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Version: 8.4

Zeebe API RPCs

The Zeebe client gRPC API is exposed through a single gateway service. The current version of the protocol buffer file can be found in the Zeebe repository.

ActivateJobs RPC

Iterates through all known partitions round-robin, activates up to the requested maximum, and streams them back to the client as they are activated.

Input: ActivateJobsRequest

message ActivateJobsRequest {
// the job type, as defined in the BPMN process (e.g. <zeebe:taskDefinition
// type="payment-service" />)
string type = 1;
// the name of the worker activating the jobs, mostly used for logging purposes
string worker = 2;
// a job returned after this call will not be activated by another call until the
// timeout (in ms) has been reached
int64 timeout = 3;
// the maximum jobs to activate by this request
int32 maxJobsToActivate = 4;
// a list of variables to fetch as the job variables; if empty, all visible variables at
// the time of activation for the scope of the job will be returned
repeated string fetchVariable = 5;
// The request will be completed when at least one job is activated or after the requestTimeout (in ms).
// if the requestTimeout = 0, a default timeout is used.
// if the requestTimeout < 0, long polling is disabled and the request is completed immediately, even when no job is activated.
int64 requestTimeout = 6;
// a list of tenant IDs for which to activate jobs
repeated string tenantIds = 7;
}

Output: ActivateJobsResponse

message ActivateJobsResponse {
// list of activated jobs
repeated ActivatedJob jobs = 1;
}

message ActivatedJob {
// the key, a unique identifier for the job
int64 key = 1;
// the type of the job (should match what was requested)
string type = 2;
// the job's process instance key
int64 processInstanceKey = 3;
// the bpmn process ID of the job process definition
string bpmnProcessId = 4;
// the version of the job process definition
int32 processDefinitionVersion = 5;
// the key of the job process definition
int64 processKey = 6;
// the associated task element ID
string elementId = 7;
// the unique key identifying the associated task, unique within the scope of the
// process instance
int64 elementInstanceKey = 8;
// a set of custom headers defined during modelling; returned as a serialized
// JSON document
string customHeaders = 9;
// the name of the worker which activated this job
string worker = 10;
// the amount of retries left to this job (should always be positive)
int32 retries = 11;
// when the job can be activated again, sent as a UNIX epoch timestamp
int64 deadline = 12;
// JSON document, computed at activation time, consisting of all visible variables to
// the task scope
string variables = 13;
// the ID of the tenant that owns the job
string tenantId = 14;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • Type is blank (empty string, null)
  • Worker is blank (empty string, null)
  • Timeout less than 1 (ms)
  • maxJobsToActivate is less than 1
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantIds is empty (empty list)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantIds is not empty (empty list), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

BroadcastSignal RPC

Broadcasts a signal.

Input: BroadcastSignalRequest

message BroadcastSignalRequest {
// The name of the signal
string signalName = 1;
// the signal variables as a JSON document; to be valid, the root of the document must be an
// object, e.g. { "a": "foo" }. [ "foo" ] would not be valid.
string variables = 2;
// the id of the tenant that owns the signal.
string tenantId = 3;
}

Output: BroadcastSignalResponse

message BroadcastSignalResponse {
// the unique ID of the signal that was broadcasted.
int64 key = 1;
// the tenant id of the signal that was broadcasted.
string tenantId = 2;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantId is blank (empty string, null)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantId is not blank (empty string, null), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

CancelProcessInstance RPC

Cancels a running process instance.

Input: CancelProcessInstanceRequest

message CancelProcessInstanceRequest {
// the process instance key (as, for example, obtained from
// CreateProcessInstanceResponse)
int64 processInstanceKey = 1;
}

Output: CancelProcessInstanceResponse

message CancelProcessInstanceResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No process instance exists with the given key. Note that since process instances are removed once they are finished, it could mean the instance did exist at some point.
  • No process instance exists with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

CompleteJob RPC

Completes a job with the given payload, which allows completing the associated service task.

