Install a Workflow

Browse, preview, and install a pre-built Workflow from the Harness IDP Workflow Library into your own account scope.

Installing a library item creates a real Workflow and its backing pipelines in your account. This page walks through the full flow, from browsing the catalog to running the installed Workflow.

Before you begin

Prerequisite	Details
Workflow create permission in your target IDP scope	You need create permission in the Account, Organization, or Project scope where the Workflow will live.
Pipeline create permission in the target Harness project	You need permission to create Pipelines in the Harness project you select for the backing Pipeline. The two scopes can differ. If either permission is missing, the install fails with a permission error. Go to Workflows RBAC to configure access.

---

Browse the library

Workflow Library listing page

1. Go to Workflows in the left navigation.

2. Select the Library tab.

3. Use the category in the left panel to filter the list.

Each card shows the item name, the publisher (By Harness), a short description, and its tags. Selecting a category shows only the items in that category.

---

Preview an item

Select Preview & Install on any card to open its detail page.

Preview page for a Workflow Library item

The detail page gives you everything you need to judge whether the item fits before you commit to installing it. Moreover, Preview Now opens the developer-facing form exactly as your developers will see it after install, including every page of a multi-page form.

When you are ready, select Install.

---

Step 1: Set the target and settings

Target and settings step of the install wizard

Basic Details

Give the Workflow a Name and an Identifier. Both are required. The identifier is generated from the name and you can edit it using the pencil icon. None of these have to match the library item name, and you can change the name and description later.

The identifier must be unique within the target scope. If an entity with that identifier already exists there, the install fails. Choose a distinct identifier when you are installing the same library item a second time.

Define Scope

Choose where the Workflow entity is created. The scope controls who can see and run it.

Scope	Who can access it
Account	All Organizations and Projects in the account.
Organization	All Projects in the selected Organization.
Project	Only users added to the selected Project.

Pipeline Scope

Select the Harness project where the backing pipeline is created. This is a separate choice from the Workflow scope, so the Workflow and its pipeline can live in different places.

Where to store the workflow?

Choose Inline to store the Workflow in Harness, or Remote to store it in your Git repository. Remote storage requires a Git connector. Go to Git Experience for Harness IDP to learn how remote storage works.

Click Next.

---

Step 2: Provide the admin inputs

Admin inputs step of the install wizard

This step asks for the connectors, secrets, etc. the Workflow needs. The fields differ per item, and each one carries hint text explaining what it is used for. Required fields are marked, and connector fields are scoped to your account.

Fields marked optional can be left empty, though the related behavior is skipped at run time. For example, if you leave a Slack token empty on an item that posts notifications, the Workflow still installs and runs but does not notify.

If the item does not need any configuration from you, this step tells you there is nothing to configure and you can continue.

Each field maps to a specific location inside the backing pipeline configuration. Harness substitutes your value into that location when the pipeline is created, so you configure each connector once here rather than editing YAML afterwards.

Select Next.

---

Step 3: Review and install

Review and install step of the install wizard

Review the summary before committing:

• Workflow & Pipeline - Shows the Workflow name and identifier, the Workflow scope, the generated pipeline, and the pipeline project scope.

• Admin inputs - Shows each value you supplied.

Click Install.

You can move back through the wizard at any point without losing work. Back returns to the previous step with your entered values intact, and Cancel returns you to the preview page for the same item.

---

After the install

The confirmation screen tells you what was created and where.

Confirmation screen after installing a Workflow Library item

The installed Workflow is also registered in the IDP catalog and appears alongside your other catalog entities.

From the confirmation screen, you can:

• Run it now to see the developer-facing form and execute the Workflow.

• Edit the YAML to add parameters or swap connectors. Go to Customize an installed workflow for what you can change.

• View Pipeline to open the backing pipeline directly in Pipeline Studio.

• View under All Workflows to find it in the Workflows tab alongside the workflows you manually authored.

How to differentiate this from manually created workflows? Every Workflow installed from the library is tagged ootb. On the Workflows tab, use the Tags filter and select ootb to see only your library-installed Workflows, separate from ones you created manually.

Installing configures the Workflow and its pipeline, but it does not validate credentials or grant access to your developers. Before you hand the Workflow over, confirm the following:

• The users who need to run the Workflow have execute permission on it. Go to Workflows RBAC to configure this.

• The users who need to run the Workflow have access to the Harness project hosting the backing pipeline.

• Any API key or token referenced by the Workflow is valid and has the required scopes.

Can I install the same item more than once?

Yes, you can install a workflow library item as many times as you need, for example to give two teams the same Workflow wired to different Git connectors. Each install is fully independent and creates its own backing pipelines with their own identifiers. Give each install a distinct name and identifier so the copies are easy to tell apart in the Workflows list.