Getting Started with jBPM and Java

Post author:anis kchaou
Post published:February 22, 2024
Post category:Java
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Post last modified:July 24, 2024

jBPM (Java Business Process Management) is a powerful open-source workflow and business process management platform written in Java. It allows you to model, execute, and monitor business processes, making it a valuable tool for developing and automating business applications. In this tutorial, we’ll cover the basics of jBPM integration with Java step by step.

Prerequisites

Before getting started, ensure you have the following:

Java Development Kit (JDK) installed on your machine (version 8 or higher recommended).
Apache Maven installed (for managing dependencies).
Basic understanding of Java programming language.

Step 1: Setting Up Your Project

Open your Java IDE.
Create a new Maven project.
Add jBPM dependencies to your pom.xml file.

<dependencies>
    <dependency>
        <groupId>org.jbpm</groupId>
        <artifactId>jbpm-bom</artifactId>
        <version>7.57.0.Final</version>
        <type>pom</type>
        <scope>import</scope>
    </dependency>
</dependencies>

Step 2: Creating a jBPM Process

In this step, we’ll create a simple jBPM process definition using BPMN 2.0.

Create a new BPMN file (e.g., sample.bpmn) in the src/main/resources directory of your project.
Define your business process using BPMN 2.0 notation. For example, a simple process that prints “Hello, jBPM!” can be defined as follows:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<definitions xmlns="http://www.omg.org/spec/BPMN/20100524/MODEL"
             xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance"
             xmlns:bpmndi="http://www.omg.org/spec/BPMN/20100524/DI"
             xmlns:dc="http://www.omg.org/spec/DD/20100524/DC"
             xmlns:di="http://www.omg.org/spec/DD/20100524/DI"
             xsi:schemaLocation="http://www.omg.org/spec/BPMN/20100524/MODEL BPMN20.xsd"
             id="Definitions_1"
             targetNamespace="http://bpmn.io/schema/bpmn"
             exporter="Camunda Modeler"
             exporterVersion="4.3.1">
  <process id="Process_1" isExecutable="true">
    <startEvent id="StartEvent_1"/>
    <sequenceFlow id="Flow_1" sourceRef="StartEvent_1" targetRef="ScriptTask_1"/>
    <scriptTask id="ScriptTask_1" name="HelloTask">
      <script>System.out.println("Hello, jBPM!");</script>
    </scriptTask>
    <sequenceFlow id="Flow_2" sourceRef="ScriptTask_1" targetRef="EndEvent_1"/>
    <endEvent id="EndEvent_1"/>
  </process>
</definitions>

Step 3: Running the jBPM Process

Now, we’ll write Java code to deploy and execute the jBPM process.

Create a new Java class (e.g., JBPMExample) in your project.
Write code to create a KieSession, load the BPMN file, start the process, and execute it.

import org.kie.api.KieServices;
import org.kie.api.runtime.KieContainer;
import org.kie.api.runtime.KieSession;

public class JBPMExample {

    public static void main(String[] args) {
        // Create KieServices instance
        KieServices kieServices = KieServices.Factory.get();

        // Load the process definition
        KieContainer kieContainer = kieServices.getKieClasspathContainer();
        KieSession kieSession = kieContainer.newKieSession();

        // Start the process
        kieSession.startProcess("Process_1");

        // Dispose the session
        kieSession.dispose();
    }
}

Step 4: Building and Running the Application

Build your project using Maven.
Run the JBPMExample class.

You should see “Hello, jBPM!” printed on the console, indicating that the jBPM process has been executed successfully.

Conclusion

jBPM offers many more features for designing, executing, and monitoring complex business workflows. Explore the documentation and tutorials to unlock the full potential of jBPM in your projects.