Input: CompleteJobRequest

message CompleteJobRequest {
// the unique job identifier, as obtained from ActivateJobsResponse
int64 jobKey = 1;
// a JSON document representing the variables in the current task scope
string variables = 2;
}

Output: CompleteJobResponse

message CompleteJobResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No job exists with the given job key. Note that since jobs are removed once completed, it could be that this job did exist at some point.
  • No job exists with the given job key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • The job was marked as failed. In that case, the related incident must be resolved before the job can be activated again and completed.

CreateProcessInstance RPC

Creates and starts an instance of the specified process. The process definition to use to create the instance can be specified either using its unique key (as returned by DeployProcess), or using the BPMN process ID and a version. Pass -1 as the version to use the latest deployed version.

note

Only processes with none start events can be started through this command.

note

Start instructions have the same limitations as process instance modification, e.g., it is not possible to start at a sequence flow.

Input: CreateProcessInstanceRequest

message CreateProcessInstanceRequest {
// the unique key identifying the process definition (e.g. returned from a process
// in the DeployProcessResponse message)
int64 processDefinitionKey = 1;
// the BPMN process ID of the process definition
string bpmnProcessId = 2;
// the version of the process; set to -1 to use the latest version
int32 version = 3;
// JSON document that will instantiate the variables for the root variable scope of the
// process instance; it must be a JSON object, as variables will be mapped in a
// key-value fashion. e.g. { "a": 1, "b": 2 } will create two variables, named "a" and
// "b" respectively, with their associated values. [{ "a": 1, "b": 2 }] would not be a
// valid argument, as the root of the JSON document is an array and not an object.
string variables = 4;
// List of start instructions. If empty (default) the process instance
// will start at the start event. If non-empty the process instance will apply start
// instructions after it has been created
repeated ProcessInstanceCreationStartInstruction startInstructions = 5;
// the tenant ID of the process definition
string tenantId = 6;
}

message ProcessInstanceCreationStartInstruction {

// future extensions might include
// - different types of start instructions
// - ability to set local variables for different flow scopes

// for now, however, the start instruction is implicitly a
// "startBeforeElement" instruction

// element ID
string elementId = 1;
}

Output: CreateProcessInstanceResponse

message CreateProcessInstanceResponse {
// the key of the process definition which was used to create the process instance
int64 processKey = 1;
// the BPMN process ID of the process definition which was used to create the process
// instance
string bpmnProcessId = 2;
// the version of the process definition which was used to create the process instance
int32 version = 3;
// the unique identifier of the created process instance; to be used wherever a request
// needs a process instance key (e.g. CancelProcessInstanceRequest)
int64 processInstanceKey = 4;
// the tenant ID of the created process instance
string tenantId = 5;
}

CreateProcessInstanceWithResult RPC

Similar to CreateProcessInstance RPC, creates and starts an instance of the specified process. Unlike CreateProcessInstance RPC, the response is returned when the process is completed.

note

Only processes with none start events can be started through this command.

note

Start instructions have the same limitations as process instance modification, e.g., it is not possible to start at a sequence flow.

Input: CreateProcessInstanceWithResultRequest

message CreateProcessInstanceRequest {
CreateProcessInstanceRequest request = 1;
// timeout (in ms). the request will be closed if the process is not completed before
// the requestTimeout.
// if requestTimeout = 0, uses the generic requestTimeout configured in the gateway.
int64 requestTimeout = 2;
}

Output: CreateProcessInstanceWithResultResponse

message CreateProcessInstanceResponse {
// the key of the process definition which was used to create the process instance
int64 processKey = 1;
// the BPMN process ID of the process definition which was used to create the process
// instance
string bpmnProcessId = 2;
// the version of the process definition which was used to create the process instance
int32 version = 3;
// the unique identifier of the created process instance; to be used wherever a request
// needs a process instance key (e.g. CancelProcessInstanceRequest)
int64 processInstanceKey = 4;
// consisting of all visible variables to the root scope
string variables = 5;
// the tenant ID of the process definition
string tenantId = 6;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No process with the given key exists (if processKey was given).
  • No process with the given process ID exists (if bpmnProcessId was given but version was -1).
  • No process with the given process ID and version exists (if both bpmnProcessId and version were given).

