3 Safe Ways to Test Unito Flows Before Syncing Historical Data

New to Unito? Ensure your flows work perfectly before syncing historical data. Here's how.

In this article:

• Create a test project for risk-free exploration
• Use manual flows for controlled testing
• The "Sync New Items Only" rule
• Key takeaways

Create a test project for risk-free exploration

The most foolproof way to test your Unito flow is in a sandbox environment.

Open the app or tool you're connecting and create a new, empty project, board, spreadsheet, database, etc. Or, you can try to clone or duplicate the workspace if your tool allows you to do so.

Create a test flow 

Why this works: You can freely adjust your flow settings, field mappings, and rules, to see the impact your flow has on items in the test project without risking any data loss or disruption to ongoing work.

Tip: Some tools, such as Asana, allow you to duplicate entire projects, making it even easier to replicate your real workflow.

When you’re building your flow, make sure to use your newly created test projects when adding your blocks of work.

Use manual flows for controlled testing

By default, Unito flows sync changes automatically. But during testing, you might want more control.

Disable Auto-Sync:

When launching your flow, ensure the autosync toggle is off. 
You can also control this from your flow list by Simply clicking the toggle beside any flow in your dashboard to turn auto-sync on or off:

Sync on Demand

To sync on demand, click Sync Now to trigger a manual sync only when you're ready to see the results of your changes.

The "Sync New Items Only" rule (tasks, tickets, spreadsheet rows, etc.)

Every new Unito flow includes a default rule:

AND Creation date is on or after [today's date]

This rule ensures that only items created after the flow is launched will be synced. That gives you a chance to test your configuration before syncing older items.

Key takeaways

When your flow settings sync work items the way you want them to, it's easy to create and edit Unito flows without concern. When testing flow setup, be sure to:

• Test in a controlled environment before syncing your entire project, database, sheet, etc.
• Use manual sync at least once to iterate on your flow  to control the intake of changes if needed.
• Understand the "Create Date" rule and how to remove it when ready.

With these tips, you can confidently build and refine your Unito flows, ensuring your data stays safe and your integrations work flawlessly.