forge-business-flow-development

name

forge-business-flow-development

description

Develop Forge business approval workflows backed by Flowable, using the current sample purchase order approval as the reference. Use when creating or reviewing a code-first or low-code business process in Forge, binding business records to flow models, designing business process status transitions, integrating BusinessCodeFormProvider or low-code forms with task forms, writing Flyway SQL for business tables/dictionaries/app-center/flow bindings, configuring BPMN node form permissions, callbacks, resubmit/reject behavior, and validating end-to-end workflow behavior.

Forge Business Flow Development

Overview

Use this skill to implement a complete Forge business workflow: business table, status machine, Flowable model binding, task form integration, SQL seed scripts, app-center entry, and validation. The primary reference is the current sample_purchase_order approval flow.

Workflow

1. Identify the implementation mode.

   • Code-first complex business: read references/code-first-workflow.md.
   • Low-code runtime business object: read references/lowcode-workflow.md.
   • Unsure: default to code-first only when the business needs custom Service logic, custom tables, or non-trivial status repair.

2. Always read the shared references before editing workflow code.

   • references/purchase-order-reference.md for the known-good sample and file map.
   • references/status-and-callbacks.md for status transitions, callbacks, and repair rules.
   • references/sql-templates.md before writing Flyway scripts.
   • references/bpmn-configuration.md before creating or changing BPMN node config.
   • references/validation-checklist.md before testing or final review.

3. Keep configuration ownership clear.

   • Business app config owns object binding, document/status field, flow model key, title template, and variable mapping.
   • BPMN node config owns node form asset, field permissions, approver policy, reject/return/countersign behavior, and advanced expressions.
   • ai_business_binding.binding_config.nodeForms is compatibility fallback, not the primary source for new node configuration.

4. Use these invariants.

   • businessKey format: <objectCode>:<recordId>.
   • Store business_key and process_instance_id on the business table.
   • Use string IDs in frontend flow variables and API payloads; never convert Snowflake Long IDs to JavaScript Number.
   • Business status must be idempotent and repairable from active task nodes.
   • Complex SQL belongs in Mapper XML.
   • Flyway scripts must be repeatable or guarded with NOT EXISTS; tenant data uses tenant_id = 1.

Deliverables

When building a new workflow, produce or update:

• Business table migration with workflow fields and status dictionary.
• Entity, DTO, VO, Mapper, Mapper XML, Service, Controller.
• FlowDefinition constants and default form asset metadata.
• BusinessCodeFormProvider for code-first forms, or low-code form asset config for low-code objects.
• BPMN model or model initialization path with node form permissions and variable expressions.
• App Center suite/object/app seed and ai_business_binding flow binding seed.
• Frontend page/API only when code-first business needs a custom business page.
• Validation notes covering compile, SQL checks, task form permissions, approve/reject/resubmit, and readonly done/history view.

Non-Negotiables

• Do not build a second node configuration UI outside the real flow designer.
• Do not hardcode dictionary options or status labels in Vue pages.
• Do not seed business data with tenant_id = 0.
• Do not overwrite an existing BPMN XML during sample/init logic just because it differs from code defaults; preserve designer-edited node config.
• Do not rely only on PROCESS_COMPLETED variables for final status; task-completed and task-created callbacks must also maintain the business state.
• Do not let Provider save fields that the current node did not mark writable; platform filtering is a guard, Provider logic must still validate business state.

Reference Routing

Read only the references needed for the task, but read each selected file fully.

• references/code-first-workflow.md: custom business module workflow modeled after purchase order.
• references/lowcode-workflow.md: dynamic CRUD business object workflow.
• references/purchase-order-reference.md: exact files and behavior in the current sample.
• references/status-and-callbacks.md: status machine and callback safety.
• references/bpmn-configuration.md: BPMN node form/permission/variable configuration.
• references/sql-templates.md: complete Flyway SQL template.
• references/validation-checklist.md: testing and review checklist.