4 replies

TypeScript Type Error: Workflows Not Accessible via `internal` API

Issue

When trying to reference workflows defined with

workflowManager.define()

workflowManager.define()

through the

internal

internal

API, TypeScript throws an error saying the workflow property doesn't exist, even though the code works perfectly at runtime.

Code Example

// workflows/research/private.ts
import { workflowManager } from "@/src/convex/workflows";
import { internal } from "@/src/convex/_generated/api";

export const researchWorkflow = workflowManager.define({
  args: { problemId: v.id("problems") },
  handler: async (step, { problemId }) => {
    // ... workflow logic
  },
});

export const startWorkflow = internalAction({
  handler: async (ctx, { problemId }) => {
    // :x: TypeScript Error: Property 'researchWorkflow' does not exist
    const workflowId = await workflowManager.start(
      ctx,
      internal.workflows.research.private.researchWorkflow, // Error here
      { problemId }
    );
  },
});

// workflows/research/private.ts
import { workflowManager } from "@/src/convex/workflows";
import { internal } from "@/src/convex/_generated/api";

export const researchWorkflow = workflowManager.define({
  args: { problemId: v.id("problems") },
  handler: async (step, { problemId }) => {
    // ... workflow logic
  },
});

export const startWorkflow = internalAction({
  handler: async (ctx, { problemId }) => {
    // :x: TypeScript Error: Property 'researchWorkflow' does not exist
    const workflowId = await workflowManager.start(
      ctx,
      internal.workflows.research.private.researchWorkflow, // Error here
      { problemId }
    );
  },
});

Error Message

Property 'researchWorkflow' does not exist on type '{ startWorkflow: FunctionReference<...> }'.

Property 'researchWorkflow' does not exist on type '{ startWorkflow: FunctionReference<...> }'.

Expected Behavior

TypeScript should recognize workflows defined with

workflowManager.define()

workflowManager.define()

when accessed via

internal.workflows.*.private.*

internal.workflows.*.private.*

, similar to how it recognizes queries, mutations, and actions.

Actual Behavior

Code works at runtime
-

TypeScript doesn't recognize workflows through the

internal

internal

API
- The

FilterApi

FilterApi

type for

internal

internal

only includes

FunctionReference

FunctionReference

types, but workflows aren't

FunctionReference

FunctionReference

types

Workaround

Currently using

@ts-expect-error

@ts-expect-error

to suppress the type error:

const workflowId = await workflowManager.start(
  ctx,
  // @ts-expect-error - researchWorkflow exists at runtime but TypeScript doesn't see it
  internal.workflows.research.private.researchWorkflow,
  { problemId }
);

const workflowId = await workflowManager.start(
  ctx,
  // @ts-expect-error - researchWorkflow exists at runtime but TypeScript doesn't see it
  internal.workflows.research.private.researchWorkflow,
  { problemId }
);

Question

Is this a known limitation, or is there a way to properly type workflows so they're recognized through the

internal

internal

API? This seems like it could affect all workflows, not just this one.

Thanks!