Restart

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
    • Summarize
    Summarized using AI
    This content was generated using new OpenAI-powered functionality. Results are provided on an as is basis and are not guaranteed to be accurate or complete.

    Summary of Restart

    The Restart feature in ServiceNow's Playbooks provides agents and fulfillers with the capability to restart a playbook, stage, or activity during runtime. This flexibility allows workflows to be resumed either from the beginning or from specific points, enhancing control over playbook execution and error recovery.

    Show full answer Show less

    Playbook administrators configure restart options within Workflow Studio, defining how each stage and activity behaves upon restart, which ensures consistent and predictable workflow behavior.

    Key Features

    • Restart Enablement: Administrators enable restart functionality for playbooks in Workflow Studio and set rules for stages and activities during a restart.
    • Restart Behavior Settings:
      • Skip on restart: The stage or activity runs only during the initial playbook execution and is skipped on restart. Useful to prevent duplication of tasks or records.
      • Run always: The stage or activity runs on both initial and restarted executions.
      • Skip on first run: The stage or activity runs only during a restart and not during the initial run.
    • Runtime Restart Options: Agents and fulfillers can restart playbooks from the beginning or from selected stages or activities if the playbook is in an active state (Queued, Pending, Cancel, In Progress). Playbooks in terminal states (Complete, Error, Cancelled) cannot be restarted.
    • Restart Conditions for Activities and Stages: To be restarted, activities and stages must be complete or in an error state.

    Design Considerations

    • Avoid configuring the last stage or activity as "Skip on first run" if there are no parallel stages or activities, since restarting before these run will prevent them from executing altogether.
    • Do not group all activities set to "Skip on first run" within the same stage, as this can make the stage invisible during the initial run and only visible after a second run.

    Practical Application for ServiceNow Customers

    By enabling and configuring restart options, ServiceNow customers can improve playbook flexibility and error handling, allowing agents to efficiently manage workflows without needing to start over entirely or lose progress. This configuration supports complex process management by controlling how tasks and records are handled on restarts, minimizing duplication and ensuring business continuity.

    Administrators should carefully plan restart settings for each playbook, stage, and activity to align with business logic and operational needs, ensuring smooth and predictable playbook execution.

    Give agents and fulfillers the ability to restart a playbook, stage, or activity.

    In the Workflow Studio Playbooks builder, Playbooks administrators enable restart for Playbook Experience agents and fulfillers. Playbooks can be restarted from the beginning, or from certain activities or stages during runtime. Playbooks administrators also define what each activity and stage does when an agent restarts.

    Workflow Studio

    In Workflow Studio, Playbooks admins enable restart for playbooks, and define the rules for what an activity or stage does during restart:
    • Skip on restart: The stage or activity only runs during a playbook's initial run. It does not run on restart.
      Note:
      This setting is helpful if you don't want new tasks or records to be created during a restarted run, because the original execution and resulting record is still relevant.
    • Run always: The stage or activity always runs, whether during an initial or restarted run.
    • Skip on first run: The stage or activity runs only on restart. It never runs during an initial run.

    Playbook Experience

    During runtime, agents and fulfillers can restart playbooks from the beginning, or from certain stages or activities.
    Note:
    Playbooks in an active state can be restarted:
    • Queued
    • Pending Cancel
    • In Progress
    Playbooks in a terminal state cannot be restarted:
    • Complete
    • Error
    • Cancelled

    Restarting a playbook during runtime

    The opposite is true for activities and stages. Activities and stages must be complete or in an error state before they can be restarted.


    Restarting a stage during runtime

    Design considerations

    Follow these design considerations when configuring restart for your playbook, stages, and activities.
    Last stages and activities
    Avoid setting the last stage or activity of a playbook to Skip on first run if there are no parallel stages or activities. If the playbook is restarted before the last stage or activity can run, the last stage or activity never runs.
    Stages
    Avoid grouping all activities that are configured to Skip on first run in one (1) stage. If you do so, the stage is completely hidden the first time that it runs. The stage must run twice to become visible.