Modifying SharePoint Designer Workflow Startup Configuration

SharePoint Designer workflows start with a wizard that asks how to trigger the workflow—but that screen never appears again. Here's how to change workflow startup behavior after creation by editing the workflow XML directly.

The Problem: Hidden Configuration

One of SharePoint Designer's selling points is creating workflows without code. The wizard starts with this question:

Initial Wizard Question

"What do you want to happen when a workflow is started?"

✅ Allow this workflow to be manually started
✅ Automatically start when a new item is created
✅ Automatically start whenever an item is changed

This determines how the workflow triggers and its relationship with list items.

The catch: This configuration screen never appears again after initial workflow creation. If you need to change the startup behavior, there's no GUI option—you're stuck.

The Solution: Direct XML Editing

You can modify workflow startup behavior by editing the workflow definition XML file directly using SharePoint Designer.

Step 1: Open Workflow in SharePoint Designer

Navigate to your SharePoint site → Open the Workflows folder

Step 2: Locate Workflow Definition File

Find your workflow's .xoml file (or similar XML definition)

Right-click → Open With → Text Editor

Step 3: Find Association Element

Look for the <Association> XML element with these attributes:

<Association
  ListID="{A245AE99-E68F-4500-9B36-6DD167FF676F}"
  TaskListID="{EAE51F29-83F8-4C88-8A36-D9417969E07C}"
  StartManually="true"    <!-- Workflow starts manually -->
  StartOnCreate="true"    <!-- Workflow starts on item creation -->
  StartOnChange="true"    <!-- Workflow starts on item change -->
>

Step 4: Modify Trigger Attributes

Change attribute values to control workflow behavior:

StartManually="true" → Enable manual workflow start

StartOnCreate="true" → Auto-start when item is created

StartOnChange="true" → Auto-start when item is modified

Set to "false" to disable each trigger type.

Step 5: Save and Test

Save the file in SharePoint Designer and test the workflow with your new trigger configuration.

My Use Case: Automatic Startup Failed

I created a workflow configured to start automatically—but it never triggered. No errors, just silence.

Investigation revealed: This was caused by a bug in WSS 3.0 and MOSS 2007 Service Pack 1 that prevented SharePoint Designer workflows from starting automatically.

Workaround: Changed StartManually="true" using the XML editing technique above, which allowed users to trigger workflows manually while Microsoft worked on a hotfix.

The SP1 Bug: Microsoft KB947284

Known Issue

Microsoft documented this as KB947284: SharePoint Designer workflows fail to start automatically after installing Service Pack 1 for WSS 3.0 or MOSS 2007.

• Symptoms: Workflows configured for automatic start never trigger
• Cause: SP1 regression in workflow event handler registration
• Fix: Microsoft released a cumulative update hotfix
• Workaround: Use manual workflow triggers via XML editing

Modern Context: Power Automate Configuration

SharePoint Designer workflows are deprecated. Modern Power Automate flows have clear, editable trigger configurations:

• Visual trigger selection: Choose triggers from UI dropdowns anytime
• Multiple trigger types: Item created, modified, deleted, selected, scheduled
• Conditional triggers: Filter which items trigger workflows using expressions
• Easy reconfiguration: Change triggers without editing XML
• Trigger history: See which items triggered which workflow runs

Power Automate's trigger system is significantly more flexible and debuggable than SharePoint Designer workflows.

Common Trigger Patterns

Approval Workflows

StartOnCreate="true" + StartManually="false"
Auto-start approval when documents are uploaded to library

Update Notifications

StartOnChange="true" + StartOnCreate="false"
Send notifications only when existing items are modified, not for new items

Ad-Hoc Processing

StartManually="true" + all auto-triggers ="false"
Users decide when to run workflow via context menu

Key Takeaways

1. Workflow triggers are editable via XML - no need to recreate workflows
2. SP1 bug affected auto-start workflows - hotfix or manual triggers required
3. XML editing is a last resort - use carefully and test thoroughly
4. Power Automate eliminates this complexity - modern triggers are GUI-editable