More workflow administration

What you'll learn#

• How to assign an existing workflow to a document type
• How to copy an existing workflow as the starting point for a new one
• How to edit and tune an existing task (beyond the basics covered in Creating approval workflows)
• How to attach per-task fields that approvers fill in during their step

Overview#

Creating approval workflows covered the first-time setup — making a workflow, adding tasks, and assigning to a document type as part of creation. This article covers what comes after: connecting existing workflows to new document types, cloning workflows for variants, and dialing in task settings over time as your process matures.

All of these happen on the Approval Flows list page or inside individual workflow detail pages.

1. Assigning a workflow to a document type#

There are two ways a workflow gets linked to a document type: at creation time (covered in Creating approval workflows) or later, as an explicit assignment. Use the second path when:

• A workflow was created standalone on the Approval Flows page and is still in the Unassigned tab.
• You want to make the same workflow available on multiple document types.
• You're inheriting a workflow from another document type's cleanup.

From the document type side#

1. Open Document Flow → Document Types → [document type].
2. Scroll to the Workflows card.
3. Click Assign Workflow (or similar button).
4. The Assign Workflow dialog opens showing every unassigned active workflow.

5. Use the search box to narrow the list.
6. Check each workflow you want to attach to this document type — you can pick multiple at once.
7. Click Assign.

The selected workflows appear on the document type's Workflows card. Each becomes pickable at Start Approval time, and you can designate one as the default (see Creating approval workflows).

From the Approval Flows page#

1. Open Document Flow → Approval Flows.
2. Filter to Unassigned.
3. Find the workflow's row and click its Assign action.
4. In the dialog, pick the target document type.
5. Confirm.

Choose this path when you're doing workflow cleanup or want to see all unassigned workflows at once.

2. Copying an existing workflow#

Copying a workflow is the fastest way to create a variant of something that already works. The copy starts identical to the source — same task names, same assignees, same durations and routing — and you adjust what's different.

When to copy#

• You need a slightly different variant of an existing workflow for a new document type.
• You want to experiment safely — clone, change, test, then keep or discard without affecting the original.
• The workflow structure is non-trivial and rebuilding it from scratch would take longer than cloning and editing.

How to copy#

1. Open Document Flow → Approval Flows.
2. Find the workflow to copy in the list.
3. Click the three-dot menu on its row and choose Copy.
4. In the dialog, type a new name for the copy — pre-filled with "{original name} (copy)".
5. Click Copy.

The new workflow appears in the list with all of the original's tasks, assignees, durations, and settings. It's initially unassigned — you can assign it to a document type afterward (see section 1).

What's copied — and what isn't#

Copied:

• The workflow's general settings (title, digest, URLs, creator confirmation flag).
• Every task, including its assignee, duration, reminder, delegation settings, notification type, and exec type.
• Task-level conditions configured in the Flow Editor (user-based and field-based routing rules).
• Per-task fields configured via Task Fields (see section 3).

Not copied:

• The document-type assignment — the copy starts unassigned.
• Any documents or running approval instances — the copy is fresh.
• The isDefault flag — the copy isn't the default workflow on any doc type (since it isn't assigned yet).

3. Configuring workflow tasks (beyond creation)#

Once a workflow has tasks, you'll spend most ongoing admin time tuning them — adjusting assignees as org structure changes, reworking durations, or adding per-task fields. This section covers the common tweaks.

Editing a task#

1. Open the workflow's detail page.
2. Scroll to the Tasks card.
3. Click the edit (pencil) icon on a task's row.
4. The Edit Task dialog opens — the same form as Create Task, pre-filled with the task's current values.
5. Change what you need:
   • Name — rename the step.
   • Assignee type / Assignee — change who this step routes to.
   • Duration / Reminder — adjust deadlines.
   • Notification type — switch between None / Email / SMS / Both.
   • Delegation flags — toggle Allow Delegation and Confirm Delegation Action.
   • Auto Complete — if on, the task completes automatically once all required fields are filled.
   • Exec Type — rarely changed after creation.
6. Click Save.

Changes take effect on new approval runs only. Any approval currently in progress uses the task settings as they were at the time the approval started — this is intentional so reconfiguration doesn't disrupt mid-flight approvals.

Attaching fields to a task (task-level fields)#

A task field is a field the approver fills in as part of doing the task. Different from document fields, which the creator fills in when they submit the document.

Example use cases:

• The approver records an approval amount that might differ from what the creator requested.
• The approver adds an accounting code or reference number that only becomes known at review time.
• The approver confirms a compliance checkbox or enters a justification note.

These fields show up on the approver's task detail page, alongside the document excerpt. The approver must fill in any required task fields before they can submit Approve.

How to add task fields#

1. On the workflow's detail page, in the Tasks card, click the task's fields icon (or open its action menu and choose Fields).
2. The Task Fields dialog opens for that task.

3. Click Add to open the field picker — it lists every field in the field library (see Managing additional fields) that isn't already attached to this task.
4. Check the field(s) to add, then confirm. The fields appear in the task's fields list.
5. For each attached field, toggle Required on or off. Required fields must be filled by the approver before they can submit Approve.
6. Use the trash icon to remove a field that's no longer needed.

No explicit save button — each toggle or add/remove saves immediately.

Important distinctions#

• Task fields (this section) live on a specific task in a specific workflow. They're filled by the approver who acts on that task.
• Document-type fields with the task-only toggle (see Adding fields to a document type) are a different mechanism — they live on the document type and appear on whichever task of whichever workflow is configured to surface them.

Most admins start with document-type fields (including task-only fields) because they're simpler and work across workflows. Use per-task fields attached here when you need a field that's specific to one step of one workflow.

Common questions#

For most use cases, a document task-only field is simpler and more reusable. Go with task fields (this article) only when the data is genuinely specific to one step of one flow.