query? Is it currently possible to Add and Remove a Simple List Entry via a BPM node?

[Martyn Houghton]

We are looking to implement Change Control around the management of Simple Lists. We make very heavy use of Simple Lists in both our IC and BPM processes, so their correct management is critical to the operation of the service.

Can we enquire if it is currently possible to Add and Remove a Simple List Entry via a BPM node, as we would like the CR request to actually undertake the change the Simple List?

Cheers

Martyn

[Steve Giller]

This is not currently possible.

I'm not aware of any intention to provide this functionality - for me this is fundamentally a UI action, as it requires visibility of the existing elements in order to prevent duplicates.
The BPM is working invisibly in the background, there would be no way to cater for issues in the process.
For example, a duplicate Value would break the Workflow, but a duplicate Display Value might not matter; until some selects the 1234 - Something Useful option instead of the 4321 - Something Useful option 6 months later.

I'm not saying this can't/won't be possible at some point, but it's certainly not a simple "Add to Simple List" node.

[Met]

This is something we have also requested.

Arguably once you have a lot of simple lists with hundreds of entries, a mistake is more likely to be made through manual UI entry.

The issue of duplicate values would just be a case of returning a success/failure outcome. The issue of duplicate display values is different and would require either good workflow management, the option to enforce unique display values in the node (and return a failure if not) or adding a node which can be used to check if an item already exists in a Simple List against the value or display value (which would be preferable but also require good workflow).

[Steve Giller]

4 minutes ago, Met said:

The issue of duplicate values would just be a case of returning a success/failure outcome.

If that happens, you then need a complete list of what values are already in use so that you don't get frustrated Customers sending 50 consecutive requests all of which are rejected - hence the need for a UI interface for this.

Of course, all of the APIs used to add/remove/edit Simple List entries are available, this could be built in-house if you have the expertise.

[Met]

4 minutes ago, Steve Giller said:

If that happens, you then need a complete list of what values are already in use so that you don't get frustrated Customers sending 50 consecutive requests all of which are rejected - hence the need for a UI interface for this.

Of course, all of the APIs used to add/remove/edit Simple List entries are available, this could be built in-house if you have the expertise.

I guess it depends what you're trying to achieve. For one use case, the customer would be given the option to select from a simple list dropdown in the IC or choose 'Other' if the value isn't displayed. They could then populate a free-text box with the 'Other' value. In the BPM we would then have a task for the analyst to review whether the 'Other' value is appropriate to add to the simple list through a task which would kick off the above described.

We do use the API to achieve similar tasks but ideally where things are much easier in a node we will always push and push...