Store credentials for workflows

Some workflow steps reach outside SKU.io: they watch a partner's FTP folder, call a supplier's API, or write to a Google Sheet. Those steps need a login. You save each login once under Workflows → Credentials, give it a name, and then pick it by name in any workflow. The secret itself is never shown again.

Before you begin

• Have the login details from the other system to hand: a host, username, and password for FTP or SFTP; a key or token for an API; or a Google Cloud OAuth client ID and secret for Google Sheets.
• Credentials belong to your account, not to one workflow, so several workflows can use the same login. Once saved, a secret can be replaced but never read back.

Credential types

Type	Use it for	What you enter
FTP	Watching, downloading from, or uploading to an FTP folder	Host, Port (21 if blank), Username, Password, and the passive-mode options
SFTP	The same jobs over SFTP	Host, Port (22 if blank), Username, Password
API Key	Calling an API that expects a key in a header	Header name (for example X-API-Key) and the Key
Bearer Token	Calling an API that expects a bearer token	Token
Basic Auth	Calling an API or URL protected by a username and password	Username and Password
Google OAuth	Reading or writing Google Sheets	Client ID and Client Secret, then Connect with Google

FTP and SFTP credentials are used by the FTP / SFTP: File Available trigger and the FTP download and upload steps. API Key, Bearer Token, and Basic Auth are used by the HTTP Request and download-from-URL steps. Google OAuth is used by the Google Sheets trigger and the Google Sheets: Write Rows step.

A Webhook Token credential added before can still be opened and edited, but you can't add a new one: no workflow step uses it.

Add a credential

1. Go to Workflows and click Credentials.

2. Click New Credential.

   

3. Type a Name your team will recognize, such as Acme Wholesale FTP. This is the name you pick inside a workflow.

4. Choose the Type.

   

5. Fill in the fields for that type. Secret fields are masked as you type.

   

6. For Google OAuth, enter the Client ID and Client Secret, then click Connect with Google and approve access in the Google window. If you already have a refresh token, open Or enter refresh token manually (advanced) and paste it instead.

7. Click Create credential.

The credential appears in the list with its type and a safe summary, such as the username and host for FTP, or token configured for a token. The secret is encrypted and isn't shown again.

Use a credential in a workflow

• From a template. When a template needs a login, its set-up page asks for it. Pick the credential by name. If the list says there are none yet — for example, No FTP or SFTP credentials yet — add one first, then come back.

  

• In the builder. Open the step that talks to the other system and choose the credential in its Credential field. The field only lists credentials of the types that step accepts — on an HTTP Request step, for example, Basic Auth, API Key, and Bearer Token credentials. Click Add a credential at the bottom of the list if the one you need isn't there yet.

  

Change or replace a secret

1. Click the credential's name, or its pencil icon.

   

2. Change what you need. Leave a secret field blank to keep the saved value, or type a new one to replace it.

3. Click Save changes.

Workflows pick up the new details on their next run. You can't change a credential's Type once it exists. To switch type, add a new credential and delete the old one.

Delete a credential

1. Click the bin icon on the credential's row.

   

2. Click Delete.

Any workflow that uses the credential fails at that step until you pick another one. Check the workflow's run history after you delete one, see Review a workflow's run history.

Next steps

• Create a workflow from a template — templates ask for the credentials they need.
• Workflow templates reference — which templates need a credential.
• Review a workflow's run history — see a failed login and run it again.