Lifecycle Processes
Overview
Lifecycle Processes are structured, multi-step workflows that guide your team through common IT procedures — such as employee onboarding, device return, or equipment decommission. They ensure consistency, complete data capture, and a traceable record of every operation.
How Processes Work
- A process definition sets the flow: which steps to go through, which asset status triggers the process, and which status is set on completion
- A team member starts a process for a specific asset
- Each step is completed in order — entered data is saved
- When all steps are done, the process is completed and the asset status is updated automatically
Process Overview
Navigate to Processes in the sidebar. The page shows:
- Active Instances — all currently running process instances in your tenant (with asset, started by, and step status)
- Process Definitions — all available processes as clickable cards, including step count and status transition (e.g. In Stock → Preparing)
Click any process card to open the Flow Editor.
Flow Editor
The Flow Editor is a visual workflow designer, similar to a diagram tool. Each process is displayed as a flowchart — with nodes (steps) and connections between them.
Canvas Controls
| Action | Description |
|---|---|
| Scroll / Trackpad | Zoom in/out |
| Click + drag (empty area) | Pan the canvas |
| Drag a node | Reposition a step |
| Drag a handle | Create a connection between two steps |
| Click a node / connection | Select it (highlighted) |
| Delete key | Remove the selected step or connection |
Node Types
| Node | Symbol | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Start | Green circle ▶ | Beginning of the process (always present, cannot be deleted) |
| End | Red circle ■ | End of the process (always present, cannot be deleted) |
| Action | Rectangle with icon | A concrete step in the flow |
Step Types (Action Nodes)
| Type | Icon | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Text Input | ✏️ | Single-line free text field |
| Selection | 🔽 | Choose from a predefined list |
| Text Area | 📝 | Multi-line free text |
| Date | 📅 | Date picker |
| Confirmation | ✅ | Single checkbox (yes/no) |
| Checklist | 📋 | Multiple items to check off |
| User | 👤 | Select a user from your organisation |
| Signature | ✍️ | Digital signature capture |
Adding Steps
Click a step type button in the left toolbar. The new step is automatically:
- inserted after the last action node
- connected to the previous node
- connected to the End node
The Properties panel on the right opens so you can configure the step immediately.
Step Properties
Click any action node to open the Properties panel:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Type | The kind of step (text input, selection, etc.) |
| Label | Display name shown to users when they fill in the step |
| Field Key | Technical key for the stored data (e.g. serial_number) |
| Required | When enabled, the step must be completed |
| Options | For Selection type: one option per line |
| Checklist items | For Checklist type: one item per line |
Manual connections: Drag from the bottom handle of a node to the top handle of another to connect them.
Saving Changes
After editing the flow, a Save button appears in the top-right (green). Changes are only applied after clicking Save. Unsaved changes are lost when leaving the page.
Process Settings (Admin)
Click the gear icon ⚙️ in the top-right to edit a process's metadata:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Process name (locked for system processes) |
| Description | Short explanation of the workflow |
| Trigger Status | The asset status that typically starts this process |
| Target Status | The asset status set when the process completes |
| Active | Inactive processes are hidden from the overview |
Creating a New Process (Admin)
Click New Process in the top-right on the Processes page. The new process opens in the Flow Editor with a Start and End node already placed — add action steps between them and save.
Flow Validation
Uslimato validates each process flow to ensure it can be executed correctly. A process is considered invalid if any of the following apply:
| Issue | Description |
|---|---|
| Missing Start node | Every process must have a Start node |
| Missing End node | Every process must have an End node |
| Missing action step | At least one action step must exist between Start and End |
| Disconnected nodes | Every node must be reachable from Start via the defined connections |
| Start has incoming connections | Nothing may connect to the Start node |
| End has outgoing connections | Nothing may connect from the End node |
Warning Badge
Invalid processes display an amber Warning badge on their card in the Processes overview. Hover over the badge to see a tooltip summarising the issues.
Validation Panel (Flow Editor)
When you open a process with flow issues in the Flow Editor and no node is selected, the properties panel on the right shows a validation panel listing all detected problems. This helps you identify and fix issues before saving.
Saving Invalid Flows
You can still save a process even if its flow is invalid. Saving is never blocked by validation — the warning is informational. However, invalid processes cannot be started as instances until all issues are resolved.
Deleting a Process (Admin)
Click the trash icon 🗑️ in the top-right. A process can only be deleted if:
- It is not a system process (system processes are read-only)
- No instance is currently In Progress
Built-in System Processes
Uslimato ships with pre-installed system processes for the most common scenarios. The flow of these processes can be edited; name and status transitions are locked.
| Process | Trigger | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Check-In | — | In Stock |
| Prepare | In Stock | Preparing |
| Issue | Preparing | In Use |
| Service / Repair | In Use | In Service |
| Return | In Use | Returned |
| Decommission | Returned | Scrapped |
Instances Sidebar
The Flow Editor includes an Instances sidebar on the right showing all instances of this process — with status, asset name, and start time.
For the full overview of all active instances across all processes, visit the main Processes page.