Common mistakes — Rules

1. Rule fires on every update

You set the trigger to record.updated without conditions. Now the rule fires every time anyone touches the record, even renaming a typo.

Use record.status_changed (with the field set) for status flows, or add a condition to narrow record.updated.

2. Two rules for the same event with no order

When two rules listen to the same trigger, the platform picks one based on sort order. If you forget to order them, behaviour can change unpredictably as new rules are added.

Drag rules in the list to set order explicitly.

3. Pointing at a draft message

A rule references a message that's still in draft. The rule fires but the send fails — drafts can't deliver.

Publish the message before referencing it (or you'll see a checklist warning until you do).

4. Wrong recipient field

You pick Field on the record but point at staff_id (a foreign key) instead of staff.email. The platform tries to look up an email and fails silently.

When you pick Field on the record, the picker shows email-shaped fields first. Stick to those.

5. Disabled rule looks the same as missing

A rule with Enabled = no still appears in the list (greyed out). Easy to miss when troubleshooting "why isn't my email sending?".

Always check the Enabled toggle first.

6. Conditions on a field that doesn't exist anymore

You renamed a field on the table. Old rules referencing the old name won't match anything — silently — so they never fire.

The Checklist tab catches this and tells you which rules reference missing fields.

7. Multi-channel rules, one channel broken

A rule has Email + In-app + PDF ticked. The email server is misconfigured. Email fails, but the in-app and PDF deliver — so users get partial notification and you don't notice.

Check Logs after publishing to confirm all channels are firing.

When in doubt

Open the Checklist tab in this drawer.