Types of error in Action Flow
Sometimes an error can occur during the execution of a Action Flow. This mostly happens if a service is unavailable due to a failure to connect to a service or if validation fails. Below we describe the common errors that you may encounter.
Error types
Celonis platform distinguishes between several basic error types. It will react differently depending upon the type of error that occurred.
Connection Error
ConnectionError
The connection error is one of the most common errors usually caused by the unavailability of the third-party service for various reasons (overloading, maintenance, outage, etc.). The default handling of this error depends on which module it was encountered on:
If the error occurs on the first module, the execution of the Action Flow is terminated with a warning message. Celonis platform then repeatedly attempts to rerun the Action Flow at increasing time intervals. If all attempts fail, Celonis platform deactivates the Action Flow.
If the connection error occurs on another module than the first one, the subsequent steps depend on the Allow storing incomplete execution option in the Action Flow advanced settings:
If this option is enabled, the execution of the Action Flow is moved to the incomplete executions folder here Celonis platform repeatedly attempts to rerun the Action Flow at increasing time intervals. If all attempts fail, the execution will remain in the Incomplete executions folder awaiting manual resolution by the user.
If the option is disabled, the execution of the Action Flow ends with an error followed by a rollback phase. Celonis platform then repeatedly attempts to rerun the Action Flow at increasing time intervals. If all attempts fail, Celonis platform deactivates the Action Flow.
Increasing time intervals
The algorithm of multiplicatively increasing time intervals between attempts when an error occurs is known as exponential backoff. The increasing time intervals are set as follows:
10 minutes
1 hour
3 hours
12 hours
24 hours
The main reason for employing the increasing time intervals in Celonis platform is to prevent frequently executed Action Flows to consume operations on repeatedly failing attempts.
Example
Imagine, your Action Flow contains the google photo trigger Watch photos and videos. However, the Google Photos service is unavailable for 30 minutes due to maintenance. As you can guess, when Celonis platform starts the Action Flow, Google Photos is unable to retrieve new photos or videos. The Action Flow stops and tries again in 10 minutes. As the service continues to be unavailable within this time frame, Celonis platform is still unable to get information about new photos. The next run of the Action Flow is scheduled in 1 hour. The Google Photos service is available again within this time and the Action Flow runs as expected.
Data error
DataError
A data error is generated when an item is incorrectly mapped and does not pass the validation performed on the Celonis platform side or on the side of the third-party service being used.
If this error occurs, the Action Flow, up to where the module failed, is moved to the incomplete executions folder where you can troubleshoot the issue. However, the Action Flow does not stop and continues to run according to its schedule. To stop the execution of the Action Flow when a Data error appears, enable the Sequential processing option in Make scenario settings.
If you have not enabled the Allow storing incomplete executions option in the Action Flow settings, the execution of the Action Flow terminates with the error and a rollback is performed.
Example
If your Action Flow contains the Twitter ction Create a tweet, Twitter's 140-character limit for a tweet cannot be exceeded. If you try to tweet more than 140 characters, the execution of the Action Flow will terminate with a data error.
Duplicate Data Error
DuplicateDataError
If Celonis platform tries to insert the same bundle twice into a service that does not allow duplicate data, a duplicate data error is generated. If this error occurs, Celonis platform proceeds in the same way as it does for the data error.
Example
A Action Flow containing the Twitter action Create a tweet will terminate with this error if Celonis platform tries to insert the same tweet twice.
Invalid Access Token Error
InvalidAccessTokenError
An invalid access token error occurs when Celonis platform cannot access your account registered with a third-party service. This mostly happens when you revoke access rights for Celonis platform in the administration of a given service but related Action Flows keep running according to schedule.
If this error occurs, the execution of a Action Flow is stopped immediately. The rest of the Action Flow starting from the module where the error occurred is moved to the incomplete executions.
Rate Limit Error
RateLimitError
If a limit set by a given service is exceeded, a rate limit error is generated. If this error happens, Celonis platform proceeds in the same way as it does for the ConnectionError.
Example
You will encounter this error if you try to send more than 1000 tweets within 24 hours. If this happens, wait until the limitation resets within the time frame.
Incomplete Data Error
IncompleteDataError
An incomplete data error occurs only with triggers. This error is generated if a trigger fails to download required data from a given service.
If a Action Flow terminates with the IncompleteDataError, its further behavior will depend on its setting of Max number of consecutive errors.
Example
Imagine, you have a Action Flow with the Google photos trigger Watch photos and videos. If the Action Flow is executed while you are uploading photos or videos to a selected album, Celonis platform might try to download a file that is just being uploaded to Google Photos (e.g. a long video). If this happens, the Action Flow will terminate with the IncompleteDataError.
Run time error
RuntimeError
If any other error (not mentioned above) appears during Action Flow execution, it is reported as a RunTimeError.
If a Action Flow terminates with the RuntimeError, its further behavior will depend on its setting of max number of consecutive errors.
If a Action Flow starts with an instant trigger of the setting of max number of consecutive errors is ignored and the Action Flow is deactivated immediately once the first error has occurred.
Inconsistency Error
InconsistencyError
If any error described above occurs during the commit or rollback phase, a Action Flow will terminate with an Inconsistency Error.
If this error appears in a Action Flow, the execution of the Action Flow is immediately stopped.
Warnings
While executing a Action Flow, you may receive a warning informing you about a problem. However, it does not prevent the Action Flow from being successfully completed.
For example, a warning can appear when the maximum allowed file size is exceeded and the Enable data loss option is disabled.