This unit provides an introduction to workflows, the processes that help solve business problems. Workflows can help manage interactions between information workers, automate tasks that were previously done manually and provide consistency for business processes. Here you will learn about workflows and the tools used to build them, Visio 2010, SharePoint Designer 2010 and Visual Studio.
Hands-On Labs
Client Workflow Lab
Now with both C# and VB code samples! In this lab, you will build a workflow process using Visio 2010, SharePoint Designer 2010 and Visual Studio 2010. The end goal of the workflow process is to approve timesheet submission. The employee will submit an entry. The process will examine several fields and end up with an approved timesheet. At this point, the data is used to generate a Word document containing a printable version of the timesheet.
Videos
Why Do We Need Workflow?
What are workflows and why do we need them? This video provides a foundational understanding for workflows and how they can manage interaction between workers, automate processes, etc. It then discusses workflows in relationship to SharePoint objects, List Items, Document Libraries, Document Sets and Sites. It also introduces you to two of the tools used for creating workflows, SharePoint Designer and Visual Studio.
Visio and SharePoint Designer Workflow
Visio 2010 and SharePoint Designer 2010 can be used in concert to create a workflow. This video describes how each tool plays a specific role in the development process. Visio allows the business analyst to define the process and SharePoint Designer allows the power user to implement the process. Visio and SharePoint Designer feature a roundtrip import/export of the file that enables an iterative process during workflow creation.
Visual Studio 2010 SharePoint Workflow
New project templates for SharePoint 2010 in Visual Studio 2010 allow developers to build sequential and state machine workflows for SharePoint and import reusable workflows created in SharePoint Designer. This video describes the use of these templates, automatic WSP generation and deployment, and designer-based management of Features in Visual Studio.