DynamoDB Delete

Permanently removes an item by primary key. Used for session revocation, token expiry cleanup, and workflow termination.

Inputs

payload.key object

Full primary key object — overrides all config key fields. Example: { id: "workflow-123", sk: "session" }

payload.tableName string

Overrides the Table Name set in the node config.

payload.conditionExpression string

Only delete if this condition is true. If false, output 2 fires with Condition Failed error type.

payload.expressionAttributeNames object

Attribute name aliases for condition expressions.

payload.expressionAttributeValues object

Attribute value aliases for condition expressions.

Outputs

Output 1 — Success

payload.success boolean

true on successful deletion (including when item did not exist).

payload.deletedItem object | null

The item that was deleted, or null. Only populated when Return deleted item is checked.

payload.tableName string

The table from which the item was deleted.

Output 2 — Error

payload.errorType string

Human-readable error category (e.g. Condition Failed, Table Not Found).

payload.solution string

Suggested fix for the error.

How to Use

1. Select an AWS config node and enter the Table Name.
2. Set the Partition Key name and value — and the Sort Key if your table requires one.
3. Enable Return deleted item if you need to capture the data before it is removed (e.g. for an audit log).
4. Wire Output 2 to an error handler — delete failures (wrong table, auth errors) go there.

Idempotency

Deleting an item that does not exist is not an error — DynamoDB returns success silently, and msg.payload.deletedItem will be null. This makes it safe to delete without first checking if the item exists.

Examples

Remove a revoked session when a patient logs out, and capture the deleted record for audit:

// Config: Partition Key Name = id, Sort Key Name = sk
// Return deleted item: ✓ checked

// Runtime override:
msg.payload = {
  key: { id: "workflow-123", sk: "session" }
};

// Output 1:
msg.payload = {
  success: true,
  deletedItem: {
    id: "workflow-123",
    sk: "session",
    patientId: "P001",
    startedAt: 1714000000
  }
}

Best Practices

• Enable Return deleted item for audit-sensitive operations — once deleted, the data is gone.
• Use conditionExpression with attribute_exists(id) if you want to distinguish "item existed and was deleted" from "item did not exist".
• For bulk deletion, use DynamoDB Batch (BatchWrite with deletes array) — it is faster and uses fewer API calls.
• Wire Output 2 even if you do not expect errors — accidental deletes of wrong items (misconfigured key) will surface there.