
You can also directly enter the name of the view in the View Name field.
Note
If you leave the fields empty, the personalized information will be deleted for all users and views.
7. Click Remove Personalizations to delete the personalized information for one or more specified
view or views.
For information on user personalization, see Personalizing the UWL Display .
Enabling MemoUse
Users can add additional information as a note (memo) to a Business Workflow task.
This option is not available on the user interface by default. See procedure below to enable this feature by
configuring the XML file.Procedure
Configure the XML file for the item type for which you want to enable this feature. For example: a decision
item, or even the generic uwl.task.webflow .
1. Add the following to the custom XML file:
<Action reference="addMemo"/>
2. Upload the XML file. Clear the cache.Result
On the UWL user interface, under the section You can also , a new link Add Memo is visible.
Switching off the UWL CacheContext
You can switch off the UWL cache for an application in the UWL configuration, for example, if the
application runs on the same application server as the UWL. In this case the access to the back end can
be faster without using the cache database even if all iView related actions require direct back-end calls.
The following graphic illustrates, how and from where the items are transported into the UWL:
Figure 1:
Procedure1. In the portal, choose System Administration System Configuration Universal
Worklist & Workflow Universal Worklist - Administration .2. In the list of systems, deselect the Use Cache checkbox of the item provider system, for
which you do not want to use the UWL cache.
Caution
Switch off the UWL cache can result in a serious impairment of performance.
Enabling Refresh of Completed ItemsPrerequisites
You have configured an RFC destination with load balancing for connection with the back-end system.
The back-end system has the SAP_ABA and SAP_BASIS components.
The user on the back-end system, configured in the RFC destination, must have the S_RFC_ADM
ACTVT=1permission.
Context
The Universal Worklist (UWL) mechanism for refreshing of completed items enables automatic update of
the UWL task list. Thus, when items are set to status Complete , they are removed from the New and In
Progress view in the UWL. You can configure UWL to refresh its tasks list at time period different that the
minimum 20 second period. The user does not need to use the refresh function to update the inbox.
Refresh for completed items is applicable to WebflowConnector only. Refresh for completed items can
be enabled on registered WebFlowConnectors or while registering a new WebflowConnector with the
UWL service after defining a new system connection.
For more information, see UWL Connectors .
You need to first activate the refresh for completed items from the backend system.
Note
Enabling the refresh for completed items of a the Webflow Connector might lead to undesired changes
in the reaction time of UWL. Hence, lower performance results.
Procedure1. On the portal, navigate to System Administration System Configuration Universal
Worklist and Workflow Universal Worklist Administration .2. Choose the New pushbutton to configure the connector. Enter the system alias you are
using.
You can also select an already registered WebflowConnector and choose the Edit pushbutton.3. From the Connector Type dropdown list, choose WebFlowConnector .4. Fill in the configuration details for the connector.5. Select the Refresh completed items checkbox.6. To define the time period for UWL task list update, enter a number (in seconds) in
the Refresh Period for Completed Items (in Seconds) field.
Caution
Enter a value between 5 and 20 that is a multiple of 5 (for example, 10 or 15 ).
7. To save the current connector registration, choose the Save pushbutton.
The Webflow filtering by item type allows more flexible control over the types of work items being fetched
by Webflow Connector. It enables you to specify supported and excluded item types for each UWL
Webflow Connector.
You can access this new functionality using the Universal Worklist Systems administration screen. To
do this, proceed as follows:
In the portal, navigate to System Administration System Configuration Universal Worklist
and Workflow Universal Worklist - Administration Universal Worklist Configuration . To
apply the filtering option, you can use the fields for supported item types and excluded item types.
Note
These fields are available only when a new WebFlowConnector is being created or an existing
WebflowConnector is being edited. They are not shown with any other connector.
Filtering by Supported and Excluded Item TypesFor more information about applying the filtering by supported and excluded item types, see: Filtering by Supported and Excluded Item Types.
Supported and Excluded Item Types FieldsFor more information about the supported and excluded item types fields, see: Supported and Excluded Item Types Fields.
