Canvas guide: the visual workflow editor

Canvas overview

The canvas is where you build workflows. Drag nodes from the palette, connect them with edges, and double-click a node to edit its settings. It supports pan and zoom, a minimap, zoom controls, snap-to-grid, alignment tools, copy/paste, undo/redo, autosave and multiple workflow tabs.

Opening the canvas

Workflows → New workflow — opens a new, empty workflow.
Workflows → click a workflow card — opens that workflow.
Overview → Open canvas or Build workflow — opens the canvas.

Top bar

Snap-to-grid toggle and alignment buttons (align left / center / right / top / middle / bottom with 2+ nodes selected; distribute horizontally or vertically with 3+).
Workflow Panel — opens the side panel with Validation, Guide, Trace, Inspector, Metrics, Runs, Compare and Versions.
Edit / Test toggle — Edit to change the workflow; Test to see results from the last run on each node.
Dry Run — test in your browser with side effects simulated.
Run — execute on the server for real. A Stop button appears while a run is in progress.
Save — saves the workflow and records a version.

There's no Publish button: saving is all it takes. Schedules and webhooks always use the saved workflow, once you've activated them in the trigger's settings.

Keyboard shortcuts

Shortcut	Action
Cmd/Ctrl + S	Save the workflow.
Cmd/Ctrl + Enter	Run (on the server).
Cmd/Ctrl + D	Dry Run.
Cmd/Ctrl + Z	Undo.
Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + Z (or Ctrl + Y on Windows)	Redo.
Cmd/Ctrl + C / Cmd/Ctrl + V	Copy / paste selected nodes.
Backspace / Delete	Delete selected nodes or edges.
Cmd/Ctrl + K	Show or hide the workflow panel.
Cmd/Ctrl + P	Open the canvas command palette.
Cmd/Ctrl + /	Open the canvas tour.
Alt + Shift + arrow keys	Align selected nodes.
Alt + Shift + H / V	Distribute selected nodes horizontally / vertically.
Esc	Deselect the current node.

Node settings and the workflow panel

Double-click a node to open its settings. The workflow panel (Workflow Panel button or Cmd/Ctrl + K) covers the whole workflow:

Validation — errors and warnings to fix before running.
Guide — the canvas tour, next steps and AI tips.
Trace — the step-by-step path of the selected run.
Inspector — inputs, outputs and schema for the selected node in that run.
Metrics — duration, steps, slowest nodes and AI token use for a chosen run.
Runs — this workflow's run history.
Compare — pick Run A and Run B to see them side by side.
Versions — saved snapshots you can restore or export.

Validation

Checks run before every Run and Dry Run: the workflow must have exactly one trigger, no cycles, and correctly configured nodes.
Errors block the run; warnings ask you to confirm before continuing.
All findings appear in the Validation tab, and a dot on each node shows its status.

Dry Run vs Run

	Dry Run	Run
Where it runs	In your browser	On Fluxo Flow's servers
Side effects	Simulated — no emails, webhooks, HTTP writes or Slack posts go out	Real — every step executes against your integrations
AI steps	Simulated with placeholder output; no API key used	Use your connected AI provider key; blocked if a step's provider isn't connected
Human Review	Uses the Dry Run decision you pick in the node (approved, rejected or timeout)	Pauses and waits in the Review Queue
Wait	Doesn't wait — shows how long it would wait	Pauses the run (up to 30 days) and continues on its own
For each item	Repeats the first 3 items only	Repeats up to the step's max items (default 50, at most 500)
Memory	Doesn't read or write stored memory	Reads and writes the workspace's memory
Limits	—	About 50 seconds and a $2 AI cost cap per run

Pressing Run saves the workflow first. After a Dry Run or Run the canvas switches to Test view so each node shows its result; use the Edit/Test toggle to go back to editing.

Dry Run after structural changes

Adding a Router route, changing a credential or swapping a model can change what happens at run time. A Dry Run shows the path the data takes before anything real is sent.

Run history & compare

Open the workflow panel's Runs tab to see this workflow's recent runs (manual, scheduled and webhook). Pick a run to see its Trace, Inspector and Metrics. In the Compare tab choose Run A and Run B to see them side by side with the differences. Runs across all workflows are listed on the Activity page.

Autosave & versions

The canvas autosaves a few seconds after you stop editing, and when you switch or close tabs. Pressing Save always records a version; autosave records one at most every few minutes when something changed. In the Versions tab you can Save Version with a label, Restore an older version (this creates a new version, so it can be undone), delete versions or export one as a .fluxo.json file. To download the current workflow, use the Export button in the top bar (see Import & export).

Common errors & fixes

"Workflow must contain exactly one trigger node"

Add a trigger if there's none, or delete the extra one. Change a trigger's type (Manual, Scheduled, Webhook) in its settings rather than adding another.

"Workflow contains a cyclic dependency"

Two or more nodes are connected in a loop. Remove the edge that goes back to an earlier step. To repeat steps for each item in a list, use a Loop node.

Real Run is blocked because an AI step's provider isn't connected

Connect that provider in Settings → AI Providers, or pick a model from a provider you've already connected. Dry Run still works without a key.

Dry Run works but Run fails

Dry Run doesn't call real services, so problems with credentials, connected accounts or the external API only show up in a real Run. Open the Trace tab for the failing step's error, then check the integration or credential it uses.

Can't select or edit nodes after a run

The canvas is in Test view. Switch the Edit/Test toggle in the top bar back to Edit.