Overview
Workflow types define the core structures for workflow execution in Cadence. These types are used across all services to represent workflow state, decisions, and execution metadata.
Source Location: common/types/shared.go
Workflow Execution Types
WorkflowExecution
Uniquely identifies a workflow execution instance.
type WorkflowExecution struct {
WorkflowID string
RunID string
}
Business identifier for the workflow. Must be unique per domain according to the WorkflowIdReusePolicy.
Unique identifier for this specific run of the workflow. Generated by Cadence when the workflow starts.
{
"workflowId": "order-12345",
"runId": "a3e8c7f1-4b2a-4c5d-8e9f-1a2b3c4d5e6f"
}
WorkflowType
Identifies the workflow implementation type.
type WorkflowType struct {
Name string
}
Name of the workflow type, must match the registered workflow implementation.
{
"name": "OrderProcessingWorkflow"
}
WorkflowExecutionInfo
Contains comprehensive information about a workflow execution.
type WorkflowExecutionInfo struct {
Execution *WorkflowExecution
Type *WorkflowType
StartTime *int64
CloseTime *int64
CloseStatus *WorkflowExecutionCloseStatus
HistoryLength int64
ParentDomainID *string
ParentExecution *WorkflowExecution
ExecutionTime *int64
Memo *Memo
SearchAttributes *SearchAttributes
AutoResetPoints *ResetPoints
TaskList string
IsCron bool
UpdateTime *int64
PartitionConfig map[string]string
}
Workflow execution identifier
Unix timestamp (nanoseconds) when workflow started
Unix timestamp (nanoseconds) when workflow closed
CloseStatus
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatus
Final status if workflow is closed (Completed, Failed, Canceled, Terminated, ContinuedAsNew, TimedOut)
Total number of events in workflow history
Domain UUID of parent workflow if this is a child workflow
Parent workflow execution if this is a child workflow
Actual execution start time (may differ from StartTime for cron workflows)
Non-indexed workflow metadata
Indexed attributes for advanced visibility queries
Auto-generated reset points in workflow history
Task list name for decision tasks
Whether this is a cron workflow
WorkflowExecutionConfiguration
Configuration settings for a workflow execution.
type WorkflowExecutionConfiguration struct {
TaskList *TaskList
ExecutionStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
TaskStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
}
Task list for decision tasks
ExecutionStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Maximum workflow execution duration in seconds
TaskStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Maximum decision task duration in seconds
Workflow Close Status
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatus
Enumeration of possible workflow completion states.
type WorkflowExecutionCloseStatus int32
const (
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusCompleted WorkflowExecutionCloseStatus = iota
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusFailed
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusCanceled
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusTerminated
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusContinuedAsNew
WorkflowExecutionCloseStatusTimedOut
)
Workflow completed successfully
Workflow failed with an error
Workflow was forcefully terminated
Workflow continued as a new execution
Workflow execution timed out
Decision Types
Decision
Represents a decision made by the workflow during decision task processing.
type Decision struct {
DecisionType *DecisionType
ScheduleActivityTaskDecisionAttributes *ScheduleActivityTaskDecisionAttributes
StartTimerDecisionAttributes *StartTimerDecisionAttributes
CompleteWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *CompleteWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
FailWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *FailWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
RequestCancelActivityTaskDecisionAttributes *RequestCancelActivityTaskDecisionAttributes
CancelTimerDecisionAttributes *CancelTimerDecisionAttributes
CancelWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *CancelWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
RequestCancelExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *RequestCancelExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
RecordMarkerDecisionAttributes *RecordMarkerDecisionAttributes
ContinueAsNewWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *ContinueAsNewWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
StartChildWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *StartChildWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
SignalExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes *SignalExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
UpsertWorkflowSearchAttributesDecisionAttributes *UpsertWorkflowSearchAttributesDecisionAttributes
}
DecisionType
Enumeration of decision types.
type DecisionType int32
const (
DecisionTypeScheduleActivityTask DecisionType = iota
DecisionTypeRequestCancelActivityTask
DecisionTypeStartTimer
DecisionTypeCancelTimer
DecisionTypeCompleteWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeFailWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeCancelWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeRequestCancelExternalWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeRecordMarker
DecisionTypeContinueAsNewWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeStartChildWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeSignalExternalWorkflowExecution
DecisionTypeUpsertWorkflowSearchAttributes
)
Activity Types
ActivityType
Identifies an activity implementation.
type ActivityType struct {
Name string
}
Name of the activity type, must match the registered activity implementation.
