Add an Activity to an Automation verified

Learn how to add an Activity to an Automation in Salesforce Marketing Cloud (SFMC) with SSJS (server-side JavaScript). Code snippets include the REST API method.

This method works for Script Activities, Query Activities and all the other types of Activities allowed in an Automation.

REST API

var autoObjectId = "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3";

var payload = {
    "steps": [
        {
            "annotation": "",
            "stepNumber": 0,
            "activities": [
                {
                    "name": "My Script Activity",
                    "objectTypeId": 423,
                    "displayOrder": 2,
                    "activityObjectId": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3"
                }
            ]
        }
    ]
};

var endpoint = restInstanceUrl + "automation/v1/automations/" + autoObjectId;

var request = new Script.Util.HttpRequest(endpoint);
    request.emptyContentHandling = 0;
    request.retries = 2;
    request.continueOnError = true;
    request.setHeader("Authorization", "Bearer " + accessToken);
    request.method = "PATCH";
    request.contentType = "application/json";
    request.encoding = "UTF-8";
    request.postData = Stringify(payload);

var results = request.send();

var result = Platform.Function.ParseJSON(String(results.content));

<script runat="server">

    Platform.Load("core", "1");

    var api = new Script.Util.WSProxy();

    var restInstanceUrl = "https://YOUR_SUBDOMAIN.rest.marketingcloudapis.com/",
        accessToken     = "YOUR_REST_API_TOKEN";
	
	try {

        var myActivity = {
            "name": "My Script Activity",
            "objectTypeId": 423,
            "displayOrder": 2,
            "activityObjectId": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3"
        };

        var automationObjectId = "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3";

        var endpoint = restInstanceUrl + "automation/v1/automations/" + automationObjectId;

        var request = new Script.Util.HttpRequest(endpoint);
            request.emptyContentHandling = 0;
            request.retries = 2;
            request.continueOnError = true;
            request.setHeader("Authorization", "Bearer " + accessToken);
            request.method = "GET";
            request.contentType = "application/json";

        var results = request.send();

        var result = Platform.Function.ParseJSON(String(results.content));

        var activities = result.steps[result.steps.length - 1].activities;

        activities.push(myActivity);

        var payload = {
            steps: result.steps
        };

        var request = new Script.Util.HttpRequest(endpoint);
            request.emptyContentHandling = 0;
            request.retries = 2;
            request.continueOnError = true;
            request.setHeader("Authorization", "Bearer " + accessToken);
            request.method = "PATCH";
            request.contentType = "application/json";
            request.encoding = "UTF-8";
            request.postData = Stringify(payload);

        var results = request.send();

        var result = Platform.Function.ParseJSON(String(results.content));

        Write(Stringify(result));
		
	} catch(error) {

        Write(Stringify(error));
        
    }	

</script>

{
    "id": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3",
    "legacyId": "AZERTYUIOPQSDFGHJKLM",
    "name": "MyAutomation",
    "description": "",
    "key": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3",
    "categoryId": 3267,
    "statusId": 2,
    "lastSavedDate": "2022-12-13T11:16:15.377",
    "lastSavedByName": "Some app user",
    "createdDate": "2022-12-13T10:16:59.39",
    "createdByName": "",
    "updateInProgress": false,
    "steps": [
        {
            "annotation": "",
            "stepNumber": 0,
            "activities": [
                {
                    "id": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3",
                    "name": "My Script Activity",
                    "description": "",
                    "activityObjectId": "S0M3-GU1D-K3Y-G03SR1G4T-H3R3",
                    "objectTypeId": 423,
                    "displayOrder": 2,
                    "serializedObject": ""
                }
            ]
        }
    ],
    "startSource": {
        "typeId": 1,
        "schedule": {
            "scheduleTypeId": 3,
            "startDate": "0001-01-01T00:00:00",
            "endDate": "0001-01-01T00:00:00",
            "rangeTypeId": 0,
            "occurrences": 0,
            "icalRecur": "FREQ=DAILY;INTERVAL=1",
            "timezoneId": 79,
            "statusId": 0
        }
    }
}

WARNING

In order to add a new activity, please first retrieve the exisiting ones and add them to the payload. Otherwise, the existing activities will be overwritten by the PATCH call.

ObjectTypeId property reference

Id	Automation Activity
42	User-initiated Email
43	Import Definition
45	Group Definition
53	File Transfer Activity
73	Data Extract Activity
84	Report Activity
300	Query Activity
303	Filter Activity
423	Server Side Javascript Activity
425	ELT Activity
427	Build Audience Activity
467	Program Wait
724	Mobile Automation List Refresh Instance
725	MobileConnect Message Instance
726	Mobile File Import Instance
733	InteractionStudio
736	MobilePush Message Object Instance
749	Interaction Studio Event
756	Interaction Studio Date Event
771	Salesforce Send Activiy
783	GroupConnect
1010	Thunderhead Transfer Activity
1101	Interaction Studio Decision Activity
1701	PredictiveIntelligenceRecommendationActivity

Reference

Ressources and references related to the current methods.

SOAP object