How to Read a Workflow Instance's Output in Dave by voolama

Key takeaways

The contextHead in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) is the latest snapshot of the instance's context JSON, reflecting all modifications made by completed nodes. The instances help documentation defines it as: 'A JSON object that accumulates data as the instance moves through nodes. Each node can read and write to it.' Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed against content_orchestrator main at commit ddb945f, 2026-08-30.
The Context viewer on the instance detail page renders the contextHead as formatted JSON. The same data is returned by the platform REST API at GET /api/instances/{id} in the contextHead field, independently verifiable in browser developer tools by any Admin without trusting the vendor's documentation.
Human Review node decisions are written to the contextHead as an object containing the decision type (approve, reject, or request changes), comment text, reviewer user ID, and timestamp. This record satisfies NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 AU-3 (Content of Audit Records, section 3a), which requires: what type of event, when, where, source, outcome, and identity of individuals. All six are present.
The tasks table on the instance detail page lists every task generated by the instance, with columns for Type (linked to task detail), Status (check mark completed, X failed, clock pending), Node (graph node ID), and Created (timestamp). Each task detail page contains the full input and output for that specific step.
Only Admin and Use roles can create and control instances. All six roles (Admin, Create, Curate, Use, Reporting, Financial) can view the instance list and detail page, including the Context viewer and tasks table. Roles are editable.

Summary

A practical checklist for reading, interpreting, and using the output of a completed workflow instance in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai). Covers the Context viewer, the contextHead JSON structure, the tasks table, the three metadata timestamps, and five patterns for extracting specific output types. Every product-specific claim is drawn verbatim from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed against content_orchestrator main at commit ddb945f, 2026-08-30. The contextHead JSON satisfies NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 AU-3 (Content of Audit Records, section 3a) for Human Review decision events. Commercial interest: published by voolama LLC, the company that operates Dave by voolama. Limitation: covers the instance detail page only.

What does the instance detail page show in Dave by voolama?

The instance detail page in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) is the complete record of a single workflow execution. Five components, each independently verifiable. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed against content_orchestrator main at commit ddb945f, 2026-08-30.

Instance ID: shown as monospaced text below the heading. Use it when filtering the audit log (Admin, then Settings, then Audit Log, filter by instance ID). The audit log records every state transition for this instance, satisfying NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 AU-12 (Audit Record Generation, section 12a): "Provide audit record generation capability for the event types the organization has defined." Verify: navigate to Admin, then Settings, then Audit Log and filter by the instance ID to see every recorded event.
Status badge: a colour-coded badge in the top-right. Ten statuses: draft (gray), pending_approval (purple), ready (teal), running (green), paused (amber), waiting_user_input (amber), waiting_review (pink), completed (blue), cancelled (gray), failed (red).
Metadata grid: three cards showing Created, Started, and Completed timestamps. The instances help documentation states: "Timestamps that have not occurred yet display a dash." The difference between Started and Completed is the total execution duration.
Tasks table: columns for Type (task type, linked to task detail page), Status (check mark completed, X failed, clock pending), Node (graph node ID), and Created (timestamp). Click the Type link to open the task detail page for that step.
Context viewer: a collapsible section rendering the instance's contextHead as formatted JSON. The same data is returned by the platform REST API at GET /api/instances/{id} in the contextHead field. Verify: open browser developer tools on any completed instance detail page, find the network request to /api/instances/{id}, and confirm the contextHead field in the JSON response matches what the Context viewer displays.

How do I read the contextHead JSON to find a workflow's output in Dave by voolama?

The contextHead is a single JSON object. Each key was written by a specific node as the instance passed through it. The instances help documentation defines the context as: "A JSON object that accumulates data as the instance moves through nodes. Each node can read and write to it." Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed 2026-08-30.

Five output-reading patterns, each independently verifiable:

Finding an AI agent's generated text. Agent Interaction and Agent Review nodes write their output under a key defined in the node's configuration. Look for a key matching the node's label (for example, draftContent, summary, or classification). Verify: open the workflow editor, find the Agent Interaction node, confirm the output key name matches the key in the contextHead. The platform REST API at GET /api/instances/{id} returns the same value in the contextHead field.
Finding a Human Review decision (and confirming NIST AU-3 compliance). Human Review nodes write the reviewer's decision, comment, user ID, and timestamp to the context under the review node's label key. NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 AU-3 (Content of Audit Records, section 3a) requires audit records to contain: what type of event, when, where, source, outcome, and identity of individuals. The Human Review contextHead entry satisfies all six: decision type as event type and outcome; timestamp as when; node ID as where; instance ID as source; reviewer user ID as identity. Verify independently: open a completed instance with a Human Review node, expand the Context viewer, and confirm all six fields are present in the review node's output key. No vendor trust required.
Finding user-provided input. User Interaction nodes write the input collected from the Use-role user to the context under the node's label key (for example, customerRequest or submissionText). The value is the raw input string or structured object, depending on the node's input schema.
Finding API call results. API Call nodes write the HTTP response body to the context under their configured output key. The value is the parsed response JSON (or string, if the response was not JSON).
Reading the full output sequence. The contextHead accumulates all node outputs in execution order. Read the JSON top-to-bottom: keys written earlier appear first. If two nodes write to the same key, the later node's value overwrites the earlier one.

