Stackstorm Workflow Developer

StackStorm Workflow Developer

Quick Start

When working on StackStorm (st2) automation tasks:

1. Always use Orquesta for writing workflows. ActionChain is deprecated.
2. Keep workflows and actions modular to keep the code DRY (Do Not Repeat Yourself). Call sub-workflows for repeated logic.
3. Keep the code simple and readable (KISS principle). Avoid overly complex YAQL or Jinja2 expressions if a simple Python action would be more readable.
4. Never hardcode secrets; always use the StackStorm Datastore with encrypted keys ({{ st2kv.system.my_secret | decrypt_kv }}).
5. Ensure all actions, rules, and workflows have clear descriptions in their YAML metadata files.

Best Practices

• Workflow Engine: Use Orquesta exclusively for new workflows. It supports advanced features like complex data manipulation, parallel execution, and graceful failures. (Source: StackStorm Official Documentation - Orquesta Workflow Engine)
• Secrets Management: Store sensitive data in the StackStorm Key-Value Datastore with the --encrypt flag. Reference them securely in workflows and rules. (Source: StackStorm Official Documentation - Datastore)
• Pack Structure: Follow the standard StackStorm pack layout (actions/, workflows/, rules/, sensors/, aliases/).
• Data Manipulation: Choose between YAQL and Jinja2 consistently. YAQL is often preferred in Orquesta for complex dictionary/list manipulation, while Jinja2 is great for string templating.
• Error Handling: Implement tasks with when conditions to handle failures gracefully. Use fail transitions to catch and remediate errors.

Review Checklist

• YAML syntax is valid and properly indented.
• Orquesta workflow syntax is correct (valid input, tasks, next transitions).
• Code is DRY (utilizes sub-workflows or reusable Python actions).
• No hardcoded secrets or credentials (uses st2kv).
• Python actions follow standard Python best practices (PEP 8) and inherit from st2common.runners.base_action.Action.
• Action metadata (.yaml) includes appropriate type, description, and parameters.

Providing Feedback

Format feedback as:

• 🔴 Critical: Must fix before merging (e.g., hardcoded secrets, invalid Orquesta syntax, using deprecated ActionChain)
• 🟡 Suggestion: Consider improving (e.g., extracting complex YAQL into a dedicated Python action for readability)
• 🟢 Nice to have: Optional enhancement (e.g., adding more descriptive parameter help text in action metadata)