Using enterprise managed apps in Airtable

1. Navigate to Builder hub from the account menu.

2. Under the “Library” section on the left side of the page click the Components option.

3. Click the Create a component button.

4. Give the component a “Name” and helpful “Description” so that end users will know what the component’s purpose is.

5. Click on the ^ Advanced section.

   • If your Enterprise contains multiple org units, choose the org unit where you want this component to appear.

   • Toggle the “Create from existing base” option on and then choose an existing base from the dropdown menu if you prefer to use an existing base’s configuration as a template for the component that you are building.

6. Click the Create button.

7. This will bring you to a new development base. Configure the development base in whatever way your use case requires. This could be as simple as a single table containing a single field and as complex as a base with many tables containing many fields.

8. Once you’ve configured the development base to your liking, click the Publish button near the top of the page.

9. Next, choose a component type and click Next.

   • If you chose to create a “Table” component, then you’ll choose one or more tables to include as the managed component.

   • If you chose to create a “Field” component, then you’ll first choose a table and then choose one or more fields within that table to include as the managed component.

10. You’ll then need to choose whether to automatically include any linked tables that have dependencies via linked record fields. Then, click Next.

11. Before publishing, you’ll have the opportunity to:

    • Edit the name of the component.

    • Edit the description of the component.

    • Add a “Long description” of the component.

    • Set the audience, i.e. who can use the component. This is covered more extensively below.

12. Lastly, click Publish when you are ready for your audience to be able to utilize the managed component.

1. Navigate to Builder hub from the account menu.

2. Under the “Library” section on the left side of the page click the Managed apps option.

3. Click the Create a managed app button.

4. Give the app a “Name” and helpful “Description” so that end users will know what the app’s purpose is.

5. Click on the ^ Advanced section.

   • If your Enterprise contains multiple org units, choose the org unit where you want this managed app to appear.

   • Toggle the “Create from existing base” option on and then choose an existing base from the dropdown menu if you prefer to use an existing base’s configuration as a template for the app that you are building.

6. Click the Create button.

7. This will bring you to a new development base. Typically, a managed app will contain multiple tables, automations, and interfaces, but the complexity can vary. Configure the development base in whatever way your use case requires.

8. Once you’ve configured the development base to your liking, click the Publish button near the top of the page.

9. Before publishing, you’ll have the opportunity to:

   • Edit the name of the app.

   • Edit the description of the app.

   • Add a “Long description” of the app.

   • Set the audience, i.e. who can use the app. This is covered more extensively below.

10. Lastly, click Publish when you are ready for your audience to be able to utilize the managed app.

1. From an existing base, click the Tools option from the top right corner of the base. You can create a new base if you’d rather build the base from scratch utilizing one or more components as a starting point.

2. Next, click the Library option.

3. From here there are several options to find a component to add. You can search for components by name or filter to show All components, Tables, or Fields.

4. Once you find the component that you want to add to your base, click it. For component tables, you will click the Add to base option. For component fields, you will first choose a table from the dropdown menu and then click Add to base.

Managed apps cannot be “added” to existing bases. Instead, they must be added from the home screen as a new base. From the home screen:

1. Click the Templates & Apps option above the Create button near the lower left side of the screen.

2. Under the “Get started” section, click the Apps at {Your organization} option.

3. Browse through the apps managed by your organization and click the one needed for your use case.

4. This will lead to a screen where you can learn more about the app such as how many tables, automations, and interfaces it contains as well as who published the app, when it was last updated, and how many times it has been used at your organization.

5. When you are ready, click Add this app.

6. Then choose which workspace to add the app and, optionally, the name and appearance of the app.

7. Finally, click Create.

There are two high-level steps to updating a managed app or component:

1. Development base changes - In the Builder Hub, users with creator permissions in a development base can update the managed app or component and then click Publish to allow other users across their org to update their individual managed app or component.

2. Manual updates on individual bases - In a base created as a managed app or a base with an added component, a user with creator permissions can update the base to match the published changes made in the development base. This can be done on many surfaces, but we recommend the following steps:

   1. Navigate to the base you want to update and click the Tools ⌄ option on the right side of the screen

   2. From the menu that appears, click the Library option. Next, click the Added to this base section. This will reveal any managed components or apps added to the base.

   3. Find the app or component you want to update and click the … icon on the right side. You should see an “Update available” message. This will reveal a menu of options. Click the Update app or Update component button. This will vary based on the type you are updating.

   4. A menu will appear to show you a brief overview of the change or changes this will make to your base. You can optionally choose to toggle the “Take a base snapshot before updating” to take a snapshot in case the changes made by the update are unexpected.

   5. Click Update when you are ready. Certain updates may take longer to process. Once the update is complete, click the Done button to return to the base.

