Clear State

Audience: Citizen Developer

Skill Prerequisites: Tokens

The Clear State action removes any previously stored form data associated with a specific key from the configured storage location(s) — server session, browser cookies, or both. This is useful for scenarios where you want to reset saved form data, ensuring users start with a fresh form, or to clear up resources after processing is complete.

Typical Use Cases

• Completely reset a user's saved form data so they start fresh on their next visit.
• Allow users to abandon or cancel a multi-step form process and remove partial data.
• Clear out stored data after it’s been re-used in a later process or by a different form.
• Remove potentially sensitive information from the user's session or device after submission.

Related Actions

Action Name	Description
Save State	Saves current form data for later retrieval.
Load State	Loads previously saved data from session or cookies into the form.
Auto Save State	Prepares form data for automatic saving in browser cookies during OnInit.

Input Parameter Reference

Parameter	Description	Supports Tokens	Default	Required
Key	The identifier for the saved state to clear. Supports tokens for dynamic and user-specific keys (e.g., wizard-[User:UserID]).	Yes	(empty string)	Yes
Storage Location	Select where the saved state should be cleared: Server Session – clears only session storage Browser Cookies – clears only cookies Any – removes the data from both session and cookies for the given key	No	Any	Yes

Output Parameters Reference

Parameter	Description
(None)	This action does not output any parameters.

Security

• When using tokens to compose the Key, use user- or session-specific information (e.g., [User:UserID]) to avoid accidentally clearing data for other users.
• Be aware that cookie-based data may persist beyond the active browsing session unless it is manually cleared with this action or expires.

Examples

1. Clear session data for a user on logout

To ensure that no sensitive data persists after a user logs out, add this action to your form/workflow:

{
    "Title": "Clear State",
    "ActionType": "ClearState",
    "Parameters": {
        "Key": "cart-[User:UserID]",
        "Storage Location": "Server Session"
    }
}

2. Clear all sources of saved state (session and cookies) for a multi-step process

If you want to force a clean slate (regardless of how data was stored previously):

{
    "Title": "Clear State",
    "ActionType": "ClearState",
    "Parameters": {
        "Key": "wizard-progress-[User:UserID]",
        "Storage Location": "Any"
    }
}

3. Clear browser cookies for guest forms

When using cookies for unauthenticated users:

{
    "Title": "Clear State",
    "ActionType": "ClearState",
    "Parameters": {
        "Key": "guest-form-temp",
        "Storage Location": "Browser Cookies"
    }
}

Notes

• The Key is critical — only data saved using the exact same key will be affected.
• "Any" mode is recommended when you're unsure whether data was stored in the session or cookies, or if you want to be thorough.
• Clearing state does not trigger any form resets or UI refreshes by default; add additional actions if you need a visible effect.

Troubleshooting & Best Practices

• If your data does not seem to clear, double-check the exact value used for the Key — mismatched or missing tokens may result in the wrong state being unaffected.
• Consider privacy: clearing state after sensitive submissions is a good practice.
• When using "Browser Cookies", ensure users are informed if they're using shared or public computers.

This action helps ensure a reliable, clean user workflow by letting you explicitly remove saved form data when needed.