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Error Reference

How to Use This Reference

This page lists common error codes and messages you might encounter in Defense Catalyst. Each entry includes:

Can’t find your error? Check the Troubleshooting Hub or Contact Support.

Error Format

Errors in Defense Catalyst typically follow this format:

[ERROR_CODE] Error Message
Additional details about the error

Example:

[TRIGGER_FAILED] Webhook trigger execution failed
Invalid JSON payload received

Trigger Errors

TRIGGER_FAILED

What it means: The trigger couldn’t execute properly

Common causes:

  1. Invalid trigger configuration
  2. Connection expired or invalid
  3. External service unavailable
  4. Invalid data received

Fix steps:

  1. Check trigger configuration
  2. Verify connection is active
  3. Test trigger manually
  4. Check external service status
  5. Review trigger logs for details

Related: Troubleshooting: Workflow Won’t Trigger

WEBHOOK_INVALID_PAYLOAD

What it means: Webhook received data in wrong format

Common causes:

  1. Invalid JSON syntax
  2. Missing required fields
  3. Wrong Content-Type header
  4. Malformed data

Fix steps:

  1. Check webhook payload format
  2. Verify JSON is valid
  3. Ensure Content-Type is application/json
  4. Test with valid sample data
  5. Check source system configuration

Related: Webhook Integration

WEBHOOK_SIGNATURE_INVALID

What it means: Webhook signature verification failed

Common causes:

  1. Wrong webhook secret
  2. Signature algorithm mismatch
  3. Payload modified in transit
  4. Encoding issues

Fix steps:

  1. Verify webhook secret is correct
  2. Check signature algorithm matches
  3. Ensure payload isn’t modified
  4. Review source system documentation
  5. Test with known good signature

Related: Troubleshooting: Webhook Signature Errors

SCHEDULE_INVALID_CRON

What it means: Cron expression is invalid

Common causes:

  1. Syntax error in cron expression
  2. Missing parts (needs 5 parts)
  3. Invalid values in ranges
  4. Unsupported cron features

Fix steps:

  1. Validate cron expression at crontab.guru
  2. Ensure 5 parts: minute hour day month weekday
  3. Check ranges are valid (0-59 for minutes, etc.)
  4. Use standard cron syntax
  5. Test with simple expression first

Related: Schedule Integration

Action Errors

ACTION_FAILED

What it means: An action step couldn’t complete

Common causes:

  1. Invalid action configuration
  2. Missing required fields
  3. Connection expired
  4. External service error
  5. Invalid input data

Fix steps:

  1. Check action configuration
  2. Verify all required fields have values
  3. Test connection
  4. Review input data
  5. Check external service status
  6. Review action logs for details

Related: Troubleshooting: Run Failed

ACTION_TIMEOUT

What it means: Action took too long to complete

Common causes:

  1. External service is slow
  2. Large data payload
  3. Network issues
  4. Service overload

Fix steps:

  1. Check external service status
  2. Reduce data size if possible
  3. Increase timeout setting (if available)
  4. Try during off-peak hours
  5. Optimize request
  6. Contact service provider

Related: Troubleshooting: Timeouts

Connection Errors

CONNECTION_INVALID

What it means: Connection credentials are invalid or expired

Common causes:

  1. OAuth token expired
  2. API key revoked
  3. Password changed
  4. Permissions revoked
  5. Account suspended

Fix steps:

  1. Go to Connections page
  2. Find the connection
  3. Click “Reconnect”
  4. Re-authorize with service
  5. Verify credentials are current
  6. Check account status

Related: Troubleshooting: Connection Problems

CONNECTION_UNAUTHORIZED

What it means: Authentication failed

Common causes:

  1. Wrong username/password
  2. Invalid API key
  3. Token expired
  4. Insufficient permissions

Fix steps:

  1. Verify credentials are correct
  2. Generate new API key if needed
  3. Reconnect with correct credentials
  4. Check required permissions
  5. Verify account is active

Related: Core Concepts: Connections

CONNECTION_FORBIDDEN

What it means: Access denied despite valid authentication

Common causes:

  1. Insufficient permissions
  2. Resource-level restrictions
  3. Account type limitations
  4. IP restrictions

Fix steps:

  1. Check required permissions for action
  2. Verify account has access to resource
  3. Request additional permissions
  4. Check IP whitelist settings
  5. Upgrade account if needed

