# Workflow Engine by Optimajet > Workflow Engine Family by Optimajet contains four separate Products: Workflow Engine Free, Workflow Engine, Workflow Engine NEO and Workflow Server. It is the actively developed .NET replacement for Microsoft Windows Workflow Foundation. Workflow Engine NEO is the SaaS-oriented Product based on classic Workflow Engine, not an Edition of it. Every Edition includes ready multitenancy and Forms integration; the Enterprise Edition also includes a Form Engine Enterprise license with OEM rights. Workflow Engine Free (formerly Community Edition) is a separate Product for personal use and internal commercial use, with attribution, and has no Editions. Latest stable Workflow Engine version: 22.1.0. Last reviewed against the live site: 2026-09-23 ## Products and product choice - [Compare Products](https://workflowengine.io/products/compare/index.md): Capabilities, limits and Edition boundaries for all four Products, including the canonical Workflow Server Editions. Use the comparison when the decision depends on a specific capability. Use Compare for Workflow Server Editions and licensing; its product and technical sites are not licensing sources. - [Workflow Engine Free](https://workflowengine.io/products/community-edition/index.md): The no-key Product for personal use and internal commercial use, with attribution; it has no Editions. It embeds in a .NET application and includes the full Workflow Designer, Core runtime features and all six database providers. A public web app, a SaaS application or OEM redistribution requires a paid Product and Edition. - [Workflow Engine](https://workflowengine.io/products/dotnet-workflow-engine/index.md): The embedded .NET Product for internal applications, with Team and Complete Editions. Choose it when the application calls Workflow Runtime in-process and your team builds its own application endpoints, tenant isolation and user experience. Team retains usage caps; Complete removes them and adds multi-server deployment. - [Workflow Engine NEO](https://workflowengine.io/products/workflow-engine-neo/index.md): The SaaS-oriented Product based on classic Workflow Engine, with Subscription, Business, SaaS and Enterprise Editions. Choose it for a ready ASP.NET Core HTTP API, ready shared and physical multitenancy, clustering and Forms integration. Every Edition includes ready multitenancy and Forms integration; the Enterprise Edition also includes a Form Engine Enterprise license with OEM rights. - [Workflow Server](https://workflowengine.io/products/workflow-server/index.md): The standalone Product with Starter, Subscription, Business, Business Complete, Business SaaS, Business Ultimate and Custom Editions, an admin UI, Workflow API (REST), Callback API and WFE API. It is a different codebase built on the Workflow Engine library and has a separate license. Choose it when you want a ready-to-run standalone Docker application with administration and APIs rather than an embedded .NET library. - [Downloads](https://workflowengine.io/downloads/index.md): Current release, packages and evaluation. ## Start and obtain a trial key - Browser path: open [the trial portal](https://trial.workflowengine.io/), submit a company name and business email, and receive a 30-day key by email. It evaluates licensed Workflow Engine and Workflow Engine NEO capabilities; no credit card is required. - Agent path: read [the trial API contract](https://trial.workflowengine.io/llms.txt). With explicit user approval, send one POST to https://trial.workflowengine.io/api/trial/llm with `email` and `companyName`. The key is returned and emailed. The portal requires a business email. It documents a 24-hour same-email rate limit and a lifetime maximum of three keys per email. A 429 response must not be retried automatically. - Before that POST, show the destination, ask for the business email and company name, obtain consent, send one request, and never publish or persist the key outside the task. It does not license Workflow Server or Form Engine. ## Pricing, Editions, and licensing - [Pricing](https://workflowengine.io/pricing/index.md): Prices, license models, uses, limits, source access and support for Workflow Engine and Workflow Engine NEO. Enterprise is quote-only. - **Workflow Engine Free:** $0; perpetual with no license key; Personal and internal commercial use, with attribution. - **Workflow Engine Team:** $2,000 one-time; perpetual license; Internal commercial use. - **Workflow Engine Complete:** $5,000 one-time; perpetual license; Internal commercial use. - **Workflow Engine NEO Subscription:** $8,000 per year; annual subscription; Public web app or SaaS. - **Workflow Engine NEO Business:** $10,000 one-time; perpetual license; Internal commercial use. - **Workflow Engine NEO SaaS:** $15,000 one-time; perpetual license; Public web app or SaaS. - **Workflow Engine NEO Enterprise:** quote only; perpetual license; Public web app, SaaS, or OEM. - Workflow Server licensing follows its canonical seven-Edition price list as represented on [Compare Products](https://workflowengine.io/products/compare/index.md); Custom terms are quoted individually. - **Workflow Server Starter:** $999 one-time; Perpetual; Personal use only. - **Workflow Server Subscription:** $5,499 per year; Annual subscription; Commercial use. - **Workflow Server Business:** $15,000 