Skip to main content

Case

Use the Case step to branch a flow into one of several paths based on a value. When the step runs, AutoFlow evaluates the configured expression and continues along the branch whose label matches the result. It is the right tool whenever a downstream step should only run for a specific discrete value — such as a channel type, a status code, or a document category.

Typical use cases include:

  • Routing by dispatch channel. Branch a notification flow by channel — one path for email, one for SMS, one for push — each path doing its own send step.
  • Handling status codes. After an HTTP request, route 200, 404, and 500 responses to dedicated error handling or success paths.
  • Document category dispatch. Read a document type field and run different posting logic for invoices, credit notes, and orders.

Configure the step​

Open the flow editor, add Case, and fill in the configuration card.

Description​

  • Purpose: Make the branch's intent clear at a glance.
  • When to fill it: Always. The description is shown in the editor and execution history.
  • Tips: Name what is being evaluated, for example, Branch by dispatch channel or Route by response status.

Value​

  • Purpose: The expression whose result determines which branch to follow.
  • When to fill it: Required. Leave this empty and the step will not publish.
  • Tips: Use a SmartField token — for example, {{trigger.dispatchChannel}} or {{httpRequest.statusCode}} — to reference an output of a previous step. Open the SmartField picker with the assist-edit button (…) or the Alt+S shortcut; the picker copies the chosen placeholder to the clipboard.

Branches​

  • Purpose: The list of possible branches (edges) in this step. Each branch has a Value — the string to match against — and a Label — the name shown on the edge in the flow graph.
  • When to fill it: Add at least one branch. Branches can be added, removed, and reordered at any time.
  • Tips: Keep values short and exact. Matching is case-sensitive: Email and email are different values.

Behavior​

When this step runs:

  • AutoFlow resolves SmartField tokens in the Value expression to produce a plain string.
  • The resolved string is published as the step output result.
  • The flow continues along the branch whose Value equals result.
  • If no branch matches, the flow falls through to the step connected after the Case step — no error is raised.

The Case step has no predefined branches. Branches are fully user-defined and can be freely named.

Duplicate branches

If two branches share the same value, AutoFlow always follows the first one. The second branch is unreachable. A warning is shown when you publish a flow with duplicate branch values.

Best practices​

  • Add a fall-through step for unmatched values. Because no match silently falls through, it is easy to miss unexpected values at runtime. Connect a Log or Error step after the Case step to surface unhandled cases.
  • Use Case for value dispatch, not conditions. When you need to evaluate an expression like amount > 1000, use a Decision step instead — Case only supports exact string equality.
  • Label branches with the actual values. A branch labeled email reads better in the flow graph than Branch 1. Use the label to document what value triggers that path.