---
title: Resumability
description: "Runs are resumable by returning Task stored data"
---

[Runs](/documentation/concepts/runs) can exceed the maximum timeout on serverless platforms and can survive server restarts.

## How does this work?

1. When a Run is created, it is given a unique ID. This ID is used to identify the Run.
2. [Tasks](/documentation/concepts/tasks) have a `key` which is a string and is the first parameter. This should be stable and unique inside that `run` function.
3. When a Task is completed, its output is stored.
4. If a Run exceeds the timeout, or your server restarts, the Run will be "replayed".
5. The second+ time it is run, Tasks that have already successfully completed will immediately return their first output. The code inside them won't re-run.

## How to use keys

Like we mentioned above, we use Task keys to determine which Tasks have already been executed. They are defined by you inside your `run` function, for example when you call `io.slack.postMessage`:

```ts
await io.slack.postMessage("⭐️ New Star", {
  channel: "C04GWUTDC3W",
  text: `@${starredBy} just starred ${repoName}!`,
});
```

In this example, the key is the string `"⭐️ New Star"`. This means that if the Job is interrupted and then resumed, the `slack.postMessage` Task will be skipped because it has already been executed.

If you make multiple calls to `slack.postMessage`, you should use different keys for each call. For example:

```ts
await io.slack.postMessage("⭐️ New Star", {
  channel: "C04GWUTDC3W",
  text: `@${starredBy} just starred ${repoName}!`,
});

await io.slack.postMessage("🚨 Critical Issue", {
  channel: "C04GWUTDC3W",
  text: `@${assignee} just opened a critical issue in ${repoName}!`,
});
```

If you are calling a Task multiple times with the same key, it will only be executed once. For example, if you call `slack.postMessage` with the key `"⭐️ New Star"` twice, it will only be executed once.

## How to use keys with loops

If you are using a loop, you should use the loop index as the key. For example:

```ts
for (let i = 0; i < 10; i++) {
  await ctx.waitFor(`Wait ${i}`, { seconds: 30 });

  await slack.postMessage(`⭐️ New Star ${i}`, {
    channelName: "github-stars",
    text: `@${starredBy} just starred ${repoName}!`,
  });
}
```