Related: Security & Privacy

Rate Limit Errors

RATE_LIMIT_EXCEEDED

What it means: Too many requests to external service

Common causes:

  1. Flow runs too frequently
  2. Too many API calls per run
  3. Burst of traffic
  4. Shared rate limit exhausted

Fix steps:

  1. Reduce flow execution frequency
  2. Add delays between requests
  3. Implement exponential backoff
  4. Batch operations
  5. Upgrade service plan
  6. Wait for rate limit reset

Related: Troubleshooting: Rate Limits

QUOTA_EXCEEDED

What it means: Usage quota limit reached

Common causes:

  1. Monthly/daily limit reached
  2. Credit balance depleted
  3. Plan limits exceeded

Fix steps:

  1. Check usage dashboard
  2. Upgrade plan if needed
  3. Add credits to account
  4. Wait for quota reset
  5. Optimize usage

Related: Limits & Reliability

Data Errors

INVALID_INPUT

What it means: Input data format is invalid

Common causes:

  1. Wrong data type
  2. Missing required fields
  3. Invalid JSON
  4. Out of range values
  5. Malformed data

Fix steps:

  1. Check input data format
  2. Verify required fields present
  3. Validate JSON syntax
  4. Check data types match expectations
  5. Use data transformation if needed
  6. Add validation step

Related: Troubleshooting: Data Mapping

DATA_MAPPING_ERROR

What it means: Couldn’t map data from previous step

Common causes:

  1. Previous step failed
  2. Wrong data path
  3. Data structure mismatch
  4. Null/undefined values

Fix steps:

  1. Verify previous step succeeded
  2. Check data path is correct
  3. Use data picker to select fields
  4. Add default values
  5. Use conditions to handle missing data

Related: Core Concepts: Data Mapping

JSON_PARSE_ERROR

What it means: Couldn’t parse JSON data

Common causes:

  1. Invalid JSON syntax
  2. Unescaped special characters
  3. Trailing commas
  4. Single quotes instead of double

Fix steps:

  1. Validate JSON at jsonlint.com
  2. Check for syntax errors
  3. Escape special characters
  4. Use double quotes for strings
  5. Remove trailing commas

Related: Data Mapping

Network Errors

NETWORK_ERROR

What it means: Network connectivity issue

Common causes:

  1. Internet connection lost
  2. DNS resolution failed
  3. Firewall blocking request
  4. Service unavailable

Fix steps:

  1. Check internet connectivity
  2. Verify service is accessible
  3. Check firewall rules
  4. Try again later
  5. Contact network admin if persistent

Related: Troubleshooting Hub

DNS_RESOLUTION_FAILED

What it means: Couldn’t resolve domain name

Common causes:

  1. Invalid domain name
  2. DNS server issues
  3. Domain doesn’t exist
  4. Network configuration

Fix steps:

  1. Verify domain name is correct
  2. Check domain exists
  3. Try different DNS server
  4. Check network settings

SSL_CERTIFICATE_ERROR

What it means: SSL/TLS certificate validation failed

Common causes:

  1. Expired certificate
  2. Self-signed certificate
  3. Certificate mismatch
  4. Untrusted CA

Fix steps:

  1. Check certificate is valid
  2. Verify domain matches certificate
  3. Update certificate if expired
  4. Use trusted certificate authority

Related: Security & Privacy

Permission Errors

PERMISSION_DENIED

What it means: Insufficient permissions for operation

Common causes:

  1. Missing OAuth scopes
  2. Account role limitations
  3. Resource-level restrictions
  4. Feature not available in plan

Fix steps:

  1. Check required permissions
  2. Reconnect with broader scopes
  3. Request access from admin
  4. Verify account type
  5. Upgrade plan if needed

Related: Troubleshooting: Connection Problems

INSUFFICIENT_SCOPE

What it means: OAuth token missing required scopes

Common causes:

  1. Connected with limited permissions
  2. Scopes changed after connection
  3. Action requires additional scope

Fix steps:

  1. Go to Connections
  2. Reconnect integration
  3. Grant all requested permissions
  4. Verify scopes in OAuth flow

Related: Core Concepts: Connections

Validation Errors

VALIDATION_FAILED

What it means: Data failed validation rules

Common causes:

