Run.cancel()

The .cancel() method cancels a workflow run, stopping execution and cleaning up resources.

This method aborts any running steps and updates the workflow status to 'canceled'. It works for both actively running workflows and suspended/waiting workflows.

Usage example

const run = await workflow.createRun()

await run.cancel()

Parameters

No parameters:

void

This method takes no parameters

Returns

result:

Promise<void>

A promise that resolves once cancellation is requested and, if storage is configured, the status update to canceled has been attempted. It does not wait for running steps to stop. Calling cancel() on a run that already finished leaves its status unchanged, except with the Inngest engine.

How cancellation works

When called, the workflow will:

1. Trigger the abort signal - Uses the standard Web API AbortSignal to notify running steps
2. Prevent subsequent steps - No further steps will be executed

Abort signal behavior

Steps that check the abortSignal parameter can respond to cancellation:

• Steps can listen to the 'abort' event: abortSignal.addEventListener('abort', callback)
• Steps can check if already aborted: if (abortSignal.aborted) { ... }
• Useful for cancelling timeouts, network requests, or long-running operations

Steps must actively check the abort signal to be canceled mid-execution; otherwise, the current step runs to completion and subsequent steps don't execute.

Extended usage examples

Cancelling a workflow on error

const run = await workflow.createRun()

try {
  const result = await run.start({ inputData: { value: 'initial data' } })
} catch (error) {
  await run.cancel()
}

Creating a step that responds to cancellation

const step = createStep({
  id: 'long-running-step',
  execute: async ({ inputData, abortSignal, abort }) => {
    const timeout = new Promise(resolve => {
      const timer = setTimeout(() => resolve('done'), 10000)

      // Clean up if canceled
      abortSignal.addEventListener('abort', () => {
        clearTimeout(timer)
        resolve('canceled')
      })
    })

    const result = await timeout

    // Check if aborted after async operation
    if (abortSignal.aborted) {
      return abort() // Stop execution
    }

    return { result }
  },
})

Related

• Workflows overview
• Workflow.createRun()