one-time; Perpetual; Commercial use. - **Workflow Server Business Complete:** $25,000 one-time; Perpetual; Commercial use. - **Workflow Server Business SaaS:** $35,000 one-time; Perpetual; Commercial use. - **Workflow Server Business Ultimate:** $50,000 one-time; Perpetual; Commercial use. - **Workflow Server Custom:** quote only; Defined in quote; Commercial use. - Workflow Engine Free costs $0 and is limited to 10 schemas and 4 execution threads; activities, transitions and commands are unrestricted. Its grant covers personal use and internal commercial use, with attribution. It is single-server and keeps Optimajet branding in the Workflow Designer. It does not expire and requires no license key. Section 1.1 of the End User License Agreement sets out the grant and the attribution it requires. - **Workflow Engine limits:** Team permits unlimited schemes, retains 8 execution threads and per-scheme caps of 100 commands, 100 activities and 500 transitions, and is single-server. Complete removes those caps and adds multi-server deployment. - **Workflow Server limits:** Starter has 2 schemes, 1 execution thread and per-scheme caps of 5 commands, 25 activities and 50 transitions. Subscription has 5 schemes, 4 threads and caps of 10, 50 and 200. Business, Business Complete, Business SaaS, Business Ultimate and Custom are uncapped; multi-server starts with Business Complete. - Licensed Workflow Engine source-code access is included for one year with Workflow Engine NEO Enterprise, a one-year add-on with Workflow Engine Complete, Workflow Engine NEO Business and Workflow Engine NEO SaaS, and unavailable with Workflow Engine Team and Workflow Engine NEO Subscription, under a commercial EULA. Workflow Engine Free has no licensed engine-source entitlement. Workflow Server source access is a separate entitlement: unavailable with Starter, Subscription, Business, Business Complete and Business SaaS, and included for one year with Business Ultimate and Custom. Public repositories host releases, samples and issues; repository visibility is not full-product source entitlement. - Paid embedded Editions have no royalties and no per-execution fees within their licensed use. License model and use remain Edition-specific. ## Product Features - [Product Features](https://workflowengine.io/features/index.md): Visual catalog of the entries below. The official documentation catalog is checked separately for drift. Each capability is listed once under its current canonical name. - [Workflow Designer](https://workflowengine.io/features/workflow-designer/index.md): Embed the visual editor so developers and business users can create and change executable workflow schemes. The browser component is available for vanilla JavaScript, React and Angular, and can be hosted from Blazor through JavaScript interop. It is included across the four Products; the application supplies the Designer endpoint. - [Simple Process Notation](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/simple-process-notation/): Model workflows with activities, transitions and commands instead of BPMN notation. - [Process Versioning](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/process-versioning/): Publish new scheme versions while running processes stay on their current version until migrated. - [Parallel Processes](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/parallel-processes/): Run child processes concurrently with independent state, then continue the parent when they finish. - [Timers & Scheduling](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/timers-scheduling/): Persist delayed, dated and recurring timers so scheduled transitions survive restarts. - [Direct State Control](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/direct-state-control/): Move a process directly to an activity enabled for state setting, outside its normal path. - [Durable Execution](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/durable-execution/): Persist confirmed progress; idle processes resume from checkpoints and interrupted actions use the recovery policy. - [HTTP API](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/http-api/): Expose Workflow Engine over HTTP; Workflow Engine NEO adds the Data, Search and RPC endpoint groups. Availability: Data API and RPC API require Workflow Engine NEO. For embedded Products, the HTTP API still maps Designer and health-check endpoints without a Workflow Engine NEO or trial key; a Workflow Engine NEO or trial key enables the Data, Search and RPC groups. Workflow Server exposes these operations through its WFE API. - [BPMN Support](https://workflowengine.io/features/bpmn/index.md): Import supported BPMN diagrams as native schemes and review reported conversion issues before execution. Availability: A licensed plugin, included with the SaaS and Enterprise Editions of Workflow Engine NEO. It is unavailable with Workflow Engine Free, an add-on for both Editions of Workflow Engine and the Subscription and Business Editions of Workflow Engine NEO, and available in Workflow Server under its own license. The importer converts supported BPMN 2.0 content into native schemes. It does not export BPMN, so every converted scheme should be reviewed before execution. - [Plugin System](https://workflowengine.io/features/plugin-system/index.md): Add shipped or custom plugins for approvals, roles, process