# Disable form action in a custom action

**URL:** <https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215>\
**Category:** Rasa Open Source\
**Created:** [July 20, 2019, 11:41am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215 "2019-07-20T11:41:24Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 11\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![enzechua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ad7895/32.png) [@enzechua](https://forum.rasa.com/u/enzechua)\
**Post date:** [July 20, 2019, 11:41am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/1 "2019-07-20T11:41:24Z")

</div>

Hello, how do I disable the current active form action through a custom action?

Background: I have a form action that has 4 slots. When the user is replying to one of the ask\_slots, he suddenly turns idle. For every validate\_slot, I would return a ReminderScheduler to check if the user is inactive for a period of time. When the action gets trigger, I would want to `deactive the current form` and proceed to ask the user if he wants to continue or not. The user would then replies either Yes or No.

For this to work, I guess I have to disable the current active form so that the user replies would not affect the slot. I have tested this out without having a form and it works. But with form action, the story would still always be in the `happy path 1` and not go to `user inactive` although action\_inactive is being triggered.

Conversation:  
User: Hi  
Bot: Hi, what drink would you like to order?  
User: (inactive for 5min)  
Bot: Do you want to continue?  
User: No  
Bot: Thanks for using the service we hope to see you again.

```auto
## happy path 1
* greet
- restaurant_form
- form{"name" : "restaurant_form"}
- form{"name": null}

## user inactive
- action_inactive
* deny
- utter_noted
- action_restart

```

\*UPDATE,

```auto
class ActionInactivityScheduler(Action):
    def name(self):
        return "action_inactivity_scheduler"

    def run(self, dispatcher, tracker, domain):
        dispatcher.utter_message("Do you want to continue?")
        return [Form(None), SlotSet("requested_slot", None)]

```

I saw the return from forms.deactivate, not sure if I am able to use it for my custom action or not.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![erohmensing](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/erohmensing/32/1789_2.png) [@erohmensing](https://forum.rasa.com/u/erohmensing)\
**Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 10:46am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/2 "2019-07-22T10:46:31Z")

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You might be interested in how we handle this in our demobot – we don’t actually deactivate the form before we ask the user if they want to continue. example story here: [rasa-demo/closetheloop.md at master · RasaHQ/rasa-demo · GitHub](https://github.com/RasaHQ/rasa-demo/blob/master/data/core/closetheloop.md#story-number-11-continue)

Forms have a certain breakaway functionality where if the form gets unexpected input, other policies will handle the action. So in our subscribe newsletter form, out slot mapping look like

```auto
    def slot_mappings(self):
        return {
            "email": [
                self.from_entity(entity="email"),
                self.from_text(intent="enter_data"),
            ]
        }

```

which means that it will continue with validation if we get an email entity or we get the enter\_data intent. If we get something unexpected, like the intent deny, our stories say that we should do the `utter_ask_continue_newsletter` stuff – and then if they say yes then we call the `subscribe_newsletter_form` action again, and if not, we deactivate the form (these are the two separate story 11s)

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![enzechua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ad7895/32.png) [@enzechua](https://forum.rasa.com/u/enzechua)\
**Post date:** [July 22, 2019, 12:14pm UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/3 "2019-07-22T12:14:06Z")

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Hey @erohmensing thanks for the help once again. Yes so this means that you only deactivate it base on the user unexpected reply. However what I am trying to achieve is a timeout when the user is half way in the form and he just leave. So I would go by this stories.

```auto
* greet
- BookingForm
- ViewForm

```

For every slot that is in the form, under the validation method I return the value and a ReminderSchedule that would trigger if user in inactive for 10sec(testing).

```auto
    def validate(self, dispatcher, tracker, domain):
        # extract other slots that were not requested
        # but set by corresponding entity or trigger intent mapping
        slot_values = self.extract_other_slots(dispatcher, tracker, domain)
        # extract requested slot
        slot_to_fill = tracker.get_slot('requested_slot')
        if slot_to_fill:
            slot_values.update(self.extract_requested_slot(dispatcher, tracker, domain))

        self.validate_slots(slot_values, dispatcher, tracker, domain)
        result = []
        for slot, value in slot_values.items():
            result.append(SlotSet(slot, value))

        result.append(ReminderScheduled(action_name="action_inactivity_scheduler",
                                        trigger_date_time=datetime.datetime.now()
                                        + datetime.timedelta(seconds=60),
                                        kill_on_user_message=True))
        return result

```

\*I am editing the post cause I just realise that the suggestion you gave me was the answer! So this means like upon triggering the ReminderScheduled, I could send an unexpected intent to the bot and the story would then ask the user if he or she would want to continue am I right to say so ? haha.

