Creating a task sequence to run multiple robot tasks

A task sequence is a group of robot tasks linked together to execute sequentially. Successful completion of one task automatically starts the next task in the sequence.

A task sequence allows you to use the output from one task as the input for a subsequent task. For example, one task imports data, the next task prepares the data, and a third task analyzes the data.

You can use the same task in more than one sequence. You can also link tasks from multiple robots, and from any type of robot, in the same sequence.

For information about creating a robot task, see Creating a robot task to run a script.

Guidelines for creating a task sequence

Because task sequences contain multiple tasks, the chance of introducing errors during the development process increases. If a task fails in a sequence, the sequence fails and stops executing from that point forward.

The guidelines below help you construct task sequences that are at a lower risk for failure. Do your testing and troubleshooting in development mode. Activate script versions to production mode only after all the individual tasks in a sequence are running successfully in development mode.

Mode	Guideline	Details
Development	Test each task in isolation	Create and test each task individually. Troubleshooting problems is easier if you focus on a single task at a time. Ensure that each task runs successfully in isolation before attempting to include the task in a sequence.
	Manually replicate a sequence	Test your planned sequence by manually running each task in the order that it will be positioned in the sequence. Manually stepping through a sequence surfaces any problems with the logic of the sequence at exactly the point where the problem occurs.
	Consider data management	Carefully consider data management. Although you can combine tasks from different robots, doing so may create data management challenges if a task in one robot depends on data output by a task in another robot. If the tasks in a sequence have data interdependencies, the easiest approach is for all the tasks to be in the same robot. If your Robots implementation uses an on-premise Robots Agent, you have the option of sharing Analytics data tables between ACL robots. Links to shared tables need to be in place before running a task sequence that depends on the links. For more information, see Sharing and linking data tables in ACL robots.
Production	Create the production tasks	After you activate script versions to production mode, you need to re-create the development tasks in production mode. Activating moves only the scripts from development mode to production mode. It does not move the tasks.
	Configure shared tables and links	After you activate script versions to production mode, you need to configure any shared tables and links that are required by the task sequence. Activating moves only the scripts from development mode to production mode. It does not move data, or any sharing and linking information. For more information, see Sharing and linking data tables in ACL robots.

Create and schedule a task sequence

You create and schedule a task sequence in the Sequence Designer.

All the tasks in a sequence must meet the following criteria for the sequence to run successfully:

• Enabled tasks The tasks must be enabled. If any of the tasks in a sequence is disabled, the sequence fails when it tries to start the disabled task. For more information, see Disable or delete a task.
• Shared passwords Any passwords associated with tasks must be shared. If any of the tasks in a sequence contains an unshared password, only the owner of the password can run the sequence. The sequence fails if anyone other than the owner tries to run the sequence. For more information, see Scripts with passwords.

Create an empty task sequence

1. Open the Robots app.
2. From the dashboard in Robots, select the Task sequences tab.
3. Click Create a task sequence.

   The Sequence Designer opens

4. Enter a name for the task sequence and click Save.

   The empty task sequence is created.

Add tasks to the sequence

1. Click Add tasks.

   The Add tasks window appears.

2. Navigate to the task that you want to position first in the task sequence.

   To navigate to the task, drill down through this hierarchy:

   • robot type
   • folder (if applicable)
   • robot

3. In the robot, select the task that you want to position first in the sequence.

   The task is added to the Selected tasks list

   Tip

   To open the Task details panel for any task, click .

4. Do one or both of the following to add additional tasks to the sequence:

   • Select one or more additional tasks from the same robot.

   • Navigate to another robot and select one or more additional tasks.

   You can select tasks from any robot that you have permission to access.

   Note

   Select the tasks in the order that you want them to execute.

5. When you have finished selecting tasks, click Add.
6. Optional. In the Select your tasks page, drag one or more tasks to reorder the task sequence, and then click Continue.

   Note

   Before you continue, make sure the tasks are in a logical sequence that allows them to execute in the manner you intend. If the tasks are out of order, the task sequence will likely fail, or give unexpected results.

Schedule the task sequence

If you only want to run the task sequence ad hoc, click Continue to skip this page. To run a task sequence ad hoc, on the Task sequences tab, on the task sequence, click > Run now.

1. At the top of the page, select Put your sequence on a schedule.
2. Specify the schedule details:
   • Frequency the interval at which the sequence is repeatedly run
   • Starting at the time of day to start running the sequence, and the time zone to use

     Use your own time zone unless you want the start time to represent a different time zone.

   • Beginning on the date to start running the sequence
3. At the bottom of the page, click Continue.

Review the settings and create the completed task sequence

1. Review the settings that you have configured for the task sequence.
2. Optional. To update a setting, click Edit and make the required changes.
3. When you are satisfied with the settings for the task sequence, click Confirm and create sequence.

   Result The task sequence is created using the settings that you specified.