The Input Portal — also called the Input Hub — is the operator and broker workspace where you design the forms and workflows that run your deals. Think of it as the engine room: you build everything here, and applicants only ever see the small slices you send them.
This guide is the front door to the whole suite. It explains what the Input Portal is, the mental model behind it, and a quick tour so you can get your bearings. When you are ready to dig into a specific area, the Where to go next section maps all the detailed guides.
What the Input Portal is
Every deal — a loan application, an onboarding, a refinance — involves two things: collecting information and moving it through a process. The Input Portal is where you define both.
Inside it you can:
- Build forms that ask for exactly the information you need — income, identity, supporting documents, consents, and anything else your process requires.
- Build workflows that describe the ordered steps a deal travels through, and what must happen at each step.
- Run deals on a visual board, track where each application is up to, fill in answers on behalf of applicants, and move deals forward.
Because the forms you author here are the same forms applicants fill out (in the separate Collect portal), and the same data the rest of ZiplineOS reads, you define everything once. Update a question in the Input Portal and it changes everywhere.
"Input Portal" and "Input Hub" refer to the same product. You will see both names used across ZiplineOS — they mean exactly the same thing.
The model: Forms → Workflows → Deals
Almost everything in the Input Portal comes down to three ideas:
| Concept | What it is |
|---|---|
| Form | A reusable set of questions (fields) that collects information. |
| Workflow | An ordered set of steps; each step holds items — a form to fill, a document to sign, an automation, and so on. |
| Deal | One real run of a workflow. Deals move through the steps on a board (Kanban view) from start to finish. |
The relationship is straightforward: a workflow is made of steps, a step is made of items, and many items are simply "fill in this form." When you start a real application, the workflow is instantiated into a deal — a live copy that walks through the same steps, collecting answers as it goes.
Forms and workflows are blueprints you design once. Deals are the live instances that follow them.
A quick tour in three steps
Here is the minimum you need to run your first deal:
Step 1 — Build a form. Go to the Forms section and create a new form. Add the questions (fields) you need — text boxes, dropdowns, money inputs, file uploads, and more. Give each field a label and choose its type. When you are happy, publish the form.
Step 2 — Build a workflow. Go to Workflows and create a new workflow. Add the steps your process needs (for example: Lead → Fact Find → Underwriting → Approval → Settlement). Inside each step, add items — drag in the forms you built, add document signing steps, set up automations. Publish the workflow when it is ready.
Step 3 — Run a deal. Open the Deals board and create a new deal on your workflow. Add the applicants, then start working through the items: fill in forms, collect documents, move the card along the board as each step is done. That is it — you are running a live deal.
Applicants never log in to the Input Portal. They receive a secure link by email that opens the Collect portal, where they see only their own application and only the forms they need to fill. What they see is rendered by the same engine you use, so your form preview matches exactly what they get.
Who uses it
| User | Role |
|---|---|
| Brokers / team members | Author forms and workflows, create and manage deals, fill in data, chase documents, move applications forward. |
| Platform admins | Curate shared libraries of ready-made form and workflow packs; set standards that every organisation builds on. |
| Applicants | Fill out forms — but in the Collect portal via a private link, not here. |
The key split: authors build, applicants fill. The Input Portal is your workspace. Applicants never see it.
Where to go next
Forms
- Form Question Types — the full field-type catalog: text, money, dates, dropdowns, file uploads, and more.
- Advanced Question Types — nested forms, entity-bound fields, and complex inputs.
- Question Settings — labels, placeholders, hints, required flags, and per-field options.
- Display Modes — change how a question looks: slider, tile grid, toggle, disclaimer panel, read-only statement.
- Validations — keep data clean with required, range, length, date, and file rules.
- Show, Hide & Require with Rules — conditionally show, hide, or require fields based on other answers.
Workflows
- Order Workflows — build the step-by-step process: steps, versioning, and how deals move through them.
- Items: Collecting & Signing — form items and document signing items inside a step.
- Items: Automation & Flow — integrations, decisions, and carry-forward items.
- More Item Types — results displays, outstanding documents, and other item types.
Behaviour
- Item Rules — show or hide items inside a step based on deal data.
- Reactions — trigger side-effects (notifications, automations) when something happens in a deal.
- Scope, Cardinality & Relations — control whether a form is filled per applicant, once for the deal, or per household.
Start with the quick tour above, then pick whichever guide matches what you are building next. You do not need to read them in order — each guide stands on its own.