SAP Knowledge Base Article - Public

3800667 - Shape Menu Behavior in Custom Subsets

Symptom

When switching from the default BPMN (Complete) subset to a custom subset in the Editor, the Shape Menu behaves differently:

  • The Shape Menu shows fewer shape icons than what appeared under BPMN (Complete), or
  • The Shape Menu does not appear at all when hovering over or selecting an element such as a Task.

Reproducing the Issue

Steps to Reproduce (Connector Removed):

  1. In SAP Signavio Explorer, create a copy of the BPMN (Complete) subset.
  2. In the copied subset, go to Diagram Element Types and remove one or more connector stencils (e.g., remove Sequence Flow, Message Flow, and all Association types).
  3. Open a BPMN diagram in the Process Editor.
  4. Select BPMN (Complete) from the subset selector. Select or hover over a Task. Result: the full Shape Menu appears.
  5. Switch to the custom subset. Select or hover over the same Task. Result: the Shape Menu shows fewer icons or does not appear at all.

Steps to Reproduce (Diagram Element Type Disabled):

  1. In SAP Signavio Explorer, create a copy of the BPMN (Complete) subset.
  2. In the copied subset, go to Diagram Element Types and disable a specific node stencil (e.g., disable Exclusive Gateway).
  3. Open a BPMN diagram in the Editor.
  4. Select BPMN (Complete) from the subset selector. Select or hover over a Task. Result: the Shape Menu appears and includes Exclusive Gateway.
  5. Switch to the custom subset. Select or hover over the same Task. Result: the Shape Menu appears but Exclusive Gateway is no longer shown.

Cause

This can be caused by two configurations in the custom subset's diagram element types:

  1. Connector stencils are removed. The Shape Menu only shows shapes reachable through the enabled connectors. Removing all connectors causes the Shape Menu to disappear entirely.
  2. Node element types are disabled. If a specific shape (e.g., Task, Collapsed Event-Subprocess) is removed from the subset, it will not appear in the Shape Menu even if the appropriate connector is present.

Resolution

The Shape Menu shows only shapes that are (1) enabled in the custom subset's diagram element types, and (2) reachable from the selected element through the connector stencils enabled in the subset.

Cause 1: Connector removed:

Please see sample reference table below to identify which connector can be enabled for the desired shapes to appear in the Shape Menu. Results are based on a Task element with all node diagram element types enabled in the custom subset:

ConnectorShapes Shown in Shape Menu
Sequence FlowTask, Exclusive Gateway, Intermediate Event, End Event
Association (Undirected)Text Annotation, IT System
Association (Unidirectional)Data Object, IT System
Association (Bidirectional)Data Object, IT System
Message FlowTask, Intermediate Multiple Event, Collapsed Event-Subprocess

Cause 2: Node element type disabled:

  1. In SAP Signavio Explorer, open the custom subset configuration.
  2. Under Diagram Element Types, locate the node stencil that is missing from the Shape Menu (e.g., Exclusive Gateway).
  3. Enable the stencil and save the subset.

Additional notes:

  • If no connectors are enabled in the subset, the Shape Menu will not appear at all regardless of which node diagram element types are enabled.
  • When multiple connectors are enabled, the Shape Menu shows the combined set of reachable shapes.

Keywords

Shape Menu, diagram element type, custom subset, soe , KBA , BPI-SIG-PM-MOD-EDT , Graphical Editor for SAP Signavio Process Manager , How To

Product

SAP Signavio Process Manager all versions