What is a Counter in Controlled Flow?

A counter is a control mechanism that prevents Controlled Flow from getting stuck in an infinite loop when requesting the same information from the user repeatedly.

Why Is a Counter Necessary?

Let's analyze an example:

Imagine Controlled Flow needs the user's email address to verify if they are already a customer in your internal database.

1. Controlled Flow asks for the email.

2. The user provides an invalid email.

3. Controlled Flow asks again.

4. The user provides another invalid email.

5. This continues indefinitely.

Without a counter, Controlled Flow would keep asking forever, creating an infinite loop.

A counter prevents this situation.

How to Set Up a Counter in Controlled Flow

Flow Description

The AI asks the user to enter a number between 1 and 10.

• If the user provides a valid number → the flow continues normally.

• If the user provides a number outside this range → the same question is repeated.

Without a limit, this situation can also lead to an infinite loop.

Let's fix this.

Proper Structure for Counters

Logic Behind Counters

A counter is simply a variable that starts at 0.

Each time the user:

• Does not meet the requirements,

• Cannot be found in the database,

• Or for any other reason we might have,

We add +1 to the counter and ask the question again.

In the “Invalid Number” session of the flow, there is a filter that checks the counter value (which represents how many times the question has been asked).

If the counter exceeds the defined limit (for example, 3 attempts), the bot stops asking the question and directs the conversation to a human response or another fallback action.

This prevents infinite loops and ensures a better experience for the user.