Shared Shortcut Automation Turned Off? Switch It On

On iOS 27, an automation that comes in a shared shortcut, or syncs from another device, arrives switched off. Apple does this on purpose, so nothing runs until you say so. Open the shortcut, tap Edit, and turn on the Automation switch under the trigger.

What you need: an iPhone on iOS 27 with the Shortcuts app, and the shortcut you added or the automation that synced. iOS 26 works differently, which is covered below.

Why did my shared shortcut’s automation arrive turned off?

Apple built it that way. On iOS 27 a shortcut can carry its own automation, such as a Message trigger, and shortcuts can be shared with a link or synced through iCloud. A trigger can make your iPhone act without you tapping anything, so a shortcut from someone else, or from your other device, doesn’t get to do that until you allow it.

Apple’s Shortcuts guide says it in one line. On its intro to automation shortcuts page, read on 2026-10-24, it says: “The automation will be backed up to iCloud but will sync to other devices with the automation disabled.”

Three things follow from that:

• A shared shortcut adds the steps, not the permission. You see the shortcut in your Library, but its trigger is off.
• A synced automation is a copy, not a clone. Your second iPhone or iPad gets it switched off, even if it runs on the first.
• Nothing is wrong. An automation that’s off isn’t broken. It’s waiting for you.

Tech writers covering iOS 27 describe the same behavior. MacStories’ iOS 27 review says automations in an installed shortcut start off and appear dimmed.

How do I turn on an automation that arrived off?

These steps use the labels on iOS 27. The switch sits in the shortcut itself, not in a separate Automation tab.

1. Open the shortcut. Open Shortcuts, go to Library, then Automation. Find the one that arrived. A switch on the right shows it’s off.

2. Tap Edit. If it opens on a description instead of the steps, tap Edit.

3. Read the steps. The trigger is the first step, and every action is listed below it. Read them, since you’re about to let them run on their own.

4. Turn on Automation. Tap the arrow beside the trigger, such as “When I receive a message where…”. Turn on the Automation switch.

5. Turn off Confirm Before Run. Under the same arrow, make sure Confirm Before Run is off. If it’s on, the iPhone asks you each time instead of running.

6. Check Privacy. Tap Details (ⓘ), then Privacy, and make sure Allow Running When Locked is on. It’s on to begin with. It lets the automation run when the screen is locked.

7. Tap back. The automation now shows as on in Library, then Automation.

That’s it. The next matching text starts it. For the same switches on every setup, including the restart and locked-iPhone cases, see Shortcuts automation not running?.

Why is the automation off on my second iPhone or iPad?

It synced there from the first one, and Apple switches synced automations off. Apple’s guide calls automation shortcuts “specific to a device,” so each iPhone or iPad needs its own switch turned on.

Two cases are worth knowing:

• You want it on both devices. Turn it on on each one. Two iPhones both forwarding the same texts is fine if that’s what you want, but a text that reaches both will run it twice.
• You want it on one device only. Leave the switch off on the other.

There’s also a plain reason to leave it off. A trigger that makes sense on your iPhone, like a Message trigger for texts that only arrive there, may do nothing useful on an iPad.

How Fwrd’s one-tap setup walks you to the switch

Fwrd forwards matching texts from your iPhone to the places you already use, such as Slack, Discord, Telegram, Microsoft Teams, email, another phone, WhatsApp or your own webhook. It has no account, and texts go from your iPhone straight to your own destinations.

On iOS 27, Fwrd’s setup uses a shared shortcut, so the switch matters. The shortcut already holds the Message trigger and Fwrd’s “Forward Message to All Destinations” action, with the message and sender filled in. Setup goes like this:

1. Pick where texts go. Choose a destination and fill in its form, such as a webhook link or an email address.
2. Pick which texts. Every text, texts with a word like “code,” or texts from one sender. This lives in Fwrd, so you can change it later in Settings.
3. Tap Get Shortcut. Apple’s Shortcuts app opens its own Add Shortcut sheet. Tap Add Shortcut, and Fwrd moves on when you come back.
4. Switch it on. Because Apple delivers it switched off, Fwrd opens the shortcut and tells you what to do: tap Edit, then turn on the Automation switch.
5. Allow the first run. Fwrd runs the shortcut once with a sample text. Shortcuts asks two permission questions. Tap Allow, then Always Allow. This uses one of your 15 free forwards.
6. You’re all set.

The shortcut is signed by Apple and has no name or email of whoever shared it. It holds only the Message trigger and Fwrd’s action, plus Apple’s or WhatsApp’s own send action for email, another phone and WhatsApp. You can open it in Shortcuts and read every step before you switch it on.

If iOS closes Fwrd while you’re in Shortcuts, opening Fwrd again picks up at the same step. The automation guide has the manual route for both iOS versions.

What this can’t do

• Skip the switch. Apple requires you to turn it on yourself. Fwrd can walk you to it, but it can’t flip it for you.
• Work on iOS 26. iOS 26 has no shared automations, so setup there stays step by step, as in the automation guide.
• Turn it on for a second device. Each iPhone or iPad needs its own switch, because automations are specific to a device.
• Remove the permission questions. Shortcuts asks them once, and only you can answer.