Workflow canvas
Learn about workflow canvas and how to update your workflow's permissions, run your workflows and view run history.
Overview
The workflow canvas is like a digital whiteboard where you can design and organize your workflows visually. It helps you create and manage a sequence of actions or operators in a clear and intuitive way. You can add new elements into your canvas and connect them together to define the flow of your workflow.
One great feature of the workflow canvas is the integration library. It's a collection of ready-to-use building blocks that represent specific actions. You can search for the actions you need from the library and add them to your canvas whenever needed. For example, you might have nodes for creating new users, listing your tickets, or updating your data tables.
Each node on the canvas can be customized to match your specific needs. You can configure the behavior and properties of each node. This means you can set things like parameters or connections, just like giving instructions to each node on what it should do and how it should behave.
The lines connecting the nodes in your workflow represent the flow of data or control between the nodes, showing the order of execution.
The workflow canvas also ensures that your workflow is well-designed and error-free. It has a validation feature that checks for any mistakes or missing connections. This way, you can be confident that your workflow will function correctly and smoothly.
Workflow permissions
If you're working with a team, the workflow canvas allows for collaboration. You can invite others to view or edit the workflow, making it easy to work together on the workflow design.
In workflow canvas, you can define additional rules on who can access that workflow. You can also restrict a specific user or a specific group from running or updating your workflow.
To add a new user or a new group as an Admin or a Runner to your workflow or make them a Restricted user for your workflow, go to 👥 from top right corner in your canvas and then click + Select users and groups on the opening screen.
There are three options to manage permissions for your workflow.
- Admin: Admins can update the nodes, or the properties of the workflow and access its Run history. By default, admins of an app are also admins of all the workflows in that app. This behavior can not be changed.
- Runner: Runners have the right to run the workflow in Slack or in Actioner. They can not update the nodes or the workflows.
- Restricted: Restricted users or groups cannot run or update that workflow. Even the workflow is searchable, a restricted user can not see the workflow when she calls Actioner shortcut in Slack.
You can select Everyone as Admin, Runner or Restricted.
- If you select Everyone as an Admin, every user in your Actioner workspace can access your workflow and update it.
- If you select Everyone as a Runner, every user in your Actioner workspace can run that workflow.
- If you select Everyone as Restricted, nobody expect the app admins will have access to run that workflow or update it.
Running your workflow
Canvas mode lets you run and test your workflow while designing it. You can simply click Play button.
If your workflow starts with a trigger, you can fill out input parameters.
If your workflow starts with an integration or a webhook trigger, you can enter your event's payload.
For testing, you can copy an example payload from your trigger event node.
Workflow history
In addition to designing and visualizing workflows, the workflow canvas also has the capability to show the history of workflow execution. This means it can provide you with information about the past runs of your workflow.
When a workflow is executed on the canvas or in Slack, each time it runs, the canvas keeps a record of that execution. This history of workflow execution can be valuable for various reasons.
Firstly, the execution history allows you to review and track the progress of your workflows. You can see when each run started, how long it took to complete, and whether any errors or issues occurred during the execution. This information can be crucial for monitoring the performance and efficiency of your workflows.
Furthermore, the history of workflow execution provides a detailed view of the steps and actions performed in each run. It can show you the order in which the nodes were executed, the data that was processed or transformed, and the outcomes of each step. This level of visibility can be immensely helpful for troubleshooting and identifying any bottlenecks or areas for improvement in your workflow.
The execution history on the canvas can also assist in auditing and compliance. It allows you to maintain a record of the actions taken within your workflows. You can track who initiated the workflow, when it was executed, and any relevant data associated with the execution.
Run history
To view the run history of a workflow, click on Run history button at top. This will take you to the page where you can see the previous executions of your workflow.
Filtering in workflow run history
Click Filter button at top left and select the option(s) to filter by time or filter by status.
Filter by time
You can select between below options:
- Last hour
- Last day
- Last week
- Last month
Filter by status
You can select between below options:
- Started: Indicates that workflow execution just started and is not completed yet.
- Successful: Indicates that all steps are run successfully
- Discarded: Indicates that root conditions are not satisfied.
- Skipped all steps: Indicates that none of the step conditions are satisfied or the action does not exist or is disabled even if the step conditions are satisfied.
- Stopped: Indicates that the step condition is satisfied but the action could not be run successfully.
Run history details
Once you select an entry, you can see details of
Event that triggered your automated workflow or the inputs entered to initiate the manual workflow.
Trigger conditions and how they are evaluated when the workflow started to run.
Node results in the order they are executed.
Node statuses in workflow logs
- Successful: Indicates that the node is successfully executed.
- Failed: Indicates that the node failed to execute.