Creating Workflows

Workflows are defined using the Tailor Platform SDK with TypeScript. This approach provides type safety, version control, and seamless integration with other platform services.

Directory Structure

  src/
  ├── workflows/
  │   ├── order-processing.ts    # Workflow definition
  │   └── steps/
  │       ├── validate-order.ts
  │       ├── check-inventory.ts
  │       └── process-payment.ts
  └── index.ts

Defining Workflow Steps

In the SDK, workflow steps are defined as TypeScript functions. Each step contains its logic and is composable:

import { WorkflowStep } from "@tailor-platform/sdk";

export const validateOrderStep: WorkflowStep = {
  name: "validate-order",
  handler: async (args) => {
    if (!args.orderId) {
      throw new Error("orderId is required");
    }
    // Validation logic
    return { validated: true, orderId: args.orderId };
  },
};

import { WorkflowStep } from "@tailor-platform/sdk";

export const checkInventoryStep: WorkflowStep = {
  name: "check-inventory",
  handler: async (args) => {
    // Inventory check logic
    return { inStock: true, orderId: args.orderId };
  },
};

import { WorkflowStep } from "@tailor-platform/sdk";

export const processPaymentStep: WorkflowStep = {
  name: "process-payment",
  handler: async (args) => {
    // Payment processing logic
    return { paymentId: "pay_123", status: "completed" };
  },
};

Defining Workflows

Create a workflow that composes multiple steps:

import { createWorkflow } from "@tailor-platform/sdk";
import { validateOrderStep } from "./steps/validate-order";
import { checkInventoryStep } from "./steps/check-inventory";
import { processPaymentStep } from "./steps/process-payment";

export const orderProcessingWorkflow = createWorkflow({
  name: "order-processing",
  steps: [validateOrderStep, checkInventoryStep, processPaymentStep],
});

Properties:

• name (String, Required) - Workflow name (unique within workspace)
• steps (Array, Required) - Array of workflow steps to execute

Versioning

Job functions are automatically versioned:

• When a job function's script changes, a new version is created
• Unchanged scripts reuse the existing version
• Workflows can reference specific versions or always use the latest

Managing Workflows

List workflows:

npx tailor workflow list

Get workflow details:

npx tailor workflow get <workflow-name>

Start a workflow execution:

npx tailor workflow start <workflow-name> --args '{"orderId": "123"}'

Writing Step Functions

Workflow steps are TypeScript functions that form the building blocks of your workflow. Each step function receives input arguments and returns output:

export const myStep: WorkflowStep = {
  name: "my-step",
  handler: async (args) => {
    // Your code here
    return { result: "success" };
  },
};

Function signature:

• Input: args object with type safety
• Output: JSON-serializable object
• Async/await: Supported for asynchronous operations

Composing Steps

In SDK workflows, steps are executed sequentially by the workflow engine. Data flows from one step to the next:

import { createWorkflow } from "@tailor-platform/sdk";

export const myWorkflow = createWorkflow({
  name: "my-workflow",
  steps: [
    {
      name: "step1",
      handler: async (args) => {
        return { data: "from step 1" };
      },
    },
    {
      name: "step2",
      handler: async (args) => {
        // Access output from previous step
        console.log(args.data); // "from step 1"
        return { result: "complete" };
      },
    },
  ],
});

Example: Multi-step workflow

Here's a complete example showing how to compose multiple job functions:

export function main(args) {
  console.log("Starting workflow with orderId:", args.orderId);

  // Step 1: Fetch order data
  const order = tailor.workflow.triggerJobFunction("fetchOrder", {
    orderId: args.orderId,
  });

  // Step 2: Validate order
  const validated = tailor.workflow.triggerJobFunction("validateOrder", order);

  // Step 3: Process payment
  const payment = tailor.workflow.triggerJobFunction("processPayment", {
    orderId: validated.id,
    amount: validated.total,
  });

  // Step 4: Send confirmation
  tailor.workflow.triggerJobFunction("sendConfirmation", {
    orderId: validated.id,
    email: validated.customerEmail,
    paymentId: payment.id,
  });

  return {
    success: true,
    orderId: validated.id,
    paymentId: payment.id,
  };
}

export function main(args) {
  console.log("Fetching order:", args.orderId);

  // Simulate fetching from API
  return {
    id: args.orderId,
    customerEmail: "customer@example.com",
    items: [{ name: "Product A", price: 100 }],
    total: 100,
  };
}

export function main(args) {
  console.log("Validating order:", args.id);

  if (!args.items || args.items.length === 0) {
    throw new Error("Order has no items");
  }

  if (!args.customerEmail) {
    throw new Error("Customer email is required");
  }

  return args; // Return validated order
}

Error Handling

Throw errors to mark a job function as failed:

export function main(args) {
  if (!args.requiredField) {
    throw new Error("requiredField is missing");
  }

  try {
    // Risky operation
    const result = performOperation();
    return { success: true, result };
  } catch (error) {
    throw new Error(`Operation failed: ${error.message}`);
  }
}

When an error occurs:

• The workflow execution is marked as failed
• The error message and stack trace are saved
• The workflow can be resumed using the resume command

Logging

Use console.log() for logging:

export function main(args) {
  console.log("Processing started");
  console.log("Input:", JSON.stringify(args));

  // Your code

  console.log("Processing completed");
  return { status: "done" };
}