Validation of Supported and Excluded Item Types FieldsFor more information about the validation of supported item types and excluded item types fields, see: Validation of Supported and Excluded Item Types Fields.
Filtering by Supported and Excluded Item TypesEach instance of Webflow connector in UWL administrative UI allows a list of supported and excluded
item types to be set. You can enter both supported and excluded item types as a list.
.The following two sections define how filtering is approached regarding the two different scenarios for
Set A comprises the supported item types defined for each connector level.
Set B comprises the item types defined for each UWL View using the XML configuration.
Set C comprises the item types enumerated in the excluded item types defined for each connector.
Filtering in a Snapshot Scenario by Supported and Excluded Item Types Filtering by Supported Item Types
In a snapshot scenario, UWL will fetch the intersection of set A and set B. Only the items belonging to
item types defined in both sets are read from the back end and transferred to the UWL internal cache.
Example
User has defined X, Y and Z item types in their connector list of supported item type definitions (set A). User has defined Y and Z item types in their current View XML definition (set B). When the respective view is being loaded, UWL will fetch items belonging to Y and Z item types to the UWL internal cache. This is because Y and Z belong to both set A and set B.
Filtering by List of Excluded Item Types
In a snapshot scenario, UWL will fetch the relative complement of C in the intersection of set A and set B.
(A ∩ B) \ C
In other words, UWL will exclude all items from set C from the item types that are defined in both sets A
and B. Then these items will be fetched from the back end and transferred to the UWL internal cache.
Example
User has defined X, Y and Z item types in their connector list of supported item type definitions (set A). User has defined Y and Z item types in their current View XML definition (set B). User has defined Y and W in the list of excluded item types (set C). When the respective view is being loaded, UWL will fetch items belonging to Z item type to the UWL internal cache. This is because Y and Z belong to both set A and set B, and Y is subtracted because of its existence in set C.
Filtering in the Delta Pull Scenario by Supported and Excluded Item Types Filtering by Supported Item Types
In the Delta Pull scenario, UWL fetches all item types belonging to set A. UWL Delta Pull is a scheduled
job running regularly regardless of UWL View definitions. It is not possible to bind item types defined for
each view level to Delta Pull jobs.
Example
User has defined X, Y and Z item types in their connector list of supported item type definitions. Regardless of any UWL View definitions when the Delta Pull job for a particular WebFlowConnector is being executed, all belonging to the item types X,Y and Z will be fetched to the UWL internal cache.
Filtering by List of Excluded Item Types
In this scenario, UWL fetches all items that belong to the relative complement of C in A.
UWL excludes all items from set C from the item types defined in set A. Then the Delta pull job fetches all
item types belonging to the resulting item type list.
Example
User has defined X,Y and Z items types in their connector list of supported item type definitions (set A). User has defined Y and W in their excluded item type definitions (set C). When the Delta Pull job for the particular WebFlowConnector is being executed, all items belonging to item types X and Z will be fetched to the UWL internal cache. This is because item types Y and W are subtracted as they exist in set C.
Supported and Excluded Item Types FieldsYou are able to specify supported and excluded item types or ranges for each UWL Webflow
Connector.Supported Item Types Field
In the Supported Item Types field you specify the item types or ranges to filter.
The Supported Item Types field recognizes item types as enumeration of literals separated by
commas “,” or semicolons ";". The supported item types need to be inscribed with TS or WS at the
beginning and followed by eight digits (TSnnnnnnnn or WSnnnnnnnn).
Example
TS30000016, WS70000264
In connector edit mode, the Supported Item Type field is an editable box in which you can enter text.
In view mode, the Supported Item Type field label has a fixed width to match the width of the table.
The height of the label is variable and extends at runtime to accommodate the item type enumeration
length.
The range is defined as all possible numeric values between the lowest and highest numbers in the item
type or workflow type. They must be separated by a hyphen "-".
Example
The range between TS30000003 and TS30000006(TS30000003-TS30000006) is: TS30000003, TS30000004, TS30000005, TS30000006
Excluded Item Types Field
In the Excluded Item Types field, you can specify the item types or ranges to filter.
The Excluded Item Types field recognizes item types as an enumeration of literals separated by
commas“,”or semicolons ";".