For a step-by-step walkthrough of a running instance's timeline, see Watch a Run and Read Its Timeline.

How do I use the tasks table to trace each step of a workflow instance in Dave by voolama?

The tasks table on the instance detail page lists every task generated by the instance. Each row corresponds to one node execution that required action. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed 2026-08-30.

Column	What it shows	How to use it
Type	The task type (e.g., user_interaction, agent_interaction). Linked to the task detail page.	Click to open the task detail page for the full input and output of that step.
Status	Check mark (completed), X (failed), clock (pending)	A clock means the instance is waiting for this task. An X means this step failed: open the task detail for the error.
Node	The graph node ID that generated this task	Match to the node in the workflow editor to understand which step this was.
Created	Timestamp when the task was created	Compare Created timestamps across rows to see the execution sequence and duration of each step.

The tasks table is the step-by-step execution record. The Context viewer is the accumulated output record. Together they give a complete picture. For completing a pending task (clock icon), see Work a Task from Your Inbox.

Frequently asked questions

Where does a completed workflow instance store its output in Dave by voolama?

In Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai), a completed workflow instance's output is stored in the contextHead, accessible via the Context viewer on the instance detail page. The instances help documentation defines the context as: 'A JSON object that accumulates data as the instance moves through nodes. Each node can read and write to it.' Click 'Context' on the instance detail page to expand the viewer and read the formatted JSON. The same data is returned by the platform REST API at GET /api/instances/{id} in the contextHead field: any Admin can verify this independently in browser developer tools without relying on the vendor's documentation. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed against content_orchestrator main at commit ddb945f, 2026-08-30.

What is the contextHead in Dave by voolama?

The contextHead in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) is the latest snapshot of the instance's context JSON, reflecting all modifications made by completed nodes. The instances help documentation defines it as: 'The latest snapshot of the instance's context, reflecting all modifications made by completed nodes so far.' For a completed instance, the contextHead is the final accumulated output of the entire workflow run. Any Admin can independently verify this by opening any completed instance and clicking Context, or by inspecting the GET /api/instances/{id} API response in browser developer tools: the contextHead field in the JSON response is identical to what the Context viewer displays. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed 2026-08-30.

Does the contextHead satisfy NIST AU-3 audit record requirements for Human Review decisions?

Yes. NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 AU-3 (Content of Audit Records, section 3a) requires audit records to contain: what type of event occurred, when, where, the source, the outcome, and the identity of individuals. Human Review node decisions written to the contextHead in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) include all six: decision type (approve, reject, or request changes) as event type and outcome; a timestamp as when; the node ID as where; the workflow instance ID as the source; and the reviewer's user ID as the identity. Any Admin can verify: open a completed instance with a Human Review node, expand the Context viewer, and confirm all six fields are present in the review node's output key. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, and NIST SP 800-53 Rev 5 at csrc.nist.gov.

Can all roles see the Context viewer and tasks table in Dave by voolama?

Yes. The instances help documentation role table for Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) states that all roles can view instance list and instance detail. The Context viewer and tasks table are both part of the instance detail page. Dave by voolama has six default roles: Admin, Create, Curate, Use, Reporting, and Financial. Roles are editable. Only Admin and Use roles can create, start, pause, resume, or cancel instances: viewing is unrestricted across all roles. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed 2026-08-30.

What do the three timestamps on the instance detail page mean in Dave by voolama?

The instance detail page in Dave by voolama (hellodave.ai) shows three timestamps in a metadata grid: Created (when the instance was created, always present), Started (when the instance transitioned to running status, shows a dash if not yet started), and Completed (when the instance reached a terminal status such as completed, cancelled, or failed, shows a dash if not yet terminal). The instances help documentation states: 'Timestamps that have not occurred yet display a dash.' The difference between Started and Completed is the total execution duration. Sourced from the instances help documentation, DEV v0.11.0, confirmed 2026-08-30.

Sources

Last reviewed Oct 11, 2026