Delay
Description
The Delay activity pauses the Automation for a specified duration before allowing execution to continue with the next activity.
Common settings
Use Process Data to bind supported inputs to workflow values or upstream outputs. See Common Activity Features for shared execution, error-handling, and output-persistence settings. Availability depends on the activity.
Design-Time Configuration
Display Text
Specify the name displayed for the activity on the Agent Builder canvas.
Time Span
Specify how long the Automation must pause before execution resumes.
Click the vertical ellipsis to choose one of the following configuration methods.
| Configuration Method | Description |
|---|---|
| Fixed | Specify a constant delay duration using the built-in duration picker. Enter the required Hours, Minutes, and Seconds. |
| Expression | Calculate the delay duration dynamically using a Liquid expression. The expression must return a valid TimeSpan value in the format hh:mm:ss (for example, 00:00:30 or 01:15:00). |
The configured delay specifies how long the Automation remains paused before execution resumes.
Actual resumption may occur slightly later due to normal scheduler and execution overhead. In most automation scenarios, this difference is negligible.
The Delay activity is intended for workflow orchestration and business automation. It is not intended for real-time or deterministic timing scenarios requiring precise sub-second guarantees.
Use Business Time
Specifies whether the delay duration is calculated using Business Time.
When enabled, the delay progresses only during the business hours defined by the Business Calendar of the user who initiated the Automation.
If the initiating user does not have an assigned Business Calendar, the system uses the default Business Calendar, if available.
If no Business Calendar is available, the delay is calculated using continuous calendar time.
Pause On Suspend
Specifies whether the delay timer pauses when the Automation is suspended.
When enabled, the remaining delay duration is preserved when the Automation enters the Suspended state. Once the Automation is resumed, the delay continues from the point at which it was suspended.
When disabled, the delay continues to elapse while the Automation is suspended. If the configured delay expires during the suspension period, the Delay activity completes immediately after the Automation is resumed.
Execution settings
Configure Wait All Incoming when execution paths converge, and On Error for failure handling. Select Inherit where available to use the workflow-level error policy.
Example: Delay for thirty seconds
Use the fixed duration picker with Hours 0, Minutes 0, and Seconds 30. For the equivalent Liquid value, select Expression and enter {{ '00:00:30' }}.
Leave Use Business Time off for elapsed calendar time. Enable Pause On Suspend if suspension must preserve the remaining wait.