> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.arc.cdata.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# VDA Connector

> Configuration and usage guide for the CData Arc VDA connector.

export const SampleFilesTab = () => <>
    <p><em>Uploading a sample file allows for easy mapping in any connected CSV Map or XML Map connectors.</em></p>

    <p>Use the <strong>Sample Files</strong> tab to generate a source or destination XML template for use in a <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/connectors/map">CSV Map</a> or <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/connectors/xml-map/xml-map">XML Map</a> connector. Click <strong>Add Sample File</strong>.</p>

    <p style={{
  paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
  marginTop: '0.25rem',
  marginBottom: '0.25rem'
}}>1. If you already have an example file that reflects the expected format and structure of your data, choose <strong>File Upload</strong> and browse to your file. Alternatively, select <strong>Manually Create</strong> to create a file directly in the application. If you choose <strong>Manually Create</strong>, give your sample file a name. Click <strong>Next</strong>.</p>
    <p style={{
  paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
  marginTop: '0.25rem',
  marginBottom: '0.25rem'
}}>2. If you browsed to an existing file, the <strong>View File</strong> tab is populated with its contents. If you chose to manually create a file, enter your sample data on this tab. Click <strong>Next</strong>.</p>
    <p style={{
  paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
  marginTop: '0.25rem',
  marginBottom: '0.25rem'
}}>3. The <strong>Translate and Preview</strong> tab displays a preview of your sample data converted to XML. When you are satisfied with your sample, click <strong>Add</strong>.</p>
  </>;

export const EdiUploadTestFile = ({fileFormat = "EDI", documentType}) => {
  const docLabel = documentType || fileFormat;
  return <>
      <p>Follow these steps to generate an XML representation of an input file:</p>
      <p style={{
    paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
    marginTop: '0.25rem',
    marginBottom: '0.25rem'
  }}>1. In the <strong>Transactions</strong> tab of the connector, click the <strong>More</strong> dropdown and click <strong>Upload Test File</strong>.</p>
      <p style={{
    paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
    marginTop: '0.25rem',
    marginBottom: '0.25rem'
  }}>2. Navigate to a file on disk that you want to model as XML, select it, and click <strong>OK</strong>.</p>
      <p style={{
    paddingLeft: '1.5rem',
    marginTop: '0.25rem',
    marginBottom: '0.25rem'
  }}>3. Connect the {fileFormat} connector to an XML Map connector in the flow. This connection can go in either direction: inbound to the XML Map connector, or outbound from the XML Map connector.</p>
      <p>The XML Map connector automatically detects the structure of the test file. Based on where you placed the {fileFormat} connector, the file appears in the <strong>Source File</strong> or <strong>Destination File</strong> drop-down menu of the XML Map connector.</p>
      <Note>XML Map connectors require both a source and destination template, so the remaining template must be set based on the structure the data originates from, or the structure it should be converted to. For example, if the data from the {docLabel} document needs to be inserted into a database, the other template in the XML Map connector would be the XML model of a database insert. See the XML Map connector's <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/connectors/xml-map/xml-map-designer">Using the Mapping Editor</a> for more information on creating the mapping between two template files.</Note>
    </>;
};

export const EdiXmlMapIntro = ({fileFormat = "EDI"}) => <p>In accordance with Arc convention, the {fileFormat} connector does one of two things: it receives XML input or generates XML output. To ensure that the input and output files have the correct XML structure, CData strongly recommends that you use the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/connectors/xml-map/xml-map">XML Map connector</a> as the previous step in the flow when generating outbound {fileFormat} documents, or as the following step in the flow when receiving inbound {fileFormat} documents. The interaction between the XML Map connector and the {fileFormat} connector is made simple by the <strong>Upload Test File</strong> feature described below.</p>;

export const SlasTab = ({siteName = "CData Arc"}) => <>
    <p><em>Settings related to configuring Service Level Agreements (SLAs).</em></p>
    <p>
      SLAs enable you to configure the volume you expect connectors in your flow to send or receive, and to set the time frame in which you expect that volume to be met. {siteName} sends emails to warn the user when an SLA is not met, and marks the SLA as <em>At Risk</em>, which means that if the SLA is not met soon, it will be marked as <em>Violated</em>. This gives the user an opportunity to step in and determine the reasons the SLA is not being met, and to take appropriate actions. If the SLA is still not met at the end of the at-risk time period, the SLA is marked as violated, and the user is notified again.
    </p>
    <p>
      To define an SLA, toggle <strong>Expected Volume</strong> on, then click the <strong>Settings</strong> tab.
    </p>
    <img src="/public/images/sla_empty.png" alt="SLA Empty" />
    <ul>
      <li>If your connector has separate send and receive actions, use the radio buttons to specify which direction the SLA pertains to.</li>
      <li>In the <strong>Expect at least</strong> portion of the window:
        <ul>
          <li>Set the minimum number of transactions you expect to be processed (the volume)</li>
          <li>Use the <strong>Every</strong> fields to specify the time frame</li>
          <li>Indicate when the SLA should go into effect. If you choose <strong>Starting on</strong>, complete the date and time fields.</li>
          <li>Check the boxes for the days of the week that you want the SLA to be in effect. Use the dropdown to choose <strong>Everyday</strong> if necessary.</li>
        </ul>
      </li>
      <li>In the <strong>Set status to 'At Risk'</strong> portion of the window, specify when the SLA should be marked as at risk.
        <ul>
          <li>By default, notifications are not sent until an SLA is in violation. To change that, check <strong>Send an 'At Risk' notification</strong>.</li>
        </ul>
      </li>
    </ul>
    <p>
      The following example shows an SLA configured for a connector that expects to receive 1000 files every day Monday-Friday. An at-risk notification is sent 1 hour before the end of the time period if the 1000 files have not been received.
    </p>
    <img src="/public/images/sla_defined.png" alt="SLA Configuration Example" />
    <Note>
      You can turn off SLA alerts if necessary. This can be useful during maintenance windows. Click <strong>Settings</strong> on the navbar, then navigate to <strong>Alerts &gt; General Alerts</strong>. Click the tablet and pencil icon to edit, and uncheck the <strong>SLA Alerts</strong> setting.
    </Note>
  </>;

export const AlertsTab = ({siteNameShort = "Arc"}) => <>
    <p><em>Settings related to configuring alerts.</em></p>
    <p>
      Before you can execute Service Level Agreements (SLAs), you need to set up email alerts for notifications. By default, {siteNameShort} uses the global settings on the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/alerts">Alerts</a> tab. To use other settings for this connector, toggle <strong>Override global setting</strong> on.
    </p>
    <p>
      By default, error alerts are enabled, which means that emails are sent whenever there is an error. To turn them off, uncheck the <strong>Enable</strong> checkbox.
    </p>
    <p>
      Enter a <strong>Subject</strong> (mandatory). Check <strong>Allow {siteNameShort}Script in Subject</strong> to use {siteNameShort}Script in the <strong>Subject</strong> field. When you select this, the <strong>{siteNameShort}Script Editor</strong> button appears (<img src="/public/images/rest_arcscript_editor.png" alt="arcscript editor button" style={{
  display: 'inline',
  verticalAlign: 'middle',
  margin: 0
}} />).
    </p>
    <p>
      Optionally, enter a comma-separated list of <strong>Recipient</strong> emails.
    </p>
  </>;

export const Message = () => <>
    <p><em>Message settings determine how the connector searches for messages and manages them after processing.</em></p>
    <p><strong>Note:</strong> The settings below are deprecated and hidden by default. They appear only on connectors where they were previously enabled or configured to a non-default value. To retain copies of successfully processed files, right-click the connector in the flow, choose <strong>Show Success Path</strong>, and connect the success path to a <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/connectors/file">File connector</a>.</p>
    <table>
      <thead>
        <tr><th>Setting</th><th>Description</th></tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Save to Sent Folder</strong> (Deprecated)</td>
          <td>Copies files processed by the connector to the Sent folder. Disabled by default. Files saved to the Sent folder are not covered by <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/encryption-at-rest">Encryption at Rest</a>.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Sent Folder Scheme</strong> (Deprecated)</td>
          <td>Groups files in the <strong>Sent</strong> folder by the selected time interval. Only relevant when <strong>Save to Sent Folder</strong> is enabled.</td>
        </tr>
      </tbody>
    </table>
  </>;

export const MiscConnector = () => <>
    <p><em>Miscellaneous settings are for specific use cases.</em></p>
    <table>
      <thead>
        <tr>
          <th>Setting</th>
          <th>Description</th>
        </tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Other Settings</strong></td>
          <td>Enables you to configure hidden connector settings in a semicolon-separated list (for example, <code>setting1=value1;setting2=value2</code>). Normal connector use cases and functionality should not require the use of these settings.</td>
        </tr>
      </tbody>
    </table>
  </>;

export const Logging = () => <>
    <p><em>Settings that govern the creation and storage of logs.</em></p>
    <table>
      <thead>
        <tr>
          <th>Setting</th>
          <th>Description</th>
        </tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Log Level</strong></td>
          <td>The verbosity of logs generated by the connector. When you request support, set this to <strong>Debug</strong>.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Log Subfolder Scheme</strong></td>
          <td>Instructs the connector to group files in the Logs folder according to the selected interval. The <strong>Weekly</strong> option (which is the default) instructs the connector to create a new subfolder each week and store all logs for the week in that folder. Leaving this setting blank tells the connector to save all logs directly in the Logs folder. For connectors that process many transactions, using subfolders helps keep logs organized and improves performance.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Log Messages</strong></td>
          <td>Check this to have the log entry for a processed file include a copy of the file itself. If you disable this, you might not be able to download a copy of the file from the <strong>Transactions</strong> tab.</td>
        </tr>
      </tbody>
    </table>
  </>;

export const MacrosExamples = ({extraMacros = []}) => <>
    <p>
      Some macros, such as %Ext% and %ShortDate%, do not require an argument, but others do. All
      macros that take an argument use the following syntax: <code>%Macro:argument%</code>
    </p>

    <p>Here are some examples of the macros that take an argument:</p>

    <ul>
      <li>%Header:headername%: Where <code>headername</code> is the name of a header on a message.</li>
      <li>%Header:mycustomheader% resolves to the value of the <code>mycustomheader</code> header set on the input message.</li>
      <li>%Header:ponum% resolves to the value of the <code>ponum</code> header set on the input message.</li>
      <li>%RegexFilename:pattern%: Where <code>pattern</code> is a regex pattern. For example, <code>%RegexFilename:^([\w][A-Za-z]+)%</code> matches and resolves to the first word in the filename and is case insensitive (<code>test_file.xml</code> resolves to <code>test</code>).</li>
      <li>%Vault:vaultitem%: Where <code>vaultitem</code> is the name of an item in the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/global-settings-vault">vault</a>. For example, <code>%Vault:companyname%</code> resolves to the value of the <code>companyname</code> item stored in the vault.</li>
      <li>%DateFormat:format%: Where <code>format</code> is an accepted date format (see <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/scripting/value-formatters/date-formatters#sample-date-formats">Sample Date Formats</a> for details). For example, <code>%DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff%</code> resolves to the date and timestamp on the file.</li>
      {extraMacros.filter(item => item.example).map(item => <li key={`ex-${item.name}`}>{item.example}</li>)}
    </ul>

    <p>You can also create more sophisticated macros, as shown in the following examples:</p>

    <ul>
      <li>Combining multiple macros in one filename: <code>%DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff%%EXT%</code></li>
      <li>Including text outside of the macro: <code>MyFile_%DateFormat:yyyy-MM-dd-HH-mm-ss-fff%</code></li>
      <li>Including text within the macro: <code>%DateFormat:'DateProcessed-'yyyy-MM-dd_'TimeProcessed-'HH-mm-ss%</code></li>
    </ul>
  </>;

export const MacrosTable = ({siteName = "CData Arc", extraMacros = []}) => <>
    <p>
      Using macros in file naming strategies can enhance organizational efficiency and contextual
      understanding of data. By incorporating macros into filenames, you can dynamically include
      relevant information such as identifiers, timestamps, and header information, providing
      valuable context to each file.
    </p>

    <p>{siteName} supports these macros, which all use the following syntax: <code>%Macro%</code>.</p>

    <table>
      <thead>
        <tr><th>Macro</th><th>Description</th></tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr><td>ConnectorID</td><td>Evaluates to the ConnectorID of the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>ConnectorName</td><td>Evaluates to the name of the connector. Enables you to include the connection name in file names or paths: for example, to tag backup files by which database connection produced them.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>Ext</td><td>Evaluates to the file extension of the file currently being processed by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>Filename</td><td>Evaluates to the filename (extension included) of the file currently being processed by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>FilenameNoExt</td><td>Evaluates to the filename (without the extension) of the file currently being processed by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>MessageId</td><td>Evaluates to the MessageId of the message being output by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>RegexFilename:<em>pattern</em></td><td>Applies a RegEx pattern to the filename of the file currently being processed by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>Header:<em>headername</em></td><td>Evaluates to the value of a targeted header (<code>headername</code>) on the current message being processed by the connector.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>LongDate</td><td>Evaluates to the current datetime of the system in long-handed format (for example, Wednesday, January 24, 2024).</td></tr>
        <tr><td>ShortDate</td><td>Evaluates to the current datetime of the system in a yyyy-MM-dd format (for example, 2024-01-24).</td></tr>
        <tr><td>DateFormat:<em>format</em></td><td>Evaluates to the current datetime of the system in the specified format (<code>format</code>). See <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/scripting/value-formatters/date-formatters#date-formats-with-literal-characters">Sample Date Formats</a> for the available datetime formats.</td></tr>
        <tr><td>Vault:<em>vaultitem</em></td><td>Evaluates to the value of the specified vault item.</td></tr>
        {extraMacros.map(item => <tr key={item.name}>
            <td>{item.name}</td>
            <td>{item.description}</td>
          </tr>)}
      </tbody>
    </table>
  </>;

export const Performance = () => <>
    <p><em>Settings related to the allocation of resources to the connector.</em></p>
    <table>
      <thead>
        <tr>
          <th>Setting</th>
          <th>Description</th>
        </tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Max Workers</strong></td>
          <td>The maximum number of worker threads consumed from the threadpool to process files on this connector. If set, this overrides the default setting on the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/performance-settings">Performance Settings</a> portion of the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/advanced-settings">Advanced Settings</a> page.</td>
        </tr>
        <tr>
          <td><strong>Max Files</strong></td>
          <td>The maximum number of files sent by each thread assigned to the connector. If set, this overrides the default setting on the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/performance-settings">Performance Settings</a> portion of the <a href="/26.3/self-hosted/en/getting-started/administration/settings/advanced-settings">Advanced Settings</a> page.</td>
        </tr>
      </tbody>
    </table>
  </>;

export const companyName = "CData";

export const siteNameShort = "Arc";

export const siteName = "CData Arc";

export const fileFormat = "VDA";
export const documentType = "VDA";

VDA connectors support generating VDA documents from XML and converting VDA documents into XML.

## Key Capabilities

* German automotive EDI standard support with bidirectional VDA/XML translation
* Automatic schema detection and validation with interchange header generation
* Support for VDA-specific segment structures, nested loops, and qualifier expansion

## Overview

When receiving VDA documents, VDA connectors validate interchange headers and convert the VDA document into XML. This is useful as a staging step, because XML is the primary format that {siteNameShort} uses to manipulate data in a flow. The VDA connector automatically reads the input file to determine the appropriate schema, then parses the document according to this schema.

When generating VDA documents, VDA connectors convert XML into VDA document syntax and apply the appropriate interchange headers. This is useful as the final step for creating a VDA document, after the XML data has been fetched and transformed elsewhere in the flow.

## Connector Configuration

This section contains all of the configurable connector properties.

### Settings Tab

#### Translation Configuration

*Settings related to the core operation of the connector.*

| Setting                   | Description                                                                                      |
| ------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| **Connector Id**          | The static, unique identifier for the connector.                                                 |
| **Connector Type**        | Displays the connector name and a description of what it does.                                   |
| **Connector Description** | An optional field to provide a free-form description of the connector and its role in the flow.  |
| **Translation Type**      | Whether the connector should convert VDA documents into XML, or generate VDA documents from XML. |

#### Header Settings

*Settings related to the VDA interchange headers. When converting documents into XML, the document headers are validated against these settings; when generating documents from XML, these settings are used to generate document headers.*

| Setting                 | Description                                                                                                                                        |
| ----------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Sender Identifier**   | The unique Id identifying the sending party in the VDA communication (when generating a VDA document, this should be your identifier).             |
| **Receiver Identifier** | The unique Id identifying the receiving party in the VDA communication (when generating a VDA document, this should be your partner's identifier). |

### Sample Files Tab

<SampleFilesTab />

### Advanced Tab

#### EDI Delimiters

*Settings that specify which characters separate elements, segments, and so on.*

| Setting    | Description                                                         |
| ---------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Suffix** | Appears at the end of segments to distinguish them from each other. |

#### Advanced Settings

*Settings not included in the previous categories.*

| Setting                      | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           |
| ---------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Batch Transactions**       | An exchange can contain multiple transactions. When this is not checked, the connector creates a separate output file for each transaction in the exchange. When checked, the connector groups all transactions into a single output file. Only applicable when the **Translation Type** is VDA to XML.                                                                                               |
| **Encoding**                 | Specifies the character encoding (such as ASCII or UTF-8).                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            |
| **Expand Qualifier Values**  | When checked, XML elements containing a VDA qualifier include child elements containing the qualifier code and value. For example:<br /><code>\<N101></code><br />  <code>\<Code>ST\</Code></code><br />  <code>\<Value>Ship To\</Value></code><br /><code>\</N101></code>                                                                                                                            |
| **Functional Acks**          | By default, all functional acknowledgments (997, 999) are routed to the connector selected in the flow diagram, and XML translations are not received in the **Transactions** tab. Check this to have the translated acknowledgment also be included in the **Transactions** tab. This allows functional acknowledgments to be integrated into a destination source in addition to new EDI documents. |
| **Generate Description As**  | When translating VDA into XML, descriptions of the VDA segments and elements can be provided as context for the VDA data. Use this dropdown to choose whether to add this context as an XML comment or as XML attributes.                                                                                                                                                                             |
| **Local File Scheme**        | A scheme for assigning filenames to messages that are output by the connector. You can use macros in your filenames dynamically to include information such as identifiers and timestamps. For more information, see [Macros](#macros).                                                                                                                                                               |
| **Nest Loops**               | When checked, the connector detects VDA structures that have hierarchical relationships embedded in the VDA data, and generates XML with these hierarchical relationships represented as parent-child relationships.                                                                                                                                                                                  |
| **Processing Delay**         | The amount of time (in seconds) by which the processing of files placed in the **Transactions** tab is delayed. This is a legacy setting. Best practice is to [use a File connector](../flows/designing-a-flow#interacting-with-the-local-file-system) to manage local file systems instead of this setting.                                                                                          |
| **Strict Schema Validation** | Whether the connector should Ignore, Warn, or Fail when the following are detected: repeat counts above the allowed number, missing required elements or segments, invalid qualifier and code values, disallowed element lengths, and invalid element values. Choosing Disable turns off the schema validation checks.                                                                                |
| **Upload Schema**            | Use this to upload a schema and install it in the connector's Schema folder. If a schema already exists, you are asked if you want to overwrite it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
| **Reset State**              | EDI connectors keep track of control numbers that have been used and increment that number to ensure that future runs do not duplicate data. Use this button to reset the counter to its initial state without changing any of the configured settings.                                                                                                                                               |

#### Message

<Message />

#### Logging

<Logging />

#### Miscellaneous

<MiscConnector />

### Automation Tab

#### Automation Settings

*Settings related to the automatic processing of files by the connector.*

| Setting                  | Description                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                   |
| ------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Send**                 | A toggle that instructs the connector to automatically send files when they are ready.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        |
| **Resend Interval**      | The interval the connector waits before resending a file that received a negative ACK. For example, if a trading partner receives the file but something is wrong with it and they send back a negative ACK, this setting specifies how long to wait before sending the file again.                                                                                           |
| **Max Attempts (async)** | The maximum number of times the connector processes the input file when a functional ACK is requested. Success is based on the return of a functional ACK within the **Resend Interval**. If a successful functional ACK is not returned, the connector resends the file until **Max Attempts** is reached. If this is set to 0, the connector resends the file indefinitely. |

#### Performance

<Performance />

### Alerts Tab

<AlertsTab />

### SLAs Tab

<SlasTab />

## VDA to XML

When generating XML, set the **Translation Type** to *VDA to XML*. The connector then processes VDA files placed in the **Transactions** tab. The connector validates VDA message headers against the **Sender Identifier** and **Receiver Identifier** configured in the [Header Settings](#header-settings). After validating the transmission, the VDA segments are converted into XML according to the schema specified in the message. The resulting XML files are placed in the connector's **Transactions** tab.

## XML to VDA

When generating VDA files, set the **Translation Type** to *XML to VDA*. The connector then processes XML files placed in the **Transactions** tab. The connector converts the XML elements representing a VDA file into VDA segments, then uses the **Sender Identifier** and **Receiver Identifier** fields configured in the [Header Settings](#header-settings) to generate the transmission headers. To create an example of the XML structure required to generate VDA documents, start with an example VDA document and send it through the VDA connector in *VDA to XML* mode. You can use the resulting XML as a template in the [XML Map connector](./xml-map/xml-map) to convert XML structures into a VDA structure.

## Use With the XML Map Connector

<EdiXmlMapIntro fileFormat={fileFormat} />

### Upload Test File

<EdiUploadTestFile fileFormat={fileFormat} documentType={documentType} />

## Macros

<MacrosTable />

### Examples

<MacrosExamples />