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This example uses webhooks, which are only available in Prefect Cloud.
When a flow run fails due to a bug in your code, you typically need to:
  1. Fix the bug in a pull request
  2. Merge the PR
  3. Manually retry the failed flow run
This example shows how to automate step 3 by creating a webhook and automation that automatically resumes a failed flow run when a PR containing the flow run URL is merged.

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Prerequisites

  • A Prefect Cloud workspace
  • A GitHub repository with webhook access
  • A failed flow run you want to resume

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Step 1: Create a Prefect webhook

Create a webhook in Prefect Cloud that transforms GitHub PR events into Prefect events. The webhook template extracts the flow run ID from the PR body when present. Navigate to your workspace’s Webhooks page and create a new webhook with this template: 
{
  "event": "github.{{ headers.get('x-github-event', 'unknown') }}.{{ body.action|default('no-action') }}",
  "resource": {
    "prefect.resource.id": "{% set frid = body.pull_request.body|flow_run_id %}{% if frid %}prefect.flow-run.{{ frid }}{% else %}github.pr.{{ body.pull_request.number|default(0) }}{% endif %}",
    "pr.number": "{{ body.pull_request.number|default(0) }}",
    "pr.merged": "{{ body.pull_request.merged|default(false) }}",
    "pr.title": "{{ body.pull_request.title|default('')|truncate(100) }}"
  }
}
This template uses the flow_run_id filter to extract a flow run UUID from any Prefect Cloud URL in the PR body. If no flow run URL is found, it falls back to github.pr.<number>. The pr.merged label enables filtering for merged PRs only. Copy the webhook URL for the next step.

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Step 2: Configure GitHub webhook

In your GitHub repository:
  1. Go to Settings → Webhooks → Add webhook
  2. Set the Payload URL to your Prefect webhook URL
  3. Set Content type to application/json
  4. Under Which events would you like to trigger this webhook?, select Let me select individual events and check Pull requests
  5. Click Add webhook

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Step 3: Create an automation

Create an automation that triggers when a PR is merged and the event contains a flow run ID. Navigate to your workspace’s Automations page and create a new automation: Trigger configuration:
  • Trigger type: Event
  • Event name: github.pull_request.closed
  • Resource: Match prefect.resource.id starting with prefect.flow-run.
  • Resource labels: Match pr.merged equals True
Action configuration:
  • Action type: Change flow run state
  • New state: Scheduled
  • Force: Yes (required to transition from Failed state)
The automation extracts the flow run ID from the event’s prefect.resource.id and changes its state to resume execution.

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Example flow

Here’s a simple flow that reads configuration and can fail based on its contents: 
import json
from pathlib import Path

from prefect import flow


@flow(log_prints=True)
def my_flow():
    config = json.loads(Path("config.json").read_text())

    if error := config.get("error"):
        raise ValueError(f"Flow failed: {error}")

    print("Flow completed successfully!")


if __name__ == "__main__":
    my_flow()

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Using the workflow

When this flow fails:
  1. Create a PR to fix the issue (e.g., fix config.json)
  2. Include the flow run URL in the PR body: 
    This PR fixes the data validation issue.

Fixes: https://app.prefect.cloud/account/.../workspace/.../runs/flow-run/abc123-...
  3. Merge the PR
  4. The automation triggers and resumes the flow run

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How it works

  1. GitHub sends webhook: When a PR is closed, GitHub sends a POST request to your Prefect webhook
  2. Webhook transforms event: The Jinja template extracts the flow run ID from the PR body and creates a Prefect event with prefect.resource.id set to prefect.flow-run.<uuid>
  3. Automation matches: The automation triggers on github.pull_request.closed events where pr.merged is True and the resource ID matches a flow run
  4. State change: The automation changes the flow run state to Scheduled, which resumes execution