article How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate in Official Support Articles

How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate

Emile_Koslowski — Thu, 06 Nov 2025 06:28:47 GMT

This article explains how to perform task chaining for your Qlik Cloud apps using Qlik Automate. It'll start with a simple app reload example and finish with a complex task chain example.

Content:

1. Reloading Qlik Cloud apps

Create a new automation and follow these steps to reload a Qlik Cloud app:

Go to the Qlik Cloud connector and search for the "Do Reload" block. Drag this block inside the editor and attach it to the Start block.
Click on the newly added block to highlight it and display the block details menu on the right side of the editor. Go to the inputs tab of this block and enter the App Id for the Qlik Cloud app you want to reload.
It is also possible to do a lookup for your app. Click the empty input field for App Id and click "Do Lookup" in the dropdown that appears. This will fetch a list of all the Qlik Cloud apps you have access to, select the app you want to reload.
For now, you can ignore the other input fields. Click the green Run button to execute the automation.

Example automation:

Result in the editor:

The output from the Do Reload block contains information about the reload. The "status" field for example, will indicate whether the reload was successful.

2. Sync vs async reloads

Reloads can either be done synchronously or asynchronously. This is configured by selecting a value for the field "Run Mode" in the inputs tab of the Reloads block.

Async: set the Run Mode to "Start reload and continue". When executed, the block will trigger a reload and output the reload id. The automation will continue immediately. Use the reload id in the block "Get Reload Record" to get the reload's status.

Sync: set the Run Mode to "Wait for reload to complete". When the block is executed, the automation won't continue until the reload is finished. Once the reload is finished the block will output the reload's result and the automation will continue.

When using this run mode, you can set the block to throw an error when the reload fails. To do this, select Yes in the Throw Error On Failed Reload input field. The default setting is No.

3. Basic task chain

Now for a basic task chain, drag an additional "Do Reload" block in the editor and attach it to the automation.

Go to the Inputs tab in the first Reloads block and set the Run Mode to "Wait for reload to complete". This way, the second reload block will only execute once the first reload block is finished.

4. Task chain with a condition

In the previous example, the second reload will always execute once the first reload is finished. Regardless of the result. In some cases, you might only want to start the second reload when the first reload finished successfully.

Set the 'Throw Error On Failed Reload' input field to 'Yes' for both Do Reload blocks to ensure they fail or throw an error if the reload fails.
Search for the "Condition" block and attach it between the 2 reload blocks.
Go inside the inputs tab on the Condition block and set the Input field of the "if" statement. From the dropdown that appears, select "output from Do Reload" and click on the "status" field.
Next, select the condition of the "if" statement and set it to "equals". A new input field will appear. Here you should specify the value you expect to receive in the Reload's status field. In this example, we only want to do the second reload if the first one was successful so we'll set this value to "SUCCEEDED".
Now drag the second Do Reload block to the "Yes" part of the Condition block.
Finally, add a comment to the Condition block so its function is clear without having to open it and look at the actual condition.
The automation should look like this:

A JSON file containing the above automation is attached to this article as basic_task_chain.json. How to import an automation

Bonus: feel free to add functionality to the "No" part of the Condition block. Maybe use the Email connector to send out an email or send a message to a channel in Slack.

5. Task chain with a loop (parallel task chain)

In some cases, you'll want to trigger multiple app reloads to start simultaneously. And wait for all of them to finish before continuing the automation.

Clear your automation or create a new one and drag a "Variable" block in it. This variable will contain a list of app ids for all the apps to reload.
Go to the Inputs tab on the Variable block and click the "Manage variables" button to add new variables. Add a variable of name "AppIds" and type "List". Click Save.
Select the new variable as the value for the Variable input parameter in the Inputs tab.
Click "Add operation" in the variable's input tab and select "Empty AppIds" as the first operation that needs to happen when this block is executed. It's a good practice to empty a variable before using it.
Add a new operation, this time select "Add item to AppIds". Enter the id of one of the apps that needs to reload.
Repeat step 5 above for each app that needs reloading.
Next, we'll need to loop over the list of app ids. Search for the "Loop" block and attach it to the Variable block.
Go to the inputs tab of the Loop block and specify the list variable. (This should have happened automatically)
Search for a "Do Reload" block and add it to the automation inside the loop of the Loop block.
Go to the inputs tab of the Do Reload block and map the App ID field to the Item in the loop. Set the Run Mode to "Start reload and continue".
Now we somehow need to keep track of the ids of all the reloads that were started. To do this, add a new variable block to the automation right after the "Variable - AppIds" block. Again, go to Manage variables and add a new variable with the name "ReloadIds" and type "List". Set this variable as the active variable in the Variable input parameter and add "Empty ReloadIds" as an operation.
Drag another Variable block inside the automation and add it right after the "Do Reload" block in the loop.
Select ReloadIds as the Variable for that block. And add a new operation "Add item to ReloadIds". Click the input field for the Item's value and select the Id that's returned from the "Do Reload" block.
The next block we'll need is the "Wait For Reloads To Complete" block from the Qlik Cloud Services connector. Add this block to the automation after the loop.
Go to this block's inputs tab and map the ReloadIds list variable to the "Reload Ids" input parameter. This input parameter expects a comma-separated list. So after mapping it, click the ReloadIds mapping and select "Add Formula".
Search for the "Implode" formula and select it. This formula will transform the list into a comma-separated string. Click "Save" to add the formula.
Bonus: feel free to add a "Send Email" block from the Email connector or send a message to a channel in Slack. To notify people of the finished reloads.

