# What are events?
Events trigger workflow executions. The event that triggers your workflow depends on the trigger you select for your workflow:
HTTP triggers execute your workflow on HTTP requests.
Cron triggers execute your workflow on a time schedule (e.g., on an interval).
Email triggers execute your workflow on inbound emails.
# Event format
When you send an event to your workflow, we take the trigger data — for example, the HTTP payload, headers, etc. — and add our own Pipedream metadata to it.
For all trigger types, this data is exposed as a JavaScript object you can reference in the rest of your workflow, using either of two variables:
eventsteps.trigger.event
When you click on an event in the Inspector, we show you the contents of steps.trigger.event directly under your trigger step.
You can reference your event data in any code or action step. See those docs or the general docs on passing data between steps for more information.
The specific shape of event varies with the trigger type:
# HTTP
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
body | A string or object representation of the HTTP payload |
client_ip | IP address of the client that made the request |
headers | HTTP headers, represented as an object |
inferred_body_type | For example, JSON |
method | HTTP method |
url | Request host + path |
# Cron Scheduler
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
timer_config | String representation of the schedule |
timestamp | The epoch timestamp when the workflow ran |
We use Amazon SES to receive emails for the email trigger. You can find the shape of the event in the SES docs.
# raw_event
In addition to the formatted object we expose in event, you have access to the raw, protocol-specific data from the event, as well.
You can access this data in steps.trigger.raw_event. The contents also vary with the trigger type:
- HTTP : scheme, URI, and base64-encoded raw payload.
- Cron Scheduler : same as
event. - Email : same as
event.
# Event observability
Pipedream provides observability for the event that triggered your workflow, including into the trigger event and step-level workflow execution. Just select an event from the inspector to view its contents.
← Params Inspect Events →