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Introduction
The Toolbox provides a set of tools in the FlexRule Designer. As part of Process Robotic when modeling a Flow (i.e., Generic Flow or Workflow), you can customize the Toolbox that allows reusing a pre-configured set of tools.
Toolbox Options
Extended tools on the customized Toolbox are part of the Project Properties. So when a Project is created or loaded, open Project Properties and select Toolbox:
You can enable or disable a particular set of tools by checking or unchecking items on the list. When items on the list are checked, press OK and the Toolbox will be updated.
This toolbox customization only affects the Flow and Workflow toolbox.
Customization
There are different ways to customize the Toolbox and add your own set of tools(commands) to it:
- Using Function
- Preconfigured Tool
Learn the details on how to extend the Toolbox.
Functions Tools Set
Functions allow you to extend FlexRule capabilities at the expression level, and by adding them to the Toolbox they become visually available (not only at the expression level).
When a function is registered in the FlexRule Designer configuration file:
- It appears on the Toolbox and becomes available for use by drag and drop
- It exposes its parameters in the Arguments section of the Properties Window
For example, fileWrite is a built-in function that can be used from the Toolbox:
When it is selected, its Arguments, Results, and Info can be explored in the Properties Window:
Arguments
Arguments are the input values that are passed to a Function. An input value might have different types that can be set on the value editor when the (…) button is clicked:
Results
Properties are listed in the Results section below:
- Copy Result To: copies the return result of a function into a parameter
- Result Path: Selects a specific part (property) from the return result. For example, when a return result is an object that has Name and Family properties, by adding Name in the Result Path only the Name will be copied to the parameter specified at Copy Result To
Preconfigured Tools Set
In the standard Toolbox of a Flow or Workflow, there are some toolsets that can be used to model the steps of the process. In a project, you might find that every time you add one of them, you need to configure them repeatedly. This toolbox customization allows you to add pre-configured tools to the Toolbox, which makes modeling processes easier.
For example, if you work with a Salesforce API and need to Authenticate and List leads in every processing flow you build, that’s a tedious configuration when you need to do so with every single REST API tool from the Toolbox. Instead, you can build a Salesforce toolset that has all the configurations predefined for you.
Parameterize Templates
Preconfigured tools can be parameterized, so when users drag-drop them on the canvas, they will be asked for more details on how they want to configure that specific tool. Once users fill in the configuration details, these will be set in the Properties Window automatically.
For example, when the Salesforce->Authenticate tool is used, the window below allows them to fill in detailed information regarding the authentication keys:
Logic Documents
When a preconfigured tool is added to a logic document (i.e., Flow or Workflow), they also can modify the Parameters Declaration section of the document. They can append their required Variables and Types definition to the logic document.
For instance, when Salesforce->List Leads is dropped to a canvas, it adds the variable parameters below:
- salesforce_leads_list (out)
- salesforce_auth_token (local)
The Declaration Section will not be modified if there are already parameters for the tool
When logic documents are modified, you can see the log of modification in the Message List Window:
