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Adding Other Actions

This topic provides details on adding other kinds of actions to a DTL transformation.

For information about working with groups of actions, see Working with Groups of Actions.

For information on adding assign actions, see Adding Assign Actions.

Adding an If Action

An if action executes other actions conditionally, depending on the value of an expression that you provide. InterSystems IRIS® represents each if action as a connector line in the DTL diagram.

To add an if action:

  1. If the condition depends upon the value of a source property, click that property.

  2. Select if from the Add Action drop-down list.

    On the Action tab, the Condition field automatically contains the name of the source property that you had selected.

    The area below the diagram contains three new rows. The Actions column displays the following labels for these rows:

    • if — This row marks the beginning of actions to perform if the condition is true.

    • else — This row marks the beginning of actions to perform if the condition is false.

    • endf — This row marks the end of the if action.

  3. Edit the Condition field so that it contains an expression that evaluates to either true or false.

    For example:

    source.ABC = "XYZ"
    

    Notes:

    • To create an expression that uses a function, click the search button next to the Value field. This invokes the Data Transform Function Wizard, which is described earlier.

    • To create a more complex expression, type the expression into the Value field. See Valid Expressions. Make sure that the expression is valid in the scripting language you chose for the data transformation; see Specifying Transformation Details.

  4. To add actions to perform when the condition is true:

    1. Click the if row.

    2. Select an item from the Add Action drop-down list.

    3. Edit the values in the Action tab as needed.

    4. Repeat as necessary.

    You can include assign actions, if actions, and for each actions.

  5. To add actions to perform when the condition is false:

    1. Click the else row.

    2. Continue as described in the preceding item.

The details are then shown in the block below the DTL diagram. For example:

DTL logic that includes an else statement.

Note:

It is not required to have any actions for the if branch or for the else branch. If there are no actions in either branch, the if action has no effect.

Adding a For Each Action

The for each action enables you to define a sequence actions that is executed iteratively, once for each member of one of the following:

  • A collection property (for a standard message) .

  • A repeating property (for a virtual document).

  • A set of subdocuments in a document (for a virtual document).

InterSystems IRIS represents each for each action as a connector line in the DTL diagram.

You can break out of a for each loop at any time by adding a break action within the loop.

To add a for each action:

  1. Select a collection or repeating property in the source message.

  2. Select for each from the Add Action drop-down list.

    On the Action tab, the Property field automatically contains the name of the selected source property, and the Key field automatically contains k1, as illustrated below:

    The foreach logic without the iterator key in the parentheses and with the key field completed

    For the for each action, the Key field specifies the name of an iterator variable.

    The Property field should not include the iterator key within the parentheses. For example, the following is correct:

    source.{PID:PatientIdentifierList( )}
    

    The for each iterates through the PatientIdentifierList repeating fields, starting with the first one (numbered 1) and ending with the last one.

  3. On the Action tab, the Unload check box controls whether to generate code to unload open objects or segments.

    If the unload is checked for a for each action, then code is generated in the Transform method to try to unload/unswizzle open object(s) or segment(s) for the property collection at the end of each loop. Unsaved virtual document segments are saved and finalized. If the property is the source object, the source object is usually already saved.

    You may still need to manually add actions to unload the target collection’s objects or segments. For details on some strategies, see Unloading Target Collections.

    The unload of the for each property collection may be unnecessary – for example, for HL7, code generated using CopyValues does not instantiate the source segments.

  4. To add actions to the for each block, click the for each action and then add the appropriate actions.

The details are then shown in the block below the DTL diagram. For example (partial):

DTL logic without the iterator key in the Property field and with a value in the key field.

If the <foreach> applies to a collection property in a message, the sequence of activities is executed iteratively, once for every element that exists within the collection property. If the element is null, the sequence is not executed. The sequence is executed if the element has an empty value, that is, the separators are there but there is no value between them, but is not executed for a null value, that is, the message is terminated before the field is specified.

Shortcuts for the For Each Action

When you are working with virtual documents, InterSystems IRIS provides a shortcut notation that iterates through every instance of a repeating field within a document structure. This means you do not actually need to set up multiple nested for each loops to handle repeating fields; instead you create a single assign action using a virtual property path with empty parentheses within the curly bracket { } syntax. For information, see Curly Bracket {} Syntax.

Note:

If the source and target types are different, you cannot use this shortcut for the for each action. Use an explicit for each action in these cases.

