Parameters

Draft parameters

Any parameter defined in the root process group of the flow draft is a draft parameter. These parameters can be directly modified in the Flow Designer, their values always take precedence over any parameter in a shared parameter group.

Parameter groups

You can create groups of parameters that can be shared within a project. This allows you to fill parameter values for several flow definitions, without having to copy and paste those values every time they change. Furthermore, changing the value of a parameter in a parameter group is instantly reflected in any running test session which has components referencing the changed parameter. For example, you create a group of sensitive parameters for credentials, and you change the password. This change is disseminated in real time, and instead of failing, all test sessions keep on running without manual intervention.

Assets (file type parameters) are also available in parameter groups, and they have a very important advantage: you do not need a running test session to upload the asset, which is a limitation of draft parameters.

To prevent crashes by accidental or malicious deletion,, users cannot delete parameters in a parameter group that has a running component referencing it.

When creating a flow draft in Flow Designer, you encounter parameter groups in the following contexts:

While opening a flow definition from the Catalog

If the source flow definition contains more than one parameter context attached to the root process group, the Flow Designer matches those contexts to shared parameter groups that are assigned to the same project where the draft is created (In this respect ‘unassigned’ is treated as a project of its own: an unassigned draft is matched to unassigned parameter groups). Matching happens by name, and you are provided with a table of the results on the Convert Parameters page. In this view you can examine and modify the results of parameter matching. You can manually replace parameter contexts of the source flow definition with other shared parameter groups available in the project that you find more suitable to your needs. You can also create parameter groups from draft parameters.

While building a flow draft

In the Parameters view of the Flow Designer you can import existing shared parameter groups and you can also export a number of draft parameters to a parameter group which can then be reused in multiple flows.

Relationship between shared parameters and draft parameters

Precedence

• The values of draft parameters always take precedence over imported parameters.

• In case of imported parameter groups, their order defines precedence. By changing the order of parameter groups, you can redefine precedence. As a result of this, if a parameter is present in several shared parameter groups, the value of the one in the topmost group takes precedence.

Value retention

• Both non-sensitive and sensitive parameters that are part of an imported parameter group keep the values they have in the shared parameter group. These values cannot be changed within the Flow Designer, only in the Resources view.
• Non-sensitive parameters that are added as draft parameters to the root parameter context during draft creation retain the default values they had in the source flow definition.
• Sensitive parameters that are added as draft parameters to the root parameter context during draft creation are added without values.