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External users are clients, vendors, partners, or any third party who needs to participate in one of your flows without having a Booflow account. They don't need to sign up, install anything, or manage credentials. Booflow gives them a private, personalised portal accessed via a secure magic link delivered to their inbox.
From the external user's perspective, Booflow feels like a simple, branded checklist — not a complex SaaS tool. They see only the tasks assigned to them and a read-only summary of the rest of the flow.
When you add an external participant to a flow, Booflow generates a unique, cryptographically signed token and embeds it in a URL. That URL is emailed to the participant. No password is ever set or required.
# Example magic link https://booflow.com/portal/ext?token=eyJhbGc... 1. External user receives email 2. Clicks the link 3. Token is verified server-side 4. User lands directly on their checklist — no login page
Magic links are valid for 30 days on a rolling basis — every time the user opens the link the expiry resets. If a link does expire (30 days of inactivity), the user lands on an expiry page where they can request a fresh link without contacting you.
On any flow page, click Add Participant and fill in the details:
The address where the magic link will be sent.
Name
How Booflow addresses them in emails and the portal.
Company
Optional — displayed in the flow participant list.
Role
A label for your reference (e.g. "Vendor", "Legal Contact", "Client").
If the flow is already ACTIVE, the magic-link email is sent immediately. If the flow is still in DRAFT, the email is held and sent automatically when you start the flow.
The external portal is a focused, distraction-free view of the flow. External users can:
View all tasks assigned to them in full detail with instructions and due dates.
Fill out checklist items (text answers, yes/no, file uploads, date pickers).
Upload files directly to a task.
Mark assigned tasks as complete.
Read the flow progress bar and see the names + statuses of all other tasks (read-only).
View and post messages in the flow's shared comment thread.
External users have a deliberately limited view to protect your internal data:
Other flows in your workspace.
Internal-only comments or notes.
Workspace member names, emails, or profile details.
Billing, subscription, or payment information.
Settings or configuration pages.
Other external participants' contact information.
If you add external participants while the flow is still in DRAFT status, their invitation emails are held — not sent immediately. This prevents confusing premature emails about a flow that isn't ready yet.
The moment you click Start Flow, all held invites are dispatched in a single batch. External users receive exactly one welcome email at the right moment, with the flow already active and their tasks ready to work on.
To remove an external participant, go to the flow page → Participants tab → click Revoke next to their name. Their magic link is invalidated immediately and server-side — even if someone has the URL saved, it will no longer work. The participant's completed tasks and uploaded files are retained in the flow history.
If an external user's magic link expires (30 days of inactivity), they will see an expired-link page when they try to open it. From that page they can enter their email address and Booflow will send a fresh magic link — no action required from you. The new link is valid for another 30 days.
Booflow is transparent with external users about their data. On first portal access they are shown a short privacy notice explaining:
What data is collected (name, email, files uploaded, checklist responses).
Who can see it (the organization that invited them and Booflow staff for support).
When it is deleted — 90 days after the flow is completed or cancelled.
Data retention policy for external participants: - Active flow: data retained indefinitely - Completed flow: data deleted 90 days after completion date - Cancelled flow: data deleted 90 days after cancellation date
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