8.2. The components of a flow

In Spring Web Flow, a flow is defined by three primary elements: states, transitions, and flow data.

States are points in a flow where something happens. If you imagine a flow as being like a road trip, then states are the towns, truck stops, and scenic stops along the way. Instead of picking up a bag of Doritos and a Diet Coke, a state in a flow is where some logic is performed, some decision is made, or some page is presented to the user.