6. Task chain with a loop and condition

This part continues on the automation that was created in part 5. "Task chain with a loop".

In most use cases, what happens after the parallel reloads will depend on the returned results. To do this, we'll need to filter the results from the "Wait For Reloads To Complete" block.

Search for the "Filter List" block and attach it after the Wait For Reloads To Complete block.
Map the output from the Wait For Reloads To Complete block as input for the List parameter. And set the condition to "If status does not equal SUCCEEDED". Now the Filter List block will output all the unsuccessful reloads.
Next, add a Condition block after the Filter list block. Set the condition to "If Filter List is empty". If this condition is true, (the Yes part) then all reloads were successful. Else (the No part) some reloads failed.
Feel free to fill in both the Yes and No part of the Condition block, depending on your use case.
1. Maybe you want to start a new reload only if all reloads were successful? Then add a new Do Reload block to the Yes part of the condition.
2. Or if you want to alert your team on the result, you can use blocks from the Email, Slack, or Teams connectors to populate both the Yes and No part

A JSON file containing the above automation is attached to this article as parallel_task_chain_with_condition.json How to import an automation

Re: How to: task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

DGSundaram_Qlik — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 06:38:04 GMT

Hi Emil,

I wanna setup reload of an App in two different times a day
1. Run @ 12:10 AM

2. Run @ 10:30 AM

How to setup an Automation for this scenario?

Thanks,

Kalyan

Re: How to: task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Sonja_Bauernfeind — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 10:37:04 GMT

Hello @DGSundaram_Qlik

Do you think this helps you with your question? We have an open Automation Schedule idea (on-roadmap) which I suggest you leave your notes on and vote on.

In addition, I would recommend this article by Marius: Qlik Application Automation: How to use the create and update automation blocks, and change automation schedule

All the best,
Sonja

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

J_Lindberg — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 10:03:47 GMT

@DGSundaram_Qlik You can find an automation similar to the one you are looking for here: https://community.qlik.com/t5/Qlik-Application-Automation/scheduling-an-automation-at-specific-time/m-p/2093446/highlight/true#M2180

Some modifications would be needed, but I think this shows the concept of having an automation rescheduling itself based on a certain condition.

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

MrWendal — Thu, 30 Nov 2023 00:44:15 GMT

I am trying to figure out a way to get the Reload App Block to retry a couple times if it failed using a loop and reload another app in parallel. Is this possible to do this without creating additional automations?

When I try to set the reload to continue it will go back into the loop then fail due to the reload already running. Only way around I can think to get the code to run in a async loop is to create multiple automations to run the loop internally with on automation running them in parallel. But with the 5000 free automation limit we are concerned with costs building up.

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Sonja_Bauernfeind — Wed, 13 Dec 2023 15:33:53 GMT

Hello @MrWendal

I recommend posting this query directly in our Qlik Application Automation forum or otherwise suggest an idea in our ideation portal.

All the best,
Sonja

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

dana — Mon, 19 Aug 2024 09:17:04 GMT

Hi,

I wish chaining reload tasks would be the same manner as in Sense or QlikView.

It will make life much easier..

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Raju_6952 — Mon, 24 Feb 2025 08:55:15 GMT

HI @Emile_Koslowski ,

Just wanted to check how many apps i can reload as a task chain in one single automation..

currently we are using almost 35 app reloads as a task chain.

Regards.

Raju

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate

BuildItStrong — Mon, 18 May 2026 14:24:52 GMT

There can be a number of reasons that an application does not automatically reload when it is scheduled. Network issues, Database offline for maintenance or responding poorly for backup, and many more. There is an ideation entry that requests some way to ask Qlik to automatically retry a scheduled but failed update after some period of time. This ideation requests this feature in the basic app reload scheduling process, and in app automation. If you are interested in supporting this idea, please go to https://ideation.qlik.com/app/#/case/399034 and upvote it.

article How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate in Official Support Articles

How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate

1. Reloading Qlik Cloud apps

2. Sync vs async reloads

3. Basic task chain

4. Task chain with a condition

5. Task chain with a loop (parallel task chain)

6. Task chain with a loop and condition

Related Content

Re: How to: task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to: task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Application Automation

Re: How to use task chaining with Qlik Automate