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • The process definition does not contain a none start event; only processes with none start event can be started manually.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • The given variables argument is not a valid JSON document; it is expected to be a valid JSON document where the root node is an object.
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantId is blank (empty string, null)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantId is not blank (empty string, null), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

EvaluateDecision RPC

Evaluates a decision. You specify the decision to evaluate either by using its unique KEY (as returned by DeployResource), or using the decision ID. When using the decision ID, the latest deployed version of the decision is used.

note

When you specify both the decision ID and KEY, the ID is used to find the decision to be evaluated.

Input: EvaluateDecisionRequest

message EvaluateDecisionRequest {
// the unique key identifying the decision to be evaluated (e.g. returned
// from a decision in the DeployResourceResponse message)
int64 decisionKey = 1;
// the ID of the decision to be evaluated
string decisionId = 2;
// JSON document that will instantiate the variables for the decision to be
// evaluated; it must be a JSON object, as variables will be mapped in a
// key-value fashion, e.g. { "a": 1, "b": 2 } will create two variables,
// named "a" and "b" respectively, with their associated values.
// [{ "a": 1, "b": 2 }] would not be a valid argument, as the root of the
// JSON document is an array and not an object.
string variables = 3;
// the tenant ID of the decision
string tenantId = 4;
}

Output: EvaluateDecisionResponse

message EvaluateDecisionResponse {
// the unique key identifying the decision which was evaluated (e.g. returned
// from a decision in the DeployResourceResponse message)
int64 decisionKey = 1;
// the ID of the decision which was evaluated
string decisionId = 2;
// the name of the decision which was evaluated
string decisionName = 3;
// the version of the decision which was evaluated
int32 decisionVersion = 4;
// the ID of the decision requirements graph that the decision which was
// evaluated is part of.
string decisionRequirementsId = 5;
// the unique key identifying the decision requirements graph that the
// decision which was evaluated is part of.
int64 decisionRequirementsKey = 6;
// JSON document that will instantiate the result of the decision which was
// evaluated; it will be a JSON object, as the result output will be mapped
// in a key-value fashion, e.g. { "a": 1 }.
string decisionOutput = 7;
// a list of decisions that were evaluated within the requested decision evaluation
repeated EvaluatedDecision evaluatedDecisions = 8;
// an optional string indicating the ID of the decision which
// failed during evaluation
string failedDecisionId = 9;
// an optional message describing why the decision which was evaluated failed
string failureMessage = 10;
// the tenant ID of the evaluated decision
string tenantId = 11;
}

message EvaluatedDecision {
// the unique key identifying the decision which was evaluated (e.g. returned
// from a decision in the DeployResourceResponse message)
int64 decisionKey = 1;
// the ID of the decision which was evaluated
string decisionId = 2;
// the name of the decision which was evaluated
string decisionName = 3;
// the version of the decision which was evaluated
int32 decisionVersion = 4;
// the type of the decision which was evaluated
string decisionType = 5;
// JSON document that will instantiate the result of the decision which was
// evaluated; it will be a JSON object, as the result output will be mapped
// in a key-value fashion, e.g. { "a": 1 }.
string decisionOutput = 6;
// the decision rules that matched within this decision evaluation
repeated MatchedDecisionRule matchedRules = 7;
// the decision inputs that were evaluated within this decision evaluation
repeated EvaluatedDecisionInput evaluatedInputs = 8;
// the tenant ID of the evaluated decision
string tenantId = 9;
}

message EvaluatedDecisionInput {
// the id of the evaluated decision input
string inputId = 1;
// the name of the evaluated decision input
string inputName = 2;
// the value of the evaluated decision input
string inputValue = 3;
}

