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FME Flow Troubleshooting: Web Connections

Liz Sanderson
Liz Sanderson
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Full Guide: FME Flow Troubleshooting Guide

Are you encountering issues connecting a web service to FME Flow (formerly FME Server)?
Many workspaces that are run from FME Flow require you to connect and authenticate to a web service. FME Flow allows you to securely upload, store, and reference your own authentication parameters with Web and Database Connections. And just like in FME Workbench, connections to web services are safely stored as self-contained objects. Once uploaded to FME Flow, the Web Connections page provides a convenient management hub. 

Note that Web and Database Connections previously shared the same troubleshooting article. We have since broken the article into separate articles so we could expand on each topic and it would be easier to find via search. Please navigate to FME Flow Troubleshooting: Database Connections article for troubleshooting database connections in FME Flow.


Content Overview


General Troubleshooting

When a web connection fails on FME Flow only after some period of time, but still connects from FME Workbench, this is a tell-tale sign that your web connection is not authorized with FME Flow. Many web services require specific configuration on FME Flow to authenticate.

You'll need to create a new App from the web service you are trying to connect to. After creating the App, update the client and secret in the FME Workbench web service, then reupload the web connection to FME Flow. For more instructions, please review the documentation for Managing Web Services.

(TIP: In most cases, the Web Service Redirect URI should be "<yourFMEFlow>/fmeoauth")  

  • Have you checked the FME Flow fmeoauth.log for errors or warnings?

This log can be found from the FME Flow Web UI, under Resources > Logs > service > current > fmeoauth.log 

  • If you are receiving a web connection error while running a job, have you tried Log Debug?

In FME Workbench, enable Log Debug under Tools > FME Options > Translation > Log Message Filter. Then, republish to FME Flow and rerun the job. Check the job log again. Log Debug mode may provide more information, like access token expiry times and API call details.

 

Getting Started

If you're looking for general information about web connections, these pages are great places to start: 

Relevant Logs

See Troubleshooting with Logs for where to find log files. 

Logs > service > current > fmeoauth.log 
Logs > core > current > fmeconnection.log, fmeserver.log
 

Common Issues  

“After upgrading FME Flow, my web connection stopped working” 

See our known issues in the currently supported versions here

If the problem does not correspond to a known issue, please ensure all original network settings have been migrated to the upgraded FME Flow.
 

"How do I give permission for other users to use my web connections?”
Unauthorized request by user due to lack of proper permissions

Often, this error comes down to user permissions to connections and resources. Please review FME Flow Connections Runtime Error: Unauthorized request by user due to lack of proper permissions for possible causes and how to resolve the error.


"How can multiple users share web connections on FME Flow?" 

The solution for sharing connections often begins with desktop connection management. Once workspaces are uploaded, they can easily share connections by referencing the same connection name. For best practices, consult Making Database and Web Connections Public.
 

“How do I enable an OAuth web connection to authenticate from my private network?”

Some web services require a Public DNS. There are a few ways to do this, so we recommend consulting your organization’s IT services first. For our documentation on the process, please consult Enabling FME Flow for Public Access.

Note: not all web services require a Public DNS. Some examples of web connections that do not require a public DNS include ArcGIS Online and Microsoft Graph.
 

“My web connection works in FME Workbench, but not FME Flow”

Republish the web connection from FME Workbench. 

For OAuth web connections, consult Configuring FME Flow to use OAuth-based Web Connections.

Publishing to FME Flow produces a message "Error Communicating with FME Flow, FME Flow may not be running..."

There are different causes for this error, including the following:

1) FME Flow services are not running

  • Restart FME Flow and FME Services. Once you have confirmed FME Flow is running, try publishing again

2) FME Flow has been installed on a non-standard port number

  • If a non-standard port was used, correct the URL: Make sure to enter the non-standard port in the URL: http://<host>:<port>

3) You are using a proxy server to access the internet.

You may need to configure FME Workbench to use the proxy server when publishing workspaces to FME Flow using the Web Connection:

  1. Configure FME Workbench to use your system proxy settings by going to Tools > FME Options > Network and checking the box that says Use system proxy settings. If required by your proxy server, fill in the authentication information.
  2. Test that the proxy settings are working in FME Workbench by going to Help - Check for Updates. If FME cannot check for updates, then you may need to ensure that your system is configured to use your proxy server. Save your workspace if necessary
  3. Restart FME Workbench.
  4. Try again to publish your workspace to FME Flow.

Additional Resources

Are you still experiencing issues? 

Please consider posting to the FME Community Q&A if you are still experiencing issues that are not addressed in this article. There are also different support channels available.


Have ideas on how to improve this? 

You can add ideas or product suggestions to our Ideas Exchange.

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