Assign Task operation

This operation is used in the design of human-centric processes. It creates a task and assigns it to a user or group. You can configure the following task characteristics (See Involving users in processes .):

  • The behavior of the task at run time

  • Which Workspace features people can use when they open the task in Workspace or when they use email to complete a task

  • The content of email messages that are sent as task notifications to users

For information about the General and Route Evaluation property groups, see Common operation properties .

Initial User Selection properties

Property to specify the user or group to assign the task to. For more information about assigning tasks, see Creating tasks .

Select Initial User

The user or user group to assign the task.

Allow Out Of Office Designation:
Select this option to allow the task to be routed to another user when the assigned user is out of the office. The property is selected by default.

Assign To Specific User:
Select this option to specify a user to assign the task to. The user must exist in the AEM forms environment. Use the Browse button to open the Select User dialog box and select the user profile. (See About Select User.)

Assign To Process Initator:
Select this option to specify that the user who started the process is assigned the task.

Assign To Group:
Select this option to assign the task to a user group. Users that belong to the group can be assigned a task in one of the following ways:

  • Assign To Group Queue: Assigns the task to the group’s shared To Do list.

  • Assign to Random User In Group: Assigns the task to any user who belongs to the specified group profile.

Use the Browse button to open the Select Group dialog box and select the group to assign the task. (See About Select Group.)
Note: Task assignments to a user or user group fail even though the user domains in the development and production environments are configured exactly the same. See Assigning tasks across development and production environments for more information.

XPath Expression:
Select this option to create an XPath expression that evaluates to one of the following values:

  • A string value that represents a user or group GUID, canonical name, login identification, email address, or common name. Use a common name or email address only if you are certain that they are unique.

  • A User value.

  • A Group value.

You can obtain User and Group values by using the User Lookup service. Use the User Lookup service in the process before the Assign Task operation. Save the results in a variable so that it is available in the XPath expression. (See User Lookup .)

Task Instructions properties

Describes what the user must do to complete the task.

Task Instructions

A string value that represents the instructions for the task. If you provide a literal value, type the instructions for the task. For information about how to format the instructions using HTML, see Providing task instructions and Task instructions on task cards .

Provide a template value to include the results of XPath expressions with literal text.

User Actions properties

Properties that determine actions that users can select when they complete tasks in Workspace ES. You can configure actions so that when users click them, one or both of the following results occur:

Actions appear in Workspace in the order that they appear in this list. Use these buttons to create, modify, and order the actions.

Click to add an action. After clicking, specify property values in the Action Properties dialog box.

Click to modify the selection action using the Action Properties dialog box.

Click to remove the selected action.

Click to move the selected action up in the list.

Click to move the selected action down in the list.

The Action Properties dialog box exposes the following properties:

Action Name:
The name of the action that appears in Workspace.
Note: Do no use commas with action names.

Destination:
Select the operation that executes when the action is clicked.

This Action Needs Confirmation, And Will Use The Following Text As The Message:
Select to display a message box to the user when they click the action. In the box, type the message.

Click the ellipsis button to open XPath Builder and create an XPath expression to include in the message. At run time, the evaluated value of the expression is inserted in the message.

Presentation & Data properties

Properties for displaying an asset to users. For information about how to present assets and data to users, see Designing data capture and presentation .

To specify the type of file to display, select one of the following options:

Use An Application Asset:
Select to display an application asset, such as a form or Guide, to the user.

Use A Document Variable:
Select to display the document that is stored in a document variable.

Application Asset

Properties for specifying the asset and data to display to users. These properties appear when Use An Application Asset is selected.

Asset:
The presentation asset to display to the user. Click the ellipsis button and select an asset from any application.

Action Profile:
The action profile to use with the asset. Select the action profile from the list. The action profiles that appear are already created for the asset that you selected.

Initial Task Data:
The data to merge with the asset. Select an xml variable that contains the data. If the action profile that you selected includes a prepare data process, the variable is passed to that process before merging with the asset.

Prepare Data Process Properties:
The property group that appears when the prepare data process of the selected action profile includes input or output variables. If the action profile that you selected includes a prepare data process, specify when the process runs:

  • The user opens the task: When the user opens the task from their To Do list

  • The user opens a draft task: When the user opens a draft task that they previously saved

  • The user opens a completed task: When the user opens a task from their task history.

Render Process Properties:
The property group that appears when the render process of the selected action profile includes input or output variables. Provide values for the properties that appear.

Submit Process Properties:
The property group that appears when the submit process of the selected action profile includes input or output variables. Provide values for the properties that appear.

Document Variable

Property for specifying the document variable that holds the file to display to the user. This property group appears when Use A Document Variable is selected.

