Cancel a flow execution
Having the ability to cancel a flow execution can be highly valuable in the following scenarios:
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Hanging executions caused by infinite loops or recursion.
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Errors found in large, complex flows, or in flows that process large amounts of data. For example, if the flow contains a logic error found on step 8 of a 40-step flow.
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Stopping flow executions that you accidentally started.
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Flow executions stuck in progress because they don't have the correct information.
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Developing and testing large flows. Rather than using logical conditions to act as break points, you can cancel the execution after you validate your test. For example, if you want to verify that a streaming action card works as expected, but don't want to stream an entire set of records.
Previously, Workflow admins had to file a support case with Okta to cancel an in-progress flow execution.
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Canceling a flow execution also cancels the execution of all remaining cards in the flow. It also cancels all parent and helper flow executions associated with that flow execution.
To cancel a flow execution:
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After starting the flow, open the Execution History tab for your flow.
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In the Execution History panel, locate the currently executing flow. It has an In progress status.
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Click Cancel beside the In progress status.
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In the Cancel execution dialog:
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Click No, keep running to continue with the flow execution.
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Click Yes, cancel to confirm that you want to cancel the flow execution.
If the flow execution was already complete when you clicked Cancel, these options are unavailable.
The timing of the cancellation process depends on network throughput and system load. Some execution processes may be so far through their processing cycle that the cancellation request doesn't arrive until the execution is already complete.
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The status of the flow changes to Canceling until the cancellation process completes, then the status changes to Canceled.
Flows with pauses or wait conditions may take up to a minute to cancel completely.
Notes
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You can't abort the cancellation process.
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If the process fails for any reason, the system shows a Failed to cancel the execution message, along with any available error information. You can try to cancel the flow execution again if it's still running.
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The search filter for completed flows now includes a Canceled filter, so you can search your history for canceled flow executions.
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If you hover your mouse over a canceled record, the tool-tip shows the name of the person who canceled the flow execution.
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When anyone cancels a flow execution, Okta captures the time and account user ID in the System Log.