# A node that can be pressed to start/stop messages flow....?
**URL:** https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164
**Category:** General
**Created:** [16 July 2025 09:22 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164 "2025-07-16T09:22:43Z")
**Posts on this page:** 15
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@dougle03](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dougle03)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 09:22 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/1 "2025-07-16T09:22:43Z")
Hi,
I spend a lot of time in NodeRed find it time consuming to manually disable a node temporally when debugging.
Is there a node that allows you to drop it into a flow and tap it to open or close the link it's on? A bit like the inject node with it's 'inject once' button press...
I've tried searching for 'switch' or 'pause' but not coming up with anything.
Any ideas? Ta
---
### Author:  [@hardillb](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/hardillb)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 10:04 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/2 "2025-07-16T10:04:59Z")
No, but you can do it with switch node and have it route based on a context variable that can be toggled with 2 inject nodes and a change node.
```flows
[
{
"id": "cceba20d74756a69",
"type": "switch",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "flow.tap",
"property": "tap",
"propertyType": "flow",
"rules": [
{
"t": "true"
}
],
"checkall": "true",
"repair": false,
"outputs": 1,
"x": 460,
"y": 740,
"wires": [
[
"1f4583f12a69ac9c"
]
]
},
{
"id": "ae2e908b5fd530f3",
"type": "inject",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "",
"props": [
{
"p": "payload"
},
{
"p": "topic",
"vt": "str"
}
],
"repeat": "",
"crontab": "",
"once": false,
"onceDelay": 0.1,
"topic": "",
"payload": "true",
"payloadType": "bool",
"x": 330,
"y": 620,
"wires": [
[
"41b5cc5087da24d2"
]
]
},
{
"id": "97b0c1500d7ea79c",
"type": "inject",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "",
"props": [
{
"p": "payload"
},
{
"p": "topic",
"vt": "str"
}
],
"repeat": "",
"crontab": "",
"once": false,
"onceDelay": 0.1,
"topic": "",
"payload": "false",
"payloadType": "bool",
"x": 330,
"y": 660,
"wires": [
[
"41b5cc5087da24d2"
]
]
},
{
"id": "41b5cc5087da24d2",
"type": "change",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "",
"rules": [
{
"t": "set",
"p": "tap",
"pt": "flow",
"to": "payload",
"tot": "msg"
}
],
"action": "",
"property": "",
"from": "",
"to": "",
"reg": false,
"x": 490,
"y": 640,
"wires": [
[]
]
},
{
"id": "631c7ed8fd16575b",
"type": "inject",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "",
"props": [
{
"p": "payload"
},
{
"p": "topic",
"vt": "str"
}
],
"repeat": "",
"crontab": "",
"once": false,
"onceDelay": 0.1,
"topic": "",
"payload": "",
"payloadType": "date",
"x": 300,
"y": 740,
"wires": [
[
"cceba20d74756a69"
]
]
},
{
"id": "1f4583f12a69ac9c",
"type": "debug",
"z": "333c7c68.2b3d34",
"name": "debug 34",
"active": true,
"tosidebar": true,
"console": false,
"tostatus": false,
"complete": "false",
"statusVal": "",
"statusType": "auto",
"x": 620,
"y": 740,
"wires": []
}
]
```
---
### Author:  [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 10:21 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/3 "2025-07-16T10:21:55Z")
You can disable a node via the (right click) context menu.
Right click | Show action list | Disable selected nodes.
Unfortunately there is no keyboard shortcut for this action and I don't think you can specify your own, so it's no easier than using the node config dialog.
---
### Author:  [@Steve-Mcl](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Steve-Mcl)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 10:50 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/4 "2025-07-16T10:50:09Z")
> [@jbudd](#):
>
> Unfortunately there is no keyboard shortcut for this action
There is no default, but you can bind your own
---
### Author:  [@jbudd](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/jbudd)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:07 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/5 "2025-07-16T11:07:40Z")
Ah yes, thanks. I tried that but nothing happened.
Turns out you have to press the tick button.
So as an experiment I defined shortcuts
- alt-d = disable selected nodes (was browser URL box recent searches dropdown )
- alt-e = enable selected nodes (was browser edit menu)
Now I can click a node to select it then alt-d to disable it.
