Troubleshooting Automation Policies: Resolving Email Delivery and Data Content Issues

Products

• IT Management Suite

Issue/Introduction

You may have received report that automation policies configured to send emails (with report data, query results, or task outputs) are not working as expected. Common symptoms include:

• Emails are not received
• Emails are missing expected data
• Policies run successfully but no notification is sent
• Email contains incomplete or empty data
• Intermittent or delayed delivery

Automation Policies in ITMS allow administrators to automate responses to database events. Issues typically stem from three areas:

1. Evaluation Failures: The SQL query returns no results or fails to run.

2. Configuration Errors: Incorrect SMTP settings or "Max Row" limits.

3. Data Integrity: Tokens not resolving correctly within the email body.

This guide helps identify why a policy isn't triggering or why the email output isn't meeting expectations.

Environment

ITMS 8.7.x, 8.8.x

Cause

Automation policies in IT Management Suite (ITMS) rely on multiple interconnected components:

• Symantec Management Platform (SMP Server or Notification Server (NS)) processing
• Policy execution and scheduling
• SMTP configuration
• Report/query data generation
• Security context and permissions

Most Common Root Causes

Category	Description
SMTP Configuration	Incorrect SMTP server, port, authentication, or sender settings. SMP Server cannot reach the mail server or lacks permissions.
No Data Returned	Report/query used in email has no results at runtime. SQL Query Logic: The data class being queried hasn't been updated by the agent, resulting in empty sets.
Policy Misconfiguration	Incorrect schedule, targeting, or conditions.
Permissions Issue	Policy runs under a context without access to data.
Task Execution Failure	Automation policy runs but underlying task fails silently.
Workflow / Queue Delay	Notification processing backlog or delays.
Invalid Tokens / Variables	Email template variables not resolving correctly. Using illegal characters or incorrect syntax in email tokens (e.g., %results%).

Resolution

Table of Contents

• 1. Initial Diagnostics 
• 2. Troubleshooting Workflow
  • Step A: Validate the Automation Policy Setup
  • Step B: Fix Email Token / Data Issues
  • Step C: Verify the “Max Rows” Limit
  • Step D: Review Logs (Critical Step)
  • Step E: Validate SMTP Configuration
  • Step F: Validate Data Source Behavior
  • Step G: Validate Permissions / Security Context
  • Step H: Check Scheduling & Timing
  • Step I: Task / Backend Execution Validation
• 3. Validation Steps (Post-Fix)
• Troubleshooting Summary Table
• Key Takeaways 
• Best Practices

1. Initial Diagnostics 

Before changing configurations, confirm whether the policy is actually generating data and attempting to send email.

Diagnostic Step	Command / Path	Expected Output
Check SQL Results	Copy SQL query from policy → Run in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)	Results should return. If 0 rows, email will not trigger
Verify SMP Logs	C:\ProgramData\Symantec\SMP\Logs\aXX.log	Look for Automation Policy Execution Task, SMTP, or Mail entries
Test SMTP	Settings > All Settings > Notification Server > Server Settings > Email	“Send Test Email” should arrive successfully

Tip: Many “email failures” are actually data issues (no results = no email).

2. Troubleshooting Workflow

Step A: Validate the Automation Policy Setup

Path:
Manage > Automation Policies

1. Navigate to the failing policy
2. Confirm the policy is Enabled
3. Review if there is a Schedule under Trigger type
4. Review Data Source:
   • If using Raw SQL Query → validate syntax and output
   • If using Report → ensure report runs successfully in console
5. Review Conditions tab:
   • If “Run for each row” is enabled → email/action triggers per result row
6. Verify the proper Actions has been selected, like Send automation policy e-mail task

Step B: Fix Email Token / Data Issues

Scenario: Email arrives but data is missing or incorrect

Path:
Automation Policy > Actions > Edit Input Parameter

Key Checks:

Token	Description	Requirement
%results%	Displays full result table	Works for all queries
%[ColumnName]%	Displays specific column value	Requires “Run for each row” under Conditions > Evaluation Rule dropdown setting

Common Issues:

• Incorrect token syntax
• Column name mismatch
• Special characters in SQL aliases

Tip: Avoid special characters (e.g., spaces, symbols) in SQL column aliases.

