Saving and activating are separate actions on purpose. A saved workflow is a design; an activated one is a design that is running.
Outcome
The version you intended is the one that is live, and you know how to take it offline again.
1. Save
Press Save. Nothing reaches the server before that, which is why you can rearrange freely while you work.
The toolbar tells you where you stand:
| Indicator | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Unsaved changes | Edits pending on a version that has never been published. Save overwrites it. |
| Draft changes | Edits pending on a version that has been published. The button reads Save as New Version and saving forks. |
| Nothing | Everything is written. |
Save is disabled while the graph has a structural problem — a cycle, for instance. Hover it to see why.
Checkpoint: the version number beside the workflow name is what you expect, and no pending-changes indicator remains.
2. Understand versions
Every version of a workflow is its own record, sharing a group with the others.
The number sits beside the name in the header as v1, v2, and so on.
Editing a published version forks a new one rather than rewriting what is live. A version that was never published keeps taking plain saves.
Back on the Workflows list, each workflow collapses into one row with a version count. Expand it and every version is there with its state — Active, Inactive, or Draft — its Published date, and Activate, Deactivate, Delete, and Open as appropriate.
Deleting a version deletes its runs too, and cannot be undone. A version that is active must be deactivated first.
Edit details changes the name and description without touching the graph or forking anything.
3. Activate
Press Activate.
The button stays disabled while something obvious is wrong, and its tooltip says which:
- Save the workflow before activating
- Save changes before activating
- Fix invalid nodes before activating
- Add at least one trigger before activating
- Add at least one step before activating
- Connect every step to the flow. Some have no incoming path
- Re-sample stale sources before activating
When it is enabled, the tooltip reads This workflow will go live and start running on its triggers.
Pressing it runs the full check on the server, which can still refuse with a message naming the first problem found. Every message and its fix is on Activation errors.
Activating a version deactivates whichever version of that workflow was live before, so exactly one version of a workflow ever runs.
Checkpoint: the workflow reads Active, and its row on the Workflows list shows a Published date.
4. Deactivate
Deactivate takes it offline. Webhooks for that workflow start being
rejected with 404 and its schedules are cancelled.
Runs already in progress continue to completion.
Deactivating is always allowed and never forks a version, which makes it the safe way to pause anything you are unsure about.
Common problems
The button says Save changes before activating. Activation runs against
what is stored, not what is on your screen. Save first.
Activation was refused with a limit message. Your plan caps how many workflows can be active at once — Active workflows limit reached (3 of 3 in use). Deactivate one you are not using, or contact support to raise it.
I edited a live workflow and nothing changed. Editing a published version creates a new version. The old one is still the active one until you activate the new one.
I cannot delete a version. It is active. Deactivate it first — the row's message says Deactivate this version before deleting it.