control, calendars, files and other runtime behavior. Basic, Approval and Loop capabilities ship in the Core package. Files, Active Directory and Real-Time Tracking use separate packages; BPMN and Forms have their own licensing boundaries. Plugins are registered explicitly by the host. - [Pluggable Security](https://workflowengine.io/features/pluggable-security/index.md): Connect workflow rules and command discovery to the host application's identity and authorization systems. The embedded Products do not add a user directory. The host application resolves identities and roles, authenticates callers and decides whether restrictions are checked again when a command executes. - [Multitenancy](https://workflowengine.io/features/multi-tenancy/index.md): Store a tenant ID on each process, or use Workflow Engine NEO for ready shared, isolated and hybrid tenancy. Availability: Full hybrid multitenancy requires Workflow Engine NEO. Every embedded Product can persist a process TenantId as a building block. Workflow Engine NEO adds the ready tenant-aware HTTP API and supports shared, database-per-tenant and hybrid routing; the host still owns endpoint authentication and authorization. - [Workflow Forms](https://workflowengine.io/features/workflow-forms/index.md): Attach forms to activities, validate their data and execute the workflow commands connected to those forms. Availability: Every Edition of Workflow Engine NEO; an add-on for the Workflow Engine Complete Edition. It is unavailable with Workflow Engine Free, the Workflow Engine Team Edition and Workflow Server. The Forms Plugin connects workflows to Form Engine Core and, when licensed, Form Engine Designer. The Form Engine Enterprise license is priced separately for the Subscription, Business and SaaS Editions of Workflow Engine NEO; the Workflow Engine NEO Enterprise Edition includes it with OEM rights. - [Customization](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/customization/): Add activity types, input controls, domain autocomplete, styles and templates to Workflow Designer. - [Multi-Database Support](https://workflowengine.io/features/multi-database/index.md): Use the same workflow model with SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, MongoDB or SQLite persistence. The six providers are SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Oracle and SQLite. SQLite is supported but is not recommended for production workloads; automatic migrations cover the SQL providers, while MongoDB uses version-specific scripts. Workflow Server ships five providers and does not ship SQLite. - [Clustering](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/clustering/): Run multiple Workflow Runtime instances on shared storage with database locks and node heartbeats. Availability: The Workflow Engine Complete Edition and every Edition of Workflow Engine NEO. It is unavailable with Workflow Engine Free and the Workflow Engine Team Edition. Workflow Server multi-server deployment is available with its Business Complete, Business SaaS, Business Ultimate and Custom Editions. - [Bulk API](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/bulk-api/): Create, command or delete many workflow instances in parallel, with a result for each one. - [Work Calendar](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/work-calendar/): Schedule timers in working time while excluding configured weekends, holidays and off-hours. - [Pre-Execution (Simulation)](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/pre-execution-simulation/): Preview a process's route without persisting changes so the application can show its next steps. - [Process Logs](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/process-logs/): Keep transition history with source, target, time and available command, timer and identity data. - [Workflow as Code](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/workflow-as-code/): Build a process definition programmatically or in the Designer; visual edits do not regenerate source code. - [Database Versioning](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/database-versioning/): Run automatic database migrations for the SQL providers; MongoDB upgrades use version-specific scripts. - [Offline API](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/offline-api/): Inspect activities and transitions and test commands without changing the persisted process. - [Interactive Designer](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/interactive-designer/): Show the current activity as process changes reach the Designer through the Real-Time Tracking Plugin. Availability: Needs the Real-Time Tracking Plugin. - [Workflow Templates](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/workflow-templates/): Reuse an inlinable scheme inside parent schemes and apply its changes when each parent is rebuilt. - [Evaluate Workflow Engine](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/evaluate-workflow-engine/): Use the official evaluation hub for documentation-only context and the current documentation catalog. Any new capability found there must first be reconciled with the site feature registry. ## Documentation, API reference, packages, and repositories ### How Workflow Engine models a process Workflow Engine uses Simple Process Notation as its native process model. A reusable Scheme is stored