Business Process Modelling Notation (BPMN) is a graphical notation that is used for modelling processes. In the context of Frends it is used for modelling the integration processes. Frends BPMN notation contains a set of different Element types:
Triggers
End nodes
Exception handling Elements
Actions like for example Tasks, code blocks, expressions, Subprocess calls
Decisions
Loops
Documentation Elements
Connectors.
Element types are differentiated from each other by visual design: each Element type has their own graphical shape and symbol. Element types in the same category have the same shape, but they are separated from each other by a graphical symbol. Below is an example of two different decision Element types, which have the same shape and different symbols to separate them from each other.
Element types have their own specified purpose, properties, and behaviour. You, as an integration Process developer, then use these Element types to model the integration flow. In addition to integration flow visual modelling, your key task is also to configure the Element behaviour based on the design.
You will learn more about the various Element types and how to use them from the other courses available in Frends Academy.
The very basic idea of modelling a Process in Frends is to drag and drop the wanted Element types from the toolbar to the modelling Canvas, name and configure them, and connect them with connectors to form the integration flow.
The graphical modelling applied does not exclude writing code blocks. There are two Element types for including your own C# code and you can also inject C# code into the parametrization of the Element types.
The next article is Introduction to Basic Elements in Frends