  1. Required field missing
  2. Invalid format (email, phone, etc.)
  3. Value out of range
  4. Duplicate value

Fix steps:

  1. Check validation error details
  2. Provide all required fields
  3. Verify data format
  4. Check value constraints
  5. Fix invalid data

Related: Data Mapping

REQUIRED_FIELD_MISSING

What it means: Required field has no value

Common causes:

  1. Field not mapped
  2. Previous step returned null
  3. Data path incorrect

Fix steps:

  1. Map data to required field
  2. Add default value
  3. Check previous step output
  4. Verify data path

Related: Troubleshooting: Data Mapping

Service-Specific Errors

GOOGLE_SHEETS_ERROR

What it means: Google Sheets API error

Common causes:

  1. Spreadsheet not found
  2. Worksheet doesn’t exist
  3. Permission denied
  4. Invalid range

Fix steps:

  1. Verify spreadsheet exists
  2. Check worksheet name
  3. Verify edit access
  4. Check range is valid
  5. Reconnect Google Sheets

Related: Google Sheets Integration

SLACK_API_ERROR

What it means: Slack API returned error

Common causes:

  1. Invalid channel
  2. Bot not in channel
  3. Permission denied
  4. Rate limit exceeded

Fix steps:

  1. Verify channel exists
  2. Invite bot to channel
  3. Check bot permissions
  4. Reduce message frequency

Related: Slack Integration

OPENAI_API_ERROR

What it means: OpenAI API error

Common causes:

  1. Invalid API key
  2. Insufficient quota
  3. Rate limit exceeded
  4. Context length exceeded
  5. Content policy violation

Fix steps:

  1. Verify API key
  2. Check OpenAI billing
  3. Reduce request frequency
  4. Shorten prompt
  5. Review content policy

Related: OpenAI Integration

GITHUB_API_ERROR

What it means: GitHub API error

Common causes:

  1. Repository not found
  2. Resource not accessible
  3. Validation failed
  4. Rate limit exceeded

Fix steps:

  1. Verify repository name
  2. Check permissions
  3. Validate input data
  4. Reduce API calls

Related: GitHub Integration

Flow Execution Errors

FLOW_EXECUTION_FAILED

What it means: Flow couldn’t complete execution

Common causes:

  1. Step failed
  2. Timeout exceeded
  3. Resource limit reached
  4. System error

Fix steps:

  1. Check run details
  2. Identify failed step
  3. Fix step configuration
  4. Retry execution

Related: Runs & Debugging

FLOW_DISABLED

What it means: Attempted to run disabled flow

Common causes:

  1. Flow manually disabled
  2. Auto-disabled after errors
  3. Plan limit reached

Fix steps:

  1. Enable flow
  2. Check error history
  3. Fix underlying issues
  4. Verify plan limits

Related: Troubleshooting: Workflow Won’t Trigger

FLOW_NOT_PUBLISHED

What it means: Flow is in draft mode

Common causes:

  1. Flow never published
  2. Unpublished after edit
  3. Reverted to draft

Fix steps:

  1. Open flow editor
  2. Click “Publish”
  3. Verify flow status

Related: Getting Started

System Errors

INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR

What it means: Unexpected system error

Common causes:

  1. System bug
  2. Resource exhaustion
  3. Database error
  4. Service disruption

Fix steps:

  1. Retry operation
  2. Check system status
  3. Wait a few minutes
  4. Contact support if persistent

Related: Contact Support

SERVICE_UNAVAILABLE

What it means: Service temporarily unavailable

Common causes:

  1. Maintenance window
  2. System overload
  3. Deployment in progress

Fix steps:

  1. Wait a few minutes
  2. Check status page
  3. Retry operation
  4. Contact support if extended

Related: Limits & Reliability

Getting Help

Error Not Listed?

  1. Check Troubleshooting Hub for symptom-based help
  2. Search FAQ for common questions
  3. Review integration-specific documentation
  4. Contact Support with error details

When Contacting Support

Include:

Template:

Error: [ERROR_CODE] Error Message
Workspace: ws_xxxxx
Flow: flow_xxxxx
Run: run_xxxxx
Timestamp: 2026-01-18 14:30:00 UTC

Description:
[What you were trying to do]

Steps to Reproduce:
1. [Step 1]
2. [Step 2]
3. [Error occurs]

Expected: [What should happen]
Actual: [What actually happened]