VI Execrows Output Object

The Visual Integrator (VI) Execrows output object runs command scripts based on input from the data flow.

Icon for the Execrows output object

NOTE: Since the introduction of DI-Production, DI highly recommends using the Production Execute process node instead of the VI Execrows output object. For more information, see Execute Process Node.

The Execrows output object has Closedfour panes where you set attributes.

VI Execrows Object All Panes

You set attributes for the Execrows output object in the Closedobject attributes pane.

VI Execrow Attributes

Attribute Description
Input

Defines the object from which the data flow arrives. Use one of the following methods to attach the Execrows object to an input data flow object:

  • Right-click the input data flow object, and click New Object after this > Output > Execrows.

  • Place the Execrows object on the task flow, and click its Input attribute's browse button. Move the pointer to the task flow and note that a dotted-line connector is attached to the Execrows object. Attach this connector to the input data flow object.

    NOTE: The Execrows object's Input attribute is populated with the name of the input data flow object.
Output_File

Specifies the output file to receive the output of each command. This file is displayed in the Task List under LogFile.

If not specified, the output is written to the VI logs tab.
Append_Output

Specifies to either append or clear the output file for each run.

  • true (default)—Output file is not cleared, and each subsequent run appends the results to the existing file.
  • false—Output file is cleared for each run and only contains the results from the current run.
Echo

Specifies whether or not commands are printed to the VI standard output as they run.

  • true—Commands are printed to output.
  • false (default)—Commands are not printed to output.
Chdir

Specifies a working directory for the commands run. If not specified, the commands are run using the VI working directory.
Add_Environment Specifies new or updated environment variables to set before running the given commands. Click on the ellipses to open a list editor. This attribute is an array of strings of the format "environment variable=environment value". Existing environment variables that are not listed are not changed and are passed to the commands. (Available as of 7.1(13).)
Error_Command

Specifies an executable command to run when errors occur while running other commands.

Each object has an area where you can enter comments.

It is a DI best practice to enter a note for every object in a VI script. You can set a VI preference to give a warning for each object without a note. For more information, see Visual Integrator Preferences.

ClosedExecrows output object with comments

Example of a VI Execrows output object with comments

Enter commands for the Execrows output object in the Closedcommands grid.

Example of the commands grid for a VI Execrows output object

Specify one or more commands for the Execrows object to run. The commands run sequentially. The Execrows object waits for all background processes to complete before finishing. If an error occurs, the executable command specified by the Error_Command attribute runs.

Keep the following in mind:

  • Before running the command for a row, VI substitutes Execrows column parameters with the corresponding column values. An Execrows column parameter consists of a dollar sign ($) followed by a column name consisting of alphanumeric characters and underscores. To accommodate non-alphanumeric column names and to allow alphanumeric strings to immediately follow the parameter, the column name can also be enclosed in parentheses following the dollar sign ($). A dollar sign ($) can be included in the command strings by using two dollar signs ($$).
  • Place a dash (-) in front of a command string to ignore errors.
  • Place an ampersand (&) in front of a command to run that command as a background process, allowing the object to continue on to the next command (regardless of row) before the background process completes.
  • Use the redirection character (>) to direct the output of the command to a file. Supply the file name after the redirection character. The redirection-and-append option (>>) is also supported.
  • When running commands in Linux/UNIX using Execrows, note that some characters, such as the dollar sign ($) have special meanings. Enclose text containing the special character in single quotation marks to prevent the special character interpretation.

The Execrows object's Closedcolumn grid displays the input columns it is to process.

Example of the VI Execrows output object's column grid

Attribute Description
Input Displays the name of each input column. This attribute is read-only.
Source Object

Displays the name and object type of the source object. Double-click the Source Object for a column to change the task flow focus to that object.