---
title: Workflow entity overview
source: https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/manage-workflows/workflow-entity-overview
---

The Workflow entity overview page displays detailed information about a specific workflow, including execution metrics, run history, schedules, and logs. From this page, you can run workflows manually or schedule them to run automatically.

## Before you begin

Before using the APIs to trigger or schedule workflows, ensure you have:

-   **Workflow created**: A workflow definition already deployed in your account from [template](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/create-a-workflow-automation/use-a-template) or [custom-built](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/create-a-workflow-automation/create-your-own).
-   **Account ID**: Your New Relic account ID can be found in [Account settings](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/accounts/accounts-billing/account-structure/account-id).
-   **Workflow name**: The exact name from your workflow definition.
-   **Required inputs**: Values for any parameters your workflow expects.
-   **Secrets configured**: AWS credentials, Slack tokens, or other secrets stored in [secrets manager](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/limitations-and-faq/workflow-best-practices#secure-credentials).

## Access entity overview

From the [Workflow Automation dashboard](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/manage-workflows/managing-workflow), click a workflow name in the Workflows tab to open its entity overview page.

> #### 💡 TIP
>
> **Navigation change**: Clicking a workflow name now opens the entity overview page. To edit a workflow, use the **Open in editor** option from the row actions menu.

The entity overview page displays the following tabs:

## Summary

Workflow-level metrics and information:

-   **Run count**: Total number of times this workflow has executed
-   **Total steps**: Number of steps executed across all runs
-   **Failed runs**: Count of failed executions and which steps failed
-   Each metric widget includes a context menu to view query, get image, or create alert condition

## Run History

List of all workflow executions:

-   View logs for each run
-   See execution status and timestamps
-   Access detailed run information

## Logs

View execution logs:

-   Access logs when you run a workflow from the list page
-   Redirects from the **View logs** button after running a workflow

### Run workflows via API [#on-demand]

Use the [StartWorkflowRun API](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/start-workflow-run) to trigger workflows programmatically. This executes the workflow immediately with the inputs you provide.

### Example: Invoke an AWS Lambda function

The following workflow definition invokes an AWS Lambda function and logs the output. Replace `12345678` with your New Relic account ID.

```yaml
  name: lambda1

  workflowInputs:
    username:
      type: String
      defaultValue: "User"
    key:
      type: String
      defaultValue: "${{ :secrets:12345678:USERNAME_AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID }}"
    access:
      type: String
      defaultValue: "${{ :secrets:12345678:USERNAME_AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY }}"
    token:
      type: String
      defaultValue: "${{ :secrets:12345678:USERNAME_AWS_SESSION_TOKEN }}"
    region:
      type: String
      defaultValue: us-east-1

  steps:
    - name: invoke1
      type: action
      action: aws.lambda.invoke
      version: 1
      inputs:
        awsAccessKeyId: ${{ .workflowInputs.key }}
        awsSecretAccessKey: ${{ .workflowInputs.access }}
        awsSessionToken: ${{ .workflowInputs.token }}
        region: ${{ .workflowInputs.region }}
        functionName: hello-you
        payload:
          user: ${{ .workflowInputs.username }}

    - name: logOutput
      type: action
      action: newrelic.ingest.sendLogs
      version: 1
      inputs:
        logs:
          - message: 'The lambda function message output is:${{ .steps.invoke1.outputs.payload.body }}'
```

To start this workflow, use the following NerdGraph mutation. Before running this mutation, ensure you've stored your AWS credentials using the `secretsManagementCreateSecret` mutation. For more information, see [secrets manager](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/limitations-and-faq/workflow-best-practices#secure-credentials).

```yaml
  mutation {
    workflowAutomationStartWorkflowRun(
      # Specify the account where the workflow is defined
      scope: { type: ACCOUNT id: "12345678" }

      # Reference the workflow definition by name
      definition: { name: "lambda1" }

      # Provide input values for the workflow
      workflowInputs: [
        {key: "key" value: "${{ :secrets:testUser123_AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID }}"}
        {key: "access" value: "${{ :secrets:testUser123_AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY }}"}
        {key: "token" value: "${{ :secrets:testUser123_AWS_SESSION_TOKEN }}"}
        {key: "region" value:"us-east-2"}
        {key: "username" value: "Julien"}
      ]
    ) {
      runId
    }
  }
```

**Parameters explained:**

-   `scope`: The account ID where your workflow definition is stored
-   `definition`: The name of the workflow to run (must match the `name` field in your workflow definition)
-   `workflowInputs`: Key-value pairs that override the default values in the `workflowInputs` section of your workflow definition

The mutation returns a `runId` (for example, `7bd25287-2af8-42e1-b783-80f4e760a40b`). Use this ID to query the logs and view the output:

![Workflow automation logs showing the Lambda function output](https://docs.newrelic.com/images/autoflow-all-logs-2.webp "Workflow automation logs")

## Schedules

Manage scheduled executions for this workflow:

-   View all active schedules
-   Create new schedules
-   Delete existing schedules

Use the [CreateSchedule API](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/create-schedule) to schedule workflows to run automatically at specific times. Scheduled workflows run recurring tasks without manual intervention.

> #### ⚠️ IMPORTANT
>
> **Disabling Workflow Automation?** If you plan to turn off Workflow Automation through Feature Control Management (FCM), remove all scheduled workflows first to prevent confusion or alerts. See [Disable Workflow Automation](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/troubleshooting#disabling-workflow-automation-fcm) for detailed steps.

