Setting up a workflow proxy account in Project Server 2013

By blurg64

I’ve had a few comments through the blog on setting up a workflow proxy account in Project Server 2013, so I thought I would post something to take you through how to configure this.

The Workflow Proxy in Project Server 2013 is important if you intend to use the classic workflow engine (not Workflow Manager ) and will be the account that makes the PSI calls associated with the workflow. The account should be set up as part of your Project Server installation and is specified in the Plan for administrative and service accounts in Project Server 2013 documentation.

Products such as NW4PS, leverage the classic workflow engine,  so if this account is not set up correctly when the workflow calls the PSI it will fail with an error like in the screenshot below.

WorkflowWorkflowProxyAccountNotFound

Luckily the solution is pretty easy, however, unlike Project Server 2010, where the option was under Server Settings > Project Workflow Settings, in Project Server 2013, the option has moved into Central Administration and is probably the main contributing factor to this being overlooked.

To configure the account, navigate to Central Administration and choose General Application Settings from the left hand menu

Manage PWA Settings

Click on Manage under PWA Settings and you will be taken to the management screen for the PWA instance (if there are more than one instance, you can choose which one in the top right hand corner.

Project Workflow Settings

On the Settings screen, choose Project Workflow Settings, you will then be presented with the option to enter the Workflow Proxy Account.

Configure the Workflow Proxy Account

All that’s remaining is to enter the account you’ve already set up for the workflow proxy in the correct format (don’t forget to use a claims format account if that’s how you’ve set up your Project Server farm).