Understanding Service States

FlowLayer reports service state through snapshot and runtime events.

Confirmed state values

• starting
• running
• ready
• stopping
• failed
• stopped
• unknown

Practical interpretation

• starting: process launch is in progress
• running: process exists, readiness may still be pending
• ready: readiness gate passed (or no gate required)
• failed: start or runtime failure was observed
• stopping / stopped: shutdown path in progress or completed
• unknown: no runtime state recorded yet

Why this matters

running is not always equivalent to "safe for dependencies".

When readiness is configured, dependents should rely on ready, not just process existence.

Operational use

• spot startup bottlenecks before they cascade
• distinguish bad readiness checks from hard process crashes
• align team discussion on observable states instead of assumptions

Reference: Services and Readiness.