Install workflow plug-ins and actions

Workflow plug-ins (composed of workflow actions) are web application archive (WAR) files available from Typefi Systems.  

Available files

Workflow plug-in files are commonly distributed by your Solutions Consultant. Generally available from the Typefi FTP, the files are downloaded to any computer with internet access and then installed via one of the two methods described below.

Note: Workflow plug-ins are updated routinely, and their versions are independent of the Typefi 8 installations. Please check with your Solutions Consultant for available updates.

Install and update via your Typefi Server (recommended)

This process is safe to use for all updates.

1. Access your Typefi Server via a web browser (https://yourserver.domain or http://yourserver.domain:8080).
2. Sign in as the superuser admin.
3. Click Admin (at the top of the page), then click Plugins.
   
4. Although not required, you may perform an uninstall on any action you are replacing or no longer need. The Uninstall button is available next to each action.
5. Click Add Plugin (at the bottom of the page).
6. Browse for the appropriate WAR file you downloaded from the FTP, and select it.
7. Wait. The installation process may take several minutes, especially when installing large plug-ins, so please be patient.
8. The screen will eventually refresh and display the plug-in along with all available actions.  If it does not, click Reload (at the bottom of the page).
9. Verify that the actions you intend to use do not indicate Unlicensed:
   • If the action is unlicensed and you purchased the plug-in, contact your Solutions Consultant to have the license updated or re-issued.
   • If the action is unlicensed and you have not purchased the plug-in, contact the Typefi Sales Team.

Install and update directly within the file system

This process should be reserved for system administrators. It allows for the quick installation of multiple plug-ins simultaneously. You should have a complete backup of the system available before you start.

1. Access your Typefi 8 Server webapps directory.
   • Typefi Server for Desktop: C:\ProgramData\Typefi\Server\webapps.
   • Typefi Server for Workgroup: C:\Program Files (x86)\Typefi\Server\webapps or your custom directory.
2. Although not required, you may perform an uninstall of any/all actions by deleting the appropriate .war files. After deletion, the corresponding folders will be removed by the system.  Wait for the directory cleanup to complete before moving to the next step.
3. Paste the desired .war files in the webapps folder, wait briefly as the system deploys them.  Deployment is visible as corresponding directories are created for each of the plug-ins.
4. Access your Typefi Server via a web browser (https://yourserver.domain or http://yourserver.domain:8080).
5. Sign in as the superuser admin.
6. Click Admin (at the top of the page), then click Plugins.
7. Click Reload (at the bottom of the page). This will cause the plug-ins to reload and refresh the system. 
8. Verify that the actions you intend to use do not indicate Unlicensed:
   
   • If the action is unlicensed and you purchased the plug-in, contact your Solutions Consultant to have the license updated or re-issued.
   • If the action is unlicensed and you have not purchased the plug-in, contact the Typefi Sales Team.

Troubleshooting

Problems with improperly installed/uninstalled plug-ins can be far-reaching and often difficult to diagnose directly. Generally, symptoms of deployment problems include:

• Actions with unexpected version numbers.
• Actions with correct version numbers but unexpected field options.
• Actions with correct version numbers and no perceivable difference in presentation. 
• Actions missing the UPDATE button if an action update was expected.
• Miscellaneous failures running actions after an upgrade. 

The solution for all of these issues is a manual cleanup of the webapps directory (referenced above). The optimal running configuration is one exploded (unzipped) folder for each WAR file and only one WAR file per plug-in.  An example of a problem condition is supplied below. The example shows the typefi-plugin-xsl deployed twice for 10.0.41 and 10.0.42.  This is one of multiple variants of a condition that will lead to problems with actions.

Note: This issue has been resolved in Typefi Server 8.10. 

To resolve this condition:

1. Access your Typefi 8 Server webapps directory.
   • Typefi Server for Desktop: C:\ProgramData\Typefi\Server\webapps.
   • Typefi Server for Workgroup: C:\Program Files (x86)\Typefi\Server\webapps or your custom directory.
2. Confirm the issue exists by looking for multiple versions of a single plug-in or multiple exploded folders (the example below shows both cases in one).
3. Stop the Typefi Server:
   • Typefi Server for Desktop can be shut down from the icon in the system tray.
   • Typefi Server for Workgroup can be stopped via the Services panel (look for Apache Tomcat for Typefi Workgroup).
4. Delete all the folders linked to the problematic plug-in. It is generally advisable to delete any folder except for deltaxml, which should be backed up due to licensing concerns.
5. Delete the unexpected WAR files. In the example below, the older 10.0.41 would be removed.  Only the most recent plug-in WAR file should remain.
6. Start the Typefi Server.
7. Verify that the WAR file explodes into the folder.
8. Access your Typefi Server web user interface (http://localhost:8080)
9. Sign in as admin.
10. Click Admin (at the top of the page), then click Plugins.
11. Click Reload (at the bottom of the page).

At this point, additional procedures may be required to resolve the issue completely. In rare cases, pre-built workflows suffer damage due to this condition. To remedy completely, the following steps may also be executed:

Typefi Server 8.10 has resolved a known issue that caused workflow actions to appear with slightly different names. If you are running Typefi Server 8.9 (or earlier), follow these steps to clear your cache.

1. Open C:\ProgramData\Typefi\typefi-actions (or /Library/Application Support/Typefi/typefi-actions on macOS).
2. Make a copy of all contents of this folder. Custom workflows are stored here.
3. Delete all files.
4. Access your Typefi Server (http://localhost:8080).
5. Sign in as admin.
6. Click Admin (at the top of the page), then click Plugins.
7. Click Reload (at the bottom of the page).
8. You can check the typefi-actions; it will re-populate. Custom workflows will not be re-created. 

Example of a problematic configuration

Example of the corrected condition