Article originally published on Medium.com
If you’ve spent more than a few hours building workflows in Alteryx, you know the drill. Connections everywhere, passwords changing without warning, and the inevitable scramble when a server migration breaks everything you thought was stable. It doesn’t take long before the whole thing feels less like data analysis and more like keeping track of loose scraps of paper.
DCM is Alteryx’s attempt to make that part of the job a little less maddening. It doesn’t make workflows glamorous or exciting. It just makes them work without you babysitting them. And that is a good thing.
What It Really Does
The core idea is straightforward. Separate the “what” from the “how.”
The “what” is the system you’re connecting to — Snowflake, SQL Server, Oracle, take your pick. The “how” is the credential. That might be a username and password, an OAuth token, or an API key. DCM keeps them apart until you actually need them.
This simple shift solves a handful of headaches:
- Credentials no longer hide inside workflows where they’re hard to find
- Users stop creating the same connection again and again
- Password changes don’t send you crawling through a dozen old files
- Designer and Server finally play by the same rules
It’s not anything mystical. It’s more like finally putting everything in the same sock drawer.
Why It Matters
For someone working alone, DCM just clears away clutter. For a team, it enforces consistency and prevents the usual mess of half-working connections. For admins, it’s about visibility and control. They can see what’s happening without chasing shadows.
Think of it like a password manager built for data work. Not glamorous, but it saves time and keeps the walls from caving in.
The Before and After
- Credential Storage: Buried within workflows [VS] Stored in one encrypted vault
- Reusability: Set up same connection over and over [VS] Configure once, reuse anywhere
- Password changes: Manual updates everywhere [VS] Update once, it applies everywhere
- Sharing: Manual and insecure [VS] Role-based and clean
- Server compatibility: Manual reconnects [VS] Automatic sync
- Admin visibility: Virtually none [VS] Role-based access and audit logs
Getting Started
Enabling it is simple. In Designer, open Options > User Settings > Edit User Settings > DCM. Switch it on. Likely, it is already on. If you’re using Server, check System Settings to enable and configure DCM. By the way, since the 2023.2 release, DCM is always enabled)
From there, create your first connection. Add an Input Data tool, go to Manage in Connection Manager, then choose New Data Source. Pick your system, enter the details, and save it. It’s like bookmarking a data source. Once it’s there, you can use it again without starting from scratch.
Next, attach a credential. You can use an existing one or create a new one. Keep it private if it’s just for you, or share it if your team needs it. After that, you’re done. Your workflow runs without storing passwords inside the file.
Working with Server and Teams
When you publish workflows to Server, DCM keeps Designer and Server in sync. Workflows don’t lose their connections, and admins get a vault they can manage.
Sharing works the way it should. Connections can be shared with different levels of access:
- View lets others use the connection
- Edit allows changes
- Admin gives full control
This makes collaboration possible without giving up control of sensitive details.
A Few Practical Tips
- Stick to a clear naming convention. Something like
Finance_Prod_Snowflake_ReadOnlyworks better than whatever you’ll forget in two weeks - Keep personal and shared credentials separate
- Create different connections for Dev, Test, and Prod
- Review and clean up credentials from time to time
- Don’t hardcode passwords in workflows. Let DCM handle it
Wrapping Up
DCM may win design awards. It probably won’t impress anyone outside your team. But it should considering how it uses a simple concept to clear away one of the most frustrating parts of working in Alteryx. Instead of spending hours chasing logins and patching old workflows, you set things up once and move on.
Turn it on, try it out, and see if your workday doesn’t feel just a little lighter.