Workflow Automation Is Great, but What Do We Do When an Error Occurs?

Workflow automation is a great time-saver and helps reduce needless human errors. But, what if an error still occurs? 

There could be something wrong with the data that you are sending, a disruption to the connection to a third-party service, etc. 

So, what happens when your workflow automation integration doesn’t complete as it should? Does the whole world explode, do you lose your work, your job? 

Ok, relax, Negative Nelly! In actuality, you will probably just lose some time. Although not as bad as the latter, still not ideal. What if I were to tell you that there is a way to plan for possible errors in your workflows to not have it interrupt your work?

New 4-part course on Make’s Error Handlers

Let me introduce, Error Handlers. 

Error Handlers allow you to manage errors as you need to when one occurs. They help keep your scenarios on track and you in the driver seat of how your workflows. Before we go any deeper, did you know, Make modules have default error handler routes applied to them for such cases? 

Depending upon those errors, this is what happens in the default error processing. But, that is not your only option, and not why I am here writing this. There are several other options to choose from depending on your own needs. 

Now, what are these options? Well, you have a few, the Break Directive, Commit Directive, Ignore Directive, Resume Directive and Rollback Directive. Seem like a lot? Well, we have just released a 4 part course to get you completely comfortable with them! 

And, here we will take you through the parts, handler by handler.

Make’s Error Handlers

Here is the first video on the fundamentals of Error Handlers. For the sake of brevity, I will just explain the purpose of each them. 

Please, watch the attached course videos for more details and examples!

1. Break Directive

Use Break When: If you want a little bit more human contact with your errors, the Break Directive allows you to resolve errors manually. 

For this one, when an error occurs, the subsequent modules will not be executed, and the error will be stored in the queue of incomplete executions. Here it can be resolved manually. The scenario execution is marked with Warning. 

If there are unprocessed bundles they will still be processed after the error occurs. Break Directive Video

2. Commit and Ignore Directives

Use Commit When: If an error occurs and you want to stop the execution of the scenario completely but still have the data that was sent through committed to the services. 

If the Commit Directive is applied, when an error occurs the scenario execution will be stopped immediately and does not process the subsequent modules and ignores all unprocessed bundles. 

The status of the scenario execution is marked as Success. Use Ignore When: If you want a scenario to continue processing the next bundles if an error occurs. If the Ignore Directive is applied, it allows the user the ability to ignore an error if it occurs in their scenario to continue processing the unprocessed bundles. 

It does not, however, process the bundle where the error occurred through subsequent modules. And the status of the scenario execution is marked as Success. Commit and Ignore Directives Video

3. Resume and Rollback

Use Resume When: If you want to continue the execution of a scenario when an error occurs by supplying substitute values to be processed instead of the erroneous values for the subsequent modules. 

If the Resume Directive is applied, a substitute output is supplied to the module that encountered the error. It then processes the subsequent modules as if no error took place. It marks the scenario execution status as Success. 

Use Rollback When: If you want to mark the error and return the previous modules to how they were before the scenario ran. If the Rollback Directive is used, the scenario execution stops immediately. 

Then a rollback phase starts on all modules in an attempt to revert each of them back to their initial states. Its marks the scenario execution status as Error. Resume and Rollback Directives Video (even if you are pro, check this one out for some more advanced stuff).

Don’t let a small error disrupt your work. Apply an Error Handler to help you manage any interruptions. 

View the full course and you are well on your way to becoming an Make ninja!

Try Make for free today!