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Orchestration vs. Sub-Workflows

PatternUse WhenRelationship
Sub-Workflow (Guide34)Reusable child workflow, tight coupling, share actor contextParent waits for child (sync) or fire-and-forget (async)
Processes CapabilityOrchestrating independent workflows, saga compensation, cross-workflow coordinationCoordinator controls lifecycle of independent executions by ID

Available Process Nodes

Node TypeOperationOutput
StartWorkflowNodeStart a new workflow execution{ executionId, status: "started" }
CancelWorkflowNodeSend cancellation signal to a running execution{ executionId, status: "cancellation-requested" }
PauseWorkflowNodePause a running execution at its next safe point{ executionId, status: "pausing" }
ExecutionStatusNodeQuery current status and output snapshot{ executionId, status, completedAt, output }
WaitForWorkflowNodeSuspend until another execution completesTarget execution's output
Orchestrator pattern: Use a dedicated "orchestrator" workflow that starts multiple child workflows, waits for their completion using WaitForWorkflowNode, and coordinates the overall business process. This is the preferred pattern for distributed business transactions.