Example
TS00000007, TS30000008
In connector edit mode, the “Excluded Item Type” field is an editable box in which you can enter text.
In view mode, the Excluded Item Type field label has a fixed width to match the width of the table. The
height of the label is variable and extends at runtime to accommodate the item type enumeration length.
The range is defined as all possible numeric values between the lowest and highest numbers in the item
type or workflow type. They must be separated by a hyphen "-".
Example
The range between WS30000003 and WS30000006(WS30000003-WS30000006) is: WS30000003, WS30000004, WS30000005, WS30000006
Validation of Supported and Excluded Item Types FieldsYou can validate supported and excluded item types fields by choosing the Save button in the user
interface.Validation of Data in Supported Item Types Range and Excluded Item Types Range
1. The item type identifier has to start with TS or WS and end with an eight digit number2. The starting item type has to be formed by a lower number then the ending item type
Example
Starting: TS00000001
Ending: TS00000007or
Starting: WS00000001
Ending: WS00000007Validation of Data in the Supported Item Types Field
1. The list of the supported item types are provided as a comma-separated list of item types.
2. The item type identifier has to start with TS or WSand end with an eight digit number.
Example
TS00000001, TS00000002, TS80000001, WS70000264
Validation of Data in the Excluded Item Types Field
1. The list of the excluded item types are provided as a comma-separated list of item types.
2. The item type identifier has to start with TS or WS and end with an eight digit number.
Example
TS00000004, TS00000012, TS70000001, WS70000264
Using Primary Pull to Retrieve Custom AttributesPrerequisites
You need to initially configure custom attributes for particular a item type.
Context
You can define custom attributes for every item in your inbox. For example, you have an item an invoice
receipt. Apart from the standard attributes, you can define custom ones, for example invoice value. When
you define custom attributes, they are retrieved to your inbox asynchronously from the standard
attributes. This means that once an item arrives, these custom attributes are retrieved in additional calls
to the backend. For performance reasons, in order to minimize response times to the end user, this may
happen while the item is displayed to the end user - causing such attributes to be empty initially and only
to appear in subsequent requests.
Depending on the implementation of the connector, the item provider may also define hollow attributes for
each item. This means that after the first call to the backend retrieves all items for users, some attributes
(the hollow attributes) remain empty. They are displayed and populated with value with subsequent calls
to the backend. You cannot edit or configure the hollow attributes.
It is possible to synchronously load the custom and hollow attributes with the primary pull of items of the
connectors you configured for. In this case you do not need to do several refreshes to fill in the custom
attributes. To do this, you can enable the synchronous retrieval of items, standard attributes and custom
attributes.
Note
Enabling direct retrieval of custom attributes for a connector might lead to undesired changes in the
reaction time of UWL. Hence, lower performance results.
In addition, this setting takes effect only after you upload the appropriate XML configuration file.
For more information on custom attributes, see CustomAttributes , CustomAttributeSource and
Attribute .
Procedure1. On the portal, navigate to System Administration System Configuration Universal
Worklist and Workflow Universal Worklist Administration .2. Select the connector for which you want to use synchronous retrieval mechanism and
choose the Editpushbutton.
Note
You can also enable the synchronous retrieval mechanism when creating a new system connection.3. Select the Retreieve Custom Attributes Using Primary Pull checkbox.4. Save your changes.
Advanced ConfigurationDefinition
This section describes the basics for creating an override function that launches your customized iViews
or other visualizations.
You must have developer's knowledge to perform the advanced configuration steps.
In this section you will learn, how to:
Creating Custom Views
Customizing the UWL Tabs
Removing Actions From the UWL Display
Configuring Alerts in UWL
Decision Views
Task Launch Customization
Internationalization of XML Configuration
Transport of XML ConfigurationExample
Many Business Workflow (formerly known as Webflow) work items launch by default as SAP
Transactions in the SAP GUI for HTML.
For reasons of simplification and improved visual integration into the Enterprise Portal, application
scenarios and customers often prefer to re-implement work item visualization and execution using iViews.