in versions. Workflow Runtime creates independent Process Instances from a stored version and uses Persistence to save durable state. Existing instances remain linked to their current Scheme version until an explicit update, or an enabled automatic update at an eligible Activity, moves them. #### Scheme structure and referenced behavior - **Scheme:** the reusable process definition. It brings together Activities, Transitions, Commands, Parameters and related configuration. Stored versions let new and existing Process Instances use different definitions until an instance is updated. - **Activity:** a stable workflow step where a Process Instance can wait. A Scheme has one initial Activity and can have final Activities. - **Transition:** a directed path from one Activity to another. Its trigger can be a Command, Timer or automatic event, and its Conditions and restrictions decide whether the path is available. - **Command:** a named trigger referenced by a Transition. Executing a matching available Command can advance a Process Instance. - **Action:** host-supplied application behavior invoked from an Activity or Transition during workflow execution. - **Parameter:** named data carried by a Process Instance. A Scheme can declare the Parameters its workflow expects. - **Condition:** a data or state predicate that decides whether a Transition may fire. - **Rule:** a host-defined identity predicate for command restrictions and discovery. It is not authentication, and whether restrictions are rechecked at execution depends on the execution path. - **Actor:** a named Scheme identity reference for restrictions. Host callbacks or a configured plugin resolve it to identity IDs; it is not a built-in user directory or authentication system. - **Timer:** a named delay or schedule that can trigger a Transition without a user Command. - **Subprocess:** a child Process Instance created from a parent through a fork Transition and optionally merged back into it. - **Annotation:** named string metadata attached to an Activity or Transition. It describes the model without becoming workflow behavior by itself. - **Localization:** culture-specific display text for states, Commands, Parameters and other Scheme names. - **Work Calendar:** a definition of working days and hours used when a Timer follows calendar-aware business time. #### Execution and storage - **Process Instance:** one execution of a stored Scheme version, with its own current Activity and Parameters; transition history can record its path. Many independent instances can share one Scheme version. - **Workflow Runtime:** the engine that loads Schemes, creates and advances Process Instances, evaluates workflow behavior and coordinates persistence. - **Persistence:** the configured storage provider that saves Scheme versions and durable process data such as current state, persisted Parameters, Timers and transition history according to configuration. - **Process Logs:** process-execution records. Transition history records movements between Activities, while separate optional diagnostic logging can trace Actions, Conditions, Transitions and errors. Neither is a structural element of a Scheme. This is a concept map, not an instruction to write Scheme XML by hand. Read the [native-notation reference](https://docs.workflowengine.io/evaluate/workflow-engine-features/simple-process-notation/), start with the [Get Started overview](https://docs.workflowengine.io/get-started/get-started-with-workflow-engine/), use [Workflow Engine Concepts](https://docs.workflowengine.io/get-started/concepts/workflow-engine-concepts/) for the complete concept map, and read [Scheme](https://docs.workflowengine.io/get-started/concepts/scheme/) for the definition and version relationship. - [Main documentation](https://docs.workflowengine.io/), [LLM index](https://docs.workflowengine.io/llms.txt), and [full corpus](https://docs.workflowengine.io/llms-full.txt): Guides, examples and rendered code. The corpus can omit generic type arguments. - [C# API reference](https://api.workflowengine.io/), [LLM index](https://api.workflowengine.io/llms.txt), and [full corpus](https://api.workflowengine.io/llms-full.txt): C# types and signatures. - Workflow Designer Markdown guides: [JavaScript](https://workflowengine.io/features/javascript-workflow-designer/index.md), [Blazor](https://workflowengine.io/features/blazor-workflow-designer/index.md), [React](https://workflowengine.io/features/react-workflow-designer/index.md), [Angular](https://workflowengine.io/features/angular-workflow-designer/index.md). - [Legacy documentation](https://workflowengine.io/documentation/) and [full corpus](https://workflowengine.io/documentation/llms-full.txt): Release notes and topics absent from the main docs. - [Workflow Server documentation](https://workflowserver.io/documentation/): Technical behavior; Compare governs Editions and licensing. ### Canonical package identifiers Package names are provided for discovery, not as installation commands. