Tasks, Processes, Process Instances
Three words come up constantly in metamorphOS. They describe the same workflow at three different levels - the design, a single run of it, and the individual work inside that run.
Process
A process is the design: a repeatable sequence of steps and rules that turns inputs into outcomes. You build it in the Builder and deploy it to make it usable. Think of it as the blueprint - it doesn’t do anything on its own.
One process can be run any number of times.
See Processes.
Process instance
A process instance is one running execution of a process - a single case, ticket, or record. Each instance carries its own data and moves through the steps independently of every other instance of the same process.
You give instances readable names with the
Instance Naming Template
(for example Register ${name}), and you follow a single run on the
Process Instance View.
A process is the recipe; an instance is one meal cooked from it.
Task
A task is a single piece of work inside an instance that is waiting on a person (or an AI agent) - a review, an approval, some information to submit. Tasks show up in the assignee’s Tasks list.
Not every step is a task: automatic steps (a calculation, a branch, a document) run on their own without ever appearing in anyone’s list. A task exists only where the process needs a human (or agent) to act.
How they relate
- A process can have many instances running at once.
- Each instance produces tasks as it reaches steps that need a person.
- Who a task goes to is decided by Roles, Users, Authorizations.