cancel
Showing results for 
Search instead for 
Did you mean: 
Reply
Smon
New Member

Find out why Flow stopped

I have a flow which shall run continuously but sometimes stops. Winautomation always displayed the reason which made debugging easy, for example "Error in action #5 in Main". Isn't there a similar feature in Power Automate?

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

Accepted Solutions
VJR
Multi Super User
Multi Super User

Hi @Smon 

This will need to add some own error handling mechanism with the help of ‘Get last error’ action that stores the details of the last occurred error in a variable.

With the help of "On block error" this variable can be written to an error log file or an email whenever an error occurs.

And yes this gives the line number and the action where the error occurred.

View solution in original post

6 REPLIES 6
VJR
Multi Super User
Multi Super User

Hi @Smon 

This will need to add some own error handling mechanism with the help of ‘Get last error’ action that stores the details of the last occurred error in a variable.

With the help of "On block error" this variable can be written to an error log file or an email whenever an error occurs.

And yes this gives the line number and the action where the error occurred.

ianwuk
Post Partisan
Post Partisan

@VJR  @Smon  I'd like to jump in here if I may with a similar issue.

 

I have a browser automation flow, it runs fine most of the time, but there are times when it will just stop.

 

When it does it's like someone automatically pressed the flow stop button.  There are no errors or anything like that.

 

I use 'Get Last Error' and 'On Error Blocks' in my flow and I reviewed them when the flow just stopped by itself, and they all look fine, meaning there is no specific error occurring that might explain why it should have just stopped.

Is there any way I can dig deeper on this?  Thanks so much!

Hi @ianwuk 

A few more troubleshooting checks.

- Check the Windows Event log viewer to see if something's gone wrong there

- Check if anything's fishy in the Services (Type services.msc in Run window) and check anything related to Power Automate (haven't checked which ones.)

- Antivirus or Firewall blocking something at a particular time?

- What does your logging mechanism say? Does it stop at the exact same action? At a particular time of the day? While accessing Excel, while reading or writing the webpage, while using Sendkeys, Image based automation, While activating a window, etc? Identify patterns.

- Is it triggered from a Cloud Flow? If so does it run fine always when running from the console of the Desktop application...and so forth.

Thank you for replying @VJR - I'll try and answer your questions.

- Check the Windows Event log viewer to see if something's gone wrong there - what would I look for specifically?

- Check if anything's fishy in the Services (Type services.msc in Run window) and check anything related to Power Automate (haven't checked which ones.) - Will try that.

- Antivirus or Firewall blocking something at a particular time? - Corporate firewall, always happens around midnight, but this is also wehen the website in question has performance issues.  I want to run my PAD flow until midnight, wait 30 minutes, then start again, but I can't seem to figure out how?

- What does your logging mechanism say? Does it stop at the exact same action? At a particular time of the day? While accessing Excel, while reading or writing the webpage, while using Sendkeys, Image based automation, While activating a window, etc? Identify patterns. -The errors are all the same each time, basically my flow checks to see if the webpage displays 'Gateway Timeout' in the event that clicking a button takes too long. 

These sections are wrapped in an error block with the error condition being to continue to the end of the block, so, the error will always be reported as long as there is no 'Gateway Timeout' as it can't extract the data from the webpage (due to no Gateway Timeout error to check against) so the error is:

Subflow: main, Action: 1203, Action name: Extract data from web page Error Message: Failed to extract data (web page error while extracting data).


And it happens several times during a flow as the flow completes successfully otherwise.
.

- Is it triggered from a Cloud Flow? If so does it run fine always when running from the console of the Desktop application...and so forth. - It's a desktop flow only, it's triggered when I click Run to start it.

Thanks for all your help.

VJR
Multi Super User
Multi Super User

I'm slightly confused because the first post said there is no error and that there is no explanation why the flow suddenly stops. But the second post says there is an error "Failed to extract data (web page error while extracting data).

In that case I don't see a valid reason to check the Windows event viewer.

