Workflow Automation

SnackBase’s Workflow Engine lets you build multi-step automation pipelines with conditional branching, timed delays, loops, and parallel execution — all configured via the REST API.

Overview

A workflow consists of:

Trigger — What starts the workflow (event, schedule, manual, or webhook)
Steps — An ordered list of operations with branching and control flow
Instances — Each execution creates a trackable instance with step-by-step logs

Key Features

Four Trigger Types: Event, schedule, manual, and webhook
Seven Step Types: Action, condition, wait_delay, wait_condition, wait_event, loop, parallel
Instance Tracking: Monitor running workflows with status, step logs, and error details
Cancel and Resume: Cancel running workflows or resume failed ones
Template Variables: Access trigger data and previous step outputs in any step

Trigger Types

Event Triggers

Fire when a record or auth event occurs:

{
  "trigger_type": "event",
  "trigger_config": {
    "type": "event",
    "event": "records.create",
    "collection": "orders",
    "condition": "total >= 100"
  }
}

Supported events: records.create, records.update, records.delete, auth.login, auth.register

Schedule Triggers

Fire on a cron schedule:

{
  "trigger_type": "schedule",
  "trigger_config": {
    "type": "schedule",
    "cron": "0 9 * * MON"
  }
}

Manual Triggers

Fire only via explicit API call:

{
  "trigger_type": "manual",
  "trigger_config": { "type": "manual" }
}

curl -X POST https://api.snackbase.dev/api/v1/workflows/{id}/trigger \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {token}" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"customer_id": "cust-123"}'

Webhook Triggers

Fire via an unauthenticated HTTP POST with a secret token:

{
  "trigger_type": "webhook",
  "trigger_config": {
    "type": "webhook",
    "token": "auto-generated-32-char-secret"
  }
}

The token is auto-generated on creation. Trigger with:

curl -X POST https://api.snackbase.dev/api/v1/workflow-webhooks/{token} \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"source": "stripe", "event": "payment.completed"}'

Webhook trigger endpoints are unauthenticated. The security relies on the secret token. Treat it like a password.

Step Types

Steps are defined as an ordered list. Each step has a unique name and a type.

Action

Execute an operation (same action types as API-Defined Hooks):

{
  "name": "send_notification",
  "type": "action",
  "config": {
    "action_type": "send_webhook",
    "config": {
      "url": "https://slack.example.com/webhook",
      "body_template": { "text": "Order {{trigger.id}} created" }
    }
  }
}

Supported actions: send_webhook, send_email, create_record, update_record, delete_record, enqueue_job.

Condition

Branch based on a rule expression:

{
  "name": "check_value",
  "type": "condition",
  "config": {
    "expression": "trigger.total >= 500",
    "on_true": "high_value_flow",
    "on_false": "standard_flow"
  }
}

Output: {"result": true, "branch": "true"} or {"result": false, "branch": "false"}

Wait Delay

Pause execution for a specified duration:

{
  "name": "wait_24h",
  "type": "wait_delay",
  "config": {
    "duration": "24h",
    "next": "follow_up_step"
  }
}

Duration format: <number><unit> where unit is s (seconds), m (minutes), h (hours), or d (days). The workflow instance transitions to waiting status. A background job resumes it after the delay.

Loop

Iterate over a list, executing a step for each item:

{
  "name": "process_items",
  "type": "loop",
  "config": {
    "items": "{{trigger.line_items}}",
    "step": "process_single_item"
  }
}

Output: {"items_count": 3, "outputs": [...]}

Parallel

Execute multiple branches concurrently:

{
  "name": "parallel_notifications",
  "type": "parallel",
  "config": {
    "branches": [
      ["send_email_step"],
      ["send_slack_step"],
      ["update_crm_step"]
    ]
  }
}

Output: {"branch_results": [[...], [...], [...]]} If any branch fails, the entire parallel step fails.

Wait Condition / Wait Event

wait_condition and wait_event step types are defined in the schema but not yet implemented. They are skipped during execution.

