Locking Agent Variables
Decide which workflow variables you pin at publish time and which ones buyers fill in themselves.
Written By Philippe
Last updated 29 days ago
Locking Agent Variables
If your workflow uses variables, the publish form shows each one and gives you a choice per variable: fill it now or leave it empty.
/create console (the import flow) does not support buyer-fillable variables. Every variable the workflow references must be filled before Activate is enabled — there is no buyer-fill step on that surface. If your workflow needs any variable to be filled by the buyer per-instance, use the /release publish flow instead. The console's "Activate" will only enable when the workflow has no $vars references at all.
When to Lock a Value
- Things you control: an endpoint, a model name, a template, a default limit.
- Values that must be identical for every buyer for the agent to behave as advertised.
Locked values are hidden from buyers — but don't put secrets in workflow variables. API keys and tokens belong in credentials, which are stored encrypted and have their own flow.
When to Leave It to the Buyer
- Buyer-specific targets: their channel name, their spreadsheet, their email address.
- Preferences: tone, language, thresholds they should tune.
Example. A "Daily report to Slack" agent:
What Buyers See
Buyers only see the empty variables, as a small setup form when they activate your agent. Give those variables clear names in your workflow — the name is the label they'll see.