Timer Step

In this article, we'll cover:

• Overview
• Where to Find This
• Using the Timer Step
  • Timer Duration
  • Use Operational Hours
  • Other Considerations
  • Using Timers in Loops
  • Configuring a Timer Step
• Examples

Overview

The Timer step allows a workflow to pause at a pre-determined stage. It waits the configured amount of time — specified as an operational or absolute time span — and proceeds to the next step once that time span has elapsed.

In the workflow detail above, a Web Service step's Success option flows into a Timer step configured to wait 3 days (using operational hours) before continuing to a Final Approval step.

For a complete guide to creating, configuring, and activating ticket workflows, see Configuring Ticket Workflows.

Where to Find This

The Timer step is configured in the Ticketing application admin interface, and can be viewed on a ticket with the workflow applied in Work Management and the Client Portal.

Configure the step from the Workflow Builder in the Ticketing app admin UI following these paths:

• Ticketing Application Admins: Work Management > View Applications > [name of the Ticketing application]  > gear icon > Admin > Workflows > [Workflow name] > View Builder 
• Global Admins: TDAdmin > Applications > [name of the Ticketing application]  > Workflows > [Workflow name] > View Builder

Access an active workflow:

• In Work Management > View Applications > [name of the Ticketing application] > find the ticket with the workflow applied and review the step
• In the Client Portal > Ticket Requests > open the request and review the workflow steps

Using the Timer Step

Timer Duration

The duration is specified by days, hours, and minutes for the Timer step within a workflow.  

Use Operational Hours

If Use Operational Hours is enabled, the Timer Duration is interpreted in operational time, which accounts for working hours, weekends, and any organizationally-defined days off. When a number of days is expressed in operational time, it's converted to the equivalent number of operational hours—for example, if an organization's operational hours are set between 9 AM and 5 PM, an operational day is treated as 8 operational hours.

When Use Operational Hours is selected, the time a ticket spends On Hold does not count against the timer's duration, so the timer effectively pauses while the ticket is on hold. This differs from the default behavior described below, where On Hold status has no effect on the countdown.

Other Considerations

• When including a timer step in a ticketing workflow, its Complete option must specify at least one next step.
   
• If there are parallel branches in the workflow when a Timer step is reached, those parallel branches continue as normal. By default (when Use Operational Hours is not selected), placing a ticket in an On Hold status does not affect the timer's duration — if active, a Timer step continues counting down the configured amount of time and ends as scheduled, within approximately 5 minutes of the configured end time. If a timer step is already in progress, attempting to start it again will have no effect.
   
• Individuals with the “The user will always be able to approve/reject/skip ticket workflow steps” permission in the associated Ticketing application can manually force completion of this step through a Skip action.
   
• Because the processor that handles queued Timer steps runs on a 5-minute interval, setting a Timer step to a wait value of less than 5 minutes doesn't guarantee the step ends in less than 5 minutes.

Using Timers in Loops

If you're configuring a Timer as part of a loop — for example, a Condition step that checks whether a condition exists and then loops back to the Timer to wait before checking again — the loop must include at least one human interaction. This prevents an infinite loop that could impact system resources.

Configuring a Timer Step

The steps below cover configuring a Timer step specifically. For guidance on connecting steps, validating a workflow, and activating it, see Configuring Ticket Workflows.

To create a Timer step:

1. In the Ticketing application admin UI, click Workflows in the left navigation.
2. On the Ticket Workflows list, click the name of the desired workflow.
3. Click the View Builder button.
4. In the Workflow Builder, click File in the toolbar.
5. Click the New Step button in the toolbar.
6. Select Check Out from the dropdown.
7. Select In the New Workflow Step window, enter a Name that indicates what the step will do.
8. Select Timer from the Type dropdown.
9. Optionally enter a Description for the step.
10. Enter the Timer Duration in days, hours, and/or minutes.
11. Optionally, select Use Operational Hours if the duration should account for working hours, weekends, and organizational days off rather than absolute time.
12. Click Save, then close the window showing the Timer step details.
13. Locate the new Timer step in the Workflow Builder. It should be on the far left side, often near the Start step.
14. Click the directional arrows in the corner of the Timer step and drag it to the desired point in the workflow.
15. Click and drag from the previous step's option to connect to the Timer step.

Timer steps are useful anywhere a workflow needs to pause deliberately — allowing time for a response before following up, giving a change window time to elapse, or simply spacing out automated actions so they don't all fire at once. The two examples below show both time modes in action: one using operational hours to account for weekends and off-hours, and the other using absolute time for a continuous countdown.

The Client Response Timer workflow pictured below uses repeated Timer steps to space out follow-up reminders to an unresponsive requestor — for instance, waiting 3 days between each check-in. Each Timer step in this example uses Use Operational Hours, so the wait period accounts for weekends and non-working hours rather than counting continuously. See the Client Response Timer Workflow Example for full setup details.

In the workflow below, once the Web Service step successfully completes, the workflow proceeds to the Timer step, "Timer Step - wait 12 hours." This step is configured to wait 12 hours using absolute time — meaning the 12-hour countdown runs continuously and isn't limited to operational hours, so it counts weekends and non-working hours the same as any other time. Once the wait period elapses, the workflow advances to the Final Approval step.

Click to open the PDF and view the workflow details.