ScheduleActivityTaskDecisionAttributes
Attributes for scheduling an activity task.
type ScheduleActivityTaskDecisionAttributes struct {
ActivityID string
ActivityType *ActivityType
Domain *string
TaskList *TaskList
Input []byte
ScheduleToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
ScheduleToStartTimeoutSeconds *int32
StartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
HeartbeatTimeoutSeconds *int32
RetryPolicy *RetryPolicy
Header *Header
RequestLocalDispatch *bool
}
Unique identifier for this activity within the workflow
Type of activity to execute
Domain for cross-domain activities (defaults to workflow domain)
Task list to dispatch the activity to
Serialized activity input
ScheduleToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Maximum time from schedule to completion
ScheduleToStartTimeoutSeconds
Maximum time from schedule until activity starts
StartToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Maximum time from start to completion
Maximum time between heartbeats
Retry policy for automatic retries
Context propagation headers
Request activity execution on same worker as decision task
Workflow Completion Types
CompleteWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Complete a workflow successfully.
type CompleteWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Result []byte
}
Serialized workflow result
FailWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Fail a workflow with an error.
type FailWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Reason *string
Details []byte
}
CancelWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Cancel a workflow.
type CancelWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Details []byte
}
Serialized cancellation details
ContinueAsNewWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Continue the workflow as a new execution.
type ContinueAsNewWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
WorkflowType *WorkflowType
TaskList *TaskList
Input []byte
ExecutionStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
TaskStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
BackoffStartIntervalInSeconds *int32
RetryPolicy *RetryPolicy
Initiator *ContinueAsNewInitiator
FailureReason *string
FailureDetails []byte
LastCompletionResult []byte
CronSchedule string
Header *Header
Memo *Memo
SearchAttributes *SearchAttributes
}
Workflow type for new execution (defaults to current type)
Task list for new execution (defaults to current)
ExecutionStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Execution timeout for new run
TaskStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds
Decision task timeout for new run
BackoffStartIntervalInSeconds
Delay before starting new execution
What triggered continue-as-new (Decider, RetryPolicy, CronSchedule)
Result from current execution
Cron schedule for new execution
Timer Types
StartTimerDecisionAttributes
Start a durable timer.
type StartTimerDecisionAttributes struct {
TimerID string
StartToFireTimeoutSeconds *int64
}
Unique identifier for this timer
StartToFireTimeoutSeconds
Duration until timer fires (in seconds)
CancelTimerDecisionAttributes
Cancel a pending timer.
type CancelTimerDecisionAttributes struct {
TimerID string
}
ID of the timer to cancel
Child Workflow Types
StartChildWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Start a child workflow execution.
type StartChildWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Domain string
WorkflowID string
WorkflowType *WorkflowType
TaskList *TaskList
Input []byte
ExecutionStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
TaskStartToCloseTimeoutSeconds *int32
ParentClosePolicy *ParentClosePolicy
Control []byte
WorkflowIDReusePolicy *WorkflowIDReusePolicy
RetryPolicy *RetryPolicy
CronSchedule string
Header *Header
Memo *Memo
SearchAttributes *SearchAttributes
}
Domain for child workflow (defaults to parent domain)
Workflow ID for child execution
What to do with child when parent closes (Abandon, RequestCancel, Terminate)
Opaque control data passed to child
Marker Types
RecordMarkerDecisionAttributes
Record a marker event in workflow history.
type RecordMarkerDecisionAttributes struct {
MarkerName string
Details []byte
Header *Header
}
Serialized marker details
- Side effects tracking
- Local activities
- Workflow versioning markers
- Custom instrumentation
External Workflow Types
SignalExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Send a signal to another workflow.
type SignalExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Domain string
Execution *WorkflowExecution
SignalName string
Input []byte
Control []byte
ChildWorkflowOnly bool
}
Domain of target workflow
Execution
WorkflowExecution
required
Target workflow execution (RunID optional)
Serialized signal payload
Only signal if target is a child workflow
RequestCancelExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes
Request cancellation of another workflow.
type RequestCancelExternalWorkflowExecutionDecisionAttributes struct {
Domain string
WorkflowID string
RunID string
Control []byte
ChildWorkflowOnly bool
}
Domain of target workflow
Specific run ID to cancel (optional)
Only cancel if target is a child workflow
Search Attributes
UpsertWorkflowSearchAttributesDecisionAttributes
Update workflow search attributes.
type UpsertWorkflowSearchAttributesDecisionAttributes struct {
SearchAttributes *SearchAttributes
}
New or updated search attributes
SearchAttributes
Indexed attributes for advanced visibility.
type SearchAttributes struct {
IndexedFields map[string][]byte
}
IndexedFields
map[string][]byte
required
Map of attribute names to serialized values. Supported types: String, Int, Double, Bool, Datetime, Keyword.
