mathomp4 Jan ‘22 ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_1.svg]] All, Some of my CI has been having intermittent build failures that I think are due to a combination of parallel make and limited memory. Now I could move to a larger resource class, but that would double my cost for about a 10% speed improvement by my testing (well, not counting the fact I might have to press the “re-run tests” again). So, I thought about using when: on_fail for my setup to re-run a build in case of failure (since then it might work). Currently I like to use commands and my config looks like: build-GEOSgcm: parameters: compiler: type: string executor: << parameters.compiler >> working_directory: /root/project steps: - checkout_fixture: repo: GEOSgcm - mepoclone: repo: GEOSgcm - mepodevelop: repo: GEOSgcm - checkout_mapl_branch: repo: GEOSgcm - cmake: repo: GEOSgcm compiler: << parameters.compiler >> - buildinstall: repo: GEOSgcm - compress_artifacts - store_artifacts: path: /logfiles And I thought, great I’ll just make a new command and do: ... - buildinstall: repo: GEOSgcm - retrybuild: repo: GEOSgcm when: on_fail - compress_artifacts - store_artifacts: path: /logfiles But that failed: ❯ circleci config validate Error: Error calling workflow: 'build-and-test' Error calling job: 'build-GEOSgcm' Error calling command: 'retrybuild' Unexpected argument(s): when as I figured once I looked at the docs. So for now, in my buildinstall command, I have an extra run: step with a when: on_fail trigger: buildinstall: description: "Build and install" parameters: repo: type: string default: "" steps: - run: name: "Build and install" command: | cd ${CIRCLE_WORKING_DIRECTORY}/workspace/build-<< parameters.repo >> make -j"$(nproc)" install |& tee /logfiles/make.log - run: name: "Retry build and install after failure" command: | cd ${CIRCLE_WORKING_DIRECTORY}/workspace/build-<< parameters.repo >> make -j"$(nproc)" install |& tee /logfiles/make-retry.log when: on_fail That validates and, well, now I’m waiting to see if the failure is helped by this. But I had a question: is there a way to do what I wanted with the command in steps syntax? Or is just that steps have no when? Thanks,Matt PS: Soon I’ll be thinking about using orbs since the commands in that fragment you see up there are used in a few repos. I think orbs would let me share these commands easily…right? ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/slight_smile.png]] ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_2.svg]] Solved by aaronclark in post #2 Hi @mathomp4 , Thank you for sharing your question on our forum! I would have to see your full config.yml to understand why your first attempt was not working, but I created the following sample config file that shows how to use when inside of a command: version: 2.1 commands: retrybuild: … #### created Jan '22 last reply https://discuss.circleci.com/t/on-fail-for-commands-in-steps/42496/4 Jan ‘22 3 replies 2.5k views 2 users 1 link 2 aaronclarkCircleCI Employee Jan ‘22 ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_5.svg]] Hi @mathomp4 , Thank you for sharing your question on our forum! I would have to see your full config.yml to understand why your first attempt was not working, but I created the following sample config file that shows how to use when inside of a command: `version: 2.1 commands: retrybuild: description: Retry a step when it fails parameters: repo: type: string default: "" when: type: string steps: - run: command: | echo "This ran because the previous step failed" echo "<>" name: Rerun step due to failure when: <> jobs: build: docker: - image: cimg/base:2021.07 steps: - checkout - run: echo “test” - run: exit 1 - retrybuild: repo: “TEST” when: “on_fail” workflows: workflow1: jobs: - build` I am defining a when parameter (this could be named anything) inside of the retrybuild command, which then I am passing into the similarly-named when key. I did not set a default value for this command, so config validation will fail if no value is passed in. With when: "on_fail" , the retrybuild step will execute because the previous step is exiting with status 1. This would be a great chance to use orbs. It would allow you to create reusable code, and cleanup your config.yml file as the extra code would be imported via the orb. Our Slack orb actually is a good example of using conditional steps (with the notify command). You can click the following link to see the source: ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/circlecioriginal3x2020194a98fb5c57c73cfd60d86.png]] circleci.com CircleCI Developer Hub - circleci/slack 21 Implement event-based notifications across all of your CI/CD pipelines. Utilizing built-in message templates or Slack’s visual Block-Kit builder, create and customize notifications specific to your organization’s needs. Supports Linux x86_64, MacOS,… Let me know if this clears things up, or if you have any further questions. ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_4.svg]]Solution mathomp4 Jan ‘22 ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_5.svg]] Ahh. Okay. You are passing down when I was hoping I could use when directly on the command in jobs/steps. I guess when: is only something that run can see, not something that a command step can see. 10 days later ![[./resources/on_fail-for-commands-in-steps-running-tests-circle.resources/svg_6.svg]] Closed on 20 Jan ‘22 This topic was automatically closed 10 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.