Our CAD file approval workflow is halting at the quality control step after we updated some CAD metadata fields last week. The workflow was working perfectly before the metadata changes, but now files sit in the QC queue indefinitely without moving forward.
I’ve reviewed the workflow process logs and can see the files entering the QC activity, but there’s no record of the QC group being notified or any voting actions being recorded. The CAD file metadata appears valid - all required fields are populated and the file attachments are accessible. I’ve also verified that the QC group members have the correct permissions and can manually access the files.
The workflow doesn’t throw any errors - it just stops progressing. This is causing significant release delays as we have about 30 CAD files stuck in this state. Has anyone encountered workflow stalls related to metadata updates?
When you updated the CAD metadata fields, did you modify any fields that are referenced in the workflow’s voting criteria or transition conditions? Sometimes workflows have hidden dependencies on specific metadata values that aren’t immediately obvious.
Check the workflow map XML definition. Look for any condition statements or voting path configurations that reference your metadata fields. If you made fields required that weren’t before, and those fields are checked in a workflow condition, empty values on older items could cause the workflow to stall. The workflow engine might be waiting for validation that can’t complete.
Good point. We added three new metadata fields for material specifications and updated the field definitions for two existing fields to make them required. I didn’t think about workflow dependencies on those fields. How would I check if the workflow references these specific fields?
I’ve debugged similar issues. The workflow process log should show you which activity is active and what conditions are being evaluated. If the QC activity is active but not completing, there’s likely a voting path assignment issue or a condition that’s evaluating to false. Check if your metadata changes affected the identity assignment for the QC voting activity - sometimes field changes can inadvertently break role or identity assignments in the workflow definition.