File Functions

The file functions allow you to work with files in the process designer: you can generate text files and barcodes, import CSV files, compress images, and delete files.

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To work with file functions, you must activate the corresponding feature.

Generate text file

With this action you create a text file with the specified content. Typical use cases are creating a CSV file for exporting data to a third-party system or generating a SEPA XML file. The following configuration options are available:

• File name:
  Enter the name of the generated text file here. Since text files are used in various file formats, you must also specify the extension here (e.g. .csv or .xml).
• Content:
  Specify the contents of the text file here.
• Encoding:
  Select the format in which the text file is saved. The following options are available:
  • UTF-8
    Used when no encoding is selected.
  • ISO-8859-1
  • ASCII

For a CSV file (extension .csv) in UTF-8 encoding, a UTF-8 BOM (Byte Order Mark) is automatically prepended to the file.

This action provides the following placeholders:

• Generated file:
  This placeholder references the created text file.

Generate barcode

With this action you generate a barcode as an image file. For example, you can print a barcode on a document template to be able to assign printed documents to a process. The following configuration options are available:

• File name:
  Enter the name of the generated image file here. The file is always generated as a PNG file; if the .png extension is missing, it is appended automatically.
• Contents:
  Enter the content of the barcode here.
• Code type:
  Select the type of barcode to be generated. The following options are available:
  • QR code
  • Code 128
  • Code 93
  • Code 11
  • Code 39
  • EAN-8
  • EAN-13
  • UPC Supplemental 2
  • UPC Supplemental 5
  • UPC-A
  • UPC-E
  • MSI
  • ISBN
  • Codabar
  • ITF-14
  • Telepen
  • JAN-13
  • Standard 2 of 5
  • Interleaved 2 of 5
  • IATA 2 of 5
  • Pharmacode
  • PostNet
  • Facing Identification Mark
• Show labeling:
  If you activate this option, the content of the barcode is displayed below the barcode.
• Size:
  Select the size of the barcode. The following options are available:
  • Very small
  • Small
  • Medium
  • Large
  • Extra large

This action provides the following placeholders:

• Generated file:
  This placeholder references the generated image file.

Import CSV file

With this action you import the data of a CSV file and make the column values available as placeholders. A typical use case is importing data exports, e.g. from a third-party system. The following configuration options are available:

• File:
  Select the file to be imported here.
• Columns:
  Define the columns to be read from the CSV file here. For each column specify:
  • Column name:
    Enter the name of the column to be read. This name must match the CSV file.
  • Data type:
    Select the data type of the column. This data type is used for further processing and the content is converted accordingly. The following options are available:
    • Text
    • Number
    • Date
    • Person
      For persons, the corresponding account is determined based on the e-mail address.

This action provides the following placeholders:

• Column values:
  A placeholder is provided for each defined column, whose name is derived from the node name and the column name (e.g. Import CSV file - First name). The data type of the column determines how the value can be used further.
• Lines:
  This placeholder provides all lines of the CSV file and can be iterated in a loop.
• Number of lines:
  This placeholder contains the number of imported lines of the CSV file.

Compress image

With this action you compress images. A typical use case is compressing mobile phone photos that should be made smaller before being stored in a third-party system. The following configuration options are available:

• Files:
  Select the files to be compressed here. Files that do not have an image format are ignored.
• Compression level:
  Select the compression level to be applied to the images. The following options are available:
  • Do not compress
  • Low compression
  • Medium compression
  • High compression
• Maximum width (optional):
  Optionally specify the maximum width the images should have. The height is scaled accordingly.
• Maximum height (optional):
  Optionally specify the maximum height the images should have. The width is scaled accordingly.

This action provides the following placeholders:

• Compressed images:
  This placeholder references the compressed images and can be iterated in a loop.

Delete file

With this action you delete files that are available in the process via placeholders. A typical use case is deleting files to ensure compliance with data protection requirements, e.g. when application documents are no longer needed after the process has been completed. The following configuration options are available:

• Files:
  Select the files to be deleted here.

This action provides the following placeholders:

• Deleted files:
  This placeholder references the deleted files.