Actions User Guide

This guide walks you through using the Actions system in the backoffice interface to create and manage automation workflows without any coding required.

Overview

The Actions system allows you to create automated workflows that respond to events in your application. You can visually design these workflows using triggers (what starts the automation) and blocks (what actions to perform).

Accessing Actions

1. Navigate to your project in the backoffice
2. Go to Settings by clicking the settings menu item
3. Select Actions from the settings modules

The Actions page displays all your existing automation workflows with options to create, edit, and delete them.

Creating a New Action

Step 1: Create the Action

1. Click the "Create New Action" button
2. Fill in the required information:
   • Title: A descriptive name for your automation (required)
   • Description: Optional details about what this automation does
3. Click "Create" to save your new action

Step 2: Configure the Workflow

After creating an action, you can click on it and then click "Open" to access the Visual Flow Editor where you build your automation workflow.

Visual Flow Editor

The Visual Flow Editor provides an intuitive canvas for designing your automation workflows using a node-based interface.

Interface Components

• Canvas: The main area where you drag, zoom, and pan to view your workflow
• Controls: Zoom in/out and fit-to-view controls in the bottom-right
• Background: Grid background for easier node alignment
• Add Buttons: Buttons to add new triggers and blocks to your workflow

Building Your Workflow

Adding Triggers

Triggers define when your automation should run:

1. Click "Add Trigger" button
2. Select from available trigger types:

   • Document Created: Runs when a new document is created

   • Document Updated: Runs when an existing document is modified

   • Document Deleted: Runs when a document is removed

   • Cron Job / Scheduled: Runs on a schedule defined by a cron expression (minimum interval: every 5 minutes). Example: 0 9 * * * runs daily at 9am.

     Common cron expressions (minute hour day month weekday):

     Expression	Schedule
     */5 * * * *	Every 5 minutes (minimum allowed)
     0 * * * *	Every hour
     0 9 * * *	Daily at 9:00 AM
     0 9 * * 1	Every Monday at 9:00 AM
     0 2 * * *	Daily at 2:00 AM (useful for nightly cleanup)
     0 0 1 * *	First day of each month at midnight

     → For complete workflow examples using cron triggers, see Scheduled Workflows.

   • Webhook: Runs when a specific webhook URL is called from an external system

   • API / Manual: Can be triggered via API call or manually from the backoffice

3. The trigger appears as a blue node on the canvas

Tip: Document triggers let you filter by collection name — so you can run an automation only when documents of a specific data type are created or updated.

Adding Blocks

Blocks define what actions to perform:

1. Click "Add Block" button
2. Select from available block types:
   • Send Email: Send an email to a recipient address
   • AI Summary: Generate an AI-powered summary of entity data and write it to a chosen field
   • Topic Push Notification: Send a push notification to subscribers of a specific topic
   • Save Entity: Save incoming data as an entity — creates a new document or updates an existing one
   • Data Mapper: Transform incoming data by mapping fields from one shape into another
   • Send Chat Message: Send a message to Slack, Discord, or Microsoft Teams via webhook
3. The block appears as a green node on the canvas

Connecting Components

The visual editor automatically creates connections between triggers and blocks based on your workflow design. You can see the data flow visually represented by lines connecting the nodes.

Navigation Controls

• Drag: Click and drag to pan around the canvas
• Zoom: Use mouse wheel or zoom controls
• Fit View: Click the fit-view control to see your entire workflow

Managing Actions

Viewing Actions

The main Actions page shows all your automation workflows in a searchable, filterable list with the following information:

• Title: The name of your action
• Description: What the action does
• Created Date: When the action was created
• Last Modified: When the action was last updated

Editing Actions

1. Find your action in the list
2. Click the edit button (pencil icon) in the action row
3. Modify the title or description as needed
4. Save your changes

Deleting Actions

1. Find your action in the list
2. Click the delete button (trash icon) in the action row
3. Confirm the deletion in the dialog that appears

⚠️ Warning: Deleting an action permanently removes the automation workflow and cannot be undone.

Common Workflow Patterns

Email Notifications

Use Case: Send an email when a new document is created

1. Create a new action titled "Document Notification"
2. Add a "Document Created" trigger
3. Add a "Send Email" block
4. Configure the email block with recipient and message details

Data Processing

Use Case: Reshape and persist data when a document changes

1. Create a new action titled "Process Incoming Records"
2. Add a "Document Updated" trigger
3. Add a "Data Mapper" block to reshape the fields
4. Add a "Save Entity" block to persist the mapped data to the target collection

External Integration

Use Case: Notify a chat platform about changes

1. Create a new action titled "Notify Chat"
2. Add appropriate trigger (Created/Updated/Deleted)
3. Add a "Send Chat Message" block
4. Configure the block with the Slack, Discord, or Teams webhook URL and message template

Best Practices

Naming Conventions

• Use descriptive, clear titles for your actions
• Include the trigger type and primary action in the name
• Examples: "Email on Document Creation", "Sync to CRM on Update"

Documentation

• Always add meaningful descriptions to your actions
• Explain what the automation does and when it triggers
• Include any important configuration details

Testing

• Test your automations with sample data before deploying
• Verify that triggers activate correctly
• Confirm that all blocks execute as expected

Performance

• Keep workflows simple and focused on specific tasks
• Avoid overly complex automation chains
• Monitor execution logs for performance issues

Troubleshooting

Action Not Triggering

1. Check trigger configuration: Ensure the trigger type matches your use case
2. Verify permissions: Confirm you have access to the relevant documents
3. Review execution logs: Look for error messages in the system logs

Blocks Not Executing

1. Check connections: Ensure triggers are properly connected to blocks
2. Verify block configuration: Confirm all required settings are provided
3. Test individual blocks: Isolate and test each block separately

Performance Issues

1. Simplify workflows: Break complex automations into smaller actions
2. Optimize block configuration: Remove unnecessary processing
3. Monitor resource usage: Check system performance during execution

Support and Resources

For additional help with the Actions system:

• Developer Guide: Technical details for extending the system
• API Reference: Complete interface documentation
• Examples: Sample workflows and patterns
• Architecture: System design and technical overview

Keyboard Shortcuts

When using the Visual Flow Editor:

• Space + Drag: Pan around the canvas
• Mouse Wheel: Zoom in and out
• F: Fit entire workflow to view
• Escape: Close any open dialogs or selection modes

Mobile and Responsive Design

The Actions interface is fully responsive and works on:

• Desktop: Full functionality with mouse and keyboard
• Tablet: Touch-friendly interface with gesture support
• Mobile: Optimized layout for smaller screens

All features remain available across different device sizes, ensuring you can manage your automations from anywhere.