Sharing flows
Sharing allows you to make your flows available to other people in your organization. When you share a flow, you're giving others permission to view, run, and potentially collaborate on your work. Think of sharing as publishing your flow - it moves from being a private draft that only you can see to being accessible by the people or groups you specify.
Sharing is essential for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and making your flows useful to your broader team or organization.
How sharing works
Amazon Quick Flows offers flexible sharing options that let you control exactly who can access your flows and what they can do with them. Your sharing choices depend on your role and your organization's approval review settings.
Types of sharing
You can share flows in three different ways, each serving different collaboration needs:
- 🔒 Private sharing with individuals
-
What it is: Share your flow with specific people using their email addresses
Best for: Testing with colleagues, sharing with specific team members, or controlled distribution
Who can do this: Author, Admin, Author Pro, and Admin Pro users
- 👥 Private sharing with groups
-
What it is: Share your flow with pre-defined groups in your organization
Best for: Department-wide sharing, team collaboration, or role-based access
Who can do this: Author, Admin, Author Pro, and Admin Pro users
- 🌐 Share with everyone
-
What it is: Make your flow available to all users in your Amazon Quick Flows instance
Best for: Organization-wide tools, widely useful flows, or public resources
Who can do this: Author, Admin, Author Pro, and Admin Pro users (may require approval)
Private sharing with individuals
Private sharing with individuals gives you precise control over who can access your flow. This is perfect for collaboration with specific colleagues or when you want to test your flow with a select group before broader distribution.
How to share with individuals
Complete your flow - Ensure it's ready for others to use
Click the share button - Access sharing options from your flow
Add email addresses - Enter the full email addresses of people you want to share with
Choose permissions - Select whether they should be viewers or co-owners
Add a message (optional) - Include context about your flow
Share the flow - Send invitations to your selected users
What happens when you share
Recipients get notified - They'll receive an email notification about the shared flow
Flow appears in their library - They can find it in their Amazon Quick Flows library
Access is immediate - They can start using the flow right away (unless approval is required)
You maintain control - You can modify sharing permissions or remove access at any time
Best practices for individual sharing
Use full email addresses - Ensure you have the correct email for each person
Include context - Add a brief message explaining what the flow does and why you're sharing it
Start small - Test with a few people before sharing more broadly
Check permissions - Verify that shared users have access to any required data sources
Private sharing with groups
Group sharing allows you to share flows with pre-defined groups in your organization, making it easy to collaborate with entire teams or departments without managing individual email addresses.
Understanding groups
Groups are collections of users that your organization's administrators have set up in your identity system. Common examples include:
Department groups (Marketing, Sales, Engineering)
Project teams (Project Alpha, Q4 Initiative)
Role-based groups (Managers, Analysts, Executives)
Location-based groups (Seattle Office, Remote Workers)
How to share with groups
Access sharing options - Click the share button in your flow
Select group sharing - Choose the option to share with groups
Find your group - Search for or select the appropriate group from the list
Set permissions - Choose viewer or co-owner access for the group
Add context - Include a message about the flow's purpose
Share with the group - Send the flow to all group members
Share with everyone
Sharing with everyone makes your flow available to all users in your Amazon Quick Flows instance. This is the broadest form of sharing and is ideal for flows that provide value to your entire organization.
When to share with everyone
Consider organization-wide sharing when your flow:
Solves common problems - Addresses needs that many people have
Provides general utility - Offers broadly useful functionality
Represents best practices - Demonstrates good flow design for others to learn from
Supports organizational goals - Helps achieve company-wide objectives
How to share with everyone
Prepare your flow - Ensure it's polished and ready for wide distribution
Access sharing settings - Click the share button in your flow
Select "Share with all" - Choose the organization-wide sharing option
Add description - Provide clear information about what the flow does
Submit for approval (if required) - Wait for approval if your organization requires it
Monitor and maintain - Keep the flow updated and respond to user feedback
Viewer permissions
Viewer permissions give people access to use your flow without the ability to modify it. This is the default permission level and is appropriate for most sharing scenarios.
What viewers can do
Run the flow - Execute the flow with their own inputs
View results - See outputs and generated content
Access the flow - Find it in their library and use it anytime
See flow details - View descriptions and help information
What viewers cannot do
Edit the flow - Cannot modify cards, prompts, or flow structure
Change sharing - Cannot add or remove other users
Delete the flow - Cannot remove the flow from the system
See draft versions - Only see the published version
Co-owner permissions
Co-owner permissions give people full access to your flow, including the ability to edit, share, and manage it. This enables true collaboration but requires trust and coordination.
What co-owners can do
Edit the flow - Modify cards, prompts, and flow structure
Share with others - Add new viewers or co-owners
Manage permissions - Change or remove access for other users
Delete the flow - Remove the flow entirely (except for the original owner)
See draft versions - Access unpublished changes and work-in-progress
Publish changes - Share updates with all flow users
What co-owners cannot do
Remove the original owner - The person who created the flow always retains access
Override each other - Only one person can edit at a time to prevent conflicts
Tips for success
Following these best practices will help you share flows effectively and maintain good collaboration with your colleagues.
Choosing the right sharing approach
Start narrow - Begin with individual or group sharing before going organization-wide
Match audience to content - Share broadly only when flows have wide applicability
Consider approval time - Factor in approval delays when planning to share with everyone
Think about maintenance - Ensure you can support the level of sharing you choose
Setting appropriate permissions
Default to viewer - Most users only need to run flows, not edit them
Be selective with co-owners - Only grant editing access when truly needed
Plan for coverage - Have multiple co-owners for critical flows
Review regularly - Audit permissions periodically to ensure they're still appropriate
Maintaining shared flows
Keep descriptions current - Update help text when you change functionality
Test after changes - Verify flows still work for all users after modifications
Communicate updates - Let users know about significant changes or improvements
Gather feedback - Ask users about their experience and suggestions for improvement
Sharing and permissions reference
Use these tables to understand sharing options and permissions:
| # | Sharing Type | Audience | Approval Required? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Individual | Specific people | Sometimes* | Testing, targeted collaboration |
| 2 | Group | Pre-defined groups | Sometimes* | Team/department sharing |
| 3 | Everyone | All users | Often* | Organization-wide tools |
*Depends on your organization's approval review settings
| # | Permission Level | Can Run? | Can Edit? | Can Share? | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Viewer | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ❌ No | Most users, tool consumption |
| 2 | Co-owner | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | ✅ Yes | Collaboration, shared ownership |
