Call a workflow flow logic
Summarize
Summary of Call a workflow flow logic
The Call a workflow flow logic in ServiceNow allows you to run a published and active workflow directly from a flow. You can pass flow data as inputs to the workflow, such as specifying the current record to be processed. This integration enables seamless orchestration between flows and workflows, enhancing automation capabilities.
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Inputs
- Select a Workflow: Choose a published, active workflow to run. Workflow inputs appear as additional flow inputs if defined. Note that workflows running on the Requested Item table cannot be selected; instead, use a Service Catalog-triggered flow.
- Wait?: Set to true if the flow should wait for the workflow to complete before continuing. Waiting enables the flow to receive and display complete workflow output values. If false, the flow runs independently of the workflow’s completion.
- Current: Provide the current record the workflow will process by selecting the appropriate data pill from the workflow’s associated table.
Outputs
The flow logic exposes output values generated by the workflow while it runs. If the flow waits for workflow completion, all output values are available; otherwise, only those generated before the flow logic finishes are shown. Key outputs include:
- State: Indicates the workflow’s execution status (Complete, Canceled, or Invalid if the context record is deleted).
- Context: Reference to the workflow context record.
- Result: String value representing the workflow result from the context record.
- Return value: String containing the workflow’s returnvalue from the context record.
Practical Usage
For example, a flow can call the Routine Change workflow and pause execution until that workflow completes by enabling the Wait? option. The Current record is typically set using the triggering record’s data pill. During execution, you can monitor workflow progress and view output details directly in the flow execution details panel, which includes links to the Workflow Editor, state information, start time, and duration.
Important Considerations
- Modify workflows to remove start conditions if you want to prevent them from running outside Workflow Studio.
- If a workflow is canceled or its context record is deleted before completion, the flow stops waiting and continues execution.
- Workflows running on the Requested Item table are not selectable; instead, design a new flow with a Service Catalog trigger.
Run a published and active workflow from your flow. You can use the flow data as a workflow input. For example, you can specify the current record as a workflow input.
Inputs
| Input | Description |
|---|---|
| Select a Workflow | Published and active workflow that you can select to run. The workflow that you select
determines the records that are associated with it. If the workflow has inputs, Workflow Studio displays them as additional flow inputs. Note:
|
| Wait? | Workflow that you set to true so that the flow waits for workflow completion before
continuing. Only workflows that wait for completion can return certain output values to the
flow. Set to false to continue running the flow separately from the workflow. Note: If the
workflow is canceled or its context record is deleted prior to the workflow finishing, the
flow stops waiting and instead continues running. |
| Current | Current record that the workflow processes. Select a data pill that contains a record from the associated workflow table. |
Outputs
The flow execution details only display workflow output values that are generated while the flow is running. If you configure the flow to wait for the workflow to finish, the flow execution details can display all workflow output values. If the flow does not wait, the flow execution details only display the workflow output values that were generated before the Call a Workflow flow logic completes. If Call a Workflow completes before the workflow finishes, the workflow output values stop updating and only display the last known value.
| Output | Description |
|---|---|
| State | State of the workflow. This value comes from the workflow context record. The state will be Complete if the workflow executes successfully. If the workflow is canceled, the workflow state is set to Canceled. If the context record is deleted prior to the workflow finishing, the workflow state is set to Invalid. |
| Context | Reference to the workflow context record. |
| Result | String that contains the result from the workflow. This value comes from the workflow context record. |
| Return value | String that contains the return_value from the workflow. This value comes from the workflow context record. |
Calling the Routine Change workflow
In this example, the flow calls the Routine Change workflow. The Wait? option is checked, so the flow pauses until this workflow completes. The Current field is filled using a data pill representing the record that triggered this flow.
Execution details
- The header displays a link so that you can view the workflow progress in the Workflow Editor, the flow logic state, the start time, and the runtime duration.
- The Workflow Configuration section displays how the flow logic was configured for this flow and the runtime values that were generated.
- The Workflow Output section displays the output that is generated by the workflow while the flow is running.