đź‘Ť
---
### Author:  [@kuema](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/kuema)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:29 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/6 "2025-07-16T11:29:04Z")
I can recommend `ctrl-shift-e` and `ctrl-shift-d`.
I've been using those for ages without any clashes with other shortcuts in both Firefox and Chrome.
---
### Author:  [@dougle03](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dougle03)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:42 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/7 "2025-07-16T11:42:31Z")
Thanks for all the responses, does anyone with the skills fancy writing a node to do this? is it even possible...?
Thanks
---
### Author:  [@dougle03](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dougle03)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:44 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/8 "2025-07-16T11:44:33Z")
Thanks, I did think about the 'switch' node, but that would be even more time spent setting it up, especially where I might want a dozen or so switches...
Shame there isn't a simple node to drop onto a line?
P
---
### Author:  [@Paul-Reed](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Paul-Reed)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:47 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/9 "2025-07-16T11:47:27Z")
Try a 'gate' node, something like node-red-contrib-flowgate seems to fit your requirements, as it's just one node that is dropped into your flow, written by @gmag11
(I don't have a use, so haven't used it)
> **[node-red-contrib-flowgate](https://flows.nodered.org/node/node-red-contrib-flowgate)**
>
> A Node-RED node that allows messages to pass through based on a toggle button.
---
### Author:  [@dougle03](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/dougle03)
#### Post date: [16 July 2025 11:58 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/10 "2025-07-16T11:58:14Z")
Perfect! Many thanks...
---
### Author:  [@Mrb32](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Mrb32)
#### Post date: [18 July 2025 09:02 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/11 "2025-07-18T09:02:30Z")
I have been using this gate node to trigger events from my application. It has many queuing and triage options which I use to trigger events on demand from buttons on the dashboard. Pretty neat...
> **[node-red-contrib-queue-gate](https://flows.nodered.org/node/node-red-contrib-queue-gate)**
>
> A gate node (with queueing) for node-RED
---
### Author:  [@no\_mpimpi](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/no_mpimpi)
#### Post date: [21 July 2025 16:47 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/12 "2025-07-21T16:47:13Z")
Hi @Mrb32,
If you wouldn't mind, could you post a little piece of what you use it for? Your use case sounds fascinating, and I would like to understand it better.
---
### Author:  [@Mrb32](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Mrb32)
#### Post date: [21 July 2025 21:25 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/14 "2025-07-21T21:25:44Z")
Pretty simple...
I use tasmota ESP8266 devices and nodered to control my model railway.
In the simplest use case, q-gates each hold a payload containing a list (array) of devices and commands corresponding to a route trains should follow.
A dashboard button is used to open the gate (either flush or peek), the payload is then processed by a flow that will send distinct messages to each device, setting turnouts and/or signals in the process.
The original payload is then sent back to, or retained by, the gate, so that it is ready for the next time I need it.
There are a couple of more complex uses but the post would turn into war and peace...
May be not so fascinating after all...
Cheers.
---
### Author:  [@no\_mpimpi](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/no_mpimpi)
#### Post date: [22 July 2025 03:43 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/15 "2025-07-22T03:43:57Z")
Hi @Mrb32,
Thank you for that description. Super interesting to me, because you're describing something I haven't done, nor had really considered doing.
From my not-having-used-this-yet postion, what you've described seems to me to be a very dynamic way of (essentially) scripting complex events. The idea seems a bit like the "scenes" concept in home automation: given x input, do all of these things with all of these otherwise tangentially related systems.
You use it for model railways (which is a cool use case). I might use it to trigger events in an irrigation system for a small farm.
I thank you. You've given me a lot to think about, which is always the best bit.
Cheers.
---
### Author:  [@Mrb32](https://discourse.nodered.org/u/Mrb32)
#### Post date: [22 July 2025 09:14 UTC](https://discourse.nodered.org/t/a-node-that-can-be-pressed-to-start-stop-messages-flow/98164/16 "2025-07-22T09:14:06Z")
If you fancy seeing the railways in action, you can have a look at my youtube channel. I don't go into the nodered aspect much, but every movement (start/stop, diversion, other automatism...) is done using nodered and tasmota.
Here is a link to the latest video:
[ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-68XuxrF1eM)