SharePoint Designer 2013: this workflow is read-only

Question

Dear all,

we use SharePoint SE (OnPrem). To edit a workflow, we use SharePoint Designer 2013 x64. Until the migration from SharePoint 2016 to SharePoint SE, this was no problem. Since the migration to SharePoint SE, we cannot open existing Workflows in SharePoint Designer. If we try top open a workflow, we get the error message "this workflow is read-only". -> How can we edit the workflow like it was possible all the years before?

Answer 1

Hi @Matthias68,

The error message "this workflow is read-only" in SharePoint Designer 2013 after migrating to SharePoint SE may be due to changes in permissions or configurations associated with the migration.

Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot and potentially resolve the issue:

1. Ensure that you have the necessary permissions to edit workflows in SharePoint SE.
2. Check if the workflow is associated with a content type that has been modified or if there are any restrictions on editing workflows in the site settings.
3. Verify the status of the workflow in SharePoint. If the workflow is published and running, it may be locked for editing. You may need to unpublish it first.

If the workflow is still read-only, consider recreating it in SharePoint Designer 2013.

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