Chapter 13   Setting Up Searching


If you want end users to be able to search their process instance data, you need to design the application to enable the search capability.

This chapter includes these sections:

• Types of Searching

• Enabling Searching

Types of Searching

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You can make applications and data searchable if you want to allow end users to search applications in Process Express. In each application, you can configure two levels of searching: global searching and application-specific searching. The search page is similar to the one shown in Figure 13-1.

Figure 13-1    The Process Express Search Page

In addition, the user can search by their request number, but you do not have to set up anything in the application to allow that kind of search. It is set up automatically for every application.

Global Searching

Global searching is always available to users when they search using the following options:

• the most recent process instances they created

• all the process instances they created that are still open

• all the process instances they created within a date range

Each search option generates a list of process instances that match its search criteria. Each entry in a list contains a link that displays the process instance and another link that displays the history of the process instance.

Application-Specific Searching

You can also configure an application so that participants can search for particular data within it. For example, if you have a data sheet application, you can configure it so that the user can search all instances of the data sheet process by product model number.

The Process Manager software automatically generates a search form for an application. The search form lets users search for values of fields if you made the fields searchable when you created the field. For example, if your application includes nine data fields, but you only made two searchable, the user can search for the values in those two fields.

The search form generates a list of process instances that match the search criteria. Each entry in the list contains a link to display the process instance and a link to the history of the process instance.

Enabling Searching

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To set up searching for an application, you must do the following:

• Set up the appropriate groups to allow members to perform searches.

• Set up forms so that all users for whom you enable searching have forms at all activities.

• Set the appropriate fields to be searchable.

Allowing a Group to Search

To allow members of a group to perform searches, you must set the group to allow searching. If you do not allow searching, members of the group will not be able to use the search functionality to check the status of process instances or to find process instances related to specific criteria. You can allow searching for Application, Corporate, and Dynamic groups. If users are members of more than one group, they can search as long as one of the groups they belong to allows searching.

To allow members of a group to search, follow these steps:

1. In the application tree view, open the Groups and Roles folder.

2. Double-click a group icon, or highlight the group and click Inspect.

3. In the dialog box for the appropriate group, check the Allow Search checkbox.

4. Close the dialog box. Your changes are saved automatically.

Setting Up Forms

To allow users to get information about a specific step in a process instance, they must have a form they can access for that step. For example, if the creator of a process instance searches for information about it, and the process instance is at a step where there isn't a form the creator can access, he or she cannot get more information about the step beyond its listing in the search results. If the user has a form for that step, the listing has a link to view more information.

One way to make sure that there is always a way for users to see more information on a process instance is to create forms which give a status of the process and set them up for the "all" group. However, for sensitive work items, you might not want to allow all users to see information during the process. In those cases you would set up forms for users who need to have access to the data.

If you want users to be able to see more than the search listing in the search results, follow these steps:

1. In the application tree view, double-click the Form Access icon, or highlight the icon and click Inspect.

   The Form Access window appears.

2. Scan the vertical columns to make sure every user you want to view the data has a form they can see for every activity.

   Note that you do not need to assign a form specifically for every role. For example, if you have created a form for the "all" role, the creator and other groups and roles will be able to access that form.

3. If you want to add a form to a column, drag the form from the Application Tree View window to the appropriate box in the Form Access window.

   If the form you need hasn't been created, you need to create one and come back to this step. You may have to create a new form if you have not created an appropriate form already.

4. Close the Form Access window.

Allowing Searching for Fields

In order for users to be able to use a field as a criterion when they search, you need to make the field searchable. The following predefined field types can be made searchable:

• Computed

• Date

• DateTime

• Radio Button

• Select List

• TextField

• UserPicker Widget

To make a field searchable, perform the following steps:

1. In the application tree view, double-click the field you want to make searchable, or highlight it and click Inspect.

2. In the Inspector window, set the Allow Search property to true.

3. Close the window. Your changes are saved automatically.

   
   

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   Note	If a field is searchable, the field length must not exceed 2000 characters.

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If you have created your own field class IDs instead of using the predefined ones, you must include the Allow Search property in the JSB file. For details, see the Custom Data Fields chapter of the Process Manager Programmer's Guide.