See more details under:
Automation Policy Emails are Received Blank or Missing Report Data

Step C: Verify the “Max Rows” Limit

Scenario: Email is received but data is truncated when a Report is used

1. Open the actual desired Report
2. Review if it is truncating the Row count
3. Increase limit if needed. See SMP report results are restricted to 50,000 rows

 

Step D: Review Logs (Critical Step)

Location:

C:\ProgramData\Symantec\SMP\Logs\

 

Key Log Files:

• a*.log

Key Log Entries:

Check if there are any errors related to the Automation Policy process in the NS logs. You should see something similar to this when the Automation Policy is triggered:

Operation started: Executing automation policy ('Automation Policy name' (c4ca1bf0-3f8e-4048-9cf1-6ff566b6ff90)) ...
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 4/21/2026 6:22:35 AM, Tick Count: 1032576750 (11.22:49:36.7500000), Size: 331 B
Process: w3wp (13628), Thread ID: 272, Module: Altiris.Automation.dll
Priority: 4, Source: AutomationPolicy

and something like this when it is done:

Operation completed: Executing automation policy ('Automation Policy name' (c4ca1bf0-3f8e-4048-9cf1-6ff566b6ff90)), data loaded=True, total time=0:00:00.01
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: 4/21/2026 6:22:35 AM, Tick Count: 1032576765 (11.22:49:36.7650000), Size: 370 B
Process: w3wp (13628), Thread ID: 272, Module: Altiris.Automation.dll
Priority: 4, Source: AutomationPolicy

Common Log Entries

Log Entry	Meaning
Failed to send email	SMTP/authentication issue
AutomationPolicy.ExecutionJob	Policy execution in progress
SMTP send failed	SMTP connectivity issue
Task failed	Underlying execution issue

Tip: Always correlate timestamp with policy run time.

Step E: Validate SMTP Configuration

Path:
Settings > All Settings > Notification Server > Notification Server Settings > E-mail tab > SMTP Server Settings

Checklist:

1. SMTP server name and port correct
2. Authentication credentials valid
3. Sender email configured properly
4. Test email succeeds

Step F: Validate Data Source Behavior

1. Run report/query manually
2. Confirm:
   • Data exists
   • No SQL errors
3. Compare:
   • Manual run vs policy execution

Step G: Validate Permissions / Security Context

Common Issue:

Policy runs under a context that cannot access SQL data

Steps:

1. Identify execution context (service account / user)
2. Validate SQL permissions
3. Test using admin credentials

Step H: Check Scheduling & Timing

Common Scenario:

• Data available at 2:00 AM
• Policy runs at 1:55 AM → no results → no email

Fix:

• Adjust policy schedule to align with data availability

Step I: Task / Backend Execution Validation

If policy triggers tasks:

1. Check task status
2. Confirm successful completion
3. Review Task Server logs (agent*.log on the Task Server itself)

3. Validation Steps (Post-Fix)

After applying fixes:

1. Run automation policy manually
2. Confirm:
   • Email is received
   • Data is included correctly
3. Review logs for clean execution
4. Validate repeat execution (scheduled run)

---

Troubleshooting Summary Table

Area	What to Validate	Expected Result
SQL Query	Returns data	Rows present
SMTP	Test email works	Email received
Policy	Runs successfully	Execution timestamp updates
Tokens	Resolve correctly	Data visible in email
Logs	No errors	Clean execution
Max Rows	Not limiting data	Full dataset included
Permissions	Access to data	No SQL errors
Schedule	Aligned timing	Data available at runtime

---

Key Takeaways 

• Start with data, not email → No data = no email
• Logs are your best evidence → Always check them early
• Token issues are common → Validate carefully
• Timing matters → Align policy with data generation
• Permissions often overlooked → Always verify context

---

Best Practices

• Always test reports independently before linking to email
• Use simple email templates during troubleshooting
• Align schedules with data generation
• Monitor logs proactively
• Use dedicated service accounts with proper permissions

Additional Information

Automation Policy Emails are Received Blank or Missing Report Data

Automation policy based on a report does not appear to run or Send emails (KB 152251)

Automation Policies fail to send emails or run tasks (KB 179645)

Automation Policy is not sending email after the upgrade to ITMS 8.x (KB 219364)

E-mail sent by Automation Policy doesn't show the computer name when using a specific data class (KB 220245)

Automation Policy emails contain raw SQL or incorrect data tokens (KB 162988)

How to troubleshoot Automation Policies that are not triggering (KB 178955)

Emails sent from Automation Policies are missing results or truncated (KB 184828)

Using the "Run for each row" option in Automation Policies (KB 152014)

Automation Policy schedule behavior and troubleshooting (KB 181792)

Identifying SMTP communication errors in Notification Server logs (KB 178901)

Best practices for creating SQL-based Automation Policies (KB 230779)

Send an E-mail with an Inline Report Using an Automation Policy