Variable:
Select the document variable to use.
If the variable that holds the file is not yet created, click the plus sign (+) button to create a variable. Later, configure your process so that the variable is populated with a value.

Reader Submit

Configure these properties if users are opening tasks using Adobe Reader.

Submit Via Reader:
Select if users open and submit tasks using Adobe Reader. When selected, a submit button is displayed in Workspace. If users open tasks using Acrobat Professional and Acrobat Standard, the PDF form includes one or more submit buttons. Workspace detects the buttons and displays them accordingly.

Submit As:
If Submit Via Reader is selected, specify the type of data that is submitted when users complete their tasks.

Output properties

Properties for storing the data that is sent to the AEM forms Server when users complete tasks. Saving the data is necessary if you want to use the data later in the process.

For the following properties, if the variable required to store data is not yet created, click the plus sign (+) button to create a variable. If you are using an XPath expression, click the ellipsis button to open XPath Builder.

Task Result

(Optional) The location in the process data model to store the submitted task data. This value contains information such as the field data from the form or Guide, the submit option that was selected, and task attachments. The data type is Task Result . For example, select an existing Task Result variable to store the results in that variable.

Output Data

(Optional) The location to store the field data that was submitted with the task. This data is also stored in the Task Result value. It is convenient to store the field data separately to easily pass the data to subsequent Assign Task operations.

The data value is document or xml . Store the data as a document or an xml value, depending on how you use it later in the process. For example, to use the data as input for another operation, store it in the format that the operation requires.

Note: If you save task data in a variable that already stores data, the existing data is replaced.

Task Result Collection

Properties for storing the submitted Task Result value in a Task Result Collection variable. Storing the task data in a collection is useful for evaluating data that is submitted from a series of different tasks. (See Working with captured data .)

Variable:
(Optional) The Task Result Collection variable in which to store the Task Result value that is submitted.

Include Captured Data:
Select to include field data from the task in the Task Result value that is stored in the collection. If you are interested only in task metadata, do not select this option. For example, do not select it if you are evaluating only the user actions that were clicked for each task.

Include Attachments:
Select to include task attachments in the Task Result value that is stored in the collection.

Workspace User Interface properties

Properties for specifying which task tools appear in Workspace when users open the task. If you configure these properties using a variable, it must be a Task Runtime UI variable. To provide literal values, specify values for the following properties.

Default:
Select to display the standard Workspace features.

Approval Container (Deprecated):
Select to display features for reviewing documents. The features enable users to see the status of the review, add comments, and see the task instructions..

Custom:
Select to display a custom set of tools. Custom tools are created by using the AEM forms SDK. (See Programming with AEM forms.) Click Browse to specify where the executable files are located on the AEM forms Server.

UI Options

Properties for specifying how the form is opened.

Form Must Be Displayed When Completing:
Select when users must open the task before completing it. If you do not select this option, users can complete the task from their To Do list without opening the form.

Open Form Full-screen:
Select to display the form using all the available space in the web browser window. The form obscures the Workspace UI when the user opens the task. Whether this option is selected or not, users can maximize or minimize the display area of the form as needed.

Task Access Control List (ACL) properties

Properties of the access control list (ACL) for tasks. ACLs control which Workspace features are exposed to users. For more information, see Configuring access to task functionality.

The ACL includes a default entry, called <default ACL>, that applies to all users. Add a user to the list to override the default access control:

  • Click Add to search for the user to add to the list.

  • Click the ellipsis button to open XPath Builder and create an XPath expression that identifies a user. The expressions must evaluate to one of the following types of information:

    • Global unique identifier (GUID) of the user account, such as 9A7AD945-CA53-11D1-BBD0-0080C76670C0

    • Login name of the user, such as atanaka

    • Canonical name of the user, such as atanaka.sampleorganization.com

    • Eemail address, such as atanaka@sampleorganization.com

    • Common name, such as Akira Tanaka

    • User value that represents the user.

  • To remove a user from the list, select the user and click Delete. You cannot remove the default item.

You can control access to the following features:

Claim:
Claim a task. When users have this permission, they can claim a task from another user’s queue.

Add Notes:
Add notes to the task. In addition, the user can set read, modify, and delete rights on each new note.

Share:
Share the task. When a task is shared, the original permissions are enforced, and the user with whom the task is shared can claim the task as their own.

Forward:
Delegate the task to another user.

Add Attachments:
Add attachments to the task. In addition, the user can set read, modify, and delete rights on each new attachment.

Consult:
Consult the task. Consulting is similar to forwarding the task, but the consultant cannot complete the task. The consultant can only open the task, save the task, add attachments and notes, and return the task to the user who requested the consult.

