EndActivity

Category: Common Steps
Namespace: CMS.Plugin.FlowManagement.Abstractions.FlowBusiness.Activitys
Base Class: BusinessActivity
Module: FlowManagement.Abstractions

Overview

EndActivity is the flow end node. When the flow runs to the end node, it terminates the entire flow instance and automatically ends other unprocessed steps in the flow instance. The end node supports automatic flow restart, enabling cyclic execution of the flow.

Business Scenarios

Applicable Scenarios

• Flow Termination: Marks normal flow termination
• Cyclic Flow: Automatically restarts after flow ends to achieve cyclic execution
• Performance Monitoring: Records total flow execution time
• Flow Cleanup: Automatically ends incomplete steps

Role in System

• Marks flow execution completion
• Calculates total flow time consumption
• Supports automatic flow restart
• Collects performance metrics
• Cleans up flow resources

Configuration Description

Basic Configuration

Property Name	Type	Required	Default	Description
AutoResetEvent	bool	No	true	Whether to start a new flow instance after step execution (Repeat execution)
NeedTagChange	bool?	No	null	After flow restart, set condition to ensure business processing is triggered only when variables change
EnableCounter	bool	No	true	Whether to enable performance sampling

Configuration Details

AutoResetEvent

Description: Controls whether to automatically restart after flow ends. When set to true, a new flow instance is automatically created after the flow ends.

Value Range: true or false

Notes:

• Suitable for flows requiring cyclic execution (e.g., monitoring, scheduled tasks)
• Effective on first execution
• Retains flow context data on restart

NeedTagChange

Description: Controls whether variable change is required to trigger flow restart. Avoids repeated processing of the same data.

Value Range: true, false, or null

Notes:

• true: Re-execute only when monitored variables change
• false/null: Execute every restart
• Can be dynamically controlled via flow context NeedTagChange

EnableCounter

Description: Whether to enable performance counter to record flow execution time to the monitoring system.

Value Range: true or false

Notes:

• Used for performance monitoring and analysis
• Records total flow execution time
• Sends data to Metrics system

Flow Context

Input Parameters

Parameter Name	Type	Description
NeedTagChange	bool	Dynamically control whether tag change is needed

Output Parameters

No specific output parameters

Business Logic Description

Processing Flow

1. Enter Node: Create work item and mark as completed
2. End Flow: Call FinishFlowAsync to end flow instance
3. Stop Timer: Stop flow timer
4. Record Time: Record total flow execution time
5. Restart Flow: If AutoResetEvent is enabled, create new flow instance
6. Performance Sampling: If EnableCounter is enabled, record performance metrics

Special Behaviors

• Never Exit: EndActivity's CanExitAsync always returns false
• Auto Complete: Work item automatically marked as completed status
• Cleanup Incomplete Steps: Automatically ends other incomplete steps in the flow

Performance Monitoring

// Record total flow time consumption
Flow.Instance.Stopwatch?.Stop();
var elapsedMilliseconds = Flow.Instance.Stopwatch?.ElapsedMilliseconds;

// Send to monitoring system
Flow.Metrics.Counter(flowName, elapsedMilliseconds, "ms");

Usage Examples

Basic Example - Simple End

{
  "Type": "EndActivity",
  "Name": "Flow End",
  "Alias": "End",
  "AutoResetEvent": false,
  "EnableCounter": true
}

Description: Does not restart after flow ends, records performance metrics.

Advanced Example - Cyclic Flow

{
  "Type": "EndActivity",
  "Name": "Loop End",
  "Alias": "LoopEnd",
  "AutoResetEvent": true,
  "NeedTagChange": true,
  "EnableCounter": true
}

Description: Automatically restarts after flow ends, but re-executes only when monitored variables change.

Complete Flow Example

{
  "Name": "Monitoring Flow",
  "Activities": [
    {
      "Type": "VariableMonitorActivity",
      "Name": "Monitor Variable",
      "Alias": "Monitor"
    },
    {
      "Type": "ProcessDataActivity",
      "Name": "Process Data",
      "Alias": "Process"
    },
    {
      "Type": "EndActivity",
      "Name": "End and Restart",
      "Alias": "End",
      "AutoResetEvent": true,
      "NeedTagChange": true
    }
  ]
}

Notes

• ⚠️ Uniqueness: Each flow can have only one EndActivity
• ⚠️ Never Exit: EndActivity cannot have subsequent nodes
• ⚠️ Cyclic Flow: Avoid infinite loops when using AutoResetEvent
• ⚠️ Performance Impact: EnableCounter has slight performance overhead
• 💡 Best Practices:
  • Recommend enabling NeedTagChange for cyclic flows to avoid repeated processing
  • Recommend enabling EnableCounter in production for performance monitoring
  • Ensure flow has clear termination conditions

Related Nodes

• BusinessActivity: Parent class
• ParallelEnd: Parallel flow end node

FAQ

Q1: Why can't there be nodes after EndActivity?

A: EndActivity's CanExitAsync always returns false, indicating the flow has ended and cannot continue execution.

Q2: How does AutoResetEvent work?

A: After the flow ends, the system calls ResetEventAsync to create a new flow instance, which starts execution from the beginning.

Q3: What is the use of NeedTagChange?

A: Prevents repeated processing of the same data. The restarted flow executes business logic only when monitored variables change.

Q4: How to view total flow execution time?

A: Check the "Exit, Total Time: XXXms" information in the logs, or view performance metrics in the monitoring system.

Update History

Date	Version	Description
2025-11-28	1.0	Initial Release

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Last updated: 2025-11-28