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What is a Workflow in HP ALM - 7 minute guide

For those of you who start with HP ALM, or using it for basic functionality and looking to increase the capacity of the tool, I wanted to mention one of the most powerful features within HP ALM, and the one that sets it above the competitors - the ability to fully customize most of sections within the tool. This customization goes as far as giving the possibility to create new buttons with customizable functionality, updating functionality of existing functions and adding fields to different components. All that can be achieved through HP ALM’s workflow section.

This sections allows configuration of day to day functionality like preventing defect from being closed without a reason, to a more complex customization with have VBScripting like exports, execution or even initiation of other tools and applications.
In future posts I’m planning to explore some specific application of this powerful tool, meanwhile for those who interested here are some examples of what can be achieved with workflow:
  1. Limiting to what status a defect can be changed from any existing state
  2. Allowing approval of Requirement only to specific group
  3. Setting up complex logic when for example test cases can be set for review by anyone but moved back to draft only by specific user
  4. Creating export functionality to Excel of test cases and steps with one button
  5. Creating export of Requirements to excel with one button
  6. Customizing the built in delete function to move items to Recycle bin instead of deleting them
  7. Creation of custom confirmation and notifications beyond the built-in functionality of the HP ALM tool.


For those who are interested to find out more about this powerful piece of HP ALM can find out more in:

I will be posting in the future specific Workflow customizations that are very useful in my experience, so stay tuned….

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