message EvaluatedDecisionOutput {
// the id of the evaluated decision output
string outputId = 1;
// the name of the evaluated decision output
string outputName = 2;
// the value of the evaluated decision output
string outputValue = 3;
}

message MatchedDecisionRule {
// the id of the matched rule
string ruleId = 1;
// the index of the matched rule
int32 ruleIndex = 2;
// the evaluated decision outputs
repeated EvaluatedDecisionOutput evaluatedOutputs = 3;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • No decision with the given key exists (if decisionKey was given).
  • No decision with the given decision ID exists (if decisionId was given).
  • Both decision ID and decision KEY were provided, or are missing.
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantId is blank (empty string, null)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantId is not blank (empty string, null), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

DeployResource RPC

Deploys one or more resources (e.g. processes, decision models or forms) to Zeebe. Note that this is an atomic call, i.e. either all resources are deployed, or none of them are.

Input: DeployResourceRequest

message DeployResourceRequest {
// list of resources to deploy
repeated Resource resources = 1;
// the tenant ID of the resources to deploy
string tenantId = 2;
}

message Resource {
// the resource name, e.g. myProcess.bpmn, myDecision.dmn or myForm.form
string name = 1;
// the file content as a UTF8-encoded string
bytes content = 2;
}

Output: DeployResourceResponse

message DeployResourceResponse {
// the unique key identifying the deployment
int64 key = 1;
// a list of deployed resources, e.g. processes
repeated Deployment deployments = 2;
// the tenant ID of the deployed resources
string tenantId = 3;
}

message Deployment {
// each deployment has only one metadata
oneof Metadata {
// metadata of a deployed process
ProcessMetadata process = 1;
// metadata of a deployed decision
DecisionMetadata decision = 2;
// metadata of a deployed decision requirements
DecisionRequirementsMetadata decisionRequirements = 3;
// metadata of a deployed form
FormMetadata form = 4;
}
}

message ProcessMetadata {
// the bpmn process ID, as parsed during deployment; together with the version forms a
// unique identifier for a specific process definition
string bpmnProcessId = 1;
// the assigned process version
int32 version = 2;
// the assigned key, which acts as a unique identifier for this process
int64 processDefinitionKey = 3;
// the resource name (see: ProcessRequestObject.name) from which this process was
// parsed
string resourceName = 4;
// the tenant ID of the deployed process
string tenantId = 5;
}

message DecisionMetadata {
// the dmn decision ID, as parsed during deployment; together with the
// versions forms a unique identifier for a specific decision
string dmnDecisionId = 1;
// the dmn name of the decision, as parsed during deployment
string dmnDecisionName = 2;
// the assigned decision version
int32 version = 3;
// the assigned decision key, which acts as a unique identifier for this
// decision
int64 decisionKey = 4;
// the dmn ID of the decision requirements graph that this decision is part
// of, as parsed during deployment
string dmnDecisionRequirementsId = 5;
// the assigned key of the decision requirements graph that this decision is
// part of
int64 decisionRequirementsKey = 6;
// the tenant ID of the deployed decision
string tenantId = 7;
}

message DecisionRequirementsMetadata {
// the dmn decision requirements ID, as parsed during deployment; together
// with the versions forms a unique identifier for a specific decision
string dmnDecisionRequirementsId = 1;
// the dmn name of the decision requirements, as parsed during deployment
string dmnDecisionRequirementsName = 2;
// the assigned decision requirements version
int32 version = 3;
// the assigned decision requirements key, which acts as a unique identifier
// for this decision requirements
int64 decisionRequirementsKey = 4;
// the resource name (see: Resource.name) from which this decision
// requirements was parsed
string resourceName = 5;
// the tenant ID of the deployed decision requirements
string tenantId = 6;
}

message FormMetadata {
// the form ID, as parsed during deployment; together with the
// versions forms a unique identifier for a specific form
string formId = 1;
// the assigned form version
int32 version = 2;
// the assigned key, which acts as a unique identifier for this form
int64 formKey = 3;
// the resource name
string resourceName = 4;
// the tenant ID of the deployed form
string tenantId = 5;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • No resources given.
  • At least one resource is invalid. A resource is considered invalid if:
    • The resource type is not supported (e.g. supported resources include BPMN and DMN files)
    • The content is not deserializable (e.g. detected as BPMN, but it's broken XML)
    • The content is invalid (e.g. an event-based gateway has an outgoing sequence flow to a task)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantId is blank (empty string, null)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantId is not blank (empty string, null), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

