Invoking a callable flow from another flow in App Connect Enterprise as a Service

To develop a callable flow in App Connect Enterprise as a Service, complete the following steps.

1. On the App Connect Designer home page, click Create an event-driven flow or on the Designer dashboard, click New, then Event-driven flow.
2. Enter a name for the flow.
3. On the Applications tab, expand Callable flow and click Input.
   A flow is created that begins with a Callable flow Input node and ends with a Callable flow Reply node.
4. Click the plus (+) icon between the nodes to add one or more actions or toolbox nodes to your flow.
5. Configure the action nodes in your flow.
   For more information, see Configuring actions.
6. Optional: You can use sample data to test the mappings or actions in your flow.
   For more information, see Testing flows during development.
7. Click the Callable flow Reply node and use the LocalEnvironment.Variables and Message.JSON.Data fields to specify properties and data to return to the invoking flow.
   The Reply node returns data to the Invoke node of the invoking flow. Subsequent nodes in the invoking flow can then use the data that the callable flow returns. You can enter your own values or map data from the preceding nodes in the flow. The following example shows that two properties, FileName and Directory, are added and configured as local environment variables. These properties specify the directory and file name for the invoking flow to write to. The message tree that is sent to the invoking flow includes data that is mapped from the event that triggered the flow in App Connect Enterprise as a Service.

   

   • To define a property, click Add property, enter a name for the property, and select the appropriate data type for the value.
   • To add values for the properties, click Edit mappings, then type in a value or select a field from a previous node in the flow.
   • Alternatively, to specify a value in JSON format, click Map to object, then enter a JSON expression. The following example shows a simple JSON object message with one name-value pair:

     {"Message":"Hello World"}

     To add fields to your JSON expression that map data from previous nodes in the flow, click Insert a mapping .

If you're on the flow runs plan, deploy the callable flow in the following way.

1. Go to the Manage tab and click Deploy.
2. Select the callable flow, then click Next.
3. Check the summary of the flow, then click Deploy.
   A tile is added to the Manage page for your flow and is marked as Inactive.
4. Open the tile menu and click Activate.
   The status on the tile changes to Active and the deployed callable flow is ready to be called.

If you're on the VPC hours plan, deploy the callable flow in the following way.

1. Export the flow from your Designer instance as a BAR file.
   (On the Designer dashboard , open the menu on the flow's tile, click Export, and select Runtime flow asset (BAR).)
2. Switch to your Dashboard instance and click Deploy integrations.
3. On the Size tab, select the appropriate size of integration runtime for your flow, then click Next.
4. On the Integrations tab, upload the BAR file that contains your callable flow, then click Next.
5. On the Configuration tab, select a Private network connection configuration to apply to the integration.

   The invoking and callable flows use the private network connection to communicate with each other. You can select the default private network connection configuration default-switch-server-privatenetworkagent or you can select one that you created yourself.

6. Click Next.
7. Enter a name for the integration runtime, select the version, and set any other properties that are appropriate. For more information, see Deploying integrations on the VPC plan.
8. Click Create.
   The integration runtime is initially shown in pending status. Refresh the browser to update the status. When the integration runtime is ready, the callable flow is deployed and is ready to be called.

To create a flow in App Connect Enterprise as a Service that can invoke the callable flow, complete the following steps.

1. On the App Connect Designer home page, click Create an event-driven flow or on the Designer dashboard, click New then Event-driven flow.
2. Enter a name for your flow.
3. Choose an event to trigger your flow, either from the Applications tab or from the Toolbox.
4. Click the plus (+) icon after the event, then on the Applications & APIs tab, expand Callable flow and click Invoke.
5. In Application, select the name of the callable flow.
   This field contains the names of deployed flows that contain a Callable flow Input node. If you're on the VPC hours plan, the list also contains callable flows that are running in Designer. If you stop a running flow in Designer, the flow name is removed from the application list. Similarly, if you undeploy (or deactivate) the callable flow, it is removed from the list.
6. In Endpoint, select default.
7. Use the LocalEnvironment.Variables and Message.JSON.Data fields to specify properties and data to send to the callable flow.
   You can use the LocalEnvironment.Variables and Message.JSON.Data fields to provide data that can be used by nodes in the callable flow. You can enter your own values or write data from the trigger event to the local environment and message trees that are sent to the callable flow. The following example shows that two properties, FileName and Directory, are configured as local environment variables. These properties specify the directory and file name for the callable flow to write to. The message tree that is sent to the callable flow includes data that is mapped from the event that triggered the invoking flow.

   

   • To define a property, click Add property, enter a name for the property, and select the appropriate data type for the value.
   • To add values for the properties, click Edit mappings, then type in a value or select a field from a previous node in the flow.
   • Alternatively, to specify a value in JSON format, click Map to object, then enter a JSON expression. The following example shows a simple JSON object message with one name-value pair:

     {"Message":"Hello World"}

     To add fields to your JSON expression that map data from previous nodes in the flow, click Insert a mapping .
8. Add more actions or toolbox nodes to your flow after the Callable flow Invoke node to process the data that the callable flow returns.
   You can use the data that the callable flow returns in other applications by mapping the data. For more information, see Configuring actions.