Triggers

Calling functions directly or by binding them to events in your iii project.

Calling a function directly with worker.trigger or iii trigger are documented in Using iii / Functions. This page covers specifics about Triggers such as registering (binding) Triggers to Functions, gating triggers, and unregistering them.

Register a trigger

If you’re authoring a worker, you’ll want to refer to Creating Workers / Triggers to learn the difference between registering a trigger, and registering a trigger type.

Functions can also run when a trigger is satisfied. A trigger can be any event that happens such as a request to an http endpoint, a cron job, a change in state, or any other trigger that a worker supports. You can also write your own.

You bind triggers to functions via the function_id. The trigger declares its type, its config (defined by each type), and the function to invoke.

Node / TypeScript

import { registerWorker } from "iii-sdk";

const url = process.env.III_URL;
if (!url) throw new Error("III_URL must be set");
const worker = registerWorker(url);

worker.registerTrigger({
  type: "http",
  function_id: "math::add",
  config: { api_path: "/math/add", http_method: "POST" },
});

Python

import os
from iii import register_worker, InitOptions

worker = register_worker(
    os.environ.get("III_URL"),
    InitOptions(worker_name="my-worker"),
)

worker.register_trigger({
    "type": "http",
    "function_id": "math::add",
    "config": {"api_path": "/math/add", "http_method": "POST"},
})

Rust

use iii_sdk::{InitOptions, RegisterTriggerInput, register_worker};
use serde_json::json;

let url = std::env::var("III_URL").expect("III_URL must be set");
let worker = register_worker(&url, InitOptions::default());

worker.register_trigger(RegisterTriggerInput {
    trigger_type: "http".into(),
    function_id: "math::add".into(),
    config: json!({ "api_path": "/math/add", "http_method": "POST" }),
    metadata: None,
})?;

Per-type configuration is documented in each worker’s Worker Docs (e.g. iii-http for the http type).

Handling missing triggers

When the engine cannot register a trigger, most commonly because the trigger type’s worker is not active in the project, it sends a TriggerRegistrationResult with an error body back to the worker that initiated the request and logs it.

For known trigger types (ex. http, subscribe, state, durable:subscriber, stream), the error message will include the install command for the missing worker. If it doesn’t you can find the worker that exposes the needed type at workers.iii.dev

Bind multiple triggers to one function

It’s valid to bind multiple triggers to the same function_id and this can be done across any number of types. Register a second trigger with the same function_id and a different type or config; the function runs unchanged whether the call arrives over HTTP, on a cron schedule, or from a queue message.

Node / TypeScript

// Same handler runs for an HTTP POST and a weekly cron tick.
worker.registerTrigger({
  type: "http",
  function_id: "reports::generate",
  config: { api_path: "/reports/generate", http_method: "POST" },
});

worker.registerTrigger({
  type: "cron",
  function_id: "reports::generate",
  config: { expression: "0 0 9 * * 1" }, // Every Monday at 09:00
});

Python

worker.register_trigger({
    "type": "http",
    "function_id": "reports::generate",
    "config": {"api_path": "/reports/generate", "http_method": "POST"},
})

worker.register_trigger({
    "type": "cron",
    "function_id": "reports::generate",
    "config": {"expression": "0 0 9 * * 1"},  # Every Monday at 09:00
})

Rust

use iii_sdk::RegisterTriggerInput;
use serde_json::json;

worker.register_trigger(RegisterTriggerInput {
    trigger_type: "http".into(),
    function_id: "reports::generate".into(),
    config: json!({ "api_path": "/reports/generate", "http_method": "POST" }),
    metadata: None,
})?;

worker.register_trigger(RegisterTriggerInput {
    trigger_type: "cron".into(),
    function_id: "reports::generate".into(),
    config: json!({ "expression": "0 0 9 * * 1" }), // Every Monday at 09:00
    metadata: None,
})?;

Gate a trigger with a condition

A trigger can carry an optional condition_function_id (set inside the trigger’s config). When the trigger fires, the engine invokes the condition function first with the same payload the handler would receive; the target function_id only runs when the condition returns truthy. The condition is a regular registered function.

Node / TypeScript

worker.registerFunction(
  "orders::is-priority",
  async (payload: { customer_tier: string }) => payload.customer_tier === "gold",
);

worker.registerTrigger({
  type: "http",
  function_id: "orders::expedite",
  config: {
    api_path: "/orders/expedite",
    http_method: "POST",
    condition_function_id: "orders::is-priority",
  },
});

Python

def is_priority(payload: dict) -> bool:
    return payload.get("customer_tier") == "gold"

worker.register_function("orders::is-priority", is_priority)

worker.register_trigger({
    "type": "http",
    "function_id": "orders::expedite",
    "config": {
        "api_path": "/orders/expedite",
        "http_method": "POST",
        "condition_function_id": "orders::is-priority",
    },
})

Rust

use iii_sdk::{RegisterFunction, RegisterTriggerInput};
use schemars::JsonSchema;
use serde::Deserialize;
use serde_json::json;

#[derive(Deserialize, JsonSchema)]
struct Payload { customer_tier: String }

worker.register_function(RegisterFunction::new(
    "orders::is-priority",
    |input: Payload| -> Result<bool, String> {
        Ok(input.customer_tier == "gold")
    },
));

worker.register_trigger(RegisterTriggerInput {
    trigger_type: "http".into(),
    function_id: "orders::expedite".into(),
    config: json!({
        "api_path": "/orders/expedite",
        "http_method": "POST",
        "condition_function_id": "orders::is-priority",
    }),
    metadata: None,
})?;

Unregister a trigger

Trigger registration returns a handle with an unregister() method. Call it to drop the trigger at runtime; when the worker disconnects, all of its triggers are removed automatically.

Node / TypeScript

const trigger = worker.registerTrigger({
  type: "http",
  function_id: "math::add",
  config: { api_path: "/math/add", http_method: "POST" },
});

trigger.unregister();

Python

trigger = worker.register_trigger({
    "type": "http",
    "function_id": "math::add",
    "config": {"api_path": "/math/add", "http_method": "POST"},
})

trigger.unregister()

Rust

use iii_sdk::RegisterTriggerInput;
use serde_json::json;

let trigger = worker.register_trigger(RegisterTriggerInput {
    trigger_type: "http".into(),
    function_id: "math::add".into(),
    config: json!({ "api_path": "/math/add", "http_method": "POST" }),
    metadata: None,
})?;

trigger.unregister();