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Overview

This node integrates with the Apify platform to run an Actor without any input. It allows users to execute a specified Actor by providing its ID or URL, and customize the run with parameters such as timeout, memory limit, maximum items to return, build version, and optional webhooks. This is useful for automating tasks or workflows that rely on Apify Actors, such as web scraping, data extraction, or automation scripts, without needing to supply input data to the Actor.

Use Case Examples

  1. Running a web scraping Actor by specifying its ID to collect data without providing input parameters.
  2. Executing an automation Actor with a custom memory limit and timeout to optimize resource usage.
  3. Triggering an Actor run with webhooks to receive notifications upon completion or failure.

Properties

Name Meaning
Actor ID The unique identifier or tilde-separated owner's username and Actor name used to specify which Actor to run.
Output Record Key The key of the record from the run's default key-value store to be returned in the response, defaulting to 'OUTPUT'.
Timeout Optional timeout for the Actor run in seconds, overriding the default run configuration.
Memory Memory limit for the Actor run in megabytes, set to a power of 2 with a minimum of 128, overriding the default.
Max Items Maximum number of items the Actor run should return, useful for limiting results and controlling subscription charges.
Build Specifies the Actor build to run, either by build tag or number, defaulting to the latest build.
Webhooks Base64-encoded JSON array defining optional webhooks for notifications on Actor run events like completion or failure.
Use Custom Body Boolean flag indicating whether to use a custom request body for the Actor run.

Output

JSON

  • runId - The unique identifier of the Actor run.
  • status - The current status of the Actor run (e.g., running, succeeded, failed).
  • output - The data output from the Actor run, typically the content of the specified output record key.
  • metadata - Additional metadata about the Actor run, such as start time, end time, and resource usage.

Dependencies

  • Apify API key credential for authentication to the Apify platform.

Troubleshooting

  • Ensure the Actor ID or URL is correct and accessible; invalid IDs or URLs will cause run failures.
  • Verify that the provided timeout and memory values are within acceptable limits; invalid values may cause the run to fail or be rejected.
  • Check that the Base64-encoded webhooks JSON is correctly formatted; malformed webhooks can prevent notifications from being sent.
  • If the Actor run does not produce output, verify the outputRecordKey is correct and that the Actor is configured to produce output under that key.

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