Add ACL For Shared Queue:
Add permissions for other users who have shared queue access to the assigned user’s queue.

Reassignment Restrictions properties

Properties that control who can be forwarded a task or used as a consultant on a task. For more information, see Configuring task delegations and consultations.

Forward and Consult

(Optional) A Task Delegate and Consult value that imposes limitations on who the assigned user can forward their task to or consult with. You specify a user group to indicate who can be used.

If you provide a literal value, specify values for the following properties.

Forward To And Share With Only Members Of This Group:
Select this option to limit the forwarding or sharing of the task to a specific user group. Click Browse to select the group. (See About Select Group.)

Consult Only To Members Of This Group:
Select this option to limit who can be sent the task for consultation to the members of a user group. Click Browse to select the group. (See About Select Group.)

Attachments properties

Properties that specify whether attachments and notes are exposed in Workspace. You can also specify where the notes and attachments from the task are saved when the task is submitted. For more information, see Configuring attachments and notes.

Show Attachment Window For This Task:
Select to allow users to see task attachments and notes.

Input List:
(Optional) A List of document values that represent the attachments and notes to add to the task.

Output Attachments:
(Optional) The location to store notes and attachments that are submitted with the task. The data type is a list and a subtype of document .
Note: Notes and attachments are saved in the Task Result value that is saved as task output. Use this property to save notes and attachments if the task result is not saved but you need the notes and attachments. (See Output properties .)

Select a list variable to store the attachments and notes. If you are using an XPath expression, click the ellipsis button to open XPath Builder. If items exist in the list that you specify, new items are appended to the end of the list. To replace the items in a list, specify the index of the first item in the list (for example /process_data/listVar[1] ).

If the variable for storing notes and attachments data is not yet created, click the plus sign (+) button to create a variable.

Priority properties

(Optional) A Task Priority value that specifies a priority of Highest , High , Normal , Low , or Lowest . The default is Normal . When specifying a literal value, select the priority from the list.

For more information, see Specifying task priority.

Reminders properties

Properties for configuring task reminders. You can specify the following characteristics of reminders:

  • When the first reminder is sent

  • The duration between subsequent reminders

  • The task instructions when the reminder occurs

For more information, see Sending reminders about tasks.

To specify the value as a variable or XPath expression, a Task Reminder value must be provided. To provide a literal value, provide values for the following properties:

Enable First Reminder:
Select this option to send a reminder to the task owner.

Use Business Calendar:

  • Select to use business days instead of calendar days to calculate reminder dates. When this option is selected, the Hours and Minutes boxes are unavailable, and the business calendar associated with the selected user is used. If the selected user does not have a business calendar configured, the default business calendar is used.

  • Days, Hours, and Mintues: Specify the amount of time (in days, hours, and minutes) after the task is first assigned when the reminder occurs. If the Days, Hours, and Minutes boxes all have a value of 0 , the reminder does not occur.

    Enable Repeat Reminder:
    Select this option to send reminders at regular intervals after the first reminder is sent. The time when repeat reminders occur are calculated from the time that the first reminder is sent.

  • Use Business Calendar: Select this option to use business days instead of calendar days to calculate repeated reminder dates. When this option is selected, the Hours and Minutes boxes are unavailable, and the business calendar associated with the selected user is used. If the selected user does not have a business calendar configured, the default business calendar is used.

  • Days, Hours, and Mintues: Specify the amount of time (in days, hours, and minutes) after the task is first assigned when the reminder occurs. If the Days, Hours, and Minutes boxes all have a value of 0 , the reminder does not occur.

    Change Task Instructions On Reminder:
    Select this option to change the task instructions when reminders occur. Type the template for the instructions in the box. Click the ellipsis button to incorporate process data using XPath expressions. For information about templates, see Specifying template expressions.

Escalation properties

Properties for reassigning the task to another user after a specific amount of time. Specify when the task is reassigned and who is assigned the task when escalation occurs. For more information, see Escalating tasks.

Escalate Task

(Optional) Select this option to escalate the task. If you are using a variable or XPath expression, the value must be a boolean value. A value of true escalates the task. The default value of false does not escalate the task.

Schedule Escalation

(Optional) The amount of time that passes after the task is assigned to the initial user until the task is escalated. To provide literal values, configure the following properties:

Use Business Calendar:
Select to use business days instead of calendar days to calculate escalation dates. When this option is selected, the Hours and Minutes boxes are unavailable, and the business calendar associated with the selected user is used. If the selected user does not have a business calendar configured, the default business calendar is used.

