Workflow lifecycle

A workflow is more than a chain of nodes. It has a lifecycle: it starts from an event, prepares context, moves data through nodes, handles browser state, and either completes or stops with an error.

Understanding that lifecycle makes complex workflows easier to debug.

Lifecycle overview

flowchart TD
  Trigger["1. Trigger fires"] --> Context["2. Runtime context is created"]
  Context --> Data["3. Data moves through connected nodes"]
  Data --> Browser{"Browser page involved?"}
  Browser -->|Yes| Page["4a. Read or change page state"]
  Browser -->|No| Service["4b. Call local logic or external services"]
  Page --> Result["5. Produce output items"]
  Service --> Result
  Result --> Done{"More connected nodes?"}
  Done -->|Yes| Data
  Done -->|No| Complete["6. Execution completes"]
  Data --> Error["Error or explicit stop"]
  Error --> Stop["Execution stops with diagnostic output"]

  style Trigger fill:#e8f5e9,stroke:#2e7d32
  style Error fill:#ffebee,stroke:#c62828
  style Complete fill:#e1f5fe,stroke:#0277bd

1. Trigger fires

The trigger decides why the workflow starts. A manual trigger starts when you run it. A schedule trigger starts from time. Browser triggers can start from page load, context menu, or startup events.

Start by choosing the trigger that matches the user moment you want to automate.

2. Runtime context is created

The workflow receives context such as trigger data, selected text, current page state, or the scheduled execution time. Not every trigger provides the same context, so downstream nodes should only depend on context that the trigger actually supplies.

3. Data moves through nodes

Each node receives input items, applies settings, and returns output items. If a node outputs multiple items, downstream work usually repeats for each item.

4. Browser state may change

In Page Action nodes can read or modify the active tab. Browser state is not static:

A click can trigger asynchronous DOM changes.
A form submit can navigate the page.
Lazy-loaded content may appear after scrolling.
The selected text can change if the user interacts with the page.

Use Wait For Element or Wait when the next node depends on a page update.

5. Output becomes the next input

The output of one node becomes the input contract for the next node. This is where most workflow bugs happen: missing fields, unexpected lists, stale page state, or mismatched branch data.

6. Completion or stop

A workflow completes when there are no more reachable nodes. It stops early when a node fails or when Stop and Error is used intentionally.

Debugging by lifecycle stage

Symptom	Stage to inspect	Likely fix
Workflow never starts	Trigger	Check trigger type and permissions
Node receives empty input	Data movement	Inspect previous node output
Browser action happens too early	Browser state	Add wait or wait for element
AI answer lacks context	Data contract	Pass the extracted text or retrieval result explicitly
Integration writes wrong rows	Item linking	Add stable IDs and merge intentionally