Declarative Workflows - Actions Reference

This document provides a complete reference for all action types available in declarative workflows.

Overview

Actions are the building blocks of declarative workflows. Each action performs a specific operation, and actions are executed sequentially in the order they appear in the YAML file.

Action Structure

All actions share common properties:

- kind: ActionType      # Required: The type of action
  id: unique_id         # Optional: Unique identifier for referencing
  displayName: Name     # Optional: Human-readable name for logging
  # Action-specific properties...

Note

Documentation for declarative workflows in .NET is coming soon. Please check back for updates.

Variable Management Actions

SetVariable

Sets a variable to a specified value.

- kind: SetVariable
  id: set_greeting
  displayName: Set greeting message
  variable: Local.greeting
  value: Hello World

With an expression:

- kind: SetVariable
  variable: Local.fullName
  value: =Concat(Workflow.Inputs.firstName, " ", Workflow.Inputs.lastName)

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`variable`	Yes	Variable path (e.g., `Local.name`, `Workflow.Outputs.result`)
`value`	Yes	Value to set (literal or expression)

SetMultipleVariables

Sets multiple variables in a single action.

- kind: SetMultipleVariables
  id: initialize_vars
  displayName: Initialize variables
  variables:
    Local.counter: 0
    Local.status: pending
    Local.message: =Concat("Processing order ", Workflow.Inputs.orderId)

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`variables`	Yes	Map of variable paths to values

AppendValue

Appends a value to a list or concatenates to a string.

- kind: AppendValue
  id: add_item
  variable: Local.items
  value: =Workflow.Inputs.newItem

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`variable`	Yes	Variable path to append to
`value`	Yes	Value to append

ResetVariable

Clears a variable's value.

- kind: ResetVariable
  id: clear_counter
  variable: Local.counter

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`variable`	Yes	Variable path to reset

Control Flow Actions

If

Executes actions conditionally based on a condition.

- kind: If
  id: check_age
  displayName: Check user age
  condition: =Workflow.Inputs.age >= 18
  then:
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: "Welcome, adult user!"
  else:
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: "Welcome, young user!"

Nested conditions:

- kind: If
  condition: =Workflow.Inputs.role = "admin"
  then:
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: "Admin access granted"
  else:
    - kind: If
      condition: =Workflow.Inputs.role = "user"
      then:
        - kind: SendActivity
          activity:
            text: "User access granted"
      else:
        - kind: SendActivity
          activity:
            text: "Access denied"

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`condition`	Yes	Expression that evaluates to true/false
`then`	Yes	Actions to execute if condition is true
`else`	No	Actions to execute if condition is false

ConditionGroup

Evaluates multiple conditions like a switch/case statement.

- kind: ConditionGroup
  id: route_by_category
  displayName: Route based on category
  conditions:
    - condition: =Workflow.Inputs.category = "electronics"
      id: electronics_branch
      actions:
        - kind: SetVariable
          variable: Local.department
          value: Electronics Team
    - condition: =Workflow.Inputs.category = "clothing"
      id: clothing_branch
      actions:
        - kind: SetVariable
          variable: Local.department
          value: Clothing Team
    - condition: =Workflow.Inputs.category = "food"
      id: food_branch
      actions:
        - kind: SetVariable
          variable: Local.department
          value: Food Team
  elseActions:
    - kind: SetVariable
      variable: Local.department
      value: General Support

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`conditions`	Yes	List of condition/actions pairs (first match wins)
`elseActions`	No	Actions if no condition matches

Foreach

Iterates over a collection.

- kind: Foreach
  id: process_items
  displayName: Process each item
  source: =Workflow.Inputs.items
  itemName: item
  indexName: index
  actions:
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: =Concat("Processing item ", index, ": ", item)

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`source`	Yes	Expression returning a collection
`itemName`	No	Variable name for current item (default: `item`)
`indexName`	No	Variable name for current index (default: `index`)
`actions`	Yes	Actions to execute for each item

RepeatUntil

Repeats actions until a condition becomes true.

- kind: SetVariable
  variable: Local.counter
  value: 0

- kind: RepeatUntil
  id: count_loop
  displayName: Count to 5
  condition: =Local.counter >= 5
  actions:
    - kind: SetVariable
      variable: Local.counter
      value: =Local.counter + 1
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: =Concat("Counter: ", Local.counter)

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`condition`	Yes	Loop continues until this is true
`actions`	Yes	Actions to repeat

BreakLoop

Exits the current loop immediately.

- kind: Foreach
  source: =Workflow.Inputs.items
  actions:
    - kind: If
      condition: =item = "stop"
      then:
        - kind: BreakLoop
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: =item

ContinueLoop

Skips to the next iteration of the loop.

- kind: Foreach
  source: =Workflow.Inputs.numbers
  actions:
    - kind: If
      condition: =item < 0
      then:
        - kind: ContinueLoop
    - kind: SendActivity
      activity:
        text: =Concat("Positive number: ", item)

GotoAction

Jumps to a specific action by ID.

- kind: SetVariable
  id: start_label
  variable: Local.attempts
  value: =Local.attempts + 1

- kind: SendActivity
  activity:
    text: =Concat("Attempt ", Local.attempts)

- kind: If
  condition: =And(Local.attempts < 3, Not(Local.success))
  then:
    - kind: GotoAction
      actionId: start_label

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`actionId`	Yes	ID of the action to jump to

Output Actions

SendActivity

Sends a message to the user.

- kind: SendActivity
  id: send_welcome
  displayName: Send welcome message
  activity:
    text: "Welcome to our service!"

