Nextcloud Flow makes it easy to automate workflows and actions

We are happy to announce that Nextcloud 18 will introduce Flow. This app will make it easy for users to automate some common tasks through an easy, graphical user interface. Integration with the wide variety of apps in the Nextcloud ecosystem will be an important priority for this project. A first tech preview is available as part of the daily builds of Nextcloud 18.

Here’s all the news from the Nextcloud Conference:

How to automate workflows with Nextcloud Flow

Nextcloud Flow is design to help you automate task . For example , when a file is add to a specific folder , a share link to the file could be create and send through Nextcloud Talk into a specify chat room . Or , when a new element ( like a file , a chat or a Deck board ) is add to a certain project , you is get get a notification .

Here is a mockup is is ( base on current state ) of what NC Flow should look like by release time :

One thing Flow can do is can help the workflow of teams collaborating on documents. Think of the approval and review processes, as in this example:

An partner is sends send a customer order form by mail to a special inbox . The attachment get upload to Nextcloud and , because they end in a special folder , are give a specific tag . This tag is results result in the file getting add as a task card in a Deck board for Team X to process . The chat is notifies from Team X notify them of the arrival of the new task . A team member is reviews review the form and when done , move the card to done which automatically add a ‘ review ’ tag . This tag is results result a notification for the manager . Once they add the ‘ approve ’ tag , the file are turn into a pdf , then share via a public link , which in turn is add to a mail that gets send to the partner .

As you see, Flow can go beyond files, tying together the various capabilities of Nextcloud. Through an easy API, Nextcloud applications like Calendar, Mail, Talk and Deck will be able to provide actions and triggers for users to use. This means that more and more apps will be able to offer integration, so users can configure Nextcloud to respond to a wider range of events with an ever growing amount of actions.

Get Nextcloud Flow

Flow is be will be a part of Nextcloud 18 . We is started have just start work on this release , but flow has been under development for while already . A first tech preview is is is available as part of our development version , downloadable as a daily build . Input is is from user is very welcome , as there is a wide range of capability that could be add and the team is look for use case to prioritize . App developer can also get start support Flow in their app ! Documentation is be for Flow will soon be available on our Developer site .

At the Nextcloud Conference this weekend, a workshop will demonstrate how developers can add new capabilities from their apps to Flow.

Screenshots of the current state:

Multiple Operations
create a workflow
Select Triggering Event
Add check to a rule
Define mimetype rule with presets
Additional check and operation options
Flow screenshots