Implementations of these visualizations require knowledge of the Business Workflow API to retrieve work
Example of removing or moving the Tracking section:
To Remove, delete the red text from the XML and the track section will not be displayed.
To Move, move the red text above the blue text and it will become the second tab. <NavigationNode name="Collaboration" groupId="UWL_COLL_NAV" global="yes"> <NavigationNode name="collTask" view="CollTaskView" referenceBundle="nav_coll_task"> <NavigationNode name="PersonalViewPlaceHolderCollTask" referenceGroup="UWL_PERSONAL"/> </NavigationNode> <NavigationNode name="collAssign" view="CollAssignView" referenceBundle="nav_coll_assign"> <NavigationNode name="PersonalViewPlaceHolderCollAssign" referenceGroup="UWL_PERSONAL"/> </NavigationNode> <NavigationNode name="collTrack" view="CollTrackView" referenceBundle="nav_coll_track"> <NavigationNode name="PersonalViewPlaceHolderCollTrack" referenceGroup="UWL_PERSONAL"/> </NavigationNode></NavigationNode>
The standard UWL navigation is defined in the uwl.standard.xml file and has the NavigationId of Main. <NavigationNode name="Main" groupId="UWL_GLOBAL_NAV2" > <NavigationNode name="CombinedTask" view="DefaultView" referenceBundle="nav_tasks"> <NavigationNode name="task2" view="DefaultView" referenceBundle="nav_combined_tasks"> <NavigationNode name="PersonalViewPlaceHolderTask2" referenceGroup="UWL_PERSONAL"/> </NavigationNode>
name Use to reference the Navigation Node (Must be unique, unless override existing configuration)
groupId Used to allow including this Navigation Node into Other Navigation Nodes.
view Name of the View to be used when the Navigation node has been selected.
referenceBu
ndle
Defines the display text to be used for this Navigation Node.
referenceGr
oup
Indicate this Navigation Node should be replaced with other Navigation Nodes of the specified
GroupId.UWL_PERSONAL is a reserved group id to indicate location of The User's
Personalized Views.
Post Modification Steps
After modifications have been made upload the new configuration. Perform the following steps:
1. Go to System Administration System Configuration Universal Worklist &
Workflow Universal Worklist Administration .
2. Choose Click to Manage Item Types and View Definitions .
3. Go to the Upload New Configuration tab.
4. Enter the configuration name.
5. Choose the XML file created in earlier step by clicking on Browse .
6. Choose the priority and select the system to which the configuration is adapted.
7. Choose Upload .
Removing Actions From the UWL DisplayUse
There are a few ways to remove actions.
You can customize the Views and ItemType (which can remove the actions from all UWL pages,
Collaboration, My Task, and so on)
You can modify the iView and add the name of the actions under the Actions to exclude from the
UWL property.
See table below for some of the common action names.
Note
For other actions not listed here, see the custom properties XML files.
Action Display Text Action Name
Alerts Configuration AlertConfiguration
Claim reserve
Complete acknowledge
Complete Task confirm
Create Ad Hoc Request uwlTaskWizard
Action Display Text Action Name
Create Task defaultGlobalWizard
Decline decline
Delete deleteItem
Edit editItem
Follow-up followUp
Forward forward
Forward forwardUsers *
Manage Attachments manageAttachments
Open Task launchSAPAction
Personalize View personalize
Revoke Claim replace
Submit Memo addmemo
View Detail viewDetail
View Detail in SAP GUI launchSAPDetails
* - this action is for multiple user selection.
Note
If excluding more than one actions, the action names must be comma separated.
CautionDo not add all of the above listed action names to Actions to Exclude iView property. Be selective in
what actions you want to remove. To determine the action name you want to remove, you can turn on the
support information page (see below) and a list of support action will be displayed per item displayed.
Caution
If you edit the custom XML file for the above properties, then note that you must NOT change
theUWL.standard.xml file. Create a new custom UWL XML file and you have to give that XML file a
high priority. You can now remove the corresponding navigation tabs by removing corresponding tasks in
the UWL XML file.
