---
title: "The Technology behind our BPM Engine: Camunda"
canonical: "https://onesaitplatform.refined.site/space/DOCT/2220198636/The%20Technology%20behind%20our%20BPM%20Engine%3A%20Camunda"
format: markdown
---
> Macro (toc)

## What is it?

[Camunda ](https://camunda.com)is a BPM platform that arises as a fork of Activiti, and over the years has been getting a name in the world of BPMs, so much so that, now, as we shall see, it is an option to consider for what it offers (read [5 Reasons to switch from Activiti to Camunda](http://www.bpm-guide.de/2016/10/19/5-reasons-to-switch-from-activiti-to-camunda/)).

![image](media://fbaa8d24-f236-4def-9d0f-2905cbb76da8)

## Camunda Components

The Camunda stack is made up of these components:

### BPMN WorkFlow Engine

![image](media://14ee52b9-0e83-4571-8235-bbaa63b0f86f)

- With support for microservices orchestration and human task management.
- It can run embedded in a Java application (has a Spring Boot starter).
- It supports most of the BPMN 2.0 standard ([See support](https://docs.camunda.org/manual/7.9/reference/bpmn20/?__hstc=252030934.55912c1e9a79d73098b92b18de9501d3.1537710833589.1537812805769.1537824563780.4&__hssc=252030934.3.1537824563780&__hsfp=2076912450)).
- It offers a REST API to start processes, complete tasks, ... ([View REST API](https://docs.camunda.org/manual/reference/rest/?__hstc=252030934.55912c1e9a79d73098b92b18de9501d3.1537710833589.1537812805769.1537824563780.4&__hssc=252030934.3.1537824563780&__hsfp=2076912450)).
- It provides a Java API to simplify management:

![image](media://6b52b01e-6fb4-4e69-85ac-7b86182cf251)

- It is a high-performance engine with very interesting functionalities such as caching, concurrency management, savepoints, ... ([Read more](https://camunda.com/products/performance/)).

![image](media://cf50f885-fd69-4078-abbf-7b9ede5259cd)

- It supports persistence in different relational databases.
- It operates in clustering with load balancing.
- Difference between Runtime (what is needed to run) and historical (for reporting, auditing, etc.).

### DMN Rules Engine

- It supports DMN 1.1 standard (Decision Model and Notation), which is the standard in BPM for business decision making.
- It supports Decision Tables ([Read more](https://docs.camunda.org/manual/7.9/reference/dmn11/decision-table/).)).

![image](media://7f6434b3-ba7b-4f3d-b643-a284ebd8cfa1)

- It provides a REST API for querying rules:

![image](media://c922afc0-2508-494e-8697-757fbec8a68e)

- It also supports DMN FEEL (Friendly Enough Expression Language).

### Modeler:

- This is a very easy to use desktop application that allows you to create BPMN process diagrams and DMN decision tables.

![image](media://e9b2ceae-96d1-48af-aece-a948419d00f9)

- It supports BPMN 2.0, CMMN 1.1 and DMN 1.1.
- It allows the creation of executable models in the BPM Engine.
- It allows the extension via Templates (for example to create a Mail Task that we would see in the palette, [see templates](https://github.com/camunda/camunda-modeler/tree/master/docs/element-templates)):

![image](media://211ad897-2731-445d-97b3-3d7ec7b70383)

- It supports the concept of plugins to extend the functionality ([See plugins](https://github.com/camunda/camunda-modeler-plugins#camunda-modeler-plugins-electric_plug)):

### Tasklist

- This is a ready-to-use web application that allows end users to work on tasks assigned to them.

![image](media://2e0b0911-6395-4b1f-89f2-2664bd8e984b)

- The Engine creates tasks based on the BPMN model, and assigns these to the users defined in the model.

### Cockpit

- It allows to monitor workflows and decisions in production to discover, analyze and solve technical problems.
- It is a very interesting tool for technical process operations.

![image](media://8ea837e9-af69-4094-b282-c8b153ed68f0)

### Administration

- It allows to manage the web application and the REST API users, assigning groups, permissions, integrating with LDAP for user management,...

### Optimize

- It allows you to create reports and organize them in a dashboard.

![image](media://7f57d40b-1a6c-44f1-94ce-7c931e353eb7)

- It allows you to configure alerts, identify bottlenecks, heat maps, ...

Camunda has Apache 2.0 license and offers a Community version (**without all Cockpit or Optimize**) and a subscription model for the Enterprise version and its more than 100 customers, among them AT&T, T-Mobile, Universal Music, Zalando,...

![image](media://576b27f8-a11b-4133-9b0d-0256cf2a1a25)

Here you can find a [white paper comparing Camunda with other BPM solutions](https://camunda.com/learn/whitepapers/camunda-vs-alternatives/?utm_source=docs&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=whitepaper).