- Double check the Extract data from webpage 

- Remove and re-add

- Add Wait stages to give some breathing space before the extraction and for the page to load thoroughly. 

- Use Wait for web page content and if the desired element exists only then use Extract data from webpage....(the element that displays 'Gateway Timeout')

- Also check if you can make use of If web page contains anywhere.

 

 

ianwuk
Post Partisan
Post Partisan

Thank you for replying @VJR 

 

I apologise for the confusion regarding errors.  But this also confuses me too as yes, as I said in the first post, the flow just stops itself, like someone pressing stop.  Even though, errors are actually reported, as I mentioned.  I guess, what I was expecting was that if the flow stopped for it to throw an error, but it doesn't.

I've since fixed the errors mentioned in the second post, so they are no longer caught.  And I am running the flow to see if it stops again and actually gives a proper error to work with this time.

Thanks again for your help and support.

Helpful resources

Announcements

Community will be READ ONLY July 16th, 5p PDT -July 22nd

Dear Community Members,   We'd like to let you know of an upcoming change to the community platform: starting July 16th, the platform will transition to a READ ONLY mode until July 22nd.   During this period, members will not be able to Kudo, Comment, or Reply to any posts.   On July 22nd, please be on the lookout for a message sent to the email address registered on your community profile. This email is crucial as it will contain your unique code and link to register for the new platform encompassing all of the communities.   What to Expect in the New Community: A more unified experience where all products, including Power Apps, Power Automate, Copilot Studio, and Power Pages, will be accessible from one community.Community Blogs that you can syndicate and link to for automatic updates. We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this transition. Stay tuned for the exciting new features and a seamless community experience ahead!

Summer of Solutions | Week 4 Results | Winners will be posted on July 24th

We are excited to announce the Summer of Solutions Challenge!    This challenge is kicking off on Monday, June 17th and will run for (4) weeks.  The challenge is open to all Power Platform (Power Apps, Power Automate, Copilot Studio & Power Pages) community members. We invite you to participate in a quest to provide solutions to as many questions as you can. Answers can be provided in all the communities.    Entry Period: This Challenge will consist of four weekly Entry Periods as follows (each an “Entry Period”)   - 12:00 a.m. PT on June 17, 2024 – 11:59 p.m. PT on June 23, 2024 - 12:00 a.m. PT on June 24, 2024 – 11:59 p.m. PT on June 30, 2024 - 12:00 a.m. PT on July 1, 2024 – 11:59 p.m. PT on July 7, 2024 - 12:00 a.m. PT on July 8, 2024 – 11:59 p.m. PT on July 14, 2024   Entries will be eligible for the Entry Period in which they are received and will not carryover to subsequent weekly entry periods.  You must enter into each weekly Entry Period separately.   How to Enter: We invite you to participate in a quest to provide "Accepted Solutions" to as many questions as you can. Answers can be provided in all the communities. Users must provide a solution which can be an “Accepted Solution” in the Forums in all of the communities and there are no limits to the number of “Accepted Solutions” that a member can provide for entries in this challenge, but each entry must be substantially unique and different.    Winner Selection and Prizes: At the end of each week, we will list the top ten (10) Community users which will consist of: 5 Community Members & 5 Super Users and they will advance to the final drawing. We will post each week in the News & Announcements the top 10 Solution providers.  At the end of the challenge, we will add all of the top 10 weekly names and enter them into a random drawing.  Then we will randomly select ten (10) winners (5 Community Members & 5 Super Users) from among all eligible entrants received across all weekly Entry Periods to receive the prize listed below. If a winner declines, we will draw again at random for the next winner.  A user will only be able to win once overall. If they are drawn multiple times, another user will be drawn at random.  Individuals will be contacted before the announcement with the opportunity to claim or deny the prize.  Once all of the winners have been notified, we will post in the News & Announcements of each community with the list of winners.   Each winner will receive one (1) Pass to the Power Platform Conference in Las Vegas, Sep. 18-20, 2024 ($1800 value). NOTE: Prize is for conference attendance only and any other costs such as airfare, lodging, transportation, and food are the sole responsibility of the winner. Tickets are not transferable to any other party or to next year’s event.   ** PLEASE SEE THE ATTACHED RULES for this CHALLENGE**   Week 1 Results: Congratulations to the Week 1 qualifiers, you are being entered in the random drawing that will take place at the end of the challenge.   Community MembersNumber SolutionsSuper UsersNumber Solutions Deenuji 9 @NathanAlvares24  17 @Anil_g  7 @ManishSolanki  13 @eetuRobo  5 @David_MA  10 @VishnuReddy1997  5 @SpongYe  9JhonatanOB19932 (tie) @Nived_Nambiar  8 @maltie  2 (tie)   @PA-Noob  2 (tie)   @LukeMcG  2 (tie)   @tgut03  2 (tie)       Week 2 Results: Congratulations to the Week 2 qualifiers, you are being entered in the random drawing that will take place at the end of the challenge. Week 2: Community MembersSolutionsSuper UsersSolutionsPower Automate  @Deenuji  12@ManishSolanki 19 @Anil_g  10 @NathanAlvares24  17 @VishnuReddy1997  6 @Expiscornovus  10 @Tjan  5 @Nived_Nambiar  10 @eetuRobo  3 @SudeepGhatakNZ 8     Week 3 Results: Congratulations to the Week 3 qualifiers, you are being entered in the random drawing that will take place at the end of the challenge. Week 3:Community MembersSolutionsSuper UsersSolutionsPower Automate Deenuji32ManishSolanki55VishnuReddy199724NathanAlvares2444Anil_g22SudeepGhatakNZ40eetuRobo18Nived_Nambiar28Tjan8David_MA22   Week 4 Results: Congratulations to the Week 4 qualifiers, you are being entered in the random drawing that will take place at the end of the challenge. Week 4:Community MembersSolutionsSuper UsersSolutionsPower Automate Deenuji11FLMike31Sayan11ManishSolanki16VishnuReddy199710creativeopinion14Akshansh-Sharma3SudeepGhatakNZ7claudiovc2CFernandes5 misc2Nived_Nambiar5 Usernametwice232rzaneti5 eetuRobo2   Anil_g2   SharonS2  

