Table des matières

Workflows

Workflows allow you to automate actions on your devices based on conditions, measurements, or events.

A workflow is a graphical scenario composed of connected blocks.

Workflows can be configured:

They can be used to:

Workflows can be executed manually or triggered by a task (scheduled or on demand).

How Workflows Work

A workflow executes as a sequence of steps.

Each block receives data, processes it, and passes the result to the next block.

Depending on the results, the workflow can:

Available Blocks

Retrieve a Measurement

This block retrieves the value of a metric reported by a driver.

Examples:

The retrieved value can then be used by the next block.

Compare a Measurement

This block evaluates a measurement that was previously retrieved.

For example, it can verify whether:

Depending on the result, the workflow can follow different paths.

Send a Command

This block executes a command available in one of the device drivers.

Examples:

The available commands depend on the selected driver.

Wait for a Measurement

This block waits for a new value to be reported by a metric.

It is useful when the workflow must wait for a change in the device state before continuing.

Generic Blocks

Start

Entry point of the workflow.

Every workflow must start with this block.

Wait

Pauses workflow execution for a specified period of time.

Examples:

Debug

Displays the data received or generated by the various workflow blocks.

This block is particularly useful when designing and troubleshooting workflows.

It can display:

Error Handler

The Error Handler block monitors errors returned by the different blocks within a workflow.

When a block generates an error in its payload (command execution failure, unreachable device, invalid data, communication error, etc.), the Error Handler detects the error and immediately stops the workflow execution.

This block is particularly useful for:

Notification

Send an Email

This block sends an email from the workflow.

You can:

This feature is particularly useful for automatically informing operations teams.

Example: Reboot a Device When the Room Is Empty

In the example below, the goal is to automatically reboot a Cisco device when no presence is detected in the room.

The workflow operates as follows:

  1. The workflow starts.
  2. A measurement is retrieved from the Cisco driver.
  3. The People Presence metric is analyzed.
  4. If the returned value is No, it means that no presence has been detected in the room.
  5. The workflow sends the Reboot command to the device.
  6. An email notification is sent to inform users that an automatic reboot has been performed.

If the returned value indicates that someone is present in the room, no action is executed and the reboot does not occur.

This type of workflow makes it possible to automate many operational tasks while reducing manual intervention.

Tasks and Scheduling

Like presets, workflows can be executed:

Associating a workflow with a task allows it to be executed automatically at specific times.

This feature is particularly useful for:

To make a workflow executable by a task, simply associate it with one or more tasks during its configuration.

Creating a Task

To create a task:

  1. Go to Configuration → Tasks
  2. Click the ➕ Add button

You can then configure:

A single task can trigger:

This makes it possible to centrally schedule identical actions on a large scale.

Time Zone Management

When executing a task, Zebrix Control automatically uses the time zone configured on the site associated with the device.

It is also possible to use Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).

Example

A task named Nightly Reboot is scheduled:

This task is associated with several workflows across different devices.

At the scheduled time, Zebrix Control automatically executes all associated workflows without any manual intervention.