Nintex Process Discovery Components

Discovery Robots are lightweight clients installed on employee desktops. They operate silently and monitor business-related activities without affecting end-user productivity. These robots offer comprehensive visibility into all application-level business activities by collecting behavioral data on users, processes, and applications across the entire business unit or organization. This data collection occurs even when the user's computer is offline or off-network. The Discovery Robots send the collected data, which includes screenshots and metadata for each user action, to the Discovery Server for further analysis.

The raw data collected by the Discovery Robot includes two main components:

1. Screenshot: For each user action, a screenshot is captured, providing a visual representation of the activity performed by the user.

2. Detailed Metadata: In addition to the screenshots, detailed metadata is collected for each user action. This metadata contains additional information related to the action, such as:

   • Application name

   • User name

   • Event type (e.g., mouse wheel, left mouse click)

   • Mouse position (e.g., x:933, y:637)

   • Time stamp

Through the Process Discovery Console, administrators have the ability to define which employee desktop and web applications are monitored by the Discovery Robots. This configuration allows administrators to specify the specific applications and desktop environments that should be tracked and analyzed for Process Discovery. By defining the scope of monitoring, administrators can ensure that the Discovery Robots focus on the relevant areas of the organization's digital ecosystem, capturing the necessary data for process analysis and automation.

The Discovery Server performs various complex algorithmic processes using the data collected by the Discovery Robots. These processes include:

• Image Analysis: The server extracts relevant information from each screenshot captured by the robots. This analysis helps identify important elements and data within the captured images.

• Image Clustering: The server identifies and clusters repeated actions based on the captured screenshots. This helps identify patterns and common sequences of actions performed by users.

• Discovery: The server identifies highly repeated processes by analyzing the captured data. It calculates statistical information such as process duration, actions performed, applications used, and more. This analysis provides valuable insights into the frequency and characteristics of various processes.

The output of these processes, including process and variant data, is stored in the Process Library. The Process Library serves as a repository of discovered processes and their variations, allowing users to access and utilize this information for process optimization and automation.

Additionally, the Discovery Server includes Application Databases, which are either MariaDB or MySQL databases. These databases store all the data collected by the Discovery Robots. The collected data is immediately encrypted and transferred to these databases, residing on the client machine for a short period before further processing and analysis.

Nintex Process Discovery User Management Tool grants user access to the Process Library (KeyCloak Service).

The Process Discovery Console is a browser-based application that provides an overview of the discovered processes. It allows the Business Analyst to select and save processes for further analysis and mapping. With the Process Discovery Console, you can perform the following tasks:

Using the Process Discovery Console you can:

• Set and configure the collected data: You can manage teams and user access, define applications for Discovery, and manage the recorded data. This allows you to control and customize the data collection process according to your specific requirements.

• Manage Discovery Robots and licenses: The Process Discovery Console provides options to manage the Discovery Robots, including their licenses. You can add, remove, or configure robots as needed to ensure effective data collection.

• Discover candidate processes for automation: The Process Discovery Console utilizes the collected data and algorithms to identify potential processes that are suitable for automation. It helps you identify the best candidates for automation based on process characteristics and frequency.

• Add processes to the Process Library: You can select and add desired processes to the Process Library, which serves as a repository for discovered processes. This allows for further analysis and mapping of the processes.

• Generate process files and supporting documents: The Process Discovery Console enables you to generate process files that are used in Nintex Studio for automation. Additionally, you can generate supporting documents that provide additional information and documentation related to the discovered processes.

The Process Discovery Console is accessible through the Chrome or Edge web browsers from any machine that has access to the Discovery Server. This provides flexibility in accessing and managing the discovered processes from various locations.