Warning

When an app or component becomes unmanaged, it will no longer be able to receive new updates published from the development base. This cannot be undone.

There are times when creators across your organization may want to use a component or managed app as a jumping-off point to create a more custom solution. In these cases, you may want to convert the component or app to be unmanaged so the field, table, automation, and interface configurations become editable in the base rather than only in the development base. In these cases:

1. Navigate to the base where the component or managed app has been added.

2. Navigate to a field, table, automation, or interface that is currently managed as a component or managed app.

• From a table - Click the dropdown next to the name of the table. Hover over the “Managed by your org” section. Then click the Convert to unmanaged option. A confirmation dialog will appear. Click Convert to unmanaged again.

• From a field - Click the dropdown next to the name of the field. Hover over the “Managed by your org” section. Then click the Convert to unmanaged option. A confirmation dialog will appear. Click Convert to unmanaged again.

• From an interface - Make sure you are in “Edit” mode. Click the Pages button if the menu on the left side of the screen is not visible. Near the top of the menu, click the Convert to unmanaged option. A confirmation dialog will appear. Click Convert to unmanaged again.

• From an automation - From the “Automations list” on the left side of the page click an automation that is part of a managed app or component. In the “Properties” panel on the right side of the screen, click the Convert to unmanaged option. A confirmation dialog will appear. Click Convert to unmanaged again.

There are times when you may want to delete a component from a base rather than converting it to be unmanaged. In these cases, you can either delete the individual table or field component (which can be tedious to find) or use the following recommended method:

1. Navigate to the base containing the component that you want to delete and click the Tools ⌄ option on the right side of the screen

2. From the menu that appears, click the Library option. Next, click the Added to this base section. This will reveal any managed components or apps added to the base.

3. Find the component you want to delete and click the … icon on the right side. Then click Delete component. A warning message will appear. You’ll need to click Delete to finish the deletion process.

Note

You can re-add a component at a later time if needed, but keep in mind that the component may have changed if any updates have been published in the development base for that component.

• Any user who is a claimed member of an org unit can create a managed app or component in that org unit.

• Once the app or component has been created, the creator can add any user as a collaborator to the development base.

• Any user who is a collaborator in a development base can publish the package to one of the following audiences:

  • Creators in the development base - Development base collaborators

  • Specific user groups - One or more user groups in the managed app or component’s individual org unit and development base collaborators

  • Everyone at {your organization} - All claimed users in the managed app or component’s individual org unit and development base collaborators

• From the library, users can see, install, and update any managed app or component if the following are true:

  • The user is part of the package’s audience.

  • The user has creator permission in the installation base.

  • The installation base belongs to the managed app/component’s org unit

Note

There is no support for managed apps or components belonging to the entire grid/multiple org units.

1. Navigate to the Admin Panel for your organization.

2. Next, click on Settings from the left side of the page.

3. Then, click the Org settings tab.

4. Scroll down to find the “APPS & COMPONENTS” section

5. Here you will find the “Restrict managed app & component creation in this organization” setting.

6. When toggled on, this setting will globally prevent components from being created and published across the organization. When the option is toggled off, all users across the organization can create and publish apps or components to the library.

To create an allowlist of users in your organization who can create and publish components:

1. The “Restrict managed app & component creation in this organization” setting mentioned above must be toggled on to create the allowlist.

2. Click and expand the User allowlist option.

3. Enter a single email address of a user in your organization and then click the Allow button.

To remove a user from the allowlist:

1. Under the “Restrict managed app & component creation in this organization” setting, click and expand the User allowlist option.

2. Then, find the user you want to remove from the allowlist and click the X next to their email address.

1. Navigate to the Admin Panel for your organization.

2. Next, click on Components from the left side of the page.

3. Browse or search for the component or manage app you want to transfer. You’ll see some helpful information listed so that you can identify the name, type, current owner, and other usage metadata related to the app or component.

4. Click the … icon to the right of the app or component you want to transfer.

5. Click Transfer ownership in the menu that appears.

6. From the dropdown menu, choose the appropriate user to transfer ownership of the app or component.

7. Finally, click Transfer.

A few notes:

• Only members of the same org unit are eligible to become the new owner.

• The new owner will be added as a collaborator to the development base.

• The original owner will not be removed as a collaborator from the development base.

Features that are not supported in components are not available in development bases. This includes:

• Record Templates

• Gantt View

• Extensions

• 3rd-party sync integrations

• Multi-source sync

• Standalone interface forms

Additionally:

• Development bases are not shown on the home screen. Instead, they are accessed through the Builder hub.

• Development bases cannot be moved, duplicated, or deleted.

• Appearance changes are not allowed in development bases. They will appear gray in color with the word “Development” next to the name of the base.

Note

If there is an unsupported feature that you would like to see supported, please submit a feature request via the beta feedback form.

