How Do I Pause or Resume a Workflow?

About

Pausing a workflow temporarily stops new contacts from entering and prevents new triggers from firing, while allowing contacts already in the workflow to complete their remaining steps on schedule. This feature is essential when you need to take a workflow offline during holidays, edit a workflow safely without affecting active contacts, or diagnose issues with a workflow producing unwanted results. Unlike archiving (which permanently retires a workflow), pausing is designed for temporary breaks—you can resume the workflow at any time and it will pick up exactly where it left off for new trigger events.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Navigate to the workflows list

   Open the Automations section in Goliath and locate the workflow you want to pause. The workflows list displays all active, paused, and archived workflows with their current status.

2. Pause the workflow

   Click the action menu (three dots) on the workflow row and select Pause Workflow. The workflow status will immediately change to paused, blocking any new contacts from entering and stopping new triggers from firing.

3. Resume the workflow (when ready)

   When you’re ready to reactivate the workflow, click the action menu again and select Resume Workflow. The workflow returns to active status and begins processing new trigger events using the current workflow definition.

4. Pause or resume multiple workflows at once (optional)

   To pause several workflows simultaneously, select the checkbox next to each workflow you want to pause, then use the bulk action bar that appears at the top of the list. Click Pause or Resume to apply the action to all selected workflows—useful for pausing all marketing workflows during a focused lead-qualification sprint.

Pro Tips

• Safe editing workflow: Pause the workflow, make your edits, test the changes, then resume—this ensures no contacts run through a half-edited workflow while you’re working.
• In-flight contacts continue unchanged: Contacts already mid-workflow will complete their remaining steps using the version of the workflow they started with. Changes you make while paused apply only to future runs.
• Holiday pauses: Use pausing to temporarily stop daily drip campaigns on holidays or during company-wide breaks without losing your workflow configuration or historical data.
• Archive vs. pause: If a workflow is retired permanently, archive it instead of pausing—archiving removes it from active lists while preserving history.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What happens to contacts already in the workflow when I pause it?

Contacts currently mid-workflow continue through their remaining steps on their original schedule. Pausing only prevents NEW contacts from entering and stops NEW triggers from firing—it does not interrupt or cancel in-flight contacts.

Q: Does pausing a workflow affect its stats or run history?

No. All historical data, run counts, and performance metrics are preserved when you pause a workflow. Pausing only blocks new runs; it does not erase or modify past activity.

Q: Can I edit a workflow while it’s running, or do I need to pause it first?

You can edit a running workflow, but the “pause → edit → test → resume” approach is safer for non-trivial changes. Contacts already in the workflow will continue on the old version’s steps, while new entrants will use the updated definition once you resume.

Q: If I edit a paused workflow, what happens when I resume it?

Changes you make while paused apply to future runs. Contacts already mid-workflow continue with the version they started with—they do not re-execute completed steps, but any remaining steps run from the current workflow definition after you resume.

Q: How is pausing different from archiving a workflow?

Pausing is temporary—the workflow remains in your active list and you can resume it at any time. Archiving is permanent—it stops new runs like pausing does, but also removes the workflow from active lists. Use archiving for retired workflows and pausing for temporary breaks.