Webhook for alerts

📋 Product Requirements Document

PRD: Webhook for alerts

Issue: #172
Milestone: Phase 6: Observability
Labels: alerting, hacktoberfest

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PRD: Webhook for Alerts

Overview

In Phase 6: Observability, MeshHook aims to enhance its workflow engine by introducing a webhook-based alerting mechanism. This feature is designed to provide users with real-time notifications on workflow execution events, thus improving the engine’s operational transparency and enabling quicker response to issues. The integration of this alerting mechanism aligns with MeshHook’s webhook-first philosophy and leverages its existing infrastructure to deliver a seamless, configurable user experience.

Objective

The primary objective is to develop and integrate a configurable webhook alerting system into MeshHook. This system will allow users to set up alerts based on specific workflow execution events, ensuring they are promptly informed about critical occurrences such as execution failures, delays, or manual interventions.

Functional Requirements

1. Configurable Alert Conditions: Users must be able to define alerts based on specific workflow execution outcomes (e.g., success, failure, execution delay).
2. Dynamic Webhook URLs: The system must support the specification of dynamic webhook URLs at the workflow level, enabling customization of alert destinations.
3. Payload Customization: Users should have the ability to customize the alert payloads, incorporating both static and dynamic content derived from workflow execution contexts.
4. Signature Verification for Alerts: To ensure the authenticity of the alerts, the system must support signature verification for webhook payloads.
5. Alert Retry Mechanism: An alert retry mechanism with exponential backoff should be implemented to manage and mitigate alert delivery failures.

Non-Functional Requirements

• Performance: Alert notifications must be dispatched within 500 milliseconds of the trigger event under typical operating conditions.
• Reliability: The system should achieve 99.99% reliability in delivering alerts, with comprehensive handling of both transient and permanent delivery failures.
• Security: Alert configuration data, including webhook URLs and payloads, should be encrypted both in transit and at rest. Signature verification for webhook alerts must be enforced.
• Maintainability: The codebase should be modular, well-documented, and easy to understand, facilitating future extensions and maintenance efforts.

Technical Specifications

Architecture Context

MeshHook utilizes SvelteKit and Supabase, providing a solid foundation for the webhook-based alerting feature. The feature will integrate with the following components:

• Supabase Realtime for monitoring workflow execution events.
• HTTP Executor pattern within workers for dispatching alerts.
• SvelteKit frontend for UI components related to alert configuration.

Implementation Approach

1. Analysis and Planning: Define common alert scenarios and standard webhook payload structures.
2. UI/UX Design: Design and implement UI components for alert and webhook endpoint configuration within the SvelteKit frontend.
3. Backend Development:
   • Extend the database schema to include alert_configs and alert_logs.
   • Develop logic in the orchestrator worker for evaluating alert conditions and initiating webhook dispatch.
   • Use the HTTP Executor worker for sending webhook alerts, incorporating a retry mechanism.
4. Security Implementation: Develop and integrate payload signing and verification mechanisms.
5. Testing and Validation: Establish a comprehensive test suite covering unit, integration, and end-to-end testing for the alerting functionality.
6. Documentation: Update existing documentation to include details on configuring and utilizing the new alerting feature.

Data Model Changes

• alert_configs: Table to store configurations for alerts, including conditions and webhook URLs.
• alert_logs: Table to log alert attempts and outcomes for auditing and troubleshooting.

API Endpoints

• POST /api/alerts/config: Endpoint to create or update alert configurations.
• GET /api/alerts/config/{workflowId}: Retrieve alert configurations for a specific workflow.
• POST /api/alerts/test: Endpoint to send a test alert webhook with a sample payload.

Acceptance Criteria

• Users can seamlessly configure alert conditions and webhook endpoints through the UI.
• Alert notifications are reliably dispatched within 500ms of the trigger event.
• Webhook payloads are securely signed, and their authenticity can be verified by the recipient.
• The system logs all alert dispatch attempts and outcomes for auditing and debugging purposes.
• Updated documentation is available, providing clear instructions on configuring and utilizing the alerting feature.

Dependencies

• Access to the MeshHook codebase and existing infrastructure.
• Supabase services for database interactions and secure storage.
• The current SvelteKit setup for frontend modifications.

Implementation Notes

Development Guidelines

• Adhere to MeshHook’s coding standards and commit message conventions.
• Ensure all code is modular, testable, and thoroughly documented.
• Utilize environment variables for all configuration parameters to facilitate easy adjustments.

Testing Strategy

• Unit Testing: Focus on the core logic for evaluating alert conditions and dispatching webhooks.
• Integration Testing: Ensure seamless interaction between database operations, worker processes, and webhook dispatch functionality.
• End-to-End Testing: Validate the alerting feature within the entire MeshHook ecosystem to simulate real-world usage.

Security Considerations

• Encrypt sensitive data (e.g., webhook URLs and secrets) at rest in the database.
• Use TLS for all data in transit, including API calls and webhook dispatches.
• Implement a secure, reliable method for signing and verifying webhook payloads.

Monitoring and Observability

• Implement monitoring for alert dispatch latency and success rates.
• Establish internal alerts for identifying failures within the alerting mechanism.
• Provide users with insights into alert statuses and delivery attempt outcomes.

By adhering to this PRD, MeshHook will effectively integrate a robust, configurable webhook-based alerting mechanism, enhancing the platform’s observability and operational efficiency.

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This PRD was AI-generated using gpt-4-turbo-preview from GitHub issue #172
Generated: 2025-10-10

📎 Generated Documentation

• 📄 PRD Document: 172-webhook-for-alerts.md
• 🎨 PlantUML Diagram: 172-webhook-for-alerts.puml
• 🖼️ Diagram Image: 172-webhook-for-alerts.png

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This issue body was auto-generated from the PRD. Original issue content is preserved in the PRD document.
Last updated: 2025-10-10

No implementation files or tests are named. Start by mapping the orchestrator worker, HTTP Executor worker, SvelteKit alert configuration UI, and the existing API and database patterns; then determine how alert_configs, alert_logs, and the listed alert endpoints fit together. Done means the scope, security and retry design, tests, and documentation requirements are defined before implementation begins.