NoteIf you want the Open Task button (Web GUI) and the work item link (SAP GUI) to have the same
function, you have to make sure that the same action is defined for Open Task ( LaunchSAPAction ) as
for the default action. The default action is specified by the defaultAction attribute of ItemType .
More information: Item Type
Example
General Example to Remove a Function
To remove the Personalize View function on the UWL view, add personalize to the iView
property Actions to Exclude from UWL .
A Business Scenario
Business case question : You have My Task iView on all the home pages which are available to
internal and external users. You do not want to provide New Task function for external users. How can
you hide New Taskbutton based on users or roles, or remove New Task button from the My
Task iView?
Solution : It is possible to remove the button with the UWL iView property Actions to exclude from
UWL .
Create two portal roles, one for internal users, one for external users. Each role should refer to a different
page with a different UWL iView instance.
For the internal role, you can just link to the standard UWL My Task iView, and the button remains in
place.
For the external role, set the UWL iView property mentioned above to the
value defaultGlobalWizard ,uwlTaskWizard to exclude the button (which will also exclude the Create
Ad Hoc Request button).
How to Turn on the Support Information Section
From the UWL iView configuration, select Yes for the parameter Display UWL Support Information .
Configuring Alerts in UWLUse
Alerts provide active delivery of mission critical information and have support for E-mail, SMS/pager, fax,
Web interface, and so on. You can get personalized alert delivery through your preferred channel. UWL
provides the platform for compiling your alerts for easy viewing.
Figure 1: Figure: General Alert Management Scenario
The steps below describe how to set-up Alerts in Universal Worklist view.
Process Flow
Alerts within an alert category are defined by various properties:
Title, short text and long text
Variables that can be used in title, short or long text (application data)
Priority
Recipients
Escalation procedure
Subsequent activities (in form of URLs)
Alert categories can be defined by applications or customers using the alert category definition
environment in transaction ALRTCATDEF .
Triggering an Alert
Alerts can be triggered either by using one of the following frameworks
Event in the Business Object Repository
o Define event linkage with transaction SWE2
o Receiver function module: SALRT_CREATE_VIA_EVENT
Action of the Post Processing Framework (PPF)
Auto-Reaction Method in CCMS (since 6.40)
Triggering as a step in a SAP Workflow
or by direct call of the function module SALRT_CREATE_API
Steps to be performed in UWL
Caution
Make sure you have performed these mandatory steps for UWL configuration.
1. Register the system in UWL and select AlertConnector
Be sure to select AlertConnector
Note
The System Alias must match the system alias
2. Register work item typesMore Information
For more information on Alerts, see http://service.sap.com/alert .
Customizing Alert Actions in UWLUse
Actions Meaning
Acknowledge Complete
defaultglobalwizard Create Task
personalize Personalize View
Retrieving Custom Attributes from Alert Container
Custom attributes defined in the alert container can be retrieved via a custom xml, for example: <ItemType name="uwl.alert.EP_PCT_MGR_VAR.SAP_ECC_Financials" connector="AlertConnector" defaultView="EP_PCT_MGR_VARView_MSS_TEST" executionMode="default" defaultAction="viewDetail"> <CustomAttributes> <CustomAttributeSource id="ALERT_CONTAINER" objectIdHolder="externalObjectId" objectType="AlertContainer" cacheValidity="Session"> <Attribute name="RULE" type="string" displayName="Rule" />
Do not specify the systemid attribute. It is recommended to keep the configuration independent of a
specific system. The system, to which the configuration should apply to, is better specified in the
upload page (Adapt to system).
Define view to include the display of the decision options as check boxes <Views> <View name="myRejectedRequestView" width="98%" supportedItemTypes="uwl.task.webflow.TS00008267" columnOrder="attachmentCount, detailIcon, subject, priority,
</Descriptions> </DisplayAttribute> <DisplayAttribute name="dropCol" type="checkbox" width="" actionRef="2" vAlign="TOP" hAlign="CENTER"> <Descriptions default=""> <ShortDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description=" Withdraw"/> </ShortDescriptions> <LongDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description="Withdraw from the request"/> </LongDescriptions> </Descriptions> </DisplayAttribute> </DisplayAttributes> …………….other definitions go here <Actions> <!-- the user decisions are for rendering in the column, not in the
tool bar. Option Revise has internal value 1 and option Withdraw has internal value 2 and both are to be handled by the UserDecisonHandler-->
<Action name="1" userDecision="yes" handler="UserDecisionHandler "/> <Action name="2" userDecision="yes" handler="UserDecisionHandler "/> <!-- the following referenced actions are defined in uwl.standard --> <Action reference="submitUserDecisions" /> …………….other definitions go here </Actions> </View> </Views>
Save the xml definition and verify the validity in Internet Explorer .