Unloading Target Collections

While the Unload option automatically removes objects from a source collection, you need to add custom code at the end of a for each action to remove objects from a target collection. In a simple example in which the target is a complex record, you could use the following code to save the current target record and then unload it:

Do target.Record16.GetAt(k1).%Save(0)
Do target.Record16.%UnSwizzleAt(k1)

In other scenarios, it might be better to avoid loading the target altogether in order to avoid issues where the target is not unloaded. For example, suppose you have an object that has a parent/child property with many children. Within the for each action, you have a subtransform combined with propSetObjectId(parentId)), where prop is the name of the property.

In this example, the target is the batch object, the target class is Demo.RecordMapBatch.Map.TrainDataOut.BatchOut and the record class is Demo.RecordMapBatch.Transform.Optimized.Record

Before your for each loop, you need to create an empty target and assign its ID to a property BatchOutID:

<assign value='target.%Save()' property='tSC' action='set' />
<assign value='target.%Id()' property='BatchOutID' action='set' />
<assign value='target' property='' action='set' />

Then, in the for each loop, you can use code that directly impacts the target without having the target instantiated. For example:

<assign value='""' property='record' action='set' />
<subtransform class='Demo.RecordMapBatch.Transform.Optimized.Record' targetObj='record' sourceObj='source.Records.(k1)' />

<comment>
<annotation>Assign record to target directly. </annotation>
</comment>
<assign value='record.%ParentBatchSetObjectId(BatchOutID)' property='tSC' action='set' />
<assign value='record.%Save()' property='tSC' action='set' />

Then, before the DTL ends, set the variable target back to the expected product of the DTL. For example:

<assign value='##class(Demo.RecordMapBatch.Map.TrainDataOut.BatchOut).%OpenId(BatchOutID)' property='target' action='set' />

Avoiding <STORE> Errors with Large Messages

As you loop over segments in messages or object collections, they are brought into memory. If these objects consume all the memory assigned to the current process, you may get unexpected errors. You can avoid these errors in the source collection by using the Unload option in the Management Portal. For some strategies for removing objects in a target collection, see Unloading Target Collections.

As another strategy, if you are processing many segments in a for each loop, you can call the commitSegmentByPath() method on both the source and target as the last step in the loop. Similarly, for object collections, use the %UnSwizzleAt() method.

The method commitCollectionOpenSegments() loops through the runtimePath looking for open segments within the specified collection path and calls commitSegmentByPath() for each open segment. This method is available from the classes EnsLib.EDI.X12.DocumentOpens in a new tab, EnsLib.EDI.ASTM.Document, EnsLib.EDI.EDIFACT.DocumentOpens in a new tab, and EnsLib.HL7.Message.

If you cannot make code changes, a temporary workaround is to increase the amount of memory allocated for each process. You can change this by setting the bbsiz parameter on the Advanced Memory Settings page in the Management Portal. Note that this action requires a system restart, and you should consult with your system administrator before performing it.

Adding a Subtransform Action

A subtransform invokes another transformation (an ordinary transformation), often within a for each loop. Subtransformations are particularly useful with virtual documents, because EDI formats are typically based on a set of segments that are used in many message types. The ability to reuse a transformation within another transformation means that you can create a reusable library of segment transformations that you can call as needed, without duplicating code transformation.

InterSystems IRIS does not represent a subtransform action in the DTL diagram.

To add a subtransform action:

  1. Select subtransform from the Add Action drop-down list.

  2. On the Action tab, specify the following details:

    • Transform Class — Specifies the data transformation class to use. This can be either a DTL transformation or a custom transformation. For information on custom transformations, see Defining Custom Transformations. You must enter the class.

    • Source Property — Identifies the property being transformed. This may be an object property or a virtual document property path. Generally it is a property of the source message used by the transformation. You must enter the source property.

    • Target Property — Identifies the property into which the transformed value will be written. This may be an object property or a virtual document property path. Generally it is a property of the target message used by the transformation. You must enter the target property.

    • Auxiliary Property—Optionally, specifies a value that is passed to the subtransform. The subtransform accesses the value as the aux variable.

    • Disabled—Optionally, specifies that the subtransform is disabled.

    • Description—Optionally, specifies a text description of the subtransform.

    Note:

    In the case of a subtransform with Create as new or copy, it is not necessary to have a pre-existing target object.

Adding a Trace Action

A trace action generates a trace message, which is helpful for diagnosis. If the Log Trace Events setting is enabled for the parent business host, this message is written to the Event Log. If the Foreground setting is enabled for the parent business host, the trace messages are also written to the Terminal window.

InterSystems IRIS does not represent a trace action in the DTL diagram.

To add a trace action:

  1. Select trace from the Add Action drop-down list.

  2. On the Action tab, specify the following:

    • Value — Specify a literal value or other valid expression.

