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About Workflows ​

Workflows in PoshUI are designed for multi-task automation that requires tracking progress, handling reboots, and providing a professional execution interface.

Workflow Execution

Key Features ​

  • Multi-Task Execution: Define a sequence of tasks to be executed one after another.
  • Two Progress Modes: Auto-progress (simple) or manual progress (precise control).
  • Reboot & Resume: Workflows can save their state, request a system reboot, and automatically resume from the next task.
  • CMTrace-Compatible Logging: Detailed execution logs are generated in a format familiar to IT professionals.
  • Workflow Context: The $PoshUIWorkflow object provides methods for progress tracking, output logging, and reboot control.
  • PNG Icon Support (v1.3.0): Full-color PNG icons on wizard steps, cards, banners, and carousel slides.
  • Dual-Mode Custom Themes (v1.3.0): Independent light/dark color palettes with runtime toggle.
  • Theme Toggle (v1.3.0): Sun/moon button in the title bar for instant theme switching.

When to Use Workflows ​

Workflows are ideal for:

  • Complex OS Configurations: Tasks that require multiple steps and potentially reboots.
  • Application Suites Deployment: Installing multiple applications with dependency tracking.
  • System Maintenance: Running a series of diagnostic and repair tasks.
  • Infrastructure Provisioning: Orchestrating multiple automation steps with clear feedback.

Architecture ​

A PoshUI Workflow typically combines a Wizard (for data collection) with a Workflow execution engine.

  1. Wizard Phase: The user fills out forms to provide parameters for the automation.
  2. Workflow Phase: The engine takes those parameters and executes a series of tasks, showing real-time progress and output.

Quick Start ​

The simplest workflow has two phases:

powershell
Import-Module PoshUI.Workflow

# Initialize
New-PoshUIWorkflow -Title 'My Workflow'

# Phase 1: Wizard (collect user input)
Add-UIStep -Name 'Config' -Title 'Configuration' -Order 1
Add-UITextBox -Step 'Config' -Name 'ServerName' -Label 'Server Name' -Mandatory

# Phase 2: Workflow (execute tasks)
Add-UIStep -Name 'Execution' -Title 'Execution' -Order 2 -Type Workflow
Add-UIWorkflowTask -Step 'Execution' -Name 'Task1' -Title 'Doing Something' `
    -ScriptBlock {
        $PoshUIWorkflow.WriteOutput("Working on $ServerName...", "INFO")
        # Your logic here
    }

# Show the UI
Show-PoshUIWorkflow

Core Concepts ​

Progress Reporting ​

Choose between two approaches:

  • Auto-Progress (WriteOutput()): Simple, progress auto-advances with each status message
  • Manual Progress (UpdateProgress()): Precise, you explicitly set progress percentage

See Progress Reporting Guide for decision tree and examples.

Data Passing ​

Three ways to pass data to tasks:

  • Wizard Inputs: User-provided values, available to all tasks
  • Task Arguments: Task-specific parameters via -Arguments
  • $PoshUIWorkflow: Context object for progress, output, and reboot control

See Data Passing Patterns for detailed examples.

Reboot & Resume ​

Request system reboots and automatically resume after:

  • Saves workflow state to disk
  • Shows user reboot dialog
  • Resumes from next task after reboot
  • Automatically cleans up state file on completion

See Reboot & Resume for implementation checklist.

Documentation Map ​

Next: Creating Workflows