Action Nodes

Prerequisites

• The N2 Core modules, N2 Action module and the built-in Contacts module must be installed.

  If you have not installed the N2 modules yet, please refer to the Quick Start guide.

• Complete the Simple Workflow tutorial.

  Please refer to the Simple Workflow tutorial to understand the basics for creating N2 workflow.

Controlling Model’s Action With OnActionTriggerNode

In this section, you will create simple workflows that record debug log information in the ir.logging table using CodeServerActionStarterNode and display a message using NotifyNode every time the action is executed.

For these workflows, you will work on the Contact model, therefore all the Model field of the nodes must be set to Contact.

1. Create a new graph.
2. Add StartNode and CodeServerActionStarterNode and connect them. CodeServerActionStarterNode is an auxiliary node, so it connects to the auxiliary port of the StartNode, not to the input port of the StartNode.
3. Set the Name field of the CodeServerActionStarterNode to action_log_a_message.
4. Paste the following to the Code input dialog CodeServerActionStarterNode:

   log('This is a message from N2', level='info')

5. Save and process the graph.

   

6. Create another graph.
7. Add OnActionTriggerNode, StartNode, NotifyNode, SetValueNode and connect these nodes.
8. Set the Action field of the OnActionTriggerNode to action_log_a_message.
9. Paste the following to the Template input dialog of the NotifyNode:

   'action_log_a_message' is triggered.

10. Paste the following to the Value input dialog of the SetValueNode:

    {
        "run_original": True
    }

11. Save and process the graph.

    

12. Create another graph.
13. Add StartNode, ViewHeaderStarterNode, FormActionButtonStarterNode and connect them.
14. Set the View field of the ViewHeaderStarterNode to res.partner.form.
15. Set the Action field of the FormActionButtonStarterNode to action_log_a_message.
16. Set the Caption field of the FormActionButtonStarterNode to Log A Message.
17. Save and process the graph.

    

18. Open a contact via Contact form.
19. There should be a Log A Message button. A notification should be displayed when the button is clicked.

    

20. Go to Settings -> Technical -> Logging. A new record should be added whenever you click the Log A Message button.

    

Explanation

This tutorial demonstrates how N2 can be used to customize Odoo behavior and customize form views.

Action and Method Triggers

Action trigger and method trigger nodes allow workflows to respond to server-side actions and model methods, enabling deep customization of Odoo behavior without modifying core code.

Advanced Workflows with N2 Action module

The N2 Action module enables users to create more complex and advanced workflows by exposing server actions and model’s method. Users can respond server action and models method using the OnActionTriggerNode and OnMethodTriggerNode. And as demonstrated earlier, users can also create custom header for form views. This is useful to create features such as multi-level approvals. Visit Odoo Development Tutorial: N2 AI Nodes + Creating Multilevel Approval with N2. to watch how to create multi-level approval with N2 Action module.

Next Steps

Now that you understand how to control model actions using the N2 Action module, you can explore more advanced automation patterns:

• Learn how to combine action triggers with data retrieval in the Data Nodes tutorial.
• Use AI-powered workflows to make decisions based on action context in the AI Integration tutorial.
• Build interactive user experiences by combining action nodes with conversational workflows in the AI Chat tutorial.
• Explore advanced approval flows and conditional execution using OnMethodTriggerNode and custom form headers.