Manage individual flows in various states
This article provides a structured overview of the lifecycle stages that a flow undergoes within the Workflow Studio, from its inception as a draft to its potential termination. Understanding these stages is crucial for managing the flow's lifecycle effectively, ensuring that flows are updated, archived, or terminated as per operational requirements.
Beginning with Draft state
A flow's journey begins in the Draft state. Here, the flow is being designed and configured but hasn't been activated yet. This stage allows for comprehensive planning and testing, ensuring the flow meets its intended objectives before going live.
If you decide not to use this flow, it can be deleted at this stage, ending the flow’s lifecycle.
Transition to Active
After the drafting phase is complete, the flow can be activated, transitioning it into the Active state. In this state, the flow engages with its triggers and systematically executes its tasks and processes as configured.
You can create a draft version on top of an active flow at any time by clicking edit flow.
Learn more about editing active flows here.
Managing flows with Draining
When an active flow requires updates or modifications, a new version of the flow is created and activated. This transition places the previously active version into a Draining state. The draining process is designed to ensure a smooth transition, allowing ongoing experiences to conclude while preventing the initiation of new experiences.
Recipients engaged with a flow when a new version is activated will not experience any interruption. Their interaction continues as per the version they initiated with, ensuring consistency and reliability in the user experience despite the transition from Active to Draining in the backend.
Termination of a Flow
A flow may reach the end of its lifecycle and enter the Terminated state. In this state, the flow is no longer active and cannot be restarted. However, it remains within the system for reference.
A flow that is active or draining can be terminated by a user.
Flows cannot be deleted unless they are already in the Terminated state.
Addressing errors
During its lifecycle, a flow might transition into an Error state, signalling operational disruptions either in its Active phase or while Draining. This state highlights issues that interrupt the flow's proper execution and necessitate remedial action. The first step in troubleshooting errors is to edit the active flow and save a new version. If this does not resolve the errors, further investigation is required.
Archive for future reference
Archiving serves as a method to preserve flows that are not in active use. While archived flows are removed from the immediate view in the flow list, they remain accessible for future needs via status filter, ensuring that valuable data and configurations are retained without cluttering the operational interface.
Archived flows can be managed by unarchiving (maintaining their terminated status), duplicating for reuse or adjustments, or permanently deleting them from the system.
Deleting a Flow
Deleting a flow removes a flow and all its associated details, marking the end of its lifecycle.