Workflow Logs
The Workflow Logs page lists every execution attempt of a workflow action (functions, webhooks, and email alerts) triggered by a workflow rule. Use this page to track action outcomes, troubleshoot failures, set up failure notifications, and define retry policies that determine how Zoho Expense reattempts failed actions.
Access Workflow Logs
To access workflow logs:
- Go to Settings on the left sidebar.
(OR)
Click Settings in the top right corner of the page. - Select Workflow Logs under Automation.
- Choose the action type tab whose logs you want to view:
- Custom Functions
- Webhooks
- Email Alerts
Each tab displays the corresponding logs in a list view with the following columns:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Time of Execution | Date and time the action was triggered. |
| Workflow Rule | The workflow rule that triggered the action. |
| Module | The module the workflow rule belongs to. |
| Record | The record (expense, expense report, advance, trip, and so on) on which the action was performed. |
| Status | The outcome of the execution, either Success or Failure. |
View Log Details
To view the details of a specific log:
- Go to Settings on the left sidebar.
(OR)
Click Settings in the top right corner of the page. - Select Workflow Logs under Automation.
- Open the tab for the action type whose log you want to inspect.
- Click the row of the log you want to view.
The log detail displays:
- Execution Time: Date and time the action ran.
- Workflow Rule: Name of the rule that triggered the action.
- Record: The record processed by the rule.
- Status: Success or failure outcome.
- Response: The response returned by the action.
- Failure Reason: The reason for failure (shown only when the status is Failure).
- Retry Attempts: The number of retry attempts made, if a retry policy is configured.
Configure Failure Preferences
When a workflow action fails, Zoho Expense records the failure in the workflow log. You can configure how failures are handled using the Configure Failure Preferences feature. It provides two options:
- Failure Notification: Sends periodic emails to selected users summarizing workflow action failures. Available for Email Alerts, Webhooks, and Custom Functions.
- Retry Policy: Automatically reattempts a failed workflow action at intervals you define, so transient failures (such as a temporary network error or a brief outage of an external system) do not break your automation. Available for Webhooks and Custom Functions.
To configure failure preferences:
- Go to Settings on the left sidebar.
(OR)
Click Settings in the top right corner of the page. - Select Workflow Logs under Automation.
- Click Configure Failure Preferences in the top right corner of the page.
- Open the tab for the action type you want to configure: Email Alerts, Webhooks, or Custom Functions.
Failure Notification
The Failure Notification setting controls when and to whom Zoho Expense sends emails summarizing failed workflow actions. You can configure it separately for Email Alerts, Webhooks, and Custom Functions.
Under Failure Notification, set the following fields:
- Frequency: How often the digest email is sent. Choose Hourly, Daily, Weekly, or Monthly.
- Time: The time of day at which the digest email is sent. Applies to Daily, Weekly, and Monthly frequencies.
- Email Recipients: The users who receive the digest email.
Click Save.
Retry Policy
The Retry Policy setting controls how Zoho Expense reattempts a failed workflow action. You can configure it separately for Webhooks and Custom Functions.
By default, the retry policy is disabled for custom functions. You can turn on the Enabled toggle in the top-right corner of the Retry Policy section to configure the retry settings.
Under Retry Policy, set the following fields:
- Retry Method: The pattern Zoho Expense uses to space out retry attempts. Choose one of the following:
- Fixed interval: Each retry occurs after the same interval. For example, if the retry interval is 30 minutes and the retry count is 5, retries occur every 30 minutes after the failure.
- Additive: Each subsequent retry interval is the previous interval plus a fixed amount. For example, if the retry interval is 5 minutes, the additive factor is 6, and the retry count is 5, retries occur 5, 11, 17, 23, and 29 minutes after the failure.
- Multiplicative: Each subsequent retry interval is the previous interval multiplied by a factor. For example, if the retry interval is 5 minutes, the multiplicative factor is 6, and the retry count is 5, retries occur 5, 30, 180, 1080, and 6480 minutes after the failure.
- Retry interval: The wait time before the first retry, entered as a number and a unit (such as Minutes or Hours).
- Additive factor (Additive method only): The number added to the retry interval for each subsequent retry.
- Multiplicative factor (Multiplicative method only): The number the retry interval is multiplied by for each subsequent retry.
- Retry count: The maximum number of retries Zoho Expense attempts after the initial failure.
The Pattern preview below the fields shows the resulting sequence of retry intervals based on the values you have entered.
- Click Save.
Filter Logs
To narrow down the logs displayed:
- Go to Settings on the left sidebar.
(OR)
Click Settings in the top right corner of the page. - Select Workflow Logs under Automation.
- Open the relevant action type tab.
- Click Filter in the top-right corner.
- Apply one or more filters:
- Status: Success or Failure.
- Workflow Rule: Filter by a specific workflow rule.
- Module: Filter by the module the rule belongs to.
- Date Range: Filter by execution date.
- Click Apply.
Export Logs
To export workflow logs for offline analysis:
- Go to Settings on the left sidebar.
(OR)
Click Settings in the top right corner of the page. - Select Workflow Logs under Automation.
- Open the relevant action type tab.
- Apply any filters you need.
- Click Export in the top-right corner.
- Choose the export format: CSV or XLS.
- Click Export.
The file is downloaded to your device.
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