> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.coupler.io/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.coupler.io/functionality/coupler.io-storage/pausing-sources-and-destinations-in-coupler.io.md).

# Pausing sources and destinations in Coupler.io

### What pausing is <a href="#what-pausing-is" id="what-pausing-is"></a>

Pausing lets you freeze a source or destination at any point and keep a snapshot of its data in Coupler.io Storage. The snapshot stays in a state you control: it does not change until you resume.

Coupler.io Storage keeps the data from your last successful data flow run. You can use stored data in AI insights, dashboards, AI integrations, and the AI Agent without running the flow again.

You can pause a source, a destination, or both. They work differently:

* **Pausing a source** freezes the data coming in. Coupler.io doesn't connect to the source app at all while it's paused, so its data stays as it was after the last successful run.
* **Pausing a destination** freezes what that destination gets. It keeps the data from the last successful run and receives no updates until you resume.

### Benefits <a href="#benefits" id="benefits"></a>

* **Full control over your data.** You decide when data stops updating and when it starts again.
* **Reports that don't go blank.** Your last data stays available, even when a source is gone, unreachable, or no longer needed.
* **Lower costs in your source apps.** A paused source makes no API calls, so you don't pay for requests you don't need.
* **Less maintenance.** No connections or files to look after for data that no longer changes.
* **Flexible reuse.** Build new views on a paused source with transformations and send them to any destination.

### How pausing works <a href="#how-pausing-works" id="how-pausing-works"></a>

You can pause a source or a destination. The data from the last successful run is kept as it is.

**Paused source:** Coupler.io doesn't connect to the source app at all. The data from its last successful run stays in Storage.

You can still build new data set views on top of a paused source using Coupler.io transformations. For example, split one paused source into several views and send each to a different destination.

**Paused destination:** what you see depends on the destination type.

| Destination type              | Destinations                                                                  | While the destination is paused                                                                                    |
| ----------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| Data in the destination       | Google Sheets, Excel Online, Amazon Redshift, PostgreSQL, BigQuery, Snowflake | Coupler.io skips updating the destination. The data from the last successful run is already there and stays as is. |
| Data accessed via link or API | Data Studio, Power BI, JSON, CSV, Tableau, Qlik, Excel Desktop                | The link or API keeps returning the data from the last successful run.                                             |
| Dashboards and AI             | Coupler.io Dashboards, AI integrations, AI Agent, AI Insights                 | They keep using the data from the last successful run.                                                             |

**Good to know:** for destinations like Google Sheets or BigQuery, Coupler.io doesn't write anything while paused. If you edit or delete data there, Coupler.io won't restore it. The destination is updated again on the first run after you resume.

**Other parts of the same data flow:** one data flow can mix active, disabled, and paused sources and destinations:

* **Active** ones update with each run.
* **Disabled** ones are skipped completely.
* **Paused** ones keep serving data in the state you paused them.

Transformations (join, append, aggregate, custom SQL) are recalculated on every run.

**When you resume:**

* Data starts updating again on the next run.
* Whether you need to reconnect the account depends on the source. For example, an access token may expire while the source is paused.

### How to pause and resume <a href="#how-to-pause-and-resume" id="how-to-pause-and-resume"></a>

**Before you start:** you can pause a source only after it has completed at least one run that was successful or partially successful. Until then, the Paused option is greyed out with the hint "Requires at least one run".

**To pause a source:**

1. Open your data flow and go to **Sources**.
2. Click the **⋮** menu next to the source.
3. Under **Change state to**, select **Paused**.

<figure><img src="https://2487187314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FCgnmco7kCnvytNIN8YdT%2Fuploads%2FULlftwV0mFvK9j91aLZP%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=71b58efc-f0ba-4117-a88e-7984c5f31372" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

You can also pause a source from its edit page: click **Edit** next to the source, click the **⋮** menu at the top right, and under **Change state to**, select **Paused**.

The source now shows **Paused · data from \[time] ago**, so you can see how old the stored data is.

<figure><img src="https://2487187314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FCgnmco7kCnvytNIN8YdT%2Fuploads%2FgHdG9wt79f5SgpvJReOI%2Fimage.png?alt=media&amp;token=38131e26-d9f5-4b9a-a1aa-70cfc54157a7" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

**To resume a source:**

1. Open your data flow and go to **Sources**.
2. Click the **⋮** menu next to the paused source.
3. Under **Change state to**, select **Active**.
4. If Coupler.io asks you to reconnect, sign in to the account again.

**To pause or resume a destination:** the steps are the same as for a source. A destination can also be paused only after at least one successful or partially successful run. Until then, Paused is greyed out with the same "Requires at least one run" hint.

1. Open your data flow and go to **Data destinations**.
2. Click the **⋮** menu next to the destination, or click **Edit** and use the **⋮** menu at the top right.
3. Under **Change state to**, select **Paused** to pause, or **Active** to resume.

### Use cases <a href="#use-cases" id="use-cases"></a>

| Use case                           | Example                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
| ---------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Freeze final results               | After closing 2025, pause the ad sources or the destination behind your 2025 report. The final numbers stay unchanged.                                                                                                                         |
| Keep data from a stale source      | A client's ad account is no longer active. Pause the source to keep its last data for reports.                                                                                                                                                 |
| Lost access or migration           | You lose access to a source app, or move from one app to another. Pause the old source. Reports keep its last data until access is restored or the new source is set up.                                                                       |
| Import reference data once         | Import a dictionary or mapping table (for example, campaign names to regions) once, then pause the source. No need to keep the file connected or track changes to it.                                                                          |
| Reduce API costs in the source app | Your source app bills per API call. Pause the source while you don't need fresh data.                                                                                                                                                          |
| Serve past clients' data           | You split one source into a view per client with transformations, each sent to its own destination. A client stops working with you but still wants access to old data. Pause that client's destination, and it keeps serving their last data. |

### Billing and plan limits <a href="#billing-and-plan-limits" id="billing-and-plan-limits"></a>

* **Billing:** Pausing does not reduce your Coupler.io bill.
* **Plan limits:** Paused sources and destinations still count toward your plan limits.


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