Connecting an App
Connect a third-party app to Glow so your automations can call its API on your behalf. Apps that require authentication need a saved connection before their Steps can run.
- Use it to
- Authorize an OAuth account, API key, or custom credential so app Steps can act on your behalf
- Find it
- Left sidebar → Connections → Connect an app, or Step App drawer → Connection → Connect a new connection
- Cost
- Saving a connection is free · Testing with a real automation run uses Step credits
- Limits
- Connections are workspace-scoped · Viewers cannot create or select connections
Before You Start
- Pick the right workspace: Connections belong to a single Glow workspace.
- Verify external access: Confirm the account can open the target spreadsheet, channel, or resource in that service.
- Keep credentials secure: Enter sign-in details or API keys only in the connection dialog, never in Step fields.
Navigating to the Connections Page
Open Connections from the left sidebar (Connect the apps your automations use) and stay on the Connections tab (beside Agent tools).
- Your connections: Shows saved connections as tiles with a status summary (
{N} connected · all healthyor{K} need attention). Search by name or click a tile for details. - Browse apps: Filter by category, click Connect an app, or explore the Integrations Directory .
Adding a New Connection
Find the app
Click Connect an app, search for the app (for example, “Google Sheets”), and select it. With no saved connections, Popular first connections offers shortcuts for Gmail, Slack, Google Drive, and Notion.
If an OAuth method has no usable registration, Glow opens Use your own app for a workspace Admin (app registration setup).
Authorize the intended account
Follow the sign-in or credential prompt (click Connect another way to switch methods). Check which account your browser is signed into before approving access.
From a Step’s Connection dropdown, you can also pick Connect a new connection…, select an existing tile via Use this connection, or click Connect another → Continue. For Needs reconnecting, ask the owner to follow Reconnecting.
Confirm it saved, then select it in a Step
Wait for Glow’s confirmation, then click the tile under Your connections to verify Owner and Connected as. Select the account in the App drawer and test access below.
Authentication Types
OAuth Sign-In
- Sign in with the account your automation should act as in the OAuth window.
- Review requested permissions and approve access.
- If blocked, allow popups for Glow and click Open the window again.
Selecting an Account in the App drawer
Authenticated app Steps display a Connection dropdown in the App drawer:
- Single saved connection: Auto-selected with a brief confirmation.
- Multiple saved connections: Prompts Select a connection… so you choose explicitly.
- Add in place: Pick Connect a new connection… from the dropdown.
- Dynamic picker errors: Click Try again to reload choices. Select the account first, then parent resources before child fields.
Testing a Connection
A saved tile confirms stored credentials, not access to a specific resource. Verify access with a read-only run.
- Calls the external service using the selected Connection.
- Runs real work in Draft and consumes Step credits.
- Confirms the account can read the target spreadsheet or channel.
- Replays saved testing data on ordinary app actions.
- Does not contact the external API or check permissions.
- A passing replay does not prove the connection works.
Prepare a small, separate test
In a Draft automation, add Click to start followed by one read-only app action. Select your Connection and enter concrete values for a non-sensitive resource.
Run the automation, not saved test data
Beside Run in the dock, set Manual run starting step to the trigger. Confirm no write or delete Steps are attached, then click Run once.
Check the result and continue
Inspect the Step’s Executions tab to confirm live data returned. Then configure your working automation (read access does not prove write permission).
Test writes on a safe destination. Before retrying a failed or timed-out write, check the connected service to avoid duplicate records or messages.
Google Sheets Example
Follow Google Sheets: Read and Write Data: start with Get Values in Range (or Find Row) to verify read access, then test Add Single Row on a test sheet.
Edge Cases and Troubleshooting
| Symptom | What to do |
|---|---|
| Needs reconnecting (expired token) | Ask the owner to follow Reconnecting and verify access before resuming runs. |
| Password change, revoked access, or rotated key | Follow Reconnecting for the same account, or Adding a Second Account. |
| Wrong account or missing resource | Check the Step’s Connection and open the resource in the service with that account. Grant provider access or reselect it. |
| OAuth popup blocked or closed | Allow popups for Glow and click Open the window again, or try another browser. Confirm the tile under Your connections. |
- Run
- Select the connected account on a Step, open Test & Debug, and click Run step
- You should see
- The Step completes and the Output tab displays live data from your connected account.
What’s Next?
- Google Sheets: Read and Write Data takes a saved connection through a read check and a separate write test.
- Managing Connections covers expired authorization and dependent automations.
- Testing & Debugging explains run points, real runs, and inspecting results.