# Connection tools and search

A tools connection exposes operations the Assistant can discover and use. A search connection supplies a search provider to a workflow. Neither experience should be treated as a file browser with a complete inventory of provider content.

## Inspect tools

Open a tools connection to read the available tool names and descriptions. A tool with published input requirements can expand to show its argument structure. Use this to understand what information an operation needs, without placing secrets in ordinary tool arguments or conversation text.

The tools view distinguishes loading, failure, and a genuinely empty list. A failure to fetch tools does not establish that the provider exposes none. Check the connection status and test access before changing a working configuration.

## Changed definitions

A tool marked **Pending re-approval** changed since its definition was approved. It remains hidden from the Assistant until it is reviewed and approved again. This is a definition trust decision, separate from approving one particular action the Assistant proposes.

A familiar tool name does not establish that its inputs or behavior are unchanged. Ask an authorized administrator to review the definition change rather than repeatedly asking the Assistant to invoke a quarantined tool.

When a tool changes external data, read the proposed action and requested confirmation carefully. A read operation, a write, a delete, and an execution can require different authority. The Assistant's permitted actions can be narrower than manual controls.

## Search providers

A managed Platform Search connection identifies the provider used for web and news search. Bind it to the workflow's search step; the connection itself has no complete browseable web dataset. Query results describe the request made, not a synchronized local archive of every matching page.

See [catalog capabilities](/docs/connections/catalog-and-capabilities) and [Assistant guides](/docs/assistant/overview).