flowable/flowable-engine · error · FlowableObjectNotFoundException

No case definition found for key '${caseDefinitionKey}'

Error message

No case definition found for key '${caseDefinitionKey}'

What it means

FlowableObjectNotFoundException thrown by getLatestCaseDefinitionByKey when no case definition with the given key exists (querying without tenantId, or with NO_TENANT_ID). The command resolving the latest case definition for a start-event subscription cannot find any deployed definition for that key.

Source

Thrown at modules/flowable-cmmn-engine/src/main/java/org/flowable/cmmn/engine/impl/cmd/AbstractCaseStartEventSubscriptionCmd.java:76

    protected void checkEventModelCorrelationParameter(EventModel eventModel, String correlationParameterName) {
        Collection<EventPayload> correlationParameters = eventModel.getCorrelationParameters();
        for (EventPayload correlationParameter : correlationParameters) {
            if (correlationParameter.getName().equals(correlationParameterName)) {
                return;
            }
        }
        throw new FlowableIllegalArgumentException("There is no correlation parameter with name '" + correlationParameterName + "' defined in event model "
            + "with key '" + eventModel.getKey() + "'. You can only subscribe for an event with a combination of valid correlation parameters.");
    }

    protected CaseDefinition getLatestCaseDefinitionByKey(String caseDefinitionKey, String tenantId, CommandContext commandContext) {
        CaseDefinitionEntityManager caseDefinitionEntityManager = CommandContextUtil.getCaseDefinitionEntityManager(commandContext);
        CaseDefinition caseDefinition = null;
        if (caseDefinitionKey != null && (tenantId == null || CmmnEngineConfiguration.NO_TENANT_ID.equals(tenantId))) {
            caseDefinition = caseDefinitionEntityManager.findLatestCaseDefinitionByKey(caseDefinitionKey);

            if (caseDefinition == null) {
                throw new FlowableObjectNotFoundException("No case definition found for key '" + caseDefinitionKey + "'", CaseDefinition.class);
            }

        } else if (caseDefinitionKey != null && tenantId != null && !CmmnEngineConfiguration.NO_TENANT_ID.equals(tenantId)) {

            caseDefinition = caseDefinitionEntityManager.findLatestCaseDefinitionByKeyAndTenantId(caseDefinitionKey, tenantId);

            if (caseDefinition == null) {
                CmmnEngineConfiguration caseEngineConfiguration = CommandContextUtil.getCmmnEngineConfiguration(commandContext);
                if (caseEngineConfiguration.isFallbackToDefaultTenant()) {
                    String defaultTenant = caseEngineConfiguration.getDefaultTenantProvider().getDefaultTenant(tenantId, ScopeTypes.BPMN, caseDefinitionKey);
                    if (StringUtils.isNotEmpty(defaultTenant)) {
                        caseDefinition = caseDefinitionEntityManager.findLatestCaseDefinitionByKeyAndTenantId(caseDefinitionKey, defaultTenant);
                        
                    } else {
                        caseDefinition = caseDefinitionEntityManager.findLatestCaseDefinitionByKey(caseDefinitionKey);
                    }
                    
                    if (caseDefinition == null) {

View on GitHub (pinned to d6d39ce1c6)

Solutions

1. Verify the case definition key via the repository service case definition query and correct the key used.
2. Deploy the CMMN model containing the case definition before creating the subscription.
3. Check tenant handling: if multi-tenant, pass the correct tenantId so the tenant-aware lookup path is used.

Example fix

// before
runtimeService.createCaseInstanceBuilder().caseDefinitionKey("orderCase").start(); // key is actually 'order-case'
// after
runtimeService.createCaseInstanceBuilder().caseDefinitionKey("order-case").start();

boolean exists = cmmnRepositoryService.createCaseDefinitionQuery()
    .caseDefinitionKey(key).count() > 0;
if (!exists) throw new IllegalStateException("deploy case definition " + key + " first");

try { builder.caseDefinitionKey(key).start(); }
catch (FlowableObjectNotFoundException e) { if (e.getObjectClass() == CaseDefinition.class) { deployIfMissing(key); } }

When it happens

Trigger: getLatestCaseDefinitionByKey(caseDefinitionKey, null|NO_TENANT_ID, ctx) when caseDefinitionEntityManager.findLatestCaseDefinitionByKey(key) returns null — i.e., the case definition was never deployed or its key differs.

Common situations: Typo in the case definition key referenced in the CMMN plan model or client code; deployment never happened or was deleted; case definition deployed under a different key than the event registry start-event mapping expects.

Understand the failure class

Background: Record Not Found Errors: "not found", RecordNotFound, and "was not found" — what they mean and how to fix them — this error's family across 28 libraries.

Related errors

• No deployed case definition found for key '${caseDefinitionK
• No case definition found for key <caseDefinitionKey>
• DMN decision with key ${externalRef} was not executed. For $
• No event model found for event key ${key} for ${planItemInst
• No case definition found for key '${caseDefinitionKey}'. Fal

AI-assisted analysis of flowable/flowable-engine@d6d39ce1c6 (2026-09-11). Data as JSON: /api/errors/068ebb41d3211d5f. Report an issue: GitHub.