Template Variables

All step configurations support template variables:

Variable	Description
`{{trigger.<field>}}`	Data from the trigger context
`{{steps.<step_name>.output.<field>}}`	Output from a previous step
`{{auth.user_id}}`	User ID (if authenticated trigger)
`{{auth.email}}`	User email
`{{now}}`	Current UTC timestamp (ISO 8601)

Workflow Instances

Each execution creates a workflow instance that tracks progress:

Instance Lifecycle

pending ──> running ──> completed
                   ├──> failed ──> (resume) ──> running
                   ├──> waiting ──> (resume after delay) ──> running
                   └──> cancelled

Instance Statuses

Status	Meaning
`pending`	Created, not yet started
`running`	Actively executing steps
`waiting`	Paused on a `wait_delay` step
`completed`	All steps finished successfully
`failed`	A step failed (check `error_message`)
`cancelled`	Manually cancelled by user

Instance Management

Cancel a running or waiting instance:

curl -X POST https://api.snackbase.dev/api/v1/workflow-instances/{instance_id}/cancel \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {token}"

Resume a failed or waiting instance:

curl -X POST https://api.snackbase.dev/api/v1/workflow-instances/{instance_id}/resume \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {token}"

Step Logs

Every step execution is logged with:

Field	Description
`step_name`	Name of the step
`step_type`	Type (action, condition, wait_delay, etc.)
`status`	`success`, `failed`, or `skipped`
`input`	Snapshot of step inputs
`output`	Step output data
`error_message`	Error details (if failed)
`started_at`	When the step began
`completed_at`	When the step finished

Example: Order Processing Workflow

{
  "name": "Order Processing",
  "trigger_type": "event",
  "trigger_config": {
    "type": "event",
    "event": "records.create",
    "collection": "orders"
  },
  "steps": [
    {
      "name": "check_value",
      "type": "condition",
      "config": {
        "expression": "trigger.total >= 500",
        "on_true": "high_value_alert",
        "on_false": "standard_confirm"
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "high_value_alert",
      "type": "action",
      "config": {
        "action_type": "send_webhook",
        "config": {
          "url": "https://slack.example.com/webhook",
          "body_template": {
            "text": "High-value order #{{trigger.id}}: ${{trigger.total}}"
          }
        }
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "standard_confirm",
      "type": "action",
      "config": {
        "action_type": "send_email",
        "config": {
          "to": "{{trigger.customer_email}}",
          "subject": "Order Confirmed",
          "template_name": "order_confirmation",
          "variables": { "order_id": "{{trigger.id}}" }
        }
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "wait_for_processing",
      "type": "wait_delay",
      "config": {
        "duration": "2h",
        "next": "update_status"
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "update_status",
      "type": "action",
      "config": {
        "action_type": "update_record",
        "config": {
          "collection": "orders",
          "record_id": "{{trigger.id}}",
          "data": { "status": "processing" }
        }
      }
    }
  ]
}

Limits

Limit	Default
Max workflows per account	50 (configurable)
Max step execution depth	5
Webhook token length	32 characters (URL-safe)

Core Concepts

Advanced

Automation

Workflow Automation

Overview

Key Features

Trigger Types

Event Triggers

Schedule Triggers

Manual Triggers

Webhook Triggers

Step Types

Action

Condition

Wait Delay

Loop

Parallel

Wait Condition / Wait Event

Template Variables

Workflow Instances

Instance Lifecycle

Instance Statuses

Instance Management

Step Logs

Example: Order Processing Workflow

Limits

​Overview

​Key Features

​Trigger Types

​Event Triggers

​Schedule Triggers

​Manual Triggers

​Webhook Triggers

​Step Types

​Action

​Condition

​Wait Delay

​Loop

​Parallel

​Wait Condition / Wait Event

​Template Variables

​Workflow Instances

​Instance Lifecycle

​Instance Statuses

​Instance Management

​Step Logs

​Example: Order Processing Workflow

​Limits

Overview

Key Features

Trigger Types

Event Triggers

Schedule Triggers

Manual Triggers

Webhook Triggers

Step Types

Action

Condition

Wait Delay

Loop

Parallel

Wait Condition / Wait Event

Template Variables

Workflow Instances

Instance Lifecycle

Instance Statuses

Instance Management

Step Logs

Example: Order Processing Workflow

Limits