Start with the automation’s saved settings, logs, and the affected card. This guide helps you investigate a missing action, repeated action, or error without creating duplicate tasks, messages, or updates.
Before You Change or Retry a Rule
- Note the automation title, card, expected result, and event time.
- Check Status, trigger conditions, When, and Only fire if office is open. Draft, Test Mode, and Live are distinct; saving does not automatically activate a rule.
- Immediately uses the automation queue and does not promise instant execution.
- If a Live rule is producing unwanted results, coordinate with your team, set it to Draft, and Save while you investigate. This does not undo actions already completed.
Where to Find Automation Information
Use the automation’s Logs first, then compare them with the card and any available board diagnostics.
Automation Logs (Per Automation)
To view a rule’s available log history:
- Open the board.
- Click the sparkle icon to open Automations.
- Locate the automation you want to troubleshoot.
- Open the automation’s three-dot menu and choose Logs.
Review the recorded attempts and error details. Compare the affected card, action, and time with the result you expected. For a multi-action rule, check which actions succeeded as well as which failed.
Diagnostics Tab (Board-Level View)
Open the board’s Diagnostics tab to review board-wide activity. Board Health summarizes the last 30 days with Created Cards, Active Cards, Automation Count, Automation Warnings, and Recent Board Changes.
Select Automation Warnings to focus on issues. The automation table includes Automation Name, Trigger, Automation Type, Run Count, Errors, and Last Run. Compare these details with the rule and event you are investigating.
Where a warning provides affected-card details, open the relevant card link and review its error message and history.
Automation History (Per Card)
To review automation history for a specific card:
- Open the card’s three-dot menu and choose Automations.
- In APTLY AUTOMATIONS, find the rule in the Title column.
- Check Fired for the recorded run time and look for error indicators. Compare the history with the actual result on the card.
Each row has a three-dot menu. Review its labels before using a control: where retry, skip, logs, or editing options are offered, they serve different purposes. Do not retry or reset a rule until you have reviewed earlier results and corrected the cause.
This built-in card history is separate from adding an Automation Log view to a card layout. If you need layout-specific setup instructions, ask Aptly support. You can also use the automation-level Logs route above.
Common Reasons an Automation Did Not Fire
No Valid Email or SMS Recipients Found
This error can affect email and SMS actions.
What it means:
At the time the automation met its conditions, no valid contact was available to receive the message.
This can happen when:
- The contact was not yet added to the card
- The contact type did not match what the automation is configured to send to
How to fix it:
- Edit the automation to confirm the correct contact types are selected
- Ensure the contact is added to the card before the automation conditions are met
- Review earlier deliveries and use the controlled retry checklist below after fixing the issue
Inbox Not Available or Not Assigned
What it means:
The automation attempted to send a message, but the inbox was unavailable.
This can occur when:
- The inbox was disconnected
- The inbox was not assigned
- The automation is set to send from the assignee’s default inbox, but the assignee does not have access
How to fix it:
- Reconnect or reassign the inbox
- If using the assignee’s default inbox, verify the assignee’s settings under Settings → My Profile → Default Inbox
- Confirm the user has access to that inbox
SMS Sending Setup Is Incomplete
Check the sending phone line, recipient number, message template, and the error returned. If the error points to registration or campaign setup, review the applicable requirements before retrying.
For application messaging to US numbers using a local 10-digit long-code number, A2P 10DLC registration applies. Confirm the approved phone number is associated with the correct campaign. Toll-free and short-code numbers use different requirements; A2P 10DLC is not a blanket requirement for every SMS number. See Twilio’s A2P 10DLC guidance or contact Aptly support for your sending setup.
Deleted Communication Template
What it means:
The automation references an email or SMS template that no longer exists.
How to fix it:
- Edit the automation
- Select an existing communication template
- Save with the intended Status, test the corrected setup, and review earlier results before a deliberate retry
Why an Automation Fired Multiple Times
If an automation appears to be firing more than expected, the trigger type matters.
Custom Condition Automations
A Custom Condition automation can run again when the card’s conditions and timing qualify. If conditions reset or are met again, another run may be expected. A condition remaining true does not, by itself, define the repeat schedule.
How to resolve:
- Review the stage and field criteria, When, and the office-hours option.
- Check whether this or another rule changes a field used in the conditions.
- Narrow the conditions or remove overlapping logic to prevent unintended repeats.
Stage Change Automations
An On Stage Change automation runs once for a card in the selected stage. Leaving and re-entering that stage does not make the same automation run again. The action still follows When and the queue.
If the workflow should repeat, review Understanding Automation Triggers: Stage Change vs. Custom Condition rather than repeatedly moving the card. An intentional reset or retry is a separate operation: review prior effects first and ask Aptly support for the appropriate procedure if the available control is unclear.
Re-Triggering Automations After Fixing Errors
Do not assume correcting an error will automatically retry the failed action. Plan a deliberate retry:
- Read the logs and inspect the result. Confirm whether any message, task, or update already succeeded. In a multi-action rule, other actions can run even when one fails.
- Correct the cause. Check contacts, inbox access, templates, fields, conditions, and timing as relevant.
- Test the corrected setup. Use a dedicated sample card and reviewed test destinations. Follow Using Test Mode for Automations; do not assume all external effects are isolated.
- Retry only what is needed. Use the available retry control only after checking for duplicate effects. If a reset is required or the control’s scope is unclear, ask Aptly support before changing stages or conditions.
- Verify the outcome. Check the card, destination, and logs after the retry. Do not repeat it simply because the result is not instant.
Quick Troubleshooting Checklist
- Confirm the intended Status, trigger, conditions, When, and office-hours setting.
- Review Logs, the card, and available Diagnostics.
- Check contacts, inbox access, templates, and any required SMS setup.
- Check for earlier successful actions or overlapping rules.
- Test corrections, retry deliberately, and verify the result.
If issues persist after following these steps, reviewing automation logs alongside the affected card history is the fastest way to identify the root cause.
Support
Contact help@getaptly.com with the automation title, relevant card link, event time, expected result, and error text. If you include screenshots, remove personal information and credentials first.