Working With Blocks

Integration Flows are built using a series of blocks that represent operations. To create a flow, drag and drop blocks from the Connections panel to the flow workspace. Each block represents an operation. For example, the Query Block, which is only available as a source, creates an operation similar to a SQL SELECT statement to define which source entity and source records drive the execution of your entire flow.

Note: Flows support a maximum of 250 blocks.

Block Types

Integration Flows include the following block types:

Source and Target Blocks —Allow you to perform operations on source or target data, respectively. Except for the Query Block and Native Query Block, which are only available with Source data, the following Source and Target operation blocks may be available, depending on the operations supported by the selected Connector:
- Add Block
- Create Block
- CreateWith Block
- Delete Block
- Lookup Block
- Update Block
- UpdateWith Block
- Update/Insert Block
- Upsert Block
- UpsertWith Block

Note: When you use a Source block within the flow to request an operation on a Source entity, the source-side entity is called the Target within the block.

Control Blocks — Determine the path of execution for a flow. Every flow requires a For Each Result Block, but within the For Each Result loop, you can include an If/Else Block or a For Each Child Block to add complex processing options. Some Connectors have specialized blocks, such as the Void block for the Connector for Microsoft Dynamics GP. See Control Blocks for more information.
Comment Blocks — Group sets of blocks together and add useful information about the blocks. See Comment Blocks for more information.

Each flow type has some blocks that are unique to that type of flow, such as a Query Block for Integration Flows and a Wait For Message Block for On event Message Flows. However, most blocks can be used across all flow types.

Block Names

The blocks available, along with the block names, for a specific Connector depend on the operations supported for that Connector. For example, the Upsert block only displays for Connections that support the Upsert operation.

In addition, block names and behavior are determined by the Connector. Therefore, some blocks may use different names for the same feature, such as Create, Insert, or Add for a Create block, or provide slightly different functionality.

Manipulating Blocks In The Workspace

As you drag and drop blocks onto the workspace, the top border of the block changes color when the block is in position.

Hold down the Shift key to select multiple blocks in a flow. From the Gear menu for the first selected block select standard cut, copy, and paste operations to manipulate blocks, or stacks of blocks, in the workspace. When you cut or copy one or more blocks, those blocks are saved to the clipboard. Blocks can be pasted into another flow in another app or even a flow in a different Organization.

Tip: Blocks pasted into another program, such as NotePad++, are pasted in the JSON format generated by the Export Flow option and used by the TIBCO Cloud™ Integration - Connect API and export flows.

Note: When you select a block to copy or delete, ALL of the blocks below the selected block are treated as a "stack" and copied or deleted along with the original block. If the series of blocks is very large you could have difficulty dragging the entire "stack" to a new location.

Select the workspace canvas to paste blocks there without pasting them into an existing stack of blocks.

Gear Menu Options

Note: The block can either be part of a flow or elsewhere in the workspace.

Block properties for blocks that are moved out of the active stack of blocks cannot be modified, nor can you use Query Preview. Move the block into the active stack, edit the block, and then move it back out of the active stack. See Query Block for more information on active and inactive stacks.

From the workspace, select a block. The Gear menu displays.
Select the Gear menu to:
- Edit — Open the Properties dialog for the selected block.
- Cut — Cut the selected block and save it to the clipboard to be pasted elsewhere.
- Copy — Copy the selected block and save it to the clipboard.
- Paste — Paste the current contents of the clipboard to the workspace. Drag the block into a flow.
  Note: You can paste stacks to another flow in either the same or a different app. However, you cannot paste blocks to another type of flow, for example, you cannot paste blocks from an Integration flow to a Message flow.
- Delete — Permanently delete the selected block. If this is the Query block, all blocks below the Query Block are also deleted.
- Assign Connection — Assign a Connection to the selected operation block. Only enabled when a block's Connection does not match a Connection in the flow. For example, if you have pasted blocks from one flow into a second flow and the Connections for those blocks do not exist in the second flow, you can use the Assign Connection option to Assign one of the current flow Connections to the new block or blocks. Any other blocks in the stack with the same Connection in the prior flow are also updated. Control blocks are not associated with a Connection and never have the Assign Connection option enabled.
  Note: If you have added a new Connection, but have not saved the flow, the new Connection is not available under the Assign Connection option.
- Set Active Stack — If you have more than one stack of blocks on the workspace, this option marks one stack as Active. The Active Stack executes when the flow is run and all other stacks are ignored. This option is only available on starting blocks such as the Query Block, Wait For Message Block, and Wait For Request Block.
- Rename — Renames the selected block and updates all references to that block throughout the flow. If you enter a duplicate name, an error is displayed. The first block in the flow, such as Query or NativeQuery, cannot be renamed. Names must start with a letter and cannot contain spaces, or special characters, such as an underscore.
  Note: Text displayed in the block on the flow is a label, not the name of the block. The Block Label can be changed in the Edit dialog for the selected block. Block name is displayed in the Properties tab on the right side of the workspace when you select the block, and in the Edit dialog for the block. Name is used when referring to the block elsewhere in the flow and can only be changed using the Rename menu option.
- Change Block Type — Modify the operation type of an existing operation block configured in a flow. For example, you can change the operation within the block from Insert to Upsert instead of deleting the old block and configuring a new block. See Changing Block Operation Type.
When you are done, save your flow.

Note: Before you cut or delete one or more blocks, a warning message displays. Select Cancel if you want to stop the operation.

Note: Once you delete a block, you cannot retrieve it. You must to move a new block into the workspace and reconfigure it. If you accidentally delete one or more blocks, you can select Cancel to close the flow without saving it. All work done on the flow since the last time you saved the flow is lost.

Properties

Select a block in a flow to edit or view useful information about the block in the Properties panel without opening the block. The information displayed depends on the block, but generally includes:

Description — User specified text with a description of the block.
Block Label — The label is also a combination of the operation type for this block and the selected Entity. It is the display name for the block in the flow editor and can be changed to better describe steps in this flow.
Block Name — Specified by TIBCO Cloud™ Integration - Connect. The Block Name is a combination of the Connection Alias, operation type, and the selected Entity if required. You must use this name to refer to this block in mapping formulas in the Formula Editor Overview. To rename a block, select the Edit icon on the Properties panel to open the Rename Block dialog.
Entity — Source or target entity. You can select an entity using the drop-down menu.

Validating Blocks

As you enter data into each of the tabs on the Block Properties dialog, select the Validate button to ensure that all of the entries are correct. The Errors and Warnings tab displays the number of Errors and Warnings at the top and lists each issue individually. Selecting OK also validates as it saves the block information.

Working With Long Flows

If your flow is complex, it may become long enough that it no longer fits in your workspace. In this case, you can:

Use the Group Block to group and collapse sets of related blocks, such as an If/Else block.
Use the scroll bar on the right side of the palette to view portions of the flow.

Refer to these additional topics:

Subtopics