I’m currently working on integrating Flowable (open-source edition) into our infrastructure and need some guidance regarding authentication, module setup, and modeling capabilities.
My architecture:
I have a custom Angular frontend already integrated with Keycloak, which acts as our identity and access management (IAM) solution and a SpringBoot back-end API.
I’d like to expose a workflow modeling UI (previously Flowable Modeler) within the same infrastructure, accessible from my application, reusing the Keycloak session for authentication.
Workflow design and deployment should be done via this UI, while all runtime interactions (process starting, task management, etc.) will be handled through the Java APIs by including the Flowable modules in my Spring Boot backend.
We deploy on Kubernetes in Microsoft Azure (AKS).
For local development, we use Docker Compose and Kubernetes clusters with KinD.
My questions:
I understand that starting from Flowable v7, all traditional UI applications (including flowable-modeler) have been removed and replaced with a cloud-based modeler.
In this new model, what is the recommended approach to provide a modeling capability in a self-hosted setup?
If we need to enable users to design workflows through a UI:
Is it possible to host the new modeler UI locally (Flowable Design, Flowable Work, etc.) or is it cloud-only?
If not, what would be the suggested way to allow users to model processes in a self-managed context?
Is there any guidance or support for integrating Keycloak with the Flowable 6+ architecture (specifically for authentication/authorization with the APIs and/or modeler)?
Where can I find the relevant source code, Docker images, or documentation for enabling a self-hosted experience close to what was possible with flowable-modeler in previous versions?
Any guidance, examples, or clarification would be greatly appreciated.
Eventually, a feasible integration strategy could be to incorporate a standard library for BPMN modeling (such as bpmn-js) into the custom Angular application and deploy the process using the standard APIs provided by Flowable. Would I miss anything in terms of standard BPMN modeling? Would the Flowable engine interpret the model correctly, or could there be any drawbacks?"
In Open Source we do not provide a self-hosted setup. You can either use the cloud-based modeler or use something else that generates BPMN that Flowable understands.
Yes it is possible to self-host the Enterprise Flowable Design and Flowable Work applications. You would need to reach out for that through our Contact form. If you’ve already reached out then please send me a message privately with the email you used so that we can check out.
The Open Source REST APIs are using Spring Web, you can use Spring Security (with Keycloak integration) to protect the REST APIs you are exposing.
The self-hosted is only part of the enterprise offering, which means that there is no source code. However, we extensive documentation for it. e.g. Flowable Design Installation Instructions.
Eventually, a feasible integration strategy could be to incorporate a standard library for BPMN modeling (such as bpmn-js) into the custom Angular application and deploy the process using the standard APIs provided by Flowable. Would I miss anything in terms of standard BPMN modeling? Would the Flowable engine interpret the model correctly, or could there be any drawbacks now and in future?"
We are not active testing whether models created with bpmn-js work. In the end it really depends on how the XML looks like. You might need to do certain things for Service Task expressions etc. It really depends on the exported XML and the used extension elements
So about [quote=“filiphr, post:3, topic:12242”]
or use something else that generates BPMN that Flowable understands.
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is there a modeler (not the one included in the enterprise Flowable release or the cloud one) that is certified to be understand by Flowable engine 7+?