---
title: Flows, subflows, and actions reference
description: Get details about Workflow Studio flow components like actions, flow logic, and properties.
locale: en-US
canonical_url: https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-designer-reference.html
release: australia
product: Workflow Studio
classification: workflow-studio
topic_type: reference
last_updated: "2026-03-12"
reading_time_minutes: 4
breadcrumb: [Flows, subflows, and actions, Workflow Studio, Build workflows]
---

# Flows, subflows, and actions reference

Get details about Workflow Studio flow components like actions, flow logic, and properties.

<table id="table_qqb_r42_w1c"><thead><tr><th>

Workflow Studio component

</th><th>

Available references

</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>

Flows

</td><td>

-   [Types of flows and when to use them](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/when-to-use-flow-types.md)
-   [Workflow Studio flow trigger types](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-triggers.md)
-   [Workflow Studio actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-actions.md)
-   [Workflow Studio flow logic](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-logic.md)
-   [User preferences for flows](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-preferences.md)

</td></tr><tr><td>

Subflows

</td><td>

-   [Types of flows and when to use them](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/when-to-use-flow-types.md)
-   [Workflow Studio actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-actions.md)
-   [Workflow Studio flow logic](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-logic.md)
-   [User preferences for flows](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-preferences.md)

</td></tr><tr><td>

Actions

</td><td>

-   [Workflow Studio input and output data variables](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/action-inputs-outputs.md)
-   [Workflow Studio steps](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/steps.md)
-   [Supported Service Catalog variable types](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/supported-service-catalog-types.md)

</td></tr><tr><td>

All

</td><td>

-   [General guidelines for Workflow Studio flows, subflows, and actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/design-considerations-consolidated.md)
-   [Transform functions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/transform-functions.md)
-   [Workflow Studio flow integrations](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-designer-integrations.md)
-   [Workflow Studio flow system properties](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-designer-system-properties.md)

</td></tr></tbody>
</table>-   **[General guidelines for Workflow Studio flows, subflows, and actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/design-considerations-consolidated.md)**  
Create, run, troubleshoot, and monitor your Workflow Studio components more effectively. Use these guidelines to optimize the performance of your Workflow Studio components.
-   **[Workflow Studio actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-actions.md)**  
Actions can be added to any flow, enabling process analysts to automate ServiceNow AI Platform features without having to write code.
-   **[Workflow Studio flow logic](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-logic.md)**  
Enable flows and subflows to specify conditional or repeated actions. Combine the elements of flow logic to create workflows in a graphical interface with little or no scripting.
-   **[Workflow Studio flow integrations](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-designer-integrations.md)**  
Expand the capabilities of Workflow Studio flows with additional subscriptions and spokes.
-   **[Workflow Studio flow system properties](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-designer-system-properties.md)**  
Configure how the system processes flows.
-   **[Workflow Studio flow trigger types](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-triggers.md)**  
Each trigger type defines when a flow starts and the starting data available to it. There are triggers for record operations, dates, and application operations.​
-   **[Workflow Studio input and output data variables](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/action-inputs-outputs.md)**  
Actions and subflows use variables to store input and output data. The variable data type determines what kind of data it stores and its advanced configuration options.
-   **[Workflow Studio steps](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/steps.md)**  
A step performs a single operation in an action. You can use Workflow Studio to add steps to a custom action.
-   **[User preferences for flows](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/flow-preferences.md)**  
Enable or disable user preferences for flow to change options available to Workflow Studio.
-   **[User roles for conversational subflows and actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/user-roles-for-conversational-subflows-and-actions.md)**  
Provide personnel with one or more user roles to grant them access to conversational subflows and actions.
-   **[Supported input data types for conversational subflows and actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/supported-input-data-types-for-conversational-subflows-and-actions.md)**  
Conversational subflows and actions support a limited number of input data types. To be compatible with conversational interfaces, an action or a subflow must only include inputs that use supported data types.
-   **[Supported Service Catalog variable types](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/supported-service-catalog-types.md)**  
Workflow Studio supports several Service Catalog variable types for both single-row and multi-row variable sets.
-   **[Transform functions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/transform-functions.md)**  
Transform data pill values without the need to write a script. Use transform functions to reformat text, perform mathematical calculations, sanitize potentially unsafe SQL statements, and serialize complex objects to raw XML.
-   **[Types of flows and when to use them](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/when-to-use-flow-types.md)**  
A decision matrix and basic definitions help you determine what type of flows to create.

**Parent Topic:**[Workflow Studio flows, subflows, and actions](https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ServiceNow/ServiceNowDocs/australia/markdown/australia/build-workflows/workflow-studio/workflow-studio-flows-subflows-and-actions-landing.md)