**When to schedule workflows:**

-   Regular health checks
-   Periodic data processing
-   Daily/weekly reports
-   Scheduled maintenance windows
-   Recurring backups or cleanups

### Cron expression reference

Schedules use cron expressions to define when workflows run. Format: `minute hour day month weekday`

| Pattern        | Description                         | Example use case                |
| -------------- | ----------------------------------- | ------------------------------- |
| `0 9 * * *`    | Every day at 9:00 AM                | Daily morning health checks     |
| `0 9 * * 1-5`  | Every weekday at 9:00 AM            | Business day operations         |
| `0 */6 * * *`  | Every 6 hours                       | Regular sync operations         |
| `0 0 1 * *`    | First day of month at midnight      | Monthly reports                 |
| `*/10 * * * *` | Every 10 minutes (minimum interval) | Frequent polling, health checks |
| `0 0 * * 0`    | Every Sunday at midnight            | Weekly cleanup tasks            |

> #### ⚠️ IMPORTANT
>
> **Minimum schedule interval:** Schedules must be at least 10 minutes apart. You cannot schedule workflows to run more frequently than every 10 minutes. For sub-10-minute intervals, consider scheduling every 10 minutes and using a [wait step](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/definition-schema#wait) within your workflow. See [workflow limits](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/limitations-and-faq/workflow-limits) for all scheduling constraints.

> #### 💡 TIP
>
> **Cron syntax:** `*` means `every`, `/` means `every nth`, `-` means `range`. Example: `0 9 * * 1-5 = At minute 0, hour 9, every day, every month, Monday through Friday`.

### Example: Schedule a daily health check

The following example schedules the `lambda1` workflow to run every day at 9 AM Eastern Time:

```yaml
  mutation {
    workflowAutomationCreateSchedule(
      scope: {type: ACCOUNT, id: "1"}
      definition: {name: "outdated_agents_multiple_nrql", version: 22}
      workflowInputs: [{key: "emailDestinationId", value: "04ea4bf6-e52a-4df1-bd5d-9c0271652a93"}, {key: "accountId", value: "1"}]
      timezone: "America/New_York"
      cronExpression: "0 12 * * *"
    ) {
      scheduleId
    }
  }
```

**What you get back:** `scheduleId`, Unique identifier for the schedule (use this to update or delete the schedule later)

### Workaround: Sub-10-minute intervals

If you need to check something more frequently than every 10 minutes, schedule your workflow at the minimum 10-minute interval and use a wait step within the workflow definition to create additional polling intervals.

**Example workflow with 5-minute polling:**

```yaml
  name: frequent-health-check

  steps:
    # First check happens immediately when scheduled
    - name: firstCheck
      type: action
      action: newrelic.nrdb.query
      version: 1
      inputs:
        query: "FROM Transaction SELECT count(*) WHERE appName = 'MyApp' SINCE 5 minutes ago"

    # Wait 5 minutes
    - name: waitStep
      type: wait
      seconds: 300

    # Second check happens 5 minutes after the workflow started
    - name: secondCheck
      type: action
      action: newrelic.nrdb.query
      version: 1
      inputs:
        query: "FROM Transaction SELECT count(*) WHERE appName = 'MyApp' SINCE 5 minutes ago"
```

Schedule this workflow to run every 10 minutes using `*/10 * * * *`. This gives you effective 5-minute polling:

-   0:00 - Workflow starts, runs firstCheck
-   0:05 - secondCheck runs (after wait step)
-   0:10 - Next scheduled workflow starts, runs firstCheck
-   0:15 - secondCheck runs (after wait step)

> #### 💡 TIP
>
> **Workflow duration limit:** Remember that workflows have a maximum duration of 7 days. Design your wait steps and polling frequency accordingly. See [workflow limits](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/limitations-and-faq/workflow-limits) for details.

### Manage schedules

After creating a schedule:

-   **View active schedules**: See all scheduled runs in the Schedules tab on this Entity Overview page
-   **Update schedule**: Use the UpdateSchedule API to change frequency or inputs
-   **Delete schedule**: Use the DeleteSchedule API to stop recurring runs

For complete API documentation, see [Workflow Automation APIs](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/using-workflow-automation-api).

## Settings

View workflow configuration:

-   Display workflow settings and parameters
-   Configuration information only (editing is done through the editor)

## Run workflows from this page [#workflow-actions]

To manually execute a workflow from the entity overview page:

1.  Click **Run workflow**
2.  The workflow executes immediately
3.  After execution completes, click **View logs** to see the execution details in the Logs tab

To edit a workflow, click the **Edit** button to open the workflow in the editor.

> #### 💡 TIP
>
> When alert conditions are breached, New Relic can automatically trigger workflows by configuring Workflow Automation as a destination. The `issueId` and `accountId` are passed automatically. See [Send notifications from workflows](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/setup-and-configure/create-destinations#trigger-from-alerts) for setup instructions.

## Related topics [#related-topics]

[Manage workflows](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/manage-workflows/managing-workflow)

View dashboard and manage all workflows

[Create schedule API](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/create-schedule)

Create schedules programmatically via NerdGraph

[Start workflow run API](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/workflow-automation-apis/start-workflow-run)

Trigger workflows on-demand via API

[Workflow limits](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/limitations-and-faq/workflow-limits)

Understand schedule frequency and execution limits

[Troubleshooting](https://docs.newrelic.com/docs/workflow-automation/troubleshooting)

Debug workflow execution errors and failures