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MetaVox Flow Integration

MetaVox integrates with Nextcloud's Flow (Workflow Engine) to enable metadata-based automation and access control.

Overview

With Flow integration, you can create rules like: - Block access to documents marked as confidential - Send notifications when documents are approved - Automatically move files based on their status

Prerequisites

  1. MetaVox installed and configured
  2. For access control: Install Files Access Control app from the Nextcloud App Store

Setting Up Flow Rules

Creating a Rule

  1. Go to Settings > Flow (Admin settings)
  2. Click Add new flow
  3. Select a trigger (e.g., "File accessed", "File created")
  4. Under Conditions, click Add condition
  5. Select "MetaVox metadata" from the dropdown
  6. Configure your condition:
  7. Field: Select the metadata field to check
  8. Operator: Choose from available operators
  9. Value: Enter the value to compare against
  10. Team folder (optional): Limit to a specific folder

Flow integration

Available Operators

Text / General

Operator Description
is Exact match
!is Does not match
contains Value contains the text
!contains Value does not contain the text
matches Regular expression match
!matches Regular expression does not match

Empty Checks (all field types)

Operator Description
empty Field has no value
!empty Field has a value

Date Fields

Operator Description
before Date is before the given value
after Date is after the given value

The condition value picker switches automatically: date-only fields use a date input, fields with Include time component enabled use a datetime-local input. Comparisons are performed lexicographically on the stored ISO 8601 string, which is chronologically correct for both formats.

Number Fields

Operator Description
greater Value is greater than
less Value is less than
greaterOrEqual Value is greater than or equal to
lessOrEqual Value is less than or equal to

Select / Multiselect Fields

Operator Description
oneOf Value matches one of the given options
containsAll Value contains all given options

Checkbox Fields

Operator Description
isTrue Checkbox is checked
isFalse Checkbox is unchecked

Field-Specific Input

The value input adapts to the field type: - Dropdown fields: Show configured options - Checkbox fields: Show Yes/No - Date fields: Show date picker - Number fields: Numeric input - Text fields: Free text input

Example Use Cases

Block Access to Confidential Files

Block access example

  1. Create a Flow rule with trigger "File accessed"
  2. Add condition: MetaVox metadata > classification is confidential
  3. Add action: Block access

Result: Users cannot access files marked as confidential unless the condition is changed.

Notify on Document Approval

Notification example

Note: The "Send notification" action is only available in personal Flow settings (Settings > Personal > Flow), not in the admin Flow panel. This is a Nextcloud design choice — notification flows are configured per user.

  1. Go to Settings > Personal > Flow
  2. Create a Flow rule with trigger "File updated"
  3. Add condition: MetaVox metadata > status is approved
  4. Add action: Send notification

Result: When a document's status changes to "approved", you receive a notification.

Restrict Downloads for Unreviewed Documents

  1. Create a Flow rule with trigger "File accessed"
  2. Add condition: MetaVox metadata > review_status is not reviewed
  3. Add action: Block download

Result: Documents that haven't been reviewed cannot be downloaded.

Auto-Tag Based on Metadata

  1. Create a Flow rule with trigger "File created"
  2. Add condition: MetaVox metadata > department is Legal
  3. Add action: Add tag "legal-team"

Result: Files created in the Legal department are automatically tagged.

Tips

  • Team folder detection: The Team folder is automatically detected from the file location in most cases
  • Field grouping: Fields are grouped by type: "File fields" (per-document) and "Team folder fields" (inherited from folder)
  • Testing: Test rules with non-critical files first
  • Logging: Check Nextcloud logs if rules don't trigger as expected

Admin vs Personal Flow

Action Where to configure Scope
Block access to a file Settings > Administration > Flow Applies to all users
Send notification Settings > Personal > Flow Applies to you only

Both types of flow rules can use MetaVox metadata as a condition.

Limitations

  • Flow rules evaluate when triggers fire (file access, creation, etc.)
  • Metadata changes alone may not trigger rules unless combined with file events
  • Complex conditions may require multiple rules

See Also