Error while updating Workflow Scheme 500 "Cannot acquire workflow lock"

[gopal guna]

Hi team,

I'm facing an issue when trying to update an existing workflow scheme via the REST API.

PUT https://api.atlassian.com/ex/jira/{cloudID}/rest/api/3/workflowscheme/{schemeId}

The request body is the standard workflow scheme update payload (including "updateDraftIfNeeded": true).

However, the API intermittently fails and returns the following error:

UpdateWorkflowScheme API failed. Error code [500], response:
{"message":"Cannot acquire workflow lock. There is a currently running workflow task: 1eb4c55f-c47d-49e5-a2a1-66ba647879b3","status-code":500,"stack-trace":""}

Observations

• When I retry the same API request manually using Postman, it works fine.

• It appears to fail only during automation when multiple workflow schemes are restored sequentially.

• The target site looks like it's publishing workflow changes in the background when this error occurs.

What I need to understand

• Why does Jira return workflow lock / running workflow task during a normal workflow scheme update?

• What is the correct way to handle this issue, so the update succeeds reliably?

Any guidance or best practice on how to avoid this lock error — or how to handle it properly would be really helpful.

Thank you,
Gopalakrishnan G

[Marc -Devoteam-]

Hi @gopal guna 

This indicates a problem with the workflow configuration or permissions.

Causes

• Workflow: workflow is not properly associated with the issue type, it can lead to access issues. Ensure that the workflow is linked to the correct issue type in the project settings.
• Permissions: Check if the user has the necessary permissions to access the workflow. Check the workflow for restrictions certain roles or groups, users outside these groups will face lock issues.
• Database: The error may stem from underlying database problems. In such cases, it may require direct database intervention then raise a support issue

Verify Workflow:

• Go to the project settings, check if the workflow is correctly associated with the work type.

Check Permissions:

• Review project permissions, ensure users have access to the workflow.