Step—Logical groupings of information presented to the user as a unit. For example, a step may prompt the user for input values, provide the user with feedback about collected input, or provide information about the state of the system. See Adding Steps to a Process.

At the completion of a step, CIM has prepared one or more tasks with the values necessary for execution. These tasks are not yet executed. However, each time CIM collects a value from the user it has an opportunity to execute logic. For example, before moving on to the next step, you may want to ensure that the user has not included disallowed characters in their input.

After a step has collected all of the information required to execute its related tasks, CIM prepares these tasks and places them in a buffer for later execution.

Process—A logical grouping of steps. There are no enforced restrictions, but you should contain all task dependencies within the process. Each step in a process should be able to execute on its own, without previous processes running. For example, if a step in a process requires a JDBC connection, that connection should be configured within the process, and should not rely on a step in another process. See Creating CIM Wizards and Processes.

Wizard—A set of one or more processes executed in order to configure a product. See Creating CIM Wizards and Processes.

Task—Carries out the work specified in the step. A step can include more than one task. See Adding Tasks to Steps.

Validator—Can check system state to ensure that information is processed correctly, or can validate user input for a variety of possible error conditions, allowing you to alter the script’s flow. See Adding Validators.