BPM, Workflow, and Case

BPM, Workflow, and Case

Come for answers. Stay for best practices. All we’re missing is you.

 View Only
  • 1.  LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/03/26 05:51 AM

    In our BPM environment, LDAP is configured for user management. Initially, a user was created with a lowercase username (e.g., abc1234). Subsequently, due to certain development requirements, the LDAP team updated the username to uppercase (e.g., ABC1234).

    While the change is reflected in LDAP, the BPM database still retains the old username (abc1234). We also attempted to manually synchronize the user via Process Admin; however, the username was not updated in the BPM database.

    Could you please advise on the appropriate approach to update the username from abc1234 to ABC1234 in the BPM system?

    Your guidance will be appreciated.

    Regards,
    Muhammad Haris Khan



    ------------------------------
    Muhammad Haris Khan
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/03/26 09:22 PM

    Hi Muhammad,

    I highly recommend requesting help from IBM support. As you have observed, IBM BAW LDAP user sync is be case-insensitive by default. So, you will have to update the LSW_USR_XREF table manually.

    The steps for doing so would be along these lines: 
    1.      Determine whether flushing WAS User Registry cache would make sense
    2.     
    Shutdown BAW server
    3.      Backup the server and also the table data (CREATE TABLE LSW_USR_XREF_BACKUP AS SELECT * FROM LSW_USR_XREF;)
    4.      Update the records:
    UPDATE LSW_USR_XREF
    SET USER_NAME = UPPER(USER_NAME)
    WHERE USER_NAME != UPPER(USER_NAME);
    COMMIT;
    5.      Start BAW server
    6.      Check the data in LSW_USR_XREF table
    7.     
    Refresh BAW cache if needed

    Reference material: 
    Based on your database and BAW version a good reference would be documentation that specifically talks about case sensitive variations. Such as here: https://www.ibm.com/docs/en/bpm/8.6.0?topic=sgmbg-configuring-bpm-handle-white-space-letter-case-variations-in-ldap-server

    Additionally, a few APARs that are relevant to the username case-sensitivity issue: https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/apar/JR56655

    https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/apar/JR58657

    Also related to user group membership synchronization: 

    https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/apar/JR53171



    ------------------------------
    Ajay Katre
    Salient Process
    ------------------------------



  • 3.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 04:33 AM

    Hi Ajay,

    Thank you for the detailed response.

    From my understanding, if we proceed with updating the LSW_USR_XREF table, then all related tables (such as those for group membership, task assignments, etc.) that reference usernames from this table would also need to be updated accordingly. Given that this is a product database, identifying all such dependencies and making consistent changes could be complex and may introduce unintended impacts. Therefore, I agree that it would be best to consult IBM Support on this matter.

    Regarding the other references you shared, they do not appear to be applicable to our scenario. These primarily address synchronization or behavioral changes within IBM BAW to handle case sensitivity. However, in our case, there is custom code that requires usernames to always be in uppercase; otherwise, the functionality of the custom code will be broken.

    Regards,

    Haris



    ------------------------------
    Muhammad Haris Khan
    ------------------------------



  • 4.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 04:09 AM

    Note that BPM is long out of support. BAW (Business Automation Workflow) is today's product name.

    Many "special treatments" have been added over time. When you sign in as a user ABC1234 and the code finds a user abc1234 in cache or the database, we'll use the lower case record. That is, even if your user's representation has changed, you continue to have the same permissions and task assignments as before.

    Do you actually need the user to show up in upper case for cosmetic reasons?



    ------------------------------
    Jens Engelke
    ------------------------------



  • 5.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 04:18 AM

    Hi Jens,

    The requirement for uppercase usernames in the BAW database is driven by custom code that expects query results to be returned in uppercase (e.g., ABC1234). Any deviation from this format will break the functionality.

    Regards,

    Haris



    ------------------------------
    Muhammad Haris Khan
    ------------------------------



  • 6.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 04:26 AM

    In that case, I concur with Ajay's post above.



    ------------------------------
    Jens Engelke
    ------------------------------



  • 7.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 04:38 AM

    Hi Jens,

    Please check my response to Ajay's post, as that does not apply to our scenario.

    Regards,

    Hais



    ------------------------------
    Muhammad Haris Khan
    ------------------------------



  • 8.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 07:28 AM

    The good news is that the numeric id is the primary key of this table. Code should not refer to users by name, but by numeric id in all "serious places".
    Of course there are exceptions, but they tend to not matter much, e.g. the "last modified" field of an artifact in authoring (process designer) users a by name reference.

    Anyway, a support ticket should help you.



    ------------------------------
    Jens Engelke
    ------------------------------



  • 9.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/04/26 10:34 AM

    Hi Haris, 

    You will have to weigh the effort (and timeline) for the two options you have: (a) update the username in the product table versus (b) change the custom code to accommodate the case difference. I recommend starting with a support ticket to get a realistic take on the first option. 



    ------------------------------
    Ajay Katre
    Salient Process
    ------------------------------



  • 10.  RE: LDAP case-sensitive user synchronization

    Posted 05/05/26 02:53 AM

    I Totally agree with both of the options you stated in last post.



    ------------------------------
    Muhammad Haris Khan
    ------------------------------