Check Out | 2024 Release Wave 2 Plans for Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform

On July 16, 2024, we published the 2024 release wave 2 plans for Microsoft Dynamics 365 and Microsoft Power Platform. These plans are a compilation of the new capabilities planned to be released between October 2024 to March 2025. This release introduces a wealth of new features designed to enhance customer understanding and improve overall user experience, showcasing our dedication to driving digital transformation for our customers and partners.    The upcoming wave is centered around utilizing advanced AI and Microsoft Copilot technologies to enhance user productivity and streamline operations across diverse business applications. These enhancements include intelligent automation, AI-powered insights, and immersive user experiences that are designed to break down barriers between data, insights, and individuals. Watch a summary of the release highlights.    Discover the latest features that empower organizations to operate more efficiently and adaptively. From AI-driven sales insights and customer service enhancements to predictive analytics in supply chain management and autonomous financial processes, the new capabilities enable businesses to proactively address challenges and capitalize on opportunities.    

Updates to Transitions in the Power Platform Communities

We're embarking on a journey to enhance your experience by transitioning to a new community platform. Our team has been diligently working to create a fresh community site, leveraging the very Dynamics 365 and Power Platform tools our community advocates for.  We started this journey with transitioning Copilot Studio forums and blogs in June. The move marks the beginning of a new chapter, and we're eager for you to be a part of it. The rest of the Power Platform product sites will be moving over this summer.   Stay tuned for more updates as we get closer to the launch. We can't wait to welcome you to our new community space, designed with you in mind. Let's connect, learn, and grow together.   Here's to new beginnings and endless possibilities!   If you have any questions, observations or concerns throughout this process please go to https://aka.ms/PPCommSupport.   To stay up to date on the latest details of this migration and other important Community updates subscribe to our News and Announcements forums: Copilot Studio, Power Apps, Power Automate, Power Pages

Users online (1,195)