Set up automated approvals

This guide walks you through how to configure and use automated approval workflows inside a Confluence space.

⚙️ How to Set Up an Approval Workflow

To configure automatic approval workflows for a Confluence space:

1. Access Space Settings

Go to: Space Settings → Integrations → Capable → Approval

2. Enable Automatic Approvals

Turn on this toggle to automatically trigger approval requests when a page is created or edited. This eliminates the need for manual setup per page.

3. Set Default Approvers

Enable “Default Approvers” and add users who should review new content by default. These reviewers will be notified and assigned automatically.

👥 Example: Add Jake the Dog and Finn the Human as default approvers.

4. Define Thresholds

Adjust the sliders to configure:

• Minimum Approvers: The number of positive votes required for a page to pass approval.

• Minimum Rejections: The number of rejections needed to stop the approval process.

5. Optional: Set Approval Expiry

If needed, you can define expiry conditions for approvals:

• Expire on page update

• Expire after a specific date

This motivates timely feedback and keeps reviews relevant.

6. Allow or Restrict Editing of Approvals

Choose whether contributors can modify approval requests. You can lock this down to admins only.

7. Optional: Toggle “Publish on Approval”

Enable this if you want approved content to be published automatically to the target publishing space.

Find out more about Capable Publishing >

🧠 Why It Matters

With this setup:

• Every published page is reviewed

• Approvals are logged with reviewer names and timestamps

• Publishing is traceable and auditable

• No manual handoffs are required

• Drafts remain safe from premature visibility

🔔 Notifications & Visibility

Approvers receive notifications via:

• Slack

• Email

On each page, visual indicators show:

• Pending Approval, Approved, Rejected

• Published, Outdated or Desynced (if publishing is enabled)

📝 Real-Life Use Cases

• Internal IT Docs: Draft SOPs and publish only after approval by senior analysts.

• KCS Teams: Trigger reviews as soon as an agent creates knowledge.

• Marketing Teams: Ensure brand and legal sign-off before web copy goes live.

• Support Centers: Approve public help docs with strict version control.

✅ Summary