Delete Data

Overview

The Delete Data stage removes data that was previously stored using the Save Data stage. You can delete a specific record, an individual key within a record, or all records in a group.

Use this stage to clean up temporary data, remove outdated information, or delete sensitive data after it is no longer needed.

* Example flow demonstrating how Delete Data removes a stored key and how Fetch Data returns the configured default value when the key is no longer available.

Note: The variable names, values, criteria, and configuration used in this example are for demonstration purposes only.

Configuration

Fields Reference

Field	Required	Description	Example
Group name	Yes	The group containing the data to delete. The value must match the group name used when the data was saved.	`UserSessions` `TempCache`
Record name	No	The specific record to delete. Leave this field empty only when you intend to delete all records in the group.	{{sessionId}}
Key	No	The individual key to remove from the selected record. Use this field when you want to delete one value without removing the entire record.	`emailAddress`

Deletion Scope

Fields Provided	What Gets Deleted	Example
Group name only	All records in the group	Delete all test records from `TestData`
Group name + Record name	One specific record in the group	Delete the record identified by {{sessionId}}
Group name + Record name + Key	One key from one specific record	Delete `emailAddress` from a selected customer record
Group name + Key	The matching key from all records in the group	Delete `phoneNumber` from every record in the group

Important: Leaving Record name empty can delete all records in the selected group. Confirm the intended deletion scope before enabling the flow.

Exit Points

Exit	When It Is Used
Pass	The deletion completes successfully. The stage may also continue through Pass when no matching data is found.
Error	The deletion cannot be completed because of a data-store or connection error.

How It Works

When the stage executes, it:

Reads the configured values for Group name, Record name, and Key.
Determines the deletion scope from the fields that were provided.
Deletes the matching data from storage.
Continues through Pass or Error depending on the result.

Key behavior: Delete Data permanently removes the selected data. The stage does not provide an undo option.

Example: Delete a Temporary Record

This example removes a temporary record after the flow no longer needs it.

Step	Stage	Result
1	Save Data	Stores a temporary record using {{processId}}
2	Delete Data	Removes the same record after processing is complete
3	Fetch Data	No matching record is returned

Delete Data configuration:

Group name: TempProcessing
Record name: {{processId}}
Key: Leave empty

Common Use Cases

1. Clean Up Temporary Data

Remove temporary processing data after the flow has completed all stages that depend on it.

Group name: TempProcessing
Record name: {{processId}}

2. Delete a User Session

Remove a stored session after logout or session expiry.

Group name: UserSessions
Record name: {{sessionId}}

3. Clear Test Data

Remove all records from a test group.

Group name: TestData
Record name: Leave empty
Key: Leave empty

Warning: This configuration deletes every record in the group.

4. Remove One Key from a Record

Delete one stored value without removing the complete record.

Group name: CustomerData
Record name: {{customerId}}
Key: temporaryToken

Key Behaviors

Feature	Behavior
Permanent Deletion	Deleted data cannot be restored by the stage.
Safe to Repeat	Deleting data that no longer exists does not normally create a deletion error.
Exact Name Matching	Group, record, and key values must match the stored data names exactly.
No Confirmation Prompt	The stage performs the deletion immediately when it executes.
No Output Variable	The stage does not create a variable containing a deletion count or deleted record.

Best Practices

✓ Use a specific Record name whenever possible.
✓ Leave Record name empty only when deleting the entire group is intentional.
✓ Delete data only after every stage that depends on it has completed.
✓ Use Route Flow before Delete Data when deletion depends on a condition.
✓ Test deletion logic with temporary groups before using it with production data.
✓ Document flows that delete data from shared groups.
✓ Connect the Error exit to logging, alerting, or other failure handling.
✓ Use Fetch Data after deletion during testing when you need to verify the result.

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Symptom	Fix
Leaving Record name empty unintentionally	All records in the selected group are deleted.	Provide the specific Record name when deleting one record.
Using a different group, record, or key name	The stage completes, but the expected data remains.	Match the names used by Save Data exactly.
Deleting data too early	Later stages cannot retrieve or use the data.	Move Delete Data after every stage that depends on the stored information.
Expecting a deleted-record count	No result variable shows what was removed.	Use Fetch Data during testing to verify that the record or key is no longer available.
Not handling the Error exit	A storage or connection problem is not handled by the flow.	Connect Error to a Log, Slack alert, or another appropriate error route.

Troubleshooting

Issue	Common Cause	Fix
Expected data was not deleted	The group, record, or key value does not match the stored data.	Compare the Delete Data configuration with the values used in Save Data.
Error exit is triggered	The data store is unavailable or incorrectly configured.	Check the data-store configuration and investigate the connection failure.
More data was deleted than expected	Record name was left empty.	Specify the exact record before running the flow again.
Later stages return no data	Delete Data executed before those stages completed.	Move the deletion stage to the end of the relevant processing path.

Advanced: Clear Distributed Cache

If the stored data is also cached, the group name can be prefixed with clearcache:: to request cache clearing across the available engine servers.

Example:

clearcache::UserData

This can remove the stored value and request that cached copies are cleared. Use this option only when the relevant data is known to use distributed caching.

Related Stages

Save Data: Store data that can later be removed with Delete Data.
Fetch Data: Retrieve stored data or verify during testing that deletion succeeded.
Query Data: Find stored records before deciding what should be deleted.
Route Flow: Check conditions before allowing a deletion.
Run Later: Schedule cleanup logic for a later time.