Issue with Automation Workflow - Renaming File

Hi Connor!

As part of your organization you actually have a dedicated support team through your company that can assist with scheduling time to review and build/troubleshoot your automate workflows. I’ll be reaching out to you via email to connect with details to facilitate this ASAP.

Thanks!

Casey Bigger

Customer Success

This is a fairly common limitation with Box Relay/Automation workflows. A few things to check:

• Permissions: The workflow service account must have permission to rename files in the destination folder. If uploads come from external users, the workflow may not have sufficient access to modify the file afterward.
• Uploader Information: Depending on how the file is uploaded, the uploader's name may not be available as a variable that can be used in a rename action. If the workflow references a field that is empty, the rename step can fail.
• Timing Issues: The workflow may be trying to rename the file before the upload has fully completed or before metadata is available.
• Unsupported Trigger: If files are being uploaded through a File Request or Client Uploads folder, some user attributes may not be exposed to the workflow in the way you'd expect.

As a workaround, consider:

1. Adding a metadata field for the uploader name and populating that first.
2. Renaming based on available metadata (email, upload date, etc.) instead of the uploader display name.
3. Using a custom integration via the Box API if you need more control over the rename logic.

If you can share:

• The exact workflow steps,
• Whether the folder is a File Request/Client Upload folder,
• And any error details from the workflow history,

it will be easier to pinpoint the cause. The workflow history page sometimes contains more detailed failure information than the main error message.