4.1

9 Click the workflow token to follow the progress of the workflow as it runs.
If the workflow ran successfully, the virtual machine you identified is in the powered-on state, and the email
recipient you defined receives a confirmation email.
Develop a Complex Workflow
Developing a complex example workflow demonstrates the most common steps in the workflow development
process and more advanced scenarios, such as creating custom decisions and loops.
In the complex workflow exercise, you develop a workflow that takes a snapshot of all the virtual machines
contained in a given resource pool. The workflow you create will perform the following tasks:
1 Prompts the user for a resource pool that contains the virtual machines of which to take snapshots.
2 Determines whether the resource pool contains running virtual machines.
3 Determines how many running virtual machines the resource contains.
4 Verifies whether an individual virtual machine running in the pool meets specific criteria for a snapshot
to be taken.
5 Takes the snapshot of the virtual machine.
6 Determines whether more virtual machines exist in the pool of which to take snapshots.
7 Repeats the verification and snapshot process until the workflow has taken snapshots of all eligible virtual
machines in the resource pool.
The ZIP file of Orchestrator examples that you can download from the Orchestrator documentation homepage
contains a completed version of the Take a Snapshot of All Virtual Machines in a Resource Pool workflow. For
details about where to download the Orchestrator examples bundle, see “Example Applications,” on page 7.
Prerequisites
Before you attempt to develop this complex workflow, follow the exercises in “Develop a Simple Example
Workflow,” on page 68. The procedures to develop a complex workflow provide the broad steps of the
development process, but are not as detailed as the simple workflow exercises.
Procedure
1 Create the Complex Workflow on page 90
The first step in the workflow development process is to create the workflow in the Orchestrator client.
2 Define the Complex Workflow Example Input Parameters on page 91
You define workflow input parameters in the workflow editor. The input parameters provide data for
the workflow to process.
3 Create a Custom Action For the Complex Workflow Example on page 91
The Check VM scriptable element calls on an actions that does not exist in the Orchestrator API. You
must create the getVMDiskModes action.
4 Create the Complex Workflow Example Schema on page 92
You create a workflow's schema in the Schema tab of the workflow editor. The workflow schema contains
the elements that the workflow runs.
5 Link the Complex Workflow Example Schema Elements on page 93
You link a workflow's elements together in the Schema tab of the workflow editor. The linking defines
the logical flow the workflow.
Chapter 2 Developing Workflows
VMware, Inc. 89