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Create your account ProcessMind onboarding Create, upload or generate your process model How to Upload Your Dataset Build Your Process Model manually
What is BPMN 2.0? BPMN Diagram Construction Guide How to Import and Export BPMN Files
Events Start Event End Event Intermediate Event Activities Additional Activity Types BPMN Gateways Connecting Objects Pools and Swimlanes Artifacts
Where to Source and Structure Data for Process Mining Supported Data Formats for Event Logs 7 Common Process Mining Data Challenges Configuring Your Dataset Dataset Attributes Dataset Activities Dataset Data Data Cleaning and Preparation for Process Mining Extracting Data from SAP for Purchase-to-Pay (P2P)
Data Mapping Overview Mapping datasets Mapping / Unmapping activities
Process Charts Process Filters Metrics Expressions Visual Simulation for Better Process Understanding Customizing Dashboards Markdown Notation Process Bookmarks
What is Process Simulation? Running a Simulation What-If Analysis with Simulation How the Simulation Engine Works Statistical Distributions Periodicity and Time-Varying Parameters Resources and Capacity Planning Simulation Interface Reference
Organization Settings Environments (Tenants) Themes / White labeling Billing and Payments Single-Sign-On (SSO) with ProcessMind
The Importance of Continuous Improvement Lean Six Sigma / DMAIC
FAQ Troubleshooting Clipboard Access for Copy-Paste Functionality Troubleshooting Data Issues
Data Management Guide for Optimal Insights Best Practices for BPMN 2.0 Modeling in ProcessMind How to Optimize Performance in ProcessMind
API Overview API Keys API Reference: Organizations API Reference: Tenants API Reference: Data API Reference: Processes
Example Process Mining Event Logs Template Event Log Files Example BPMN Files
Roadmap 2026-2027 ProcessMind 2025.12 ProcessMind 2025.10 ProcessMind 2025.09 ProcessMind 2025.07 ProcessMind 2025.04 ProcessMind 2025.01
Download the BPMN 2.0 Poster in your language Supported BPMN Elements in ProcessMind Overcoming Process Mining Challenges What is needed to run Process Mining? Glossary of Terms
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> resources > docs > simulation > Running a Simulation

Running a Simulation

Running Your First Simulation

Running a simulation generates a virtual event log based on your process model and configured parameters.

Prerequisites

  • A process model (BPMN diagram) in ProcessMind
  • Optional: configured simulation parameters (defaults are provided)

Step 1: Access the Simulation Tab

Navigate to your process model and select the Simulation tab in the right-hand panel.

Step 2: Create or Select a Simulation

You can create multiple simulation configurations for the same model.

  1. Click the simulation selector dropdown
  2. Choose an existing simulation or click Create New Simulation
  3. Give your simulation a descriptive name (e.g., “Baseline”, “Peak Season”)

Step 3: Configure Periods

SettingDescription
Simulation PeriodThe start and end dates for your simulation
Warm-up periodWhen enabled, runs the simulation for an additional period before the start date to reach steady state

Warm-up Period

The warm-up period allows the simulation to reach a steady state before collecting data. When enabled, the simulation starts at (start date - simulation duration) and runs until the end date, but only events occurring between the start and end dates are included in the output. This is useful for eliminating initialization bias in your simulation results.

Using Auto Configure

Instead of manually configuring all settings, you can use the Auto Configure button to automatically populate simulation parameters:

  1. Click the Auto Configure button below the simulation selector
  2. Choose a configuration mode:
    • AI-Suggested: Uses AI to generate realistic parameters based on your process model
    • Observed from Data: Derives parameters from your actual process data (requires data mapped to the model)
  3. Review and adjust the generated settings as needed

Quick Start

Using Auto Configure is the fastest way to get a working simulation. You can always fine-tune the generated settings afterward.

Step 4: Configure Attributes

Define custom attributes that cases carry through the simulation.

Number Attributes

Use distributions to generate numeric values. See Distributions .

Text Attributes

Choose a generation mode:

ModeDescription
ListWeighted random selection from predefined values
NumberedSequential IDs with prefix (e.g., “Order 1”, “Order 2”)
Fictional NamesGenerated person names
Fictional CompaniesGenerated company names
CountriesCountry names

Step 5: Configure Resources

Define shared resources that constrain activity execution. See Resources  for details.

Step 6: Configure Start Events

Click on a Start Event to configure case arrivals:

SettingDescription
DistributionHow arrivals vary (typically Poisson)
RateAverage arrivals per time period
Rate UnitPer hour, day, week, month, or year
PeriodicityTime-based variations

Default: Poisson distribution with 1 case per hour.

Step 7: Configure Tasks and Events

Click on any Task or Event (intermediate/end events) to configure:

Processing Time (Tasks only)

SettingDescription
DistributionHow duration varies
Time UnitSeconds, minutes, hours, or days
PeriodicityTime-based variations

Required Resources (Tasks only)

SettingDescription
ResourceWhich resource pool to use
QuantityHow many units needed

Skip Chance

Probability (0-100%) that the element is bypassed entirely. When skipped, no resources are consumed and no time passes.

Attribute Changes

Modify case attributes when the element completes.

Step 8: Configure Sequence Flows

For gateways with multiple outgoing paths, configure the probability of each path:

Gateway TypeBehavior
XOR (Exclusive)One path selected based on probability weights
AND (Parallel)All paths taken simultaneously
OR (Inclusive)Random selection, at least one path guaranteed

Probabilities

Probabilities are relative weights, not percentages. They are normalized automatically.

Step 9: Run the Simulation

  1. Click the Run Simulation button at the top of the simulation panel
  2. Wait for completion (progress is shown)

The simulation stops when reaching the end date or 2,000,000 events (whichever comes first).

View Results

When complete, a new dataset is created containing the simulated event log. Analyze it using all standard ProcessMind features:

  • Process Map
  • Statistics
  • Dashboards
  • Filters

Next Steps

What-If Analysis
Compare multiple simulation scenarios.
Distributions Reference
Learn about available distribution types.

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