Start workflow in background without using event - is it possible (R/3 ver 46C)

[Kjetil Kilhavn]

I think I have come across a real show-stopper in the new approval solution I am working on. Since I have now been twisting my head for hours, trying to change the solution to parallell processing and realising that that won't work either I now hope someone reads this message has a brilliant idea. Otherwise it is probably time to go back to the design stage again.
 
One basic idea behind the solution was that workflows should not be stopped unless it was necessary (so attachments would be available), and therefore the design was created so it would listen for significant events and then do what should be done before it went back to listening again.
 
In the design I have a workflow which is started per document. This workflow has to be created for each document type (requisition, order, service entry and so on). It evaluates the document and decides if it is ready and needs to be approved at all. If approval is required a generic subworkflow for approval is started.
 
The workflow for approval finds out which objects are responsible for approval and creates one event for each such responsible object. This event is captured in a parellell branch which listens for the event, starts a subworkflow and loops back to listen for the event. However - and I could kick myself for not thinking about this before now - when the subworkflow is started the main workflow waits for it to complete. So when the document is changed and there is another approver in addition to the original one, there is no-one listening for the event because the loop hasn't completed its circle!
 
What I need is a multistep task that can be started in background so the flow continues. As far as I can see there is no such thing, at least in version 4.6C.
I've been thinking about ways to circumvent the problem, e.g. having a parallell branch that completes after a minute, but that will only cause the subworkflow to be killed when the other branch completes.
 
I just changed it to a parallell processing step so all the subworkflows can be started in parallell when there are multiple approvers at first, but that doesn't solve the real problem which is related to changes. I'm being driven back inch by inch and it is rather depressing....
 
Right now I only see one solution: if there are any changes in responsibility, kill all the active subworkflows and start new ones. I'm hoping someone else sees a better solution.
-- 
Kjetil Kilhavn, Statoil ØFT KTJ ITS BKS SAP Basis


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