OpenBMB/ChatDev · error · WorkflowExecutionError

Failed to run workflow: {exc}

Error message

Failed to run workflow: {exc}

What it means

An unexpected exception escaped the synchronous workflow run (not FileNotFoundError and not ValidationError). It is logged as 'Failed to run workflow via sync API' and re-raised as WorkflowExecutionError with the original message.

Source

Thrown at server/routes/execute_sync.py:183

    if not accepts_stream:
        try:
            result = await run_in_threadpool(
                run_workflow,
                request.yaml_file,
                task_prompt=request.task_prompt,
                attachments=request.attachments,
                session_name=request.session_name,
                variables=request.variables,
                log_level=resolved_log_level,
            )
        except FileNotFoundError as exc:
            raise HTTPException(status_code=404, detail=str(exc))
        except ValidationError as exc:
            raise HTTPException(status_code=400, detail=str(exc))
        except Exception as exc:
            logger = get_server_logger()
            logger.log_exception(exc, "Failed to run workflow via sync API")
            raise WorkflowExecutionError(f"Failed to run workflow: {exc}")

        final_message = result.final_message.text_content() if result.final_message else ""
        meta = result.meta_info

        logger = get_server_logger()
        logger.info(
            "Workflow execution completed via sync API",
            log_type=LogType.WORKFLOW,
            session_id=meta.session_name,
            yaml_path=meta.yaml_file,
        )

        return {
            "status": "completed",
            "final_message": final_message,
            "token_usage": meta.token_usage,
            "output_dir": str(meta.output_dir.resolve()),
        }

View on GitHub (pinned to 4fb2db0ea9)

Solutions

1. Read the server log entry 'Failed to run workflow via sync API' for the underlying traceback and address that
2. Reproduce with log_level=DEBUG for fuller output
3. Simplify the workflow to isolate the failing step
4. Update to the latest server version if the traceback points to engine internals

# pre-flight: validate workflow YAML with the /schema/validate endpoint
report = client.schema_validate(open(yaml_file).read())
assert report.get('valid'), report

try:
    result = client.run_workflow_sync(req)
except WorkflowExecutionError as e:
    capture_server_log('Failed to run workflow via sync API')
    if transient(str(e)): retry_with_backoff(req)

When it happens

Trigger: POST /workflow/run where the workflow itself or the sync execution machinery raises: engine bugs, IO failures mid-run, serialization errors building the final message.

Common situations: Bugs in workflow steps, corrupted state in the session store, disk-full conditions while writing artifacts, version mismatches between workflow definition and engine.

Related errors

• Failed to start workflow: {exc}
• YAML root must be a mapping
• Failed to download session
• YAML root must be a mapping
• Design validation failed for '{config_path}': {formatted}

AI-assisted analysis of OpenBMB/ChatDev@4fb2db0ea9 (2026-08-27). Data as JSON: /api/errors/66067d731d7aebac. Report an issue: GitHub.