      See Valid Expressions. Make sure that the expression is valid in the scripting language you chose for the data transformation; see Specifying Transformation Details.

    • Description — Specify an optional description.

The trace action generates trace message with User priority; the result is the same as using the $$$TRACE macro in ObjectScript.

Adding a Code Action

A code action enables you to execute one or more lines of user-written code within a DTL data transformation. This option enables you to perform special tasks that are difficult to express using the DTL elements. InterSystems IRIS does not represent a code action in the DTL diagram.

To add a code action:

  1. Select code from the Add Action drop-down list.

  2. On the Action tab, specify the following:

    • Code — Specify one or more lines of code in the scripting language specified for the transformation. For rules about expressions in this code, see Syntax Rules.

      InterSystems IRIS automatically wraps your code within a CDATA block. This means that you do not have to escape special XML characters such as the apostrophe (') or the ampersand (&),

      Also see the notes below.

    • Description — Specify an optional description.

Tip:

To write custom code that you can debug easily, write the code within a class method or a routine so that it can be executed in the Terminal. Debug the code there. Then call the method or routine from within the code action of the DTL.

Guidelines for Using Custom Code in DTL

In order to ensure that execution of a data transformation can be suspended and restored, you should follow these guidelines when using a code action:

  • The execution time should be short; custom code should not tie up the general execution of the data transformation.

  • Do not allocate any system resources (such as taking out locks or opening devices) without releasing them within the same code action.

  • If a code action starts a transaction, make sure that the same action ends the transactions in all possible scenarios; otherwise, the transaction can be left open indefinitely. This could prevent other processing or can cause significant downtime.

Adding an SQL Action

An SQL action enables you to execute an SQL SELECT statement from within the DTL transformation. InterSystems IRIS does not represent an sql action in the DTL diagram.

To add an sql action:

  1. Select sql from the Add Action drop-down list.

  2. On the Action tab, specify the following:

    • SQL — Specify a valid SQL SELECT statement.

      InterSystems IRIS automatically wraps your SQL within a CDATA block. This means that you do not have to escape special XML characters such as the apostrophe (') or the ampersand (&).

      Also see the notes below.

    • Description — Specify an optional description.

Guidelines for Using SQL in DTL

Be sure to use the following guidelines:

  • Always use the fully qualified name of the table, including both the SQL schema name and table name, as in:

    MyApp.PatientTable

    Where MyApp is the SQL schema name and PatientTable is the table name.

  • Any tables listed in the FROM clause must either be stored within the local InterSystems IRIS database or linked to an external relational database using the SQL Gateway.

  • Within the INTO and WHERE clauses of the SQL query, you can refer to a property of the source or target object. To do so, place a colon (:) in front of the property name. For example:

      SELECT Name INTO :target.Name FROM MainFrame.EmployeeRecord WHERE SSN = :source.SSN AND City = :source.Home.City 
    
  • Only the first row returned by the query will be used. Make sure that the WHERE clause correctly specifies the desired row.

Adding a Switch Action

A switch action contains a sequence of one or more case actions and a default action. When a switch action is executed, it begins evaluating each case condition. When an expression evaluates to true, then the contents of the corresponding case block are executed; otherwise, the expression for the next case action is evaluated. As soon as one of the case actions is executed, the execution path of the transformation leaves the switch block without evaluating any other conditions. If no case condition is true, the contents of the default action are executed and then control leaves the switch block.

Adding a Case Action

Use the case action within a switch block to execute a block of actions when a condition is matched. When a case condition is met and the block of actions performed, the execution path of the transformation leaves the switch block without evaluating any other conditions.

To add a case action:

  1. Select a switch action in the list below the diagram.

  2. Select case from the Add Action drop-down list.

  3. On the Action tab, add the condition. You can click the magnifying glass to add a function as part of the condition.

  4. With the case action selected in the list below the diagram, use the Add Action drop-down to add the actions that will be executed if the condition evaluates to true.

Adding a Default Action

You cannot add a default block by using the Add Action drop-down list. Rather, the default action is automatically added to a switch block when you add the switch action. The actions contained in the default block are executed if none of the case conditions in the switch block are met. If you do not want anything to happen when none of the case conditions are met, simply leave the default block empty.

Adding a Break Action

Add a break action to a for each loop to leave the loop as soon as the break action is executed. After the break action is executed, the data transformation continues to process the action immediately following the for each loop.

If you add a break action outside of a for each loop, the data transformation terminates as soon as the break action is executed.

Adding a Comment Action

To help annotate the actions in a data transformation, you can add a comment that appears in the list of actions. After selecting Add Action > Comment, enter the comment in the Description text box on the Action tab.

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