FailJob RPC

Marks the job as failed. If the retries argument is positive and no retry back off is set, the job is immediately activatable again. If the retry back off is positive the job becomes activatable once the back off timeout has passed. If the retries argument is zero or negative, an incident is raised, tagged with the given errorMessage, and the job is not activatable until the incident is resolved. If the variables argument is set, the variables are merged into the process at the local scope of the job's associated task.

Input: FailJobRequest

message FailJobRequest {
// the unique job identifier, as obtained when activating the job
int64 jobKey = 1;
// the amount of retries the job should have left
int32 retries = 2;
// an optional message describing why the job failed
// this is particularly useful if a job runs out of retries and an incident is raised,
// as it this message can help explain why an incident was raised
string errorMessage = 3;
// the backoff timeout (in ms) for the next retry
int64 retryBackOff = 4;
// JSON document that will instantiate the variables at the local scope of the
// job's associated task; it must be a JSON object, as variables will be mapped in a
// key-value fashion. e.g. { "a": 1, "b": 2 } will create two variables, named "a" and
// "b" respectively, with their associated values. [{ "a": 1, "b": 2 }] would not be a
// valid argument, as the root of the JSON document is an array and not an object.
string variables = 5;
}

Output: FailJobResponse

message FailJobResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No job was found with the given key.
  • No job was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • The job was not activated.
  • The job is already in a failed state, i.e. ran out of retries.

ModifyProcessInstance RPC

Modifies a running process instance. The command can contain multiple instructions to activate an element of the process, or to terminate an active instance of an element.

Use the command to repair a process instance that is stuck on an element or took an unintended path. For example, because an external system is not available or doesn't respond as expected.

Input: ModifyProcessInstanceRequest

message ModifyProcessInstanceRequest {
// the key of the process instance that should be modified
int64 processInstanceKey = 1;
// instructions describing which elements should be activated in which scopes,
// and which variables should be created
repeated ActivateInstruction activateInstructions = 2;
// instructions describing which elements should be terminated
repeated TerminateInstruction terminateInstructions = 3;

message ActivateInstruction {
// the id of the element that should be activated
string elementId = 1;
// the key of the ancestor scope the element instance should be created in;
// set to -1 to create the new element instance within an existing element
// instance of the flow scope
int64 ancestorElementInstanceKey = 2;
// instructions describing which variables should be created
repeated VariableInstruction variableInstructions = 3;
}

message VariableInstruction {
// JSON document that will instantiate the variables for the root variable scope of the
// process instance; it must be a JSON object, as variables will be mapped in a
// key-value fashion. e.g. { "a": 1, "b": 2 } will create two variables, named "a" and
// "b" respectively, with their associated values. [{ "a": 1, "b": 2 }] would not be a
// valid argument, as the root of the JSON document is an array and not an object.
string variables = 1;
// the id of the element in which scope the variables should be created;
// leave empty to create the variables in the global scope of the process instance
string scopeId = 2;
}

message TerminateInstruction {
// the id of the element that should be terminated
int64 elementInstanceKey = 1;
}
}

Output: ModifyProcessInstanceResponse

message ModifyProcessInstanceResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No process instance exists with the given key, or it is not active.
  • No process instance was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • At least one activate instruction is invalid. An activate instruction is considered invalid if:
    • The process doesn't contain an element with the given id.
    • A flow scope of the given element can't be created.
    • The given element has more than one active instance of its flow scope.
  • At least one variable instruction is invalid. A variable instruction is considered invalid if:
    • The process doesn't contain an element with the given scope id.
    • The given element doesn't belong to the activating element's flow scope.
    • The given variables are not a valid JSON document.
  • At least one terminate instruction is invalid. A terminate instruction is considered invalid if:
    • No element instance exists with the given key, or it is not active.
  • The instructions would terminate all element instances of a process instance that was created by a call activity in the parent process.

