This is the preparation for a new jBPM user guide.  Please, provide feedback in this jbpm dev forum topic http://www.jboss.org/index.html?module=bb&op=viewtopic&p=3997567

Introduction

• What is a BPMS, jBPM and jPDL

• When to use jPDL

• Project overview

• pointer to bpel

• pointers to support, wiki's, forums, jira, downloads,...

Tutorial

• Similar to http://www.springframework.org/docs/MVC-step-by-step/Spring-MVC-step-by-step-Part-1.html

• Start with installation of the suite (version and other installation details)

• Start with a simple process

• start --> collect input --> generate --> distribute --> end

• collect input is a wait state

• generate and distribute are automatic nodes with simple logging to illustrate

• Then add human tasks

• submit expense note --> evaluate --> payback --> end

• Then add persistence

• explain how to start a hsqldb

• create the jbpm schema in there

• walk through the persistence related configuration items

• deploy the process from the previous example

• run a test that uses persistence

• Pointer to more examples in the suite

Configuration

• JbpmConfiguration

• JbpmContext

• Wiring and lazy initialization

• Persistence

• Logging

• Mail

Deployment

• Deployment in JSE

• Library dependencies

• Deployment in Tomcat

• Libraries in global classpath

• Libraries in web app

• Configuration files

• Deployment in JEE

• Libraries in global classpath

• Libraries in web app

• Libraries in enterprise archive

Persistence

• Supported databases

• How is hibernate used ?

• Transaction and JbpmContext ?

• Object identity scope (see section 4.1.4 p119 in hibernate in action)

• Creating the schema

• Persistence API and convenience methods

• Providing a connection or a session

• Lazy loading

• Second level cache

• Your own domain model classes

• Object identity and hibernate proxies

• Creating custom queries

• Performance tuning (see wiki)

• Testing with persistence

Process modelling

• Explain the construct and the schema

• Merge the jPDL schema chapter with the process modelling chapter

• Include asynchronous continuations

• Expressions

Delegations

• What is it (including user code in a process)

• Configuration of delegations

• Expressions

Task Management

• Tasklists

• Task

• Assignment

• Swimlane

• Pooled actors

• Task variables

• Task timers

• Customizing TaskInstance

• Identity component

• Switching to another identity component

Business calendar

Timers

Mail

History

• Process logging

• How to turn off history logging

Logging

• Software logging

• How to turn on debug logging

Process Virtual Machine

• Goal

• Scope

• Graph

• Composite nodes

• Execution

• Synchronous execution

• Wait states

• Asynchronous continuations

• Persistence

• Transactions

• Node behaviour

• Concurrent paths of execution

• Process variables

• Process composition