Day, Hours, and Minutes:
Specify the number of days, hours, and minutes that pass until the escalation occurs. If the Days, Hours, and Minutes boxes all have a value of 0 , the task is not reassigned to another user.

To specify a value by using a variable or XPath expression, the value must be a Task Date value.

Select Escalation User

(Optional) Select one of the following options to specify who to reassign the task to when the time frame specified in Schedule Escalation property is reached.

Allow Out Of Office Designation:
Select this option to reassign the task according to the escalation user’s out-of-office preferences.

Assign To Specific User:
Select this option to specify a user to assign the task to when the escalation occurs. The user must exist in the AEM forms environment. Use the Browse button to open the Select User dialog box and select the user profile. (See About Select User.)

Assign To Process Creator:
Select this option to specify that the user who started the process is assigned the task when escalation occurs.

Assign To Group:
Select this option to assign the task to a user group when escalation occurs. Users that belong to the group can be assigned a task in one of the following ways:

  • Assign To Group Queue: Assigns the task to the group’s shared To Do list.

  • Assign to Random User In Group: Assigns the task to any user who belongs to the specified group profile.

Use the Browse button to open the Select Group dialog box and select the group to assign the task. (See About Select Group.)

XPath Expression:
Select this option to create an XPath expression that evaluates to one of the following values:

  • A string value that represents a user or group GUID, canonical name, login identification, email address, or common name. Use a common name or email address only if you are certain that they are unique.

  • A User value.

  • A Group value.

You can obtain User and Group values by using the User Lookup service. Use the User Lookup service in the process before the Assign Task operation. Save the results in a variable so that it is available in the XPath expression. (See User Lookup .)

Deadline properties

Properties for configuring task deadlines. You can specify when the deadline occurs, whether to change task instructions when the deadline occurs, and whether a specific route is followed. For more information, see Setting deadlines for tasks.

To configure deadlines by using a variable or XPath expression, a Task Deadline value must be provided. To provide a literal value, specify values for the following properties:

Enable First Deadline:
Select this option to create a deadline for the task.

  • Use Business Calendar: Select this option to use business days instead of calendar days to calculate deadline dates. When this option is selected, the Hours and Minutes boxes are unavailable, and the business calendar associated with the assigned user is used. If the user does not have a business calendar configured, the default business calendar is used.

  • Days, Hours, and Mintues: Specify the amount of time (in days, hours, and minutes) after the task is first assigned when the deadline occurs. If the Days, Hours, and Minutes boxes all have a value of 0 , the deadline does not occur.

Change Task Instructions On Reminder:
Select this option to change the task instructions when reminders occur. Type the template for the instructions in the box. Click the ellipsis button to incorporate process data by using XPath expressions.

Follow A Specific Route On Deadline:
Select this option to determine the next operation to execute by specifying the route to follow when the deadline occurs.

Select Route:
Select the route to follow when Follow A Specific Route is selected. If no routes originate from the Assign Task operation, There Are No Outbound Routes appears in the list.

Custom Email Templates properties

Properties for configuring the text in emails that are sent when a task is assigned, a reminder occurs, or a deadline occurs. In the list, select the event and then configure the email template properties:

Use Server Default:
Use the email template configured on the server.

Do Not Send Email:
Do not send an email notification.

Customize:
Modify the email template for this task. Click Edit Email Template to use the Email Template Editor dialog box to modify the email template for the specified action. (See About Email Template Editor .)

Exceptions

The Assign Task operation can throw an InvalidPrincipal exception. The exception occurs when a user or group that no longer exists is specified as a property value.

Assigning tasks across development and production environments

Task assignments to a user or user group fail even though the user domains in the development and production environments are configured exactly the same.

If a process that was tested in a development environment is executed in a production environment, the task assignment to a user or group fails even though the user domains in the development and production environments are configured exactly the same. The process is also not transferable to another computer (production environment) that had the same user or group added in the administration console. To resolve this issue, do one of the steps below:

  • Use the Assign Multiple Tasks operation : Create a UserList and add the group you have created to the UserList. In the User 2.0 service, select the UserList you created as the source of participants for that Assign Multiple Tasks operation.

  • Use the XPath option in the User 2.0 service : Provide either the name or email address of the group you have created. The Xpath expression resolves to the following (including the quotes):

    • “Group Name”

    • “groupEmail@server.com”

  • Production environment : Deploy the process, and then use Workbench to connect to the AEM forms Server. Check out and open the process, and then reconfigure the Initial User Selection properties. For example, if you have Assign To Specific User selected, browse and select a different user, and then browse and select the original user again. This sets the Initial User Selection properties to the correct user in the production environment.

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