This means:

• Enterprise Hub is not supported. Components and managed apps can only be published and added within a single org unit.

• Components cannot be added in a base outside of the enterprise organization.

• If a base with a component/managed app added is moved out of the enterprise, it will not be able to receive updates.

• Non-enterprise members can be added as collaborators in a development base. In this case, they will be able to edit and publish this component or managed app, but it can still only be added in bases in the Enterprise organization.

A managed app can be thought of as a whole app template, whereas a managed app component is a collection of one or many primitives that are bundled together.

Both of these product primitives benefit from a standardization/central control, which enables simpler and more consistent reporting.

We think managed apps will be particularly useful for workflows that will benefit from users creating net-new apps, whereas managed app components will be more useful for adding managed elements to existing apps (e.g. team bases).

Yes, (instances of) managed apps/components can be disconnected from the source. Any builder with creator permissions in the base where a managed app/component is used may choose to disconnect it by clicking Convert to unmanaged in the library dialog, or in the edit menu for any element (table, view, field, automation, interface) managed by the app/component. Doing so disconnects the entire app/component, rather than just the element that the builder initiated the disconnect from.

When an app/component is disconnected, the elements managed by it become unlocked and cannot receive future updates. They become no different from bases, interfaces, tables, views, fields, or automations created manually.

There is currently no way for the author of a managed app/component to prevent it from being disconnected once used. However, we may provide the ability to disable this unlinking in the future.

In order to customize an part from a managed app/component without disconnecting it entirely, we recommend that builders duplicate the element to be customized. The duplicated element will not be managed and can be freely edited but will not receive updates in the future. The original managed element can then be hidden/unpublished/turned off as needed. Please let us know what kinds of customization would be useful via the feedback form.

Initially, we recommend that users create a multi-source sync that includes data from the various instances of their apps. While this can leverage shared schema across apps, it is a relatively laborious stopgap and can only aggregate from up to 20 bases. We’re planning on improving this in the near future with dedicated reporting capabilities.

Most of the time, no. Managed apps & components are primarily about reusing schema & configuration rather than reusing data. However, managed apps and components can include tables that sync data from other Airtable bases or published data sets. See the Data sets and verifying data in Airtable article for more information on publishing data for others in your organization to use.

Managed tables, managed select fields, and data sets all represent different ways of reusing data or data structure across multiple bases:

• Use managed tables if you are trying to reuse a table’s structure (e.g. the fields that should be tracked in Projects)

• Use a managed select field if you are trying to reuse a flat list of options (e.g. a list of project statuses)

• Use a data set if you are trying to reuse record data (e.g. the actual set of projects)

In general, we think most deployments should default to being a single base with multiple interfaces. This should simplify the building and maintenance burden, which should lead to more robust apps over time

However, there are cases when you might want to break things out to multiple bases:

• Managed apps or a sync ecosystem

  • If you want to enable teams to customize their own workflows without handling centralized change management.

  • If you have compliance or political constraints that mean you can’t have the same data for multiple teams/personas in a single base.

• Managed apps

  • If you want to facilitate new teams getting their own connected apps spun up quickly without guidance.

• Sync ecosystem

  • If you can’t identify a single, committed builder to own a base and want to defray the ownership costs to multiple teams working in their own bases.

  • If you want to empower more organic building and rebuilding of workflows than would be possible with a single large base.

Because managed apps/components do not contain data and may be used in different contexts than they were created in, the following are not supported:

• Filters and record conditions (e.g. in views, automations, or interfaces) that reference specific linked records, as they may not exist in the base where the managed app/component is used

• Filters and record conditions (e.g. in views, automations, or interfaces) that reference specific users/collaborators, as they may not have access to the base where the managed app/component is used

As new features are added to Airtable, they may not immediately be supported within managed apps/components. If you’d like to see support for one or more of these features prioritized, please let us know via the feedback form.

Yes, use the “Create from existing base” option in the “Advanced” section when creating a new component. When this setting is enabled, we will create the development base for your new managed app or component using the selected base as a starting point. However, any features that are not currently supported in managed apps & components (see above) will not be copied over to the development base.

Enterprise Hub is not supported. Managed apps/components belong to a particular org unit, and can only be used within that org unit. If you’d like to publish managed apps or components to your entire organization on Enterprise Hub, please let us know via the feedback form.

External users (i.e. users who do not belong to your organization) may be added as collaborators to the development base of a managed app/component, just like any other base.

All collaborators with creator permissions (including external users) on the development base will be able to edit and publish a managed app/component. However, only members of the enterprise organization may change the Audience of the app/component.

You are only allowed to create managed apps/components in the org unit(s) you belong to. The only way to collaborate on a managed app/component in an org unit you are not a member of is to ask a member of that org unit to create the managed app/component and invite you as a collaborator on the development base.