Tasks

Overview

Comala Document Management introduces the concept of "workflow tasks".

They have similar functionality to Confluence tasks, but they don't clutter up the content.

If present, workflow tasks are displayed in the tasks dialog box accessed using the tasks breadcrumb.

Tasks dialog box

While mostly a tool for content producers to interact with using the user interface, the workflow itself can also interact with tasks.

A task can be created

by users in a workflow state (when the state is set as taskable)
or added automatically by the workflow

By default, added tasks are persistent until deleted or completed.

Workflow tasks versus Confluence tasks

Workflow tasks share many similarities with Confluence tasks:

They have a caption that explains what needs to be done
They can be assigned to someone (using an @mention while creating the task, or by assigning someone to an existing task)
They can have a due date

However, there are some important differences:

Document Management workflow tasks are separate from the content, so you don't need to put the task in the wiki page or blog post
They can have a description to provide additional detail about the task
They create internal events, which can be used to t rigger actions, such as causing a state transition when all tasks are completed
They can be interlinked with the workflow; for example, a content review can be blocked until tasks are completed
The notifications associated with them can be customized to the requirements of the workflow

Creating tasks

Tasks can be created by users, but only in States that are set as taskable.

Tasks can also be created by the workflow itself, using the task macro.

{workflow:name=Tasks}
   {state:Taskable|taskable=true}
   {state}
   {state:Macro}
      {task:This was created by task macro}
   {state}
{workflow}

In this example, the user can create tasks in the Taskable state but not the Macro state because the Macro state is not taskable=true. When the workflow transitions into the Macro state, it adds its own task.

The workflow can be configured to add one or more tasks on the transition to a workflow state using the workflow builder.

Tasks to be added on the transition into a state are listed for that state in the workflow builder.

cdm_wfbuilder_inprorgress _state_3 tasks.png

Page mode

In page mode, be aware that when editing the workflow and adding a task in workflow builder to the current state of a workflow, it can often give unexpected results.

This is because the task macro only works when the state is entered from another state. If you edit the task in a state (in workflow builder, or the task macro directly in the markup editor) in the state the document is currently in, it does not add a task. You need to transition away from that state first, and then back into it, for the task to be added.

You can use the Administrator state override to quickly transition between states.

Completing tasks

The complete-task macro can be used in an event trigger to automatically complete a specific task.

{workflow:name=Tasks}
   {state:Taskable|taskable=true}
   {state}
   {state:Macro}
      {task:This was created by task macro}
   {state}
   {state:Published}
   {state}
   {trigger:statechanged|state=Published}
      {complete-task:task=This task was created by task macro|comment=Auto-complete}
   {trigger}
{workflow}

In this example, transitioning to the Published state automatically completes the task added by the macro state, if it is not already completed.

If the task is already completed, the complete-task macro just ignores it.

Depending on the event that triggered the action, the document activity report can show the Comala Document Management user as the user who initiated the task event.

Transition when tasks completed

The state macro can be set to automatically transition to another state when all tasks have been completed.

{workflow:name=Tasks}
   {state:Taskable|taskable=true}
   {state}
   {state:Macro|completed=Published}
      {task:This was created by task macro}
   {state}
   {state:Published}
   {state}
{workflow}

In this example, as soon as all tasks are completed in the Macro state, the workflow transitions to the Published state.

The state completed parameter for a state can be added by editing the state transitions in the workflow builder to add a Task Completed transition.

When using this approach, ensure that the state that defines the completed parameter adds a task. Otherwise, there might not be any tasks to complete, leaving no way of exiting that state. An alternate would be to include the state-selection macro so the user can manually transition out of the state.

Make tasks disable a review

You can make the presence of incomplete tasks disable the Approve and Reject buttons in a review by using Conditions and Value References on the approval macro.

See: Make tasks disable a review

The state-selection and trigger macros can be disabled in the same way.

Notifications

By default, task assignees and page watchers receive notifications about tasks.

Macros

Page:

complete-task macro — Mark a task as complete
Page:

state macro — Define workflow states & basic transitions
Page:

task macro — Add tasks to workflow states

Events

Tasks generate several events, which can be used to trigger actions.

taskcreated
taskassigned
taskcompleted
taskexpired

App configuration

Setting	Where	Notes

Setting	Where	Notes
Tasks Mode	Configuration - Global Configuration - Space Tools	Should task actions be restricted to the assignee and the creator?
State's Task Behaviour	Configuration - Global	When transitioning to another state, should remaining tasks be copied to it or discarded?
Task – Assignee	Notifications - Global Notifications - Space Tools	Should task assignees receive notifications about their tasks?
Task – Page Watchers	Notifications - Global Notifications - Space Tools	Should page watchers receive notifications about tasks?

Examples

Page:

Expiry Dates — States, tasks, and messages can be set to expire on a certain date or after a certain amount of time
Page:

Make tasks disable a review — Two ways to use tasks to disable a review. The first way uses a precursor task state where the tasks can be set and completed. The second example uses a Value Reference as a condition to check that all tasks are complete. For the value reference method, you will need the Reporting for Confluence app in addition to Comala Document Management.
Page:

Reporting app - Tasks on current page