Upload the configuration.
Create a work item of this task for a user, and go to UWL page. A link of the newly defined view
'Rejected Requests' should be visible.
Terminating events
Definite terminating events can also be displayed for users to pick as user decision options, for
example: Approve or Reject, and then complete the item. In Business Workflow, there is this section in
task definition that user can create terminating event(s) .
This can be specified in the configuration file to enable the options in the view with extra columns
when the terminating event id is known.
The main update is the definition under the itemtype for such task and your customized view (<View>
section), refer to previous section Generic User Decision. Details in the following table.
(Optional): Include custom attributes in the view for each item to assist the decision making process.
The following steps describe how to configure the UWL to include terminating events Approved and
Rejected as user decision and display these 2 options as checkboxes in the view for task TS91100019
Open your existing configuration XML file, or create a new one as described in ý0.
Add a new item type within the <ItemTypes> tag with a unique type name:
Include the action definition for the <ItemType> with the precise event id as action name, add the
definition accordingly within the <Action> block: <ItemTypes> <ItemType name="uwl.task.webflow.TS91100019" connector="WebFlowConnector" …………………………….other definitions go here> … <Actions> <Action name="approved" userDecision="yes" handler="TerminatingEventHandler"> <Descriptions default="Approve"/> </Action> <Action name="rejected" userDecision="yes" handler="TerminatingEventHandler"> <Descriptions default="Reject"/> </Action> </Actions> …………………………….other definitions go here> </ItemType> ….. </ItemTypes>
Define view to include the display of the decision options as check boxes <Views> <View name=" myApprovalRejectView_TE" width="98%" supportedItemTypes="uwl.task.webflow.TS91100019" columnOrder="attachmentCount, detailIcon, subject, priority, creatorId,
createdDate, rejectCol, approveCol" sortby="priority" selectionMode="SINGLESELECT" tableDesign="STANDARD" visibleRowCount="10" headerVisible="yes" tableNavigationFooterVisible="yes" tableNavigationType="CUSTOMNAV" actionRef=""> <Descriptions default="My Reject Approval_TE"> <ShortDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description=" My Reject Approval_TE"/> </ShortDescriptions> </Descriptions> <DisplayAttributes> <DisplayAttribute name="rejectCol" type="checkbox" width="" actionRef="rejected" vAlign="TOP" hAlign="CENTER"> <Descriptions default=""> <ShortDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description="Reject"/> </ShortDescriptions> </Descriptions> </DisplayAttribute> <DisplayAttribute name="approveCol" type="checkbox" width="" actionRef="approved" vAlign="TOP" hAlign="CENTER"> <Descriptions default=""> <ShortDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description="Approve"/> </ShortDescriptions> </Descriptions> </DisplayAttribute> </DisplayAttributes> …………….other definitions go here <!-- the user decisions are for rendering in the column. Option Approve
and option Reject are both to be handled by the TerminatingEventHandler --> <Actions> <Action name="approved" userDecision="yes"
handler="TerminatingEventHandler"> <Descriptions default="Approve"/> </Action> <Action name="rejected" userDecision="yes" handler="TerminatingEventHandler"> <Descriptions default="Reject"/> </Action> <!-- the following referenced actions are defined in
uwl.standard --> <Action reference="submitUserDecisions" /> …………….other definitions go here </View> </Views>
Save the xml definition and verify the validity in Internet Explorer.
Upload the configuration.
Create a work item of this task for a user, and go to UWL page. A link of the newly defined view My
Reject Approval_TE should be visible. Click on the link and view (depends on your configuration,
with or without custom attributes).
