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url: /statelake/administering-statelake/designer/actions.md
---

# Actions

An **Action** is the culmination of your configuration.

An **Action** is essentially the definition of a work flow to perform a desired task (or list of tasks). You include, within the Action, the appropriate modules to perform the desired task. The **Action** is then assigned a schedule for when it should execute, and you assign **Trading Partners** to it that need to be involved in the process.

The **Action** has reference to all the **Data Definitions** that are going to be used to perform the task. Each of these **Data Definitions**  can have their connections reassigned (run time assignment).

The **Action** uses the list of references to manage the connection and opening of the **Data Definitions** .

The **Action** has a reference to the list of steps to be performed as part of the work flow. These steps could involve other modules like **Reports** and **Maps**, or could be simple internally defined steps such as Shell Execute commands, custom script, or bespoke SQL statements. It is these steps that defines the tasks the **Action** performs.

An **Action** is given a schedule for when it should execute. This may be either manually by an operator running the **Action** when desired, or automatically at scheduled intervals or by monitoring for a file to arrive.

An **Action** could also be published as a web service allowing a third party to trigger the **Action** by consuming the web service. By publishing as a web service it allows **Statelake Actions** to participate in a service oriented architecture, and this loose coupling allows for greater flexibility and stability for future changes.

**Trading Partners** are assigned to the **Actions** that they need to participate in. This could be either by them sending data to be consumed by the **Action**, or the **Action** creating data to be sent to the **Trading Partner**. An example is an **Action** that outputs invoices, by assigning different **Trading Partner**s to the **Action** you can output the invoices in a manner suitable for each **Trading Partner**.

## General Screen

### Fields

| Field Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Action Name | A friendly name for the Action. |

### Buttons

| Button Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Save | Click to **Save** any changes you have made. All changes will be lost if you do not click the **Save** button. |
| Cancel | Click to **Cancel** any changes you have made. |
| Delete | Click to **Delete** this module. You will be asked to confirm your choice. |
| Add Action | Click to select an **Action** Step to add to the Action. |
| Add Data | Click to select a **Data Definition** reference to add to the Action. Options are **DB, File, Web** and JSON. |

::: info
Sometimes you may find that the success or failure message box is hidden behind the **Statelake Designer** window - particularly when moving around applications. If this occurs, use \<Alt>\<Tab> to switch focus back to **Statelake Designer**, and bring the message box back to the forefront.
:::