With an expression:

- kind: SendActivity
  activity:
    text: =Concat("Hello, ", Workflow.Inputs.name, "! How can I help you today?")

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`activity`	Yes	The activity to send
`activity.text`	Yes	Message text (literal or expression)

EmitEvent

Emits a custom event.

- kind: EmitEvent
  id: emit_status
  displayName: Emit status event
  eventType: order_status_changed
  data:
    orderId: =Workflow.Inputs.orderId
    status: =Local.newStatus

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`eventType`	Yes	Type identifier for the event
`data`	No	Event payload data

Agent Invocation Actions

InvokeAzureAgent

Invokes an Azure AI agent.

Basic invocation:

- kind: InvokeAzureAgent
  id: call_assistant
  displayName: Call assistant agent
  agent:
    name: AssistantAgent
  conversationId: =System.ConversationId

With input and output configuration:

- kind: InvokeAzureAgent
  id: call_analyst
  displayName: Call analyst agent
  agent:
    name: AnalystAgent
  conversationId: =System.ConversationId
  input:
    messages: =Local.userMessage
    arguments:
      topic: =Workflow.Inputs.topic
  output:
    responseObject: Local.AnalystResult
    messages: Local.AnalystMessages
    autoSend: true

With external loop (continues until condition is met):

- kind: InvokeAzureAgent
  id: support_agent
  agent:
    name: SupportAgent
  input:
    externalLoop:
      when: =Not(Local.IsResolved)
  output:
    responseObject: Local.SupportResult

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`agent.name`	Yes	Name of the registered agent
`conversationId`	No	Conversation context identifier
`input.messages`	No	Messages to send to the agent
`input.arguments`	No	Additional arguments for the agent
`input.externalLoop.when`	No	Condition to continue agent loop
`output.responseObject`	No	Path to store agent response
`output.messages`	No	Path to store conversation messages
`output.autoSend`	No	Automatically send response to user

Human-in-the-Loop Actions

Question

Asks the user a question and stores the response.

- kind: Question
  id: ask_name
  displayName: Ask for user name
  question:
    text: "What is your name?"
  variable: Local.userName
  default: "Guest"

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`question.text`	Yes	The question to ask
`variable`	Yes	Path to store the response
`default`	No	Default value if no response

Confirmation

Asks the user for a yes/no confirmation.

- kind: Confirmation
  id: confirm_delete
  displayName: Confirm deletion
  question:
    text: "Are you sure you want to delete this item?"
  variable: Local.confirmed

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`question.text`	Yes	The confirmation question
`variable`	Yes	Path to store boolean result

RequestExternalInput

Requests input from an external system or process.

- kind: RequestExternalInput
  id: request_approval
  displayName: Request manager approval
  prompt:
    text: "Please provide approval for this request."
  variable: Local.approvalResult
  default: "pending"

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`prompt.text`	Yes	Description of required input
`variable`	Yes	Path to store the input
`default`	No	Default value

WaitForInput

Pauses the workflow and waits for external input.

- kind: WaitForInput
  id: wait_for_response
  variable: Local.externalResponse

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`variable`	Yes	Path to store the input when received

Workflow Control Actions

EndWorkflow

Terminates the workflow execution.

- kind: EndWorkflow
  id: finish
  displayName: End workflow

EndConversation

Ends the current conversation.

- kind: EndConversation
  id: end_chat
  displayName: End conversation

CreateConversation

Creates a new conversation context.

- kind: CreateConversation
  id: create_new_conv
  displayName: Create new conversation
  conversationId: Local.NewConversationId

Properties:

Property	Required	Description
`conversationId`	Yes	Path to store the new conversation ID

Quick Reference

Action	Category	Description
`SetVariable`	Variable	Set a single variable
`SetMultipleVariables`	Variable	Set multiple variables
`AppendValue`	Variable	Append to list/string
`ResetVariable`	Variable	Clear a variable
`If`	Control Flow	Conditional branching
`ConditionGroup`	Control Flow	Multi-branch switch
`Foreach`	Control Flow	Iterate over collection
`RepeatUntil`	Control Flow	Loop until condition
`BreakLoop`	Control Flow	Exit current loop
`ContinueLoop`	Control Flow	Skip to next iteration
`GotoAction`	Control Flow	Jump to action by ID
`SendActivity`	Output	Send message to user
`EmitEvent`	Output	Emit custom event
`InvokeAzureAgent`	Agent	Call Azure AI agent
`Question`	Human-in-the-Loop	Ask user a question
`Confirmation`	Human-in-the-Loop	Yes/no confirmation
`RequestExternalInput`	Human-in-the-Loop	Request external input
`WaitForInput`	Human-in-the-Loop	Wait for input
`EndWorkflow`	Workflow Control	Terminate workflow
`EndConversation`	Workflow Control	End conversation
`CreateConversation`	Workflow Control	Create new conversation

Next Steps

Expressions and Variables - Learn the expression language
Advanced Patterns - Multi-agent orchestration and complex scenarios

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Last updated on 2026-01-21

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Declarative Workflows - Actions Reference

Overview

Action Structure

Variable Management Actions

SetVariable

SetMultipleVariables

AppendValue

ResetVariable

Control Flow Actions

If

ConditionGroup

Foreach

RepeatUntil

BreakLoop

ContinueLoop

GotoAction

Output Actions

SendActivity

EmitEvent

Agent Invocation Actions

InvokeAzureAgent

Human-in-the-Loop Actions

Question

Confirmation

RequestExternalInput

WaitForInput

Workflow Control Actions

EndWorkflow

EndConversation

CreateConversation

Quick Reference

Next Steps

Feedback

Additional resources