How to configure screen flow for inflights

General
1

I’m working on a screen flow with 5 assignments. Since it’s a screen flow, users can normally move back and forth between assignments, except for the first assignment where the “Previous” option will not be available we only get “save for later” or “Next” as this is first screen.

Recently, the client requested to move the 4th assignment to the 1st position. After making this change, the 4th assignment is now my first screen.

However, I’m facing an issue with in-flight cases. When I open an existing case, I can only navigate up to the 2nd screen. After that, I’m unable to move back to the previous screen because the “Previous” option is not available on the 2nd assignment (which was originally the first assignment).

So , due to this reordering, the backward navigation is breaking for in-flight cases(cant move to the assigmnet which i brought to 1st position).

2

Hey!

This is a classic screen flow + in-flight case versioning issue—you ran into one of the biggest gotchas in Pega when reordering assignments.

The problem is screen flows maintain navigation state based on the original flow structure For in-flight cases, Pega does not rebuild the screen flow navigation history. It simply resumes from where the case is, using the new flow definition resulting in your original step 1 still behaving like “first assignment.” In short, screen flow navigation is tightly coupled to how the case entered the flow—not just current order

Recommended Solutions (ranked by best practice)

Option 1: Versioning + Migration (Best Practice)

Do NOT reorder assignments in-place for screen flows

Instead:

  1. Save As a new flow version
  2. Apply updates to the new version
  3. Handle in-flight cases separately:
    • Let them finish on old version
    • OR migrate them deliberately

:backhand_index_pointing_right: Why this works:

  • Screen flow navigation remains consistent per case
  • Avoids broken navigation paths

Option 2: Restart / Rebase the Flow for In-Flight Cases

For cases already in-flight:

  • Use a utility or activity to:
    • Re-open or re-route the assignment
    • OR restart the screen flow at the correct step

Examples:

  • pxRestartStage
  • Re-route to first assignment explicitly

:backhand_index_pointing_right: This forces Pega to rebuild navigation properly

Option 3: Add Defensive Navigation Logic (Quick Fix)

If you must support in-flight cases:

  • Add a custom “Back” button using:
    • a local action
    • flow action → route to specific previous step

:backhand_index_pointing_right: This bypasses screen flow’s built-in navigation

:warning: Caveat:

  • More manual logic
  • Not ideal long-term

Option 4: Avoid Reordering — Use Conditional Visibility Instead

Instead of moving step 4 → step 1:

  • Keep original order
  • Add a When condition / skip logic
    • Show your “new first assignment” early
    • Skip others when needed

:backhand_index_pointing_right: Safer because:

  • Doesn’t break navigation history
  • Works cleanly for in-flight cases