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I have a Zap that is unreliably running. It will reliably run when a new row is added, but it will not run when a row is updated. I have also noticed that when I delete all data on the spreadsheet (aside from the header row), the Zap seems to stop working all together.

 

Looking at past questions, I understand there can be up to a three minute delay in the Zap firing due to the way Zapier interacts with Google’s API, so I wait 4-5 minutes after an update, and am still not seeing it run.

 

I’ve also followed the advice from past questions to have the Zap look at a last updated column to trigger. My issue with updates persists.

 

I am determining whether or not the Zap runs by refreshing the Zap runs history. It’s doesn’t seem to be running at all in the case of updates. 

 

Any ideas what may be causing this?

Hi ​@BobbyA 

Using GSheets in Zaps can be finicky.

Help links for using GSheets in Zaps: https://zapier.com/apps/google-sheets/integrations#help

 

In general, I advise clients to use Airtable/Zapier Tables instead of GSheets to avoid these issues/limitations.

Airtable: https://zapier.com/apps/airtable/integrations#triggers-and-actions

Zapier Tables: https://zapier.com/apps/zapier-tables/integrations#triggers-and-actions

Hi ​@BobbyA 

Using GSheets in Zaps can be finicky.

Help links for using GSheets in Zaps: https://zapier.com/apps/google-sheets/integrations#help

 

In general, I advise clients to use Airtable/Zapier Tables instead of GSheets to avoid these issues/limitations.

Airtable: https://zapier.com/apps/airtable/integrations#triggers-and-actions

Zapier Tables: https://zapier.com/apps/zapier-tables/integrations#triggers-and-actions

 

Hi Troy,

 

This isn’t an option. I have to upload the contents of csvs into Airtable.

~ Bobby

Hey ​@BobbyA 👋

Making a change, like deleting data from any rows, can cause issues with the Zap connected to the spreadsheet. You can learn more about the types of structural changes that can cause issues here: Google Sheets error: Zap not triggering

If you do need to make a change to the spreadsheet it’s best to turn off the Zap before making the change. Then, retest the Google Sheets trigger in the Zap and remap any fields (if needed) before turning the Zap back on.

Can you give that a try and let us know if that gets the Zap triggering for updates to existing rows?

Hey ​@BobbyA 👋

Making a change, like deleting data from any rows, can cause issues with the Zap connected to the spreadsheet. You can learn more about the types of structural changes that can cause issues here: Google Sheets error: Zap not triggering

If you do need to make a change to the spreadsheet it’s best to turn off the Zap before making the change. Then, retest the Google Sheets trigger in the Zap and remap any fields (if needed) before turning the Zap back on.

Can you give that a try and let us know if that gets the Zap triggering for updates to existing rows?

 

Hi SamB,

I did discover this workaround when deleting rows, and it’s good to see it documented, thank you for sharing that. I feel like I’ve also seen the Zap not trigger when a row is updated, absent of all those listed situations, but I’ll play with it more to be sure.

 

Cheers,

Bobby

I have an apps script that updates the spreadsheet. Sometimes multiple rows are updated / added. The trigger is set to only go off when the lastupdated column in a given row is updated. This apps script updates this lastupdated column for each row that was created or modified, all at once.

 

This usually works as intended. However, sporadically I’ve noticed not every added or updated row sets off the trigger, even though its lastupdated column was updated

Thanks for letting me know, ​@BobbyA. Hmm, if it’s not consistently triggering for new rows or updates then I’d suggest reaching out to our Support team here, to investigate this further. They can view the logs for your Zap and would be able to better able to determine why this is only happening sporadically. 

Keen to make sure this gets sorted so please let us know what they find!

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