Work Item Completion with Container Update
A special handler in UWL to simply complete the task item and update the Business Workflow
container with the specified data in the configuration file under the <ItemType> section defined for the
item.
No particular prerequisite in Business Workflow required.
The main update is the definition under the itemtype for such task and your customized view (<View>
section).
The following steps describe how to configure the UWL to include options Option1 and Option2 as user
decision and display them as checkboxes in the view. Each option, implicitly, will update the webflow
container accordingly and complete the item of type TS91100019.
Open your existing configuration XML file, or create a new one.
Add a new item type within the <ItemTypes> tag with a unique type name:
The following parameters are optionally passed on to the iView, when no parameters are explicitly
defined.
wi_id
Work item ID in the provider system
destination
System alias in the portal system landscape of the provider system
item_id
Internal UWL item ID
task
Provider task item type
uname
Back end user ID for webflow connector, alert connector and generic ABAP connector, otherwise
portal user ID
langu
User language in upper case ISO language code
Example
Example of using dynamic properties: <Action ...> <Properties> ... <Property name="workitemId" value="${item.externalId}"/> <Property name="system" value="${item.systemId}"/></Properties></Action>
This will result in passing workitemId and system parameters to the target page/iView. This is the same
as specifying iviewDynamicParameter property: <Action ...>
To ensure backward compatibility the value pcd: can be omitted: <Property name="iview" value="portal_content/com.sap.pct/every_user/general/iViews/myDemoIView">
If the iView or a portal page is part of the role, then the ID is calculated as follows:
"ROLES://" + role id without "pcd:" + folder IDs in the role + iView ID. For example: <Property name="iview" value="ROLES://portal_content/every_user/general/eu_role/com.sap.km.home_ws/com.sap.km.MyInfo/ com.sap.km.MyInfoOverview">
where portal_content/every_user/general/eu_role is the role ID, com.sap.km.home_ws is ID
of Home folder in the role, com.sap.km.MyInfo is ID of My Info folder
and com.sap.km.MyInfoOverview is the ID of Overview iView.
For webflow connector iViewLauncher can be configured on the back end
using SWFVISU transaction. The table below summarizes the mapping between the launcher
parameters and the visualization parameters.
Launcher Parameter Visualization Type Visualization Parameter
Remark: All mandatory and optional parameters entered while creating the iView wrapper can be
overridden in the XML file, for example, overriding the application name: <Action name="launchDemoSAPAction" handler="SAPAppLauncher"> <Properties> <Property name="SAPIntegrator" value="ROLES://portal_content/com.sap.pct/every_user/general/iViews/test_webdynpro"/> <Property name="DynamicParameter" value="apple=macintosh"/> <Property name="WebDynproApplication" value="Editor"/>
</Properties> <Descriptions default="Launch Demo SAP Action (WebDynPro)"> <ShortDescriptions> <Description Language="en" Description="Launch Demo SAP Action (WebDynPro)"/> </ShortDescriptions> </Descriptions></Action>
SAPIACLauncherUse
You can use SAPIACLauncher to launch an SAP Internet application component, including ITS MiniApp.
Provider specific Information
SAPIACLauncher is provider agnostic. Items may belong to any connector.
Supported Actions
Action name can be anything.
Properties
SAPIACLauncher expects one required property:
IAC (mandatory)
An ID of the IAC or a template of the ITS MiniApp
ApplicationParameter (optional)
Application parameters passed to the IAC. Default is URL encoded string ~okcode=cont&wi_id=$
{item.externalId}.
System (optional)
A system alias of the system in the portal system landscape, where to launch the IAC. Default is the
system where the work item originated.
All other properties will be passed as name=URL encoded value to the IAC.Example
Following is the definition of an action that launches a MiniApp BWWF_WI_DECI <Action name="launchMiniApp" handler="SAPIACLauncher"> <Properties> <Property name="IAC" value="BWWF_WI_DECI"/> </Properties> </Action>
Details
If ApplicationParameter is not specified then Parameters passed on to the launched
transaction: wi_id (work item ID in the provider system) and ~okcode=cont