MigrateProcessInstance RPC

Migrates a process instance to a new process definition. The command can contain multiple mapping instructions to define mapping between the active process instance's elements and target process definition elements.

Use the command to upgrade a process instance to a new version of a process or to a different process definition. E.g. keep your running instances up-to-date with the latest process improvements.

Input: MigrateProcessInstanceRequest

message MigrateProcessInstanceRequest {
// key of the process instance to migrate
int64 processInstanceKey = 1;
// the migration plan that defines target process and element mappings
MigrationPlan migrationPlan = 2;

message MigrationPlan {
// the key of process definition to migrate the process instance to
int64 targetProcessDefinitionKey = 1;
// the mapping instructions describe how to map elements from the source process definition to the target process definition
repeated MappingInstruction mappingInstructions = 2;
}

message MappingInstruction {
// the element id to migrate from
string sourceElementId = 1;
// the element id to migrate into
string targetElementId = 2;
}
}

Output: MigrateProcessInstanceResponse

message MigrateProcessInstanceResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No process instance exists with the given key, or it is not active
  • No process definition exists with the given target definition key
  • No process instance exists with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • A sourceElementId does not refer to an element in the process instance's process definition
  • A targetElementId does not refer to an element in the target process definition
  • A sourceElementId is mapped by multiple mapping instructions. For example, the engine cannot determine how to migrate a process instance when the instructions are: [A->B, A->C].

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • Not all active elements in the given process instance are mapped to the elements in the target process definition
  • A mapping instruction changes the type of an element or event
  • A mapping instruction refers to an unsupported element (i.e. some elements will be supported later on)
  • A mapping instruction refers to element in unsupported scenarios. (i.e. migrating active elements with event subscriptions will be supported later on)

PublishMessage RPC

Publishes a single message. Messages are published to specific partitions computed from their correlation keys.

Input: PublishMessageRequest

message PublishMessageRequest {
// the name of the message
string name = 1;
// the correlation key of the message
string correlationKey = 2;
// how long the message should be buffered on the broker, in milliseconds
int64 timeToLive = 3;
// the unique ID of the message; can be omitted. only useful to ensure only one message
// with the given ID will ever be published (during its lifetime)
string messageId = 4;
// the message variables as a JSON document; to be valid, the root of the document must be an
// object, e.g. { "a": "foo" }. [ "foo" ] would not be valid.
string variables = 5;
// the tenant ID of the message
string tenantId = 6;
}

Output: PublishMessageResponse

message PublishMessageResponse {
// the unique ID of the message that was published
int64 key = 1;
// the tenant ID of the message
string tenantId = 2;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_ALREADY_EXISTS

Returned if:

  • A message with the same ID was previously published (and is still alive).

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantId is blank (empty string, null)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantId is not blank (empty string, null), or has an ID other than <default>

GRPC_STATUS_PERMISSION_DENIED

  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an unauthorized tenant ID is provided

ResolveIncident RPC

Resolves a given incident. This simply marks the incident as resolved; most likely a call to UpdateJobRetries or SetVariables will be necessary to actually resolve the problem, followed by this call.

Input: ResolveIncidentRequest

message ResolveIncidentRequest {
// the unique ID of the incident to resolve
int64 incidentKey = 1;
}

Output: ResolveIncidentResponse

message ResolveIncidentResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No incident with the given key exists.
  • No incident with the given key was found for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

SetVariables RPC

Updates all the variables of a particular scope (e.g. process instance, flow element instance) from the given JSON document.

