Developing Workflows with Automation Orchestrator provides information and instructions for developing custom VMware® Automation Orchestrator workflows.

How do I develop custom workflows?

You develop workflows in the Automation Orchestrator Client. Workflow development involves using the workflow editor in the Automation Orchestrator Client, the Automation Orchestrator APIs, and the JavaScript, Python, Node.js, and PowerShell scripting languages.

To use Python, Node.js, and PowerShell scripts in your Automation Orchestrator Client, your Automation Orchestrator deployment must use a VMware Aria Suite or VMware Aria Automation license. For more information on the Automation Orchestrator license-based feature enablement, go to Automation Orchestrator Feature Enablement with Licenses in Installing and Configuring Automation Orchestrator.

For more general information on the Automation Orchestrator Client, go to Using Automation Orchestrator.

What does the workflow development involve?

The process for developing a custom workflow involves a series of steps. Depending on the type of workflow that you are developing, you might follow a different sequence of step or skip a step. For example, you can create a workflow without custom scripting.

Generally, developing a workflow involves the following steps.
  1. Create a new workflow or create a duplicate of an existing workflow from the standard library.
  2. Provide general information about the workflow.
  3. Define the input and output parameters of the workflow.
  4. Lay out and link the workflow schema to define the logical flow of the workflow.
  5. Bind the input and output parameters of each schema element to workflow variables.
  6. Write the necessary scripts for scriptable task elements or custom decision elements.
  7. Create the workflow presentation from the Input Form tab.
  8. Validate the workflow.

Can I develop workflows in a clustered environment?

You can follow best practices for developing Automation Orchestrator workflows by multiple users and in a clustered environment.
  • Each developer has a dedicated test standalone Automation Orchestrator instance for creating and developing workflows.
  • Workflows are saved as maven projects on a shared source code control system.
  • To ensure optimal performance of the Automation Orchestrator production deployment, it is best to import workflows in a scheduled period.