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Troubleshooting Workflows

If a workflow is not producing the expected result, there are systematic steps to diagnose the issue.

Workflow Did Not Fire

Check 1: Is the workflow enabled?

Go to Administration > Workflows and confirm the workflow's enabled toggle is on. Disabled workflows appear in the list but never execute.

Check 2: Does the trigger match the action taken?

Verify that the action that should trigger the workflow (document created, updated, or added) is actually occurring. For example, if the trigger is "Document updated" but you are testing by uploading a new document, the trigger will never fire.

Check 3: Do the filter conditions match the test document?

Open the test document and compare its actual properties (title, correspondent, type, tags, source) against each filter condition in the workflow. All conditions must be true simultaneously for the workflow to fire.

A common mistake: a filter checks for correspondent = Acme Supplies, but the document's correspondent has not been set yet at the time the workflow runs (if triggered by Document Created, the correspondent may be assigned by a later process).

Workflow Fires but Actions Are Not Applied

Check 1: Review the task log

Go to Administration > Tasks and look for workflow-related entries around the time the document was processed. Error messages identify why an action failed.

Check 2: Check permission to apply the action

Workflows run as the system user, which typically has broad access. However, if an action assigns ownership to a user who doesn't exist or grants permissions to a deleted group, that action will fail silently.

Check 3: Conflicting workflow order

If two workflows apply conflicting actions to the same document (one adds a tag, another removes it), the result depends on execution order. Check the Order numbers of all enabled workflows and adjust so they run in logical sequence.

Workflow Fires on Unintended Documents

If the workflow is running on documents you did not intend:

  1. Review the filter conditions — ensure they are restrictive enough
  2. Add additional filters to narrow the scope (e.g. add a correspondent or source filter)
  3. Check for workflows without any filter — these run on every document matching the trigger

Workflow Causes Infinite Loop

A "Document Updated" workflow that modifies a document causes another "Document Updated" event, which can trigger the workflow again, creating a loop.

Fix: Add a filter condition that prevents the re-trigger. For example, if the workflow adds a tag Processed, add a filter condition Does NOT have tag: Processed. Once the tag is added on the first run, the condition no longer matches and the workflow stops triggering.

Still Not Working?

Collect the following before contacting Essal Office support: - The full workflow configuration (screenshot or written description of trigger, filters, and actions) - The task log entries related to the document - An example document that should have triggered the workflow and did not