Input: SetVariablesRequest

message SetVariablesRequest {
// the unique identifier of a particular element; can be the process instance key (as
// obtained during instance creation), or a given element, such as a service task (see
// elementInstanceKey on the job message)
int64 elementInstanceKey = 1;
// a JSON serialized document describing variables as key value pairs; the root of the document
// must be an object
string variables = 2;
// if true, the variables will be merged strictly into the local scope (as indicated by
// elementInstanceKey); this means the variables is not propagated to upper scopes.
// for example, let's say we have two scopes, '1' and '2', with each having effective variables as:
// 1 => `{ "foo" : 2 }`, and 2 => `{ "bar" : 1 }`. if we send an update request with
// elementInstanceKey = 2, variables `{ "foo" : 5 }`, and local is true, then scope 1 will
// be unchanged, and scope 2 will now be `{ "bar" : 1, "foo" 5 }`. if local was false, however,
// then scope 1 would be `{ "foo": 5 }`, and scope 2 would be `{ "bar" : 1 }`.
bool local = 3;
}

Output: SetVariablesResponse

message SetVariablesResponse {
// the unique key of the set variables command
int64 key = 1;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No element with the given elementInstanceKey exists.
  • No element with the given elementInstanceKey was found for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • The given payload is not a valid JSON document; all payloads are expected to be valid JSON documents where the root node is an object.

ThrowError RPC

ThrowError reports a business error (i.e. non-technical) that occurs while processing a job.

The error is handled in the process by an error catch event. If there is no error catch event with the specified errorCode, an incident is raised instead.

Variables can be passed along with the thrown error to provide additional details that can be used in the process.

Input: ThrowErrorRequest

message ThrowErrorRequest {
// the unique job identifier, as obtained when activating the job
int64 jobKey = 1;
// the error code that will be matched with an error catch event
string errorCode = 2;
// an optional error message that provides additional context
string errorMessage = 3;
// JSON document that will instantiate the variables at the local scope of the
// error catch event that catches the thrown error; it must be a JSON object, as variables will be mapped in a
// key-value fashion. e.g. { "a": 1, "b": 2 } will create two variables, named "a" and
// "b" respectively, with their associated values. [{ "a": 1, "b": 2 }] would not be a
// valid argument, as the root of the JSON document is an array and not an object.
string variables = 4;
}

Output: ThrowErrorResponse

message ThrowErrorResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No job was found with the given key.
  • No job was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • The job is already in a failed state, i.e. ran out of retries.

Topology RPC

Obtains the current topology of the cluster the gateway is part of.

Input: TopologyRequest

message TopologyRequest {
}

Output: TopologyResponse

message TopologyResponse {
// list of brokers part of this cluster
repeated BrokerInfo brokers = 1;
// how many nodes are in the cluster
int32 clusterSize = 2;
// how many partitions are spread across the cluster
int32 partitionsCount = 3;
// configured replication factor for this cluster
int32 replicationFactor = 4;
// gateway version
string gatewayVersion = 5;
}

message BrokerInfo {
// unique (within a cluster) node ID for the broker
int32 nodeId = 1;
// hostname of the broker
string host = 2;
// port for the broker
int32 port = 3;
// list of partitions managed or replicated on this broker
repeated Partition partitions = 4;
// broker version
string version = 5;
}

message Partition {
// Describes the Raft role of the broker for a given partition
enum PartitionBrokerRole {
LEADER = 0;
FOLLOWER = 1;
}

// Describes the current health of the partition
enum PartitionBrokerHealth {
HEALTHY = 0;
UNHEALTHY = 1;
}

// the unique ID of this partition
int32 partitionId = 1;
// the role of the broker for this partition
PartitionBrokerRole role = 2;
// the health of this partition
PartitionBrokerHealth health = 3;
}

Errors

No specific errors.

UpdateJobRetries RPC

Updates the number of retries a job has left. This is mostly useful for jobs that have run out of retries, should the underlying problem be solved.

Input: UpdateJobRetriesRequest

message UpdateJobRetriesRequest {
// the unique job identifier, as obtained through ActivateJobs
int64 jobKey = 1;
// the new amount of retries for the job; must be positive
int32 retries = 2;
}

Output: UpdateJobRetriesResponse

message UpdateJobRetriesResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No job exists with the given key.
  • No job was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • Retries is not greater than 0.

