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How to Deploy a Process Definition

This guide explains how to deploy a BPMN process definition to ZenBPM.

Prerequisites​

  • ZenBPM server is running and accessible
  • A valid BPMN 2.0 process definition file

Steps​

1. Prepare Your BPMN File​

Ensure your BPMN file follows the BPMN 2.0 specification. You can create BPMN files using tools like:

Save your BPMN file with a .bpmn extension.

2. Deploy Using REST API​

You can deploy your process definition using the REST API:

Deploy a new process definition

Request Body schema: application/xml
required
string <xml>

Responses

Response samples

Content type
application/json
{
  • "processDefinitionKey": "string"
}

The response will include a processDefinitionKey that you can use to reference this process definition.

3. Verify Deployment​

To verify that your process definition was deployed successfully, you can list all process definitions:

Get list of process definitions

Responses

Response samples

Content type
application/json
{
  • "items": [
    ],
  • "offset": 0,
  • "size": 0,
  • "count": 0
}

Look for your process definition in the response.

ProcessDefinitionSimple Schema​

This schema represents an item in the process definitions list:

key
required
string
version
required
integer
bpmnProcessId
required
string

4. Get Process Definition Details​

Once you have deployed your process definition, you can retrieve its details using the process definition key:

Get process definition

path Parameters
processDefinitionKey
required
string

Responses

Response samples

Content type
application/json
{
  • "key": "string",
  • "version": 0,
  • "bpmnProcessId": "string",
  • "bpmnData": "string"
}

Troubleshooting​

Invalid BPMN Format​

If you receive an error about invalid BPMN format, check that:

  • Your BPMN file is valid XML
  • The BPMN file follows the BPMN 2.0 specification
  • All referenced elements (like message definitions) are properly defined

Connection Issues​

If you can't connect to the ZenBPM server:

  1. Verify the server is running
  2. Check that you're using the correct host and port
  3. Ensure there are no network issues or firewalls blocking the connection

Next Steps​

After deploying your process definition, you can: