2.4 Creating Arguments within a Rule

The Argument Builder provides a dynamic graphical interface that enables you to construct complex argument expressions for use within the Rule Builder. To access the Argument Builder, see Argument Builder.

Arguments are dynamically used by actions and are derived from tokens that are expanded at run time.

Tokens are divided into two classifications: nouns and verbs. Noun tokens expand to values that are derived from the current operation, the source or destination data stores, or some external source. Verb tokens modify the results of other tokens that are subordinate to them.

Figure 2-5 Default Argument Builder Interface

To define an expression, select one or more noun tokens (values, objects, variables, etc.), and combine then with verb tokens (substring, escape, uppercase, and lowercase) to construct arguments. Multiple tokens are combined to construct complex arguments.

For example, if you want the argument set to an attribute value:

  1. Select Attribute from the list of noun tokens, then click Add.

    Attribute token

  2. Browse to and select the attribute name in the editor.

    Argument Builder editor

    If you want only a portion of this attribute, you can combine the attribute token with the substring token. The expression displays a substring length of 1 for the Give Name attribute combined with the entire Surname attribute.

    Argument Builder

After you add a noun or verb, you can provide values in the editor, then immediately add another noun or verb. You do not need to refresh the Expression pane to apply your changes; they appear when the next operation is performed.

See Section 11.0, Noun Tokens and Section 12.0, Verb Tokens for a detailed reference on the noun and verb tokens. See Section 3.2, Argument Builder for more information on the Argument Builder.