{
"indexedFields": {
"CustomerId": "\"customer-12345\"",
"OrderAmount": "99.99",
"OrderDate": "\"2024-01-15T10:30:00Z\"",
"IsPriority": "true"
}
}
Retry Policy
RetryPolicy
Defines automatic retry behavior.
type RetryPolicy struct {
InitialIntervalInSeconds int32
BackoffCoefficient float64
MaximumIntervalInSeconds int32
MaximumAttempts int32
NonRetriableErrorReasons []string
ExpirationIntervalInSeconds int32
}
Backoff multiplier (must be >= 1.0)
Maximum retry attempts (0 = unlimited)
Error reasons that should not trigger retry
ExpirationIntervalInSeconds
Total retry window duration
{
"initialIntervalInSeconds": 1,
"backoffCoefficient": 2.0,
"maximumIntervalInSeconds": 60,
"maximumAttempts": 5,
"nonRetriableErrorReasons": ["InvalidInput", "Unauthorized"]
}
Memo
Memo
Non-indexed workflow metadata.
type Memo struct {
Fields map[string][]byte
}
Map of field names to serialized values. Not indexed, but can be retrieved.
- Large metadata that doesn’t need indexing
- Binary data
- Structured context information
Context propagation headers.
type Header struct {
Fields map[string][]byte
}
Map of header names to serialized values. Propagated to activities and child workflows.
- Tracing context (trace ID, span ID)
- Authentication tokens
- Request metadata
- Feature flags
Pending Execution Info
PendingActivityInfo
Information about a pending activity.
type PendingActivityInfo struct {
ActivityID string
ActivityType *ActivityType
State *PendingActivityState
HeartbeatDetails []byte
LastHeartbeatTimestamp *int64
LastStartedTimestamp *int64
Attempt int32
MaximumAttempts int32
ScheduledTimestamp *int64
ExpirationTimestamp *int64
LastFailureReason *string
LastWorkerIdentity string
LastFailureDetails []byte
}
PendingChildExecutionInfo
Information about a pending child workflow.
type PendingChildExecutionInfo struct {
WorkflowID string
RunID string
WorkflowTypeName string
InitiatedID int64
ParentClosePolicy *ParentClosePolicy
}
PendingDecisionInfo
Information about a pending decision task.
type PendingDecisionInfo struct {
State *PendingDecisionState
ScheduledTimestamp *int64
StartedTimestamp *int64
Attempt int64
OriginalScheduledTimestamp *int64
}
Reset Points
ResetPoints
Auto-generated reset points for workflow reset.
type ResetPoints struct {
Points []*ResetPointInfo
}
ResetPointInfo
Information about a single reset point.
type ResetPointInfo struct {
BinaryChecksum string
RunID string
FirstDecisionCompletedID int64
CreatedTimeNano *int64
ExpiringTimeNano *int64
Resettable bool
}
Checksum of worker binary at this point
Event ID of first decision task completion
Whether workflow can be reset to this point
Workflow ID Reuse Policy
WorkflowIDReusePolicy
Policy for reusing workflow IDs.
type WorkflowIDReusePolicy int32
const (
WorkflowIDReusePolicyAllowDuplicateFailedOnly WorkflowIDReusePolicy = iota
WorkflowIDReusePolicyAllowDuplicate
WorkflowIDReusePolicyRejectDuplicate
WorkflowIDReusePolicyTerminateIfRunning
)
Allow starting if previous execution failed, canceled, or terminated
Allow starting regardless of previous execution status
Reject if any previous execution exists
Terminate existing execution and start new one
Parent Close Policy
ParentClosePolicy
Policy for child workflow when parent closes.
type ParentClosePolicy int32
const (
ParentClosePolicyAbandon ParentClosePolicy = iota
ParentClosePolicyRequestCancel
ParentClosePolicyTerminate
)
Leave child workflow running
Request cancellation of child workflow
Forcefully terminate child workflow
See Also