I think this might work just fine! But thinking ahead, since I have 2 forms with 4 slots each, I would have this ReminderScheduled for every slot. So that at any point of time when the user is inactive, it will trigger the inactivity story like this:

```auto
## inactive and don't want to continue
- action_inactivity_scheduler
* deny
- action_deactivate_form
- form {"name" : null }

```

However, if the user wants to continue, how do I call the current active form action in the story?

```auto
## inactive and wants to continue
* affirm
- form that was active

```

Sorry for being so long winded, was thinking I should provide as much information and question if I needed any help haha.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![erohmensing](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/erohmensing/32/1789_2.png) [@erohmensing](https://forum.rasa.com/u/erohmensing)\
**Post date:** [July 24, 2019, 7:17am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/4 "2019-07-24T07:17:18Z")

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This is really interesting, I don’t know if I’ve seen anyone implement a form timeout before. Super cool that you got it working! I think you’re correct, you could try returning a UserUttered event in the case of a time out (I _believe_ you can send these from the ask but will have to check, in any case you can send the actual curl request. I would send some sort of /timeout intent payload that you then handle in your stories i.e. timeout leads to the utter\_ask\_continue.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![enzechua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ad7895/32.png) [@enzechua](https://forum.rasa.com/u/enzechua)\
**Post date:** [July 25, 2019, 9:15am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/5 "2019-07-25T09:15:50Z")

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Hahaha yes that’s what I plan to do but i don’t have payload for wechat(sadly) so no buttons… Just a quick question, I slot map my stuffs:

```auto
def slot_mappings(self):
        return {
            "email": [
                self.from_text(not_intent="stop"),
            ]
        }

```

When I call /stop upon having email slot uttering me the question, it did not stop. It was still in the slot.

```auto
## Story stop
* greet
- email_form
- form{"name": email_form}
* stop
- action_deactivate_form
- form{"name": null}
- utter_goodbye

```

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![erohmensing](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/erohmensing/32/1789_2.png) [@erohmensing](https://forum.rasa.com/u/erohmensing)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 11:15am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/6 "2019-07-29T11:15:11Z")

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Ah, is the issue that it correctly left the form, but the email slot still filled? Or that it didn’t leave the form correctly?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![enzechua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ad7895/32.png) [@enzechua](https://forum.rasa.com/u/enzechua)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 12:59pm UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/7 "2019-07-29T12:59:10Z")

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Hmm not very sure. Feel is something to do with policies! When my policies had augmentation 50, it seems to work. When i change it to 0 because I want the bot to follow closely to my story, it seems to not work at all. hmm

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![erohmensing](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/erohmensing/32/1789_2.png) [@erohmensing](https://forum.rasa.com/u/erohmensing)\
**Post date:** [July 29, 2019, 6:45pm UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/8 "2019-07-29T18:45:35Z")

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> Ah, is the issue that it correctly left the form, but the email slot still filled? Or that it didn’t leave the form correctly?

I just mean which one is the problem you’re experiencing? 😄Also can you share your config then?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![enzechua](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ad7895/32.png) [@enzechua](https://forum.rasa.com/u/enzechua)\
**Post date:** [July 31, 2019, 3:51am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/9 "2019-07-31T03:51:51Z")

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Hello sorry for late reply, it didn’t leave the form correctly !

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![erohmensing](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/erohmensing/32/1789_2.png) [@erohmensing](https://forum.rasa.com/u/erohmensing)\
**Post date:** [August 2, 2019, 11:39am UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/10 "2019-08-02T11:39:26Z")

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Strange. Can you post `--debug` logs from both the rasa server and action server when that occurs?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![heoheoheovt31](https://dub1.discourse-cdn.com/flex013/user_avatar/forum.rasa.com/heoheoheovt31/32/12489_2.png) [@heoheoheovt31](https://forum.rasa.com/u/heoheoheovt31)\
**Post date:** [May 7, 2021, 12:24pm UTC](https://forum.rasa.com/t/disable-form-action-in-a-custom-action/13215/11 "2021-05-07T12:24:37Z")

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hello @enzechua , did you solve it?