A run's action errored: webhook refused, empty role, empty reason, unpublished template or the chain ran too deep

A workflow rule fired, but its run on the Runs tab shows Errored or Blocked instead of Success, and what it should have done (the call to another system, the assignment, the cancellation, the letter) didn't happen.

What you see

On the Runs tab the run's Status is Errored with the first line of the error under it. Open the run: the red box at the top reads "<ACTION> failed: <error>", and in the Actions list the failed action (for example "#2 CALL_WEBHOOK") shows Errored with the error text. Actions after it did not run. The error is one of:

• "webhook_address_not_allowed: <host> resolves to a non-public address": a Call webhook action points at an address inside a private network.
• "webhook_failed: Webhook answered <status>: …": the other system answered with a refusal such as 400, 401, 403 or 404, followed by the start of its reply.
• "no_assignee: Role '<x>' has no active members": an Assign opportunity action (for example in "New lead: assign round-robin (system)" or "Hand over to a Sales Executive") found nobody active in that role.
• "reason_required: The cancellation reason rendered empty": a Cancel booking action's reason came out blank.
• "reason_required: The lost reason rendered empty": a Mark opportunity lost action's reason came out blank.
• "template_not_published: Template <CODE> is not published": a Generate document action, or a Send email action or message template that attaches a document, uses a document template that is a Draft or Retired. When you generate from a record yourself and the template was retired meanwhile, the Generate dialog shows "Template <CODE> is not published".

A run can also be Blocked. It never starts; the red box reads "Blocked: <CODE> from rule "<name>" would run at trace depth <n> (maximum <m>)", and under Actions: "No actions were recorded for this run." The same empty text shows on an Errored run that stopped before its first action (for example "The entity no longer exists", when the record was deleted) and on a run whose rule has every action switched off.

When the failed action has Continue on error ticked, the run goes on with the next action and ends Success with the note "<n> action(s) failed and were skipped: <actions>". The failed action still shows Errored in the list.

Why it happens

A run carries out a rule's actions one after the other, the way a person would, and stops at the first one that fails so that later steps don't act on a half-done job. Each message has its own cause:

• Webhooks go to the public internet only. The app refuses to call an address that resolves to a private, local or reserved network, so a rule can't be used to reach systems inside your office network or the server itself. A refusal from the other system (a 4xx answer) stops the run at once; a server error (5xx), "too many requests" (429) or no answer at all is retried automatically after 30 seconds, then after longer waits, and the action shows "retrying: …" meanwhile.
• Assigning to a role needs someone in it. Assign opportunity with A role gives the opportunity to the active member of that role with the fewest open opportunities. When every member was deactivated, moved to another role, or the role itself was switched off, there is nobody to give it to. The seeded assignment rules assign to the Sales Executive role. (Create task with a role doesn't fail this way: the task is created without an assignee.)
• Cancellations and losses need a reason. Cancelling a booking and marking an opportunity lost always record why. The reason is a template that starts as {{ input.reason }}, which only a Manual rule's input form fills in. On an event or scheduled rule, or a manual rule without a reason input field, it comes out empty.
• Documents come from published templates only. A draft may still change and a retired template is withdrawn, so neither is used to produce letters. The starter document templates that come with a new organization are drafts until someone publishes them, which is why the seeded customer-facing rules ship switched off.
• Rule chains are limited. A rule can raise a custom event (Emits event type) that other rules listen to. Each step adds one to the chain's depth, and past the maximum (2 unless your installation sets otherwise) the engine records a Blocked run for each rule that would have run instead of running it. This stops two rules from triggering each other for ever.

How to fix it

Changing a rule needs the Edit permission on Workflow Rules, and retrying a run needs the Edit permission on Workflow Runs; in the default roles only the Administrator has them.

1. Open the run from Runs (filter Status to Errored or Blocked) and read the failed action's error.
2. Fix the cause:
   • Non-public address: open the rule with the link in the run panel, and in the Call webhook action change URL to the public https address of the receiving system. Click Save changes.
   • Webhook refused: read the status and reply. 401 or 403 usually means a missing or wrong key in Headers; 404 a wrong URL; 400 a Body the other system doesn't accept. Correct the action and Save changes, or have the other system fixed.
   • Role has no active members: on Users, give at least one active user that role with Edit role & access (the Edit permission on Users). If the role itself was deactivated, Reactivate it on Roles & Permissions (the Edit permission on Roles & Permissions). Or change Assign to in the action to another role or a user. A system rule can't be edited: give the role a member, or Clone the rule and change the copy.
   • Empty reason: for a Manual rule, add an input field named reason (and tick Required) so the person starting the rule types one. For an event or scheduled rule, replace the reason with fixed text, for example "Cancelled automatically: agreement not signed", in the action's Reason field (for Mark opportunity lost, in the "reason" entry of its config box).
   • Template not published: open the template on Document templates, check it, and press Publish; for a retired template press Reopen. This needs the Publish permission on Document Templates (the Administrator, the Sales Manager and Legal & Documentation). Or pick a published template in the action.
   • Blocked by depth: shorten the chain. Let the first rule do the work itself instead of raising an event for another rule, or clear Emits event type (under Advanced) on the rule that starts the extra step. Blocked runs can't be retried; the next event runs the corrected chain.
3. Retry the run. Press Retry in the run panel. It resumes at the first action that didn't finish, so actions that already succeeded (a notification, a task) are not repeated. You see "Retry queued; the run resumes at the first action that did not finish." Only Errored runs can be retried, and the rule must be active.

Related

• Runs
• Rule
• Users
• Roles & Permissions
• Document templates
• Email action or document email did not go out: no valid recipient, or the message is incomplete
• Run errored or blocked with "permission_revoked": the rule's owner no longer holds a permission its actions need
• Workflow runs stay Pending: the engine is disabled, the broker is down or the worker is stuck
• Generate document has nothing to offer: no published template for this record type