Overview

Connect your tools and automate handoffs with visual node graphs.

Studios often struggle not from a lack of tools, but because the handovers between them—publishing, rendering, reviewing—depend on manual steps, custom scripts, and duct tape.

AYON Workflow is a node-based automation framework built into AYON. It gives teams a visual, structured way to connect publish events, DCC actions, and render farm jobs into repeatable pipelines.

• For Technical Artists: Design and test complex workflows interactively using a visual editor. Chain operations across multiple DCCs, automate publishing, and orchestrate multi-step production tasks without writing code.

• For Pipeline TDs & Developers: Build custom automation tools and extend AYON’s capabilities using Python-based node plugins. Create reusable workflows that handle render farm management, retry logic, and orchestration overhead automatically.

Core Concepts

Nodes

A Node represents a single task. It takes inputs, performs a job, and produces outputs. Examples: Find a Task, Render a Nuke script, Process an Image Sequence, Publish a version.

Workflows

A Workflow is a visual graph connecting Nodes. By linking the output of one node to the input of another, you define the exact sequence of events.

Execution

A Workflow can be executed in two ways:

• Local: Runs immediately on your workstation. Perfect for quick tasks or browser-triggered actions.

• Farm (Dispatch): Sends the heavy lifting to your farm (like AWS Deadline or AYON Ash) as background jobs.

Installation and setup

Use the Visual Editor

Replacing thousands of lines of hidden Python code with a visual graph brings clarity.

Supervisors, artists, and technical teams can easily look at a workflow graph, understand the logic, and refine it together.

The editor includes:

• The Canvas: Where you drop and wire your nodes.

• The Node Library: The list of available actions.

• The Properties Panel: Where you configure node settings.

• The Log and Output Panel: Where you check the output for each node.

To launch the editor: Right-click the AYON Tray icon on your workstation, and click Workflow Editor. This will open the visual builder in your default web browser.

Run Workflows on the Render Farm

Workflows aren't just for local automation. When building your workflow, you can also submit them on your farm. When you click Submit, the workflow is sent to your render farm (e.g., AWS Deadline).

Scaling with Chunking: If your dispatch node processes an image sequence, the farm will automatically split (or "chunk") the frames across multiple machines, process them in parallel, and seamlessly merge the results back together before continuing the rest of the workflow.

Bring your own nodes

AYON Workflow is highly extensible. If the built-in nodes don't cover your specific pipeline needs, your technical team can easily write custom nodes in Python.

Custom nodes can be packaged inside your own custom AYON Addons, or loaded directly from a network drive by setting the AYON_WORKFLOW_ADDITIONAL_PLUGIN_PATH environment variable. Once registered, your custom nodes automatically appear in the visual editor.

For Further information, please check the workflow developer guide.

Roadmap

Future updates will focus on deeper server integration and automation triggers:

• Server-side Storage: Save and version workflows directly on the AYON server.

• Contextual Execution: Settings to specify which workflows run on specific projects or tasks.

• ASH Integration: A dedicated service for dispatching workflows to AYON Service Hosts (ASH).

• Event Triggers: Settings to define which AYON server events trigger specific workflows.