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Workflows do not start

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You are of course aware of the fact that starting with Service Pack 1 the workflows created in SharePoint designer that should launch under the credentials of the system account will no longer start automatically.

You know what the resolution is for this problem: simply do not to use the system account.

You implemented all the steps written here https://support.microsoft.com/kb/947284 ,but the workflow still does not start.

More interesting, if you email-enable a document library and attach a workflow to it, and set the workflow to start on Item creation, this workflow will never start.

This usually happens because the e-mail is saved into the document library using the sharepoint services timer service account credentials. If an e-mail was created by the system account then the workflow will attempt to start using the system account which is no longer permitted.

As you cannot change the credentials for the for the timer service, what should you do?

The answer is pretty simple: install Infrastructure Update https://support.microsoft.com/kb/953749/(and of course if you are at it, you can update the whole farm to the latest patch level (FEB CU) ) and pay close attention to one small line (made bigger here because of it’s importance) written in the notes part of the knowledgebase article:

To prevent the declarative workflows from impersonating the system account, the workflows will now impersonate the user who created the workflow association.

This basically means that you should create a special account not SHAREPOINT\SYSTEM, that is a site collection owner on the site collection where the workflow is hosted, open the workflow in SharePoint Designer while logged on as this new account and simply save the workflow without modifying anything.

It will effectively change the account that associated the workflow, which will allow it to start.

A !

you should also run

stsadm -o setproperty -pn declarativeworkflowautostartonemailenabled -pv true

to enable workflows to start using the impersonation scheme

https://support.microsoft.com/kb/953289/

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Thanks for this article

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Hi , you can either log-on to windows with other users's credentials, or use SHIFT+Right-click on Sharepoint Designer to run-as a different user

  • Anonymous
    January 01, 2003
    Brian , I believe the usual way of deactivating property values is through stsadm -o setproperty -pn PROPERTY -pv ""

  • Anonymous
    November 17, 2009
    Thank you!  This is exactly what I was looking for!

  • Anonymous
    March 28, 2010
    Thanks - this is very helpful. A quick follow on question - when you say open the workflow in sharepoint designer while logged on as the new user... I can't find how to change my log on credentials for sharepoint designer? Any adice appreciated.

  • Anonymous
    April 26, 2010
    Can we presume the command: stsadm -o setproperty -pn declarativeworkflowautostartonemailenabled -pv true Can be reversed by changing the value "-pv false"?

  • Anonymous
    April 28, 2010
    I'm still having this issue.  It's been on a clean install of WSS 3.0 SP2 on a Server 2008 R2 x64.  We also have a a QA environment with WSS 3.0 SP2 on a Server 2003 machine where this issue is not occuring. Any insight would be apprechiated.