Shadow tasks

A shadow task is a specific task type used to map a task to a task running on a different engine.

There are two types of shadow task: from HCL Universal Orchestrator to HCL Universal Orchestrator, and from HCL Universal Orchestrator to HCL Workload Automation for Z. A shadow task does not perform any actual work: it binds to a task running on a remote engine and shadows its status. This enables you to create cross-engine dependencies where a local workflow waits for the completion of a remote operation.

Endpoint reference

To establish the connection with the remote engine, a shadow task can reference an Endpoint item. The endpoint definition encapsulates the connection parameters required to communicate with the target system, including:

  • URL: The network address of the remote engine. You can define multiple URLs in order of priority.
  • Credentials: The authentication details required to secure the communication. For connections between HCL Universal Orchestrator engines, you must use a Cross dependencies API Key. For connections to HCL Workload Automation for Z, the connection JWT must be provided by an administrator of the remote engine.

By using an endpoint, you centralize the connection configuration, avoiding the need to duplicate sensitive credentials across multiple task definitions.

Target identification

To successfully bind to the remote task, specify the fields required to locate it within the remote engine plan. These fields vary depending on the type of the remote engine:

HCL Universal Orchestrator
  • Workstation: The name of the workstation where the remote workflow runs.
  • Workflow: The full path of the workflow, including the folder path and the workflow name.
  • Task name: The name of the specific task to monitor.
HCL Workload Automation for Z (Mainframe)
  • Application name: The name of the application (workflow) containing the operation.
  • Operation number: The number identifying the specific operation (task).

Dependency type

You can control how the shadow task behaves if the remote task instance is not immediately found in the remote engine plan by setting the Mandatory flag:

  • Mandatory: If the remote instance is not found, the bind request waits. The shadow task remains in a waiting state until the remote instance appears in the plan or until the pre-production plan (or inactive window) ends.
    Note: This attribute is only available for HCL Universal Orchestrator to HCL Universal Orchestrator connections.
  • Optional: If the remote instance is not found immediately, the bind fails, and the shadow task transitions to the ERROR status.

Matching criteria

For HCL Universal Orchestrator to HCL Universal Orchestrator connections, the matching criteria are the same as standard dependencies. However, for connections from HCL Universal Orchestrator to HCL Workload Automation for Z (and vice versa), the only supported matching criteria is Closest preceding. For more information see Managing matching criteria.