Triggers

A trigger is the event that starts an Automation

. Every automation has exactly one, and it's the first thing you set when you build one. This guide covers all six triggers, how to filter them with conditions, and how scheduled automations that move their own date are kept to one run a day. For the actions that follow, see Automation Steps.

Automations are created under Settings → Operations → Automations. You'll need to be a System admin.

To set a trigger, open the automation editor and, under When to trigger, complete the Whenever… statement.

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1. The six triggers

Record Added

Runs when a new Record

is created. Choose the Collection

Collection

A container for records in Kinabase, similar to a table in a spreadsheet or database, used to organise one type of data such as Projects or Contacts.

it applies to, or leave it applying to any collection.

Use it to: create a welcome task when a new client is added, or notify a team when a support case arrives.

Record Updated

Runs when a record is edited. You can narrow it to a Specific Field so it only fires when that field changes.

Use it to: email the account owner whenever a deal's Value field changes, or flag a record when its Status is edited.

Manual

Runs when a user selects the automation from the Actions button at the top of a record's Details tab, from Actions in its Info panel, or from the record's right-click menu - so it fires only when someone chooses to run it. You can set the Action Appearance (its menu name and icon) and, under Require Confirmation, whether users see a preview before it runs. Automations that open a form are tagged Form in Actions.

Use it to: let staff run an on-demand action such as "Generate quote PDF" or "Copy record link", exactly when they need it.

Scheduled

Runs relative to a date on each record. In Whenever..., select the collection and becomes due, then set Due Date to a date field (or a formula based on one). The formula can add or subtract a Duration or Cadence field, so follow-up work follows each record's own interval. See Computed fields.

Use it to: email a customer three days before their Renewal Date, create a follow-up task on a record's Review Date, or schedule the next inspection from each record's cadence.

Kinabase has no cron-style schedule. The Scheduled trigger is always relative to a date field on each individual record, so different records run at different times.

If the automation's own steps move that date on, Kinabase keeps it to one run a day. See When a step writes the due date.

Stage Change

Runs when a record moves between Workflow

stages. The collection must have a workflow. Set From and To stages (either can be Any Stage) to target a specific transition.

Use it to: generate an invoice when a job reaches Complete, or notify a reviewer when a record enters Needs Review. See Workflows.

Billing Health

Runs when a subscription's billing health changes - for example to Suspended, Needs review, or Failed.

Use it to: raise an internal task when a customer's payment fails.

Billing Health is a newer, limited trigger available only when subscription billing is enabled for your organisation. If you can't see it, contact our support team.

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2. Narrow a trigger with conditions

A trigger fires on every matching event. Conditions let you decide whether the automation actually runs for a given record - so a Record Updated trigger, for instance, only acts on high-priority records.

1. Add a condition

Under the trigger, use If a field value is… to start a condition, then pick a field, an operator, and a value - for example Priority is High.

2. Combine conditions

Add further conditions with And / Or to build precise rules, such as Priority is High and Company is Acme.

Conditions can't depend on who is signed in, because an automation may run without a logged-in user (for example, on a schedule or a bulk import).

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3. Branching within an automation

Beyond trigger conditions, the steps of an automation can branch. Using If, Otherwise if, Otherwise and End, you can run different steps depending on a record's values - for example, send one email if an order is over £1,000 and a different one otherwise. You build these branches in the What to do section alongside your steps; see Automation Steps.

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4. When a step writes the due date

Some scheduled automations move their own date on each time they run - a monthly invoice, a quarterly review, or a chase that books the next follow-up. When an Update the current record or Create a new record step writes the date the trigger reads, Kinabase makes sure the automation runs at most once a day for each record.

1. Check the step when you save

Kinabase checks the gap between runs while you edit the automation:

• A daily or slower repeat - daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly - saves as normal.
• A gap of less than a day won't save, unless the trigger has extra conditions. The message on the step tells you the shortest gap that will work.
• A gap Kinabase can't measure - because it depends on the record, or the date comes from a computed, lookup or aggregation field - shows a warning, but you can still save. The same applies when the trigger has extra conditions that may stop the next run.

2. What happens when it runs

The current run always completes. If the next run would fall less than a day later, Kinabase books it for a day after this run was due instead. The date stored on the record stays as the step set it.

Dates you change by hand, and bookings made outside the scheduled run, keep the time you set.

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Need more help? Ask your System admin, or contact our support team via Help & Support.