> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://helpcenter.raker.one/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Triggers

> Start runs without anyone clicking Run, such as from a webhook.

Most runs start when a person opens a project and clicks **Run**. But a playbook can also start on its own — for example, the moment an email arrives or another system sends a signal. This page explains the two settings that control how a playbook can be started, and what an automatic start means for you day to day.

<Note>
  These two switches live on the **Starting runs** card inside the playbook editor's **Settings** tab. For the rest of the editor, see [Build a playbook](/playbooks/build-a-playbook).
</Note>

## The two ways a playbook can start

A playbook has two independent on/off switches that decide who — or what — is allowed to start a run.

| Setting                            | What it allows                                                                | Default |
| ---------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------- |
| **People can start this playbook** | A person can start a run by hand from the project's **Playbooks** page.       | On      |
| **Start from a webhook**           | Another system can start a run automatically by sending a signal to RakerOne. | Off     |

These are not either/or. You can leave both on so a playbook can be started by hand *and* automatically. Turning **People can start this playbook** off hides the manual **Run** button, which is useful when a playbook should only ever be triggered by another system.

## What "Start from a webhook" means

A **webhook** is a way for an outside system to start a run automatically, without anyone in RakerOne lifting a finger. The setting's own description says it plainly: it "lets other systems start this playbook — for example when an email arrives."

In practice, you connect another tool — your email inbox, an intake form, an accounting system — to RakerOne. When the agreed event happens in that tool, it sends a signal to RakerOne, and a new run of this playbook starts. From there the run behaves exactly like one you'd started by hand: tasks light up, people get their assignments, and [Florent](/work/florent) gets to work where it's enabled.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Turn the switch on">
    In the playbook editor, open the **Settings** tab and switch on **Start from a webhook** on the **Starting runs** card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Connect the outside system">
    Connecting the other tool to RakerOne is a technical, one-time setup. The system that calls RakerOne needs an [API key](/admin/api-keys) to identify itself. Hand this part to whoever sets up integrations — once it's wired up, you don't touch it again.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Let it run">
    From then on, each agreed event starts a fresh run on its own. You'll see new runs appear under **Recent work** on the project's **Playbooks** page, and the people assigned to the first tasks get notified as usual.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Info>
  Setting up the connection itself — and the credentials it uses — is handled with an API key. See [API keys](/admin/api-keys).
</Info>

## What an automatic start means for you

An automatically started run is a normal run. The only difference is that nobody clicked **Run** — so there are a couple of things worth knowing.

* **You'll find new runs under Recent work.** Because no one launched them by hand, automatic runs show up in the project's **Recent work** list rather than being something you kicked off. Check there to see what's come in.
* **You still do and approve the work.** Automatic starts only handle the *starting*. Everything after that follows the usual rules: people claim and complete their tasks, and a human still approves anything Florent or an automated step drafts. **AI drafts, humans approve** — an automatic start never changes that.
* **Assignments still apply.** Whoever is assigned to the first tasks gets notified the moment the run begins, the same as a hand-started run.

<Warning>
  An automatic start does **not** skip approvals or assignments. It only removes the manual click that begins the run. Every sign-off and hand-off still happens as designed.
</Warning>

## Where to go next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Build a playbook" icon="hammer" href="/playbooks/build-a-playbook">
    Where the Starting runs switches live, alongside the rest of a playbook's settings.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Start a run by hand" icon="play" href="/projects/run-a-playbook">
    Click Run in a project and work through the run workspace.
  </Card>

  <Card title="API keys" icon="key" href="/admin/api-keys">
    Create the credential an outside system uses to start a run via webhook.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>