Integration Nodes Overview

Integration nodes are the building blocks you add to an automation.

Think of a node as one action in a workflow: send an email, call an API, move a file, read a database, format data, wait for approval, or open a browser and click through a website.

Node vs Plugin

You may see both words in the docs.

Term	Plain meaning
Node	The action you choose while building a workflow
Plugin	The behind-the-scenes worker that knows how to perform that action
Connection	Saved access details, such as credentials, host, tenant, or token

Most users only need to think in terms of nodes: "Which action do I need next?"

The Basic Idea

Pick a Node

Choose what the step should do

Choose an Action

Select the specific task, such as send message or upload file

Add Details

Fill in fields, variables, and connection if needed

Run Workflow

Automation Hub performs the step and records the result

Simple: each node is one useful action your automation can perform.

Which Node Should I Choose?

I want to...	Start with these nodes
Send messages or approvals	Email, Slack, Microsoft Teams, Human-in-the-Loop
Call another system's API	REST API
Move files between systems	FTP, SFTP, FTPS, AWS S3
Work with databases	SQL Databases, NoSQL Databases, DataTable
Work with Salesforce	Salesforce
Work with Jira issues	Jira
Work with ServiceNow (ITSM, CMDB, catalog)	ServiceNow
Run a web UI test suite	Qyrus
Read an Excel file into data	Excel
Compare two datasets	Data Comparison
Run custom Python or JavaScript	Script
Send or receive streaming events	Kafka
Run commands on a server	SSH
Clean, reshape, or combine data	Group, Merge, Split Out, JSON Array, Parse, Format
Add decisions or repeat steps	Conditional, Loop, Boolean, Variables
Reuse another workflow	Call
Work with dates or time	Date Time
Generate IDs, random values, or wait	Util
Encrypt, decrypt, hash, or sign data	Cryptography
Automate a website or web portal	Web Automation

Node Groups

Communication and Approval

Use these when the automation needs to talk to people or wait for a decision.

Node	Use it for
Email	Send or retrieve email using SMTP or Microsoft Graph
Slack	Send Slack messages, manage channels, upload files, or work with reactions
Microsoft Teams	Send Teams messages, work with channels, chats, and membership
Human-in-the-Loop	Pause a workflow until a person approves or rejects by email

API, Events, and Server Access

Use these when the automation needs to talk to technical systems.

Node	Use it for
REST API	Call any HTTP API when no dedicated node exists
Kafka	Produce, consume, or manage event messages
SSH	Run commands or scripts on a remote server

File Transfer and Cloud Storage

Use these when the automation needs to upload, download, list, rename, or delete files.

Node	Use it for
FTP	Move files over standard FTP
SFTP	Move files securely over SSH
FTPS	Move files over FTP with TLS/SSL
AWS S3	Manage files, folders, and buckets in Amazon S3 or compatible storage

Databases and Internal Tables

Use these when the automation needs to read or update stored data.

Node	Use it for
SQL Databases	Query relational databases such as MySQL or PostgreSQL
NoSQL Databases	Work with MongoDB-style data
DataTable	Create, read, update, or delete records in internal data tables

Enterprise Applications

Use these when the automation works with business platforms.

Node	Use it for
Salesforce	Create, update, delete, retrieve, and query Salesforce records
AI Agent	Run an AI agent to reason, call tools, and act inside a workflow
Jira	Create, update, transition, and search Jira issues; manage sprints and boards
ServiceNow	Manage ServiceNow incidents, change requests, service requests, CMDB records, and catalog orders
Qyrus	Run a Qyrus web-test suite and return pass/fail results

Data Preparation

Use these when the automation needs to reshape data before the next step.

Node	Use it for
Group	Group a list of items by a field
Merge	Combine multiple objects or lists
Split Out	Turn one list into separate items
JSON Array	Sort, filter, map, reduce, flatten, or update JSON arrays
Parse	Convert text between JSON, XML, CSV, YAML, and other formats
Format	Format strings or build templates
Export	Create CSV, Excel, or Word files from workflow data
Excel	Read an Excel file into a JSON array with optional row filtering
Data Comparison	Compare two datasets and report matches, mismatches, and gaps

Logic and Workflow Control

Use these when the automation needs decisions, repetition, or reusable flow.

Node	Use it for
Conditional	Choose what happens next based on a condition
Loop	Repeat steps for each item or until a rule is met
Call	Run another job from inside the current job
Boolean	Compare values and work with true/false logic
Variables	Save or map values for later steps

Date, Utility, and Security

Use these for common helper tasks.

Node	Use it for
Date Time	Add, compare, parse, or format dates and times
Util	Generate IDs, random values, or wait for a set time
Cryptography	Encrypt, decrypt, hash, or sign data
Script	Run a custom Python or JavaScript script with file I/O

Browser Automation

Use this when the target system does not have a useful API.

Node	Use it for
Web Automation	Open web pages, click buttons, type text, extract data, or automate browser workflows

When a Connection Is Needed

Some nodes need saved access details before they can run.

Node type	Usually needs a connection?
Email, Slack, Microsoft Teams	Yes
Databases	Yes
Salesforce, Jira, ServiceNow, Qyrus	Yes
AWS S3	Yes
FTP, SFTP, FTPS, SSH	Yes
Kafka	Yes
Data transformation nodes	Usually no
Logic and utility nodes	Usually no
REST API	Depends on how authentication is configured

Connections are managed in Global Configurator. They keep credentials and system access reusable instead of copying them into every workflow.

Files, datasets, certificates, and shared values are also managed in Global Configurator:

Shared setup	Use it when
Files	A node uploads, downloads, reads, or reuses a file.
Datasets	A workflow needs reusable business data.
Certificates	A connection or security step needs certificate material.
Global Variables	A value is reused across steps or workflows.

Common Workflow Examples

Goal	Possible nodes
Send a daily report	SQL Databases -> Format -> Email
Notify a team when a job fails	Conditional -> Slack or Microsoft Teams
Move vendor files securely	SFTP -> Parse -> DataTable
Sync Salesforce records	Salesforce -> Conditional -> REST API
Ask for approval before sending data	Human-in-the-Loop -> Email -> AWS S3
Process a list of tickets	REST API -> Loop -> Conditional -> Slack

Good Practices

Start with the outcome

Choose the node based on what the step should accomplish, not based on the technical name.

Use dedicated nodes first

If a dedicated node exists, such as Salesforce or Slack, use it before building a custom REST API call.

Use REST API for flexible integrations

REST API is useful when there is no dedicated node for the system you need.

Keep credentials in connections

Avoid copying passwords, tokens, or keys into step fields.

Prepare data before sending it

Use Parse, Format, Merge, Group, or JSON Array when the next system expects data in a specific shape.

Add checks before important actions

Use Conditional or Human-in-the-Loop before sending messages, changing records, or moving sensitive files.