For a flow to be available for execution in the instance, it must be what?

For a flow to be available for execution within the ServiceNow instance, it must be published. Publishing a flow makes it active and allows it to be triggered by the specified conditions or events outlined in its configuration. Until a flow is published, it remains in a draft state, meaning it can be edited and tested, but it will not execute or respond to conditions in the real-time production environment.

This process ensures that only fully tested and verified flows are operational, minimizing the chances of errors in ongoing processes. Once a flow is published, it can be invoked by record changes, scheduled events, or other triggers based on its design.