UpdateJobTimeout RPC

Updates the deadline of a job using the timeout (in milliseconds) provided. This can be used for extending or shortening the job deadline. The new deadline will be calculated from the current time, adding the timeout provided.

Input: UpdateJobTimeoutRequest

message UpdateJobTimeoutRequest {
// the unique job identifier, as obtained from ActivateJobsResponse
int64 jobKey = 1;
// the duration of the new timeout in ms, starting from the current moment
int64 timeout = 2;
}

Output: UpdateJobTimeoutResponse

message UpdateJobTimeoutResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No job exists with the given key.
  • No job was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_STATE

Returned if:

  • The job is not active.

DeleteResource RPC

Input DeleteResourceRequest

message DeleteResourceRequest {
// The key of the resource that should be deleted. This can be the key
// of a process definition, the key of a decision requirements definition or the key of a form definition.
int64 resourceKey = 1;
}

Output: DeleteResourceResponse

message DeleteResourceResponse {
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_NOT_FOUND

Returned if:

  • No resource exists with the given key.
  • No resource was found with the given key for the tenants the user is authorized to work with.

GRPC_STATUS_FAILED_PRECONDITION

Returned if:

  • The deleted resource is a process definition, and there are running instances for this process definition.

StreamActivatedJobs RPC

Opens a long living stream for the given job type, worker name, job timeout, and fetch variables. This will cause available jobs in the engine to be activated and pushed down this stream.

See the job worker's technical reference for more on this.

Input StreamActivatedJobsRequest

message StreamActivatedJobsRequest {
// the job type, as defined in the BPMN process (e.g. <zeebe:taskDefinition
// type="payment-service" />)
string type = 1;
// the name of the worker activating the jobs, mostly used for logging purposes
string worker = 2;
// a job returned after this call will not be activated by another call until the
// timeout (in ms) has been reached
int64 timeout = 3;
// a list of variables to fetch as the job variables; if empty, all visible variables at
// the time of activation for the scope of the job will be returned
repeated string fetchVariable = 5;
// a list of identifiers of tenants for which to stream jobs
repeated string tenantIds = 6;
}

Output: a stream of ActivatedJob

message ActivatedJob {
// the key, a unique identifier for the job
int64 key = 1;
// the type of the job (should match what was requested)
string type = 2;
// the job's process instance key
int64 processInstanceKey = 3;
// the bpmn process ID of the job process definition
string bpmnProcessId = 4;
// the version of the job process definition
int32 processDefinitionVersion = 5;
// the key of the job process definition
int64 processKey = 6;
// the associated task element ID
string elementId = 7;
// the unique key identifying the associated task, unique within the scope of the
// process instance
int64 elementInstanceKey = 8;
// a set of custom headers defined during modelling; returned as a serialized
// JSON document
string customHeaders = 9;
// the name of the worker which activated this job
string worker = 10;
// the amount of retries left to this job (should always be positive)
int32 retries = 11;
// when the job can be activated again, sent as a UNIX epoch timestamp
int64 deadline = 12;
// JSON document, computed at activation time, consisting of all visible variables to
// the task scope
string variables = 13;
// the ID of the tenant that owns the job
string tenantId = 14;
}

Errors

GRPC_STATUS_INVALID_ARGUMENT

Returned if:

  • Type is blank (empty string, null)
  • Timeout less than 1 (ms)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and tenantIds is empty (empty list)
  • If multi-tenancy is enabled, and an invalid tenant ID is provided. A tenant ID is considered invalid if:
    • The tenant ID is blank (empty string, null)
    • The tenant ID is longer than 31 characters
    • The tenant ID contains anything other than alphanumeric characters, dot (.), dash (-), or underscore (_)
  • If multi-tenancy is disabled, and tenantIds is not empty (empty list), or has an ID other than <default>