Why can't I just remove the tied stage to an action or subflow in flow designer?

[saint]

Unless I delete the step, the attached/tied stage does not get removed. 

Case:

I've added a stage "waiting for approval" attached to an approval action in catalog item flow. Now I need to create a new stage and attached it there (for detailed reporting) but I can't seem to remove the stage directly. I tried doing it with a sample test flow and unless i delete the action it doesn;t go away. This is a long flow and if i delete this action will impact other related actions and will lead into unnecessary redevelopment and testing.

Please suggest.

[M Iftikhar]

Hi @saint, 

This is a common point of confusion in Flow Designer. You do not need to delete the action.

You can change the stage associated with the action directly, which replaces the old stage reference. The UI doesn't have a "remove" or "clear" button for the stage, which is why it feels locked.

Here is the correct, non-destructive process:

• Add Your New Stage: First, add your new, detailed stage to the flow's list of stages.

  • Click the "more actions" menu (the three dots ...) in the top-right corner of Flow Designer.

  • Select Flow Stages.

  • Add your new stage (e.g., "Detailed Peer Review") to the list and save.

• Replace the Old Stage on the Action:

  • Go back to your flow and click on the "Ask for Approval" action to expand its configuration panel.

  • Find the Stage field, which currently says "waiting for approval."

  • This field is a dropdown. Click it, and you will now see your new stage in the list.

  • Select your new stage.

• Activate: Save and activate the flow.

This simple change replaces the old stage association with the new one. The "Ask for Approval" action will now report its status against your new, detailed stage. The original stage ("waiting for approval") is now detached and can be deleted from the main "Stages" list (from step 1) if it's no longer used anywhere else in the flow.

Hope this helps!

Thanks & Regards,
Muhammad Iftikhar
If my response helped, please mark it as the accepted solution so others can benefit as well.

[saint]

Hello Iftikhar,

Thank you for the detailed step-by-step response, I really appreciate it.

I was able to successfully add a new stage to the list. However, I didn’t find any option within the action or subflow configuration to replace the existing stage with my custom one. To troubleshoot further, I plan to recreate this using a sample test flow and retest it following your instructions.

In the meantime, I found a workaround during testing: I duplicated the action/subflow, I was able to remove the tied stage using the “X” (remove) option from the original action. After that, I deleted the duplicate and was able to assign a new stage to the original one. I'm not entirely sure why this worked, but it did.

I’ll get back to you after further testing to see if I can locate the replace option, which I still don’t see at the moment.

Best regards,
Laukik

[Ankur Bawiskar]

@saint 

I believe it's OOTB behavior.

share some screenshots.

If my response helped please mark it correct and close the thread so that it benefits future readers.

[saint]

Hi Ankur,

Yes, I believe so. In the past, I’ve deleted and recreated shorter flows without much trouble. However, since this particular flow is quite complex, I wanted to explore a more precise solution.

During testing, I discovered a workaround: I duplicated the action/subflow and was able to remove the tied stage from the original using the “X” (remove) option. After that, I deleted the duplicate and successfully assigned a new stage to the original. I’m not entirely sure why this worked, but it did.

I’ll be retesting this along with the solution Iftikhar suggested, and I’ll share my findings soon.

Thanks again for your continued support, it’s much appreciated.

Best regards,
Laukik