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Split Connector

Version 23.4.8839

Split Connector

The Split connector splits a single XML file into multiple XML files.

Overview

The Split connector is configured with an XPath upon which input XML files should be split into multiple output XML files. This is useful when an XML file contains a batch of data such as multiple orders, multiple line items, or multiple customer records. The Split connector splits this batched XML data into a separate XML file for each order, item, or record. See the Example for more information.

Connector Configuration

This section contains all of the configurable connector properties.

Settings Tab

Configuration

Settings related to the core operation of the connector.

  • Connector Id The static, unique identifier for the connector.
  • Connector Type Displays the connector name and a description of what it does.
  • Connector Description An optional field to provide a free-form description of the connector and its role in the flow.
  • XPath The path in the XML structure to the element upon which the split should occur. Each unique occurrence of the specified XPath results in a unique output XML file.

Advanced Settings

Settings not included in the previous categories.

  • Processing Delay The amount of time (in seconds) by which the processing of files placed in the Input folder is delayed. This is a legacy setting. Best practice is to use a File connector to manage local file systems instead of this setting.
  • Batch Size Controls how many messages are put into a batch group. The default is 1, which means a batch group is not created. If you set it to a value less than 1, all messages are contained in a single batch group. If you set it to a value greater than 1, each batch group contains the number of messages indicated here. See the Example for more information.

Message

  • Save to Sent Folder Check this to copy files processed by the connector to the Sent folder for the connector.
  • Sent Folder Scheme Instructs the connector to group messages in the Sent folder according to the selected interval. For example, the Weekly option instructs the connector to create a new subfolder each week and store all messages for the week in that folder. The blank setting tells the connector to save all messages directly in the Sent folder. For connectors that process many messages, using subfolders helps keep messsages organized and improves performance.

Logging

  • Log Level The verbosity of logs generated by the connector. When you request support, set this to Debug.
  • Log Subfolder Scheme Instructs the connector to group files in the Logs folder according to the selected interval. For example, the Weekly option instructs the connector to create a new subfolder each week and store all logs for the week in that folder. The blank setting tells the connector to save all logs directly in the Logs folder. For connectors that process many transactions, using subfolders helps keep logs organized and improves performance.
  • Log Messages Check this to have the log entry for a processed file include a copy of the file itself. If you disable this, you might not be able to download a copy of the file from the Input or Output tabs.

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous settings are for specific use cases.

  • Other Settings Enables you to configure hidden connector settings in a semicolon-separated list (for example, setting1=value1;setting2=value2). Normal connector use cases and functionality should not require the use of these settings.

Automation Tab

Automation

Settings related to the automatic processing of files by the connector.

  • Send Whether messages arriving at the connector are automatically processed.

Performance

Settings related to the allocation of resources to the connector.

  • Max Workers The maximum number of worker threads consumed from the threadpool to process files on this connector. If set, this overrides the default setting on the Settings > Automation page.
  • Max Files The maximum number of files sent by each thread assigned to the connector. If set, this overrides the default setting on the Settings > Automation page.

Alerts Tab

Settings related to configuring alerts and Service Level Agreements (SLAs).

Connector Email Settings

Before you can execute SLAs, you need to set up email alerts for notifications. Clicking Configure Alerts opens a new browser window to the Settings page where you can set up system-wide alerts. See Alerts for more information.

Service Level Agreement (SLA) Settings

SLAs enable you to configure the volume you expect connectors in your flow to send or receive, and to set the time frame in which you expect that volume to be met. CData Arc sends emails to warn the user when an SLA is not met, and marks the SLA as At Risk, which means that if the SLA is not met soon, it will be marked as Violated. This gives the user an opportunity to step in and determine the reasons the SLA is not being met, and to take appropriate actions. If the SLA is still not met at the end of the at-risk time period, the SLA is marked as violated, and the user is notified again.

To define an SLA, click Add Expected Volume Criteria.

  • If your connector has separate send and receive actions, use the radio buttons to specify which direction the SLA pertains to.
  • Set Expect at least to the minimum number of transactions (the volume) you expect to be processed, then use the Every fields to specify the time frame.
  • By default, the SLA is in effect every day. To change that, uncheck Everyday then check the boxes for the days of the week you want.
  • Use And set status to ‘At Risk’ to indicate when the SLA should be marked as at risk.
  • By default, notifications are not sent until an SLA is in violation. To change that, check Send an ‘At Risk’ notification.

The following example shows an SLA configured for a connector that expects to receive 1000 files every day Monday-Friday. An at-risk notification is sent 1 hour before the end of the time period if the 1000 files have not been received.

Examples

Below is an example XML input file that contains multiple TransactionSet elements (in other words it contains a batch of transactions):

<Items>
  <Interchange>
    <Id>1</Id>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value1</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value2</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value3</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value4</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
  </Interchange>
</Items>

The Split connector can split this input file into four separate output files, one for each TransactionSet element. To accomplish this, set the XPath field to the XPath to the TransactionSet element:

/Items/Interchange/TransactionSet

An output file for each TransactionSet would result. One example is shown below.

Output 1:

<Items>
  <Interchange>
    <Id>1</Id>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value1</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
  </Interchange>
</Items>

If you set Batch Size to 2, the connector outputs two batch groups, each with two messages. One example batch group is shown below.

Batch 1
Batch Message 1:

<Items>
  <Interchange>
    <Id>1</Id>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value1</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
  </Interchange>
</Items>

Batch Message 2:

<Items>
  <Interchange>
    <Id>1</Id>
    <TransactionSet>
      <Data>value2</Data>
    </TransactionSet>
  </Interchange>
</Items>

XPath Wildcards

The XPath can include a wildcard character (*) to split on all elements at a given XPath. For example, the input XML might contain multiple groups of data that need to be split into separate files, but the groups of data have different element names:

<Items>
  <Group1>
    <Data>value1</Data>
  </Group1>
  <Group2>
    <Data>value2</Data>
  </Group2>
  <Group3>
    <Data>value3</Data>
  </Group3>
</Items>

Split these groups by setting the XPath to the following value:

/Items/*

The following three output files would result:

Output 1:

<Items>
  <Group1>
    <Data>value1</Data>
  </Group1>
</Items>

Output 2:

<Items>
  <Group2>
    <Data>value2</Data>
  </Group2>
</Items>

Output 3:

<Items>
  <Group3>
    <Data>value3</Data>
  </Group3>
</Items>