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-Core](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-Core/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NET-Server](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NET-Server/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMSSQL](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMSSQL/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForPostgreSQL](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForPostgreSQL/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMySQL](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMySQL/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMongoDB](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForMongoDB/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForOracle](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForOracle/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForSQLite](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ProviderForSQLite/): NuGet package identifier. - [@optimajet/workflow-designer](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@optimajet/workflow-designer): npm package identifier. - [@optimajet/workflow-designer-react](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@optimajet/workflow-designer-react): npm package identifier. - [@optimajet/workflow-designer-angular](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@optimajet/workflow-designer-angular): npm package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-Migrator](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-Migrator/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-FilesPlugin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-FilesPlugin/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ActiveDirectoryPlugin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-ActiveDirectoryPlugin/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-RealTimeTrackingPlugin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-RealTimeTrackingPlugin/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-BpmnPlugin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-BpmnPlugin/): NuGet package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NETCore-FormsPlugin](https://www.nuget.org/packages/WorkflowEngine.NETCore-FormsPlugin/): NuGet package identifier. - [OptimaJet.Workflow.Api](https://www.nuget.org/packages/OptimaJet.Workflow.Api/): NuGet package identifier. - [@optimajet/workflow-forms-manager](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@optimajet/workflow-forms-manager): npm package identifier. - [@optimajet/workflow-forms-viewer](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@optimajet/workflow-forms-viewer): npm package identifier. - [WorkflowEngine.NET repository](https://github.com/optimajet/WorkflowEngine.NET): Releases, provider and Designer files, samples, issues and discussions. Licensed engine source is Edition-specific. - [WorkflowEngineApi.NET repository](https://github.com/optimajet/WorkflowEngineApi.NET): HTTP API packages, releases and samples. - [Workflow Server repository](https://github.com/optimajet/WorkflowServer): Releases, samples and issues. Full source is a separate entitlement. - Samples: [JavaScript Designer](https://github.com/optimajet/workflow-designer-javascript-sample), [React Designer](https://github.com/optimajet/workflow-designer-react-sample), [Angular Designer](https://github.com/optimajet/workflow-designer-angular-sample), [Blazor Designer](https://github.com/optimajet/workflow-designer-blazor-sample) and [Workflow Forms](https://github.com/optimajet/workflow-forms-sample). Check the matching product documentation before adapting a sample to the current release. ## Workflow Engine NEO and Elsa Workflow Engine NEO fits products centered on business state, participant decisions, forms, and tenant routing. Elsa fits technical orchestration centered on events, integrations, background work, and tool calls. - [Workflow Engine NEO vs Elsa Workflows](https://workflowengine.io/blog/elsa-vs-workflow-engine/index.md): Read the full, versioned comparison and its decision criteria. ## Support, agreements, and contact - [Support options](https://workflowengine.io/enterprise/index.md): Included support varies by Edition; annual SLA-backed plans are separate. Workflow Server uses its own price list. Workflow Engine Free, Workflow Engine Team and Workflow Engine NEO Subscription are self-service. Workflow Engine Complete, Workflow Engine NEO Business and Workflow Engine NEO SaaS include two months of direct support; Workflow Engine NEO Enterprise includes 12 months of standard support. Workflow Server support is defined separately in its price list. - [End User License Agreement](https://workflowengine.io/agreements/eula/index.md): Commercial terms and licensed-use boundaries. - [Customer Support Agreement](https://workflowengine.io/agreements/csa/index.md): Terms of purchased support and maintenance. - [Privacy Policy](https://workflowengine.io/agreements/policy/index.md): Personal-data handling. - [Cookie Policy](https://workflowengine.io/agreements/cookie/index.md): Cookie use. - [Contact Optimajet](https://workflowengine.io/contacts/index.md): Ask about Editions, quotes, evaluation or support at hello@optimajet.com. ## Optional resources - [Blog](https://workflowengine.io/blog/index.md): Articles and product comparisons. - [Workflow Designer demo](https://demo.workflowengine.io/designer): Sample schemes; see docs for integration. - [Sitemap](https://workflowengine.io/sitemap.xml): All indexable pages. - [Sitemap in Markdown](https://workflowengine.io/sitemap.md): Every page with its own description, each linked to its Markdown version.