- Pull files from external directories into the CData Arc flow
- Push files from the Arc flow into external directories
Key Capabilities
- Local and network file system integration with UNC path support
- Configurable authentication for protected network locations (.NET edition only)
- Advanced filtering with glob patterns and recursive directory support
- Temporary file handling with staging and rename operations for reliable transfers
- Optional caching to ensure only new or updated files are downloaded
Overview
Each File connector is configured with a path on disk that determines what folder it reads files from or writes files to. This can be a local file path or a UNC path to access other file locations on the network. When a File connector receives a file from the configured path, it passes the received file off to the next connector in the Arc flow without modifying the file. In this way, File connectors can be used to poll an external folder location for files to pull into the Arc flow. When a file in the Arc flow is processed by a File connector, that file is written to the folder at the configured path. In this way, File connectors can be used to drop off processed files at a location external to the application. File connectors can be configured with username/password credentials to provide access to external filepaths that otherwise would not be accessible to the application. This allows Arc to pull files from protected folder locations without needing to grant the entire application access to the protected location. The path configured in the File connector can be dynamically populated using macros. For more information, see the Macros section.Connector Configuration
This section contains all of the configurable connector properties.Settings Tab
Connector Settings
Settings related to the core operation of the connector.Receive
Settings related to pulling files from the external filepath.Authentication
Caching
Settings related to caching and comparing files between multiple downloads.Arc automatically cleans up the resource cache. This process runs in the background during every receive cycle and removes stale cache entries for files that are no longer present on the remote server. This keeps the cache size manageable without requiring any manual action.
By default, files are retained for 30 days, but you can use the ResourceCacheRetentionDays setting in the Other Settings field on the Advanced tab to adjust it to fit your environment. For example, ResourceCacheRetentionDays=15 retains files for 15 days before removing them.
TEST.TXT and test.txt.Advanced Tab
Advanced Settings
Settings not included in the previous categories.Message
Message settings determine how the connector searches for messages and manages them after processing.
Note: 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 Show Success Path, and connect the success path to a File connector.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Save to Sent Folder (Deprecated) | Copies files processed by the connector to the Sent folder. Disabled by default. Files saved to the Sent folder are not covered by Encryption at Rest. |
| Sent Folder Scheme (Deprecated) | Groups files in the Sent folder by the selected time interval. Only relevant when Save to Sent Folder is enabled. |
Logging
Settings that govern the creation and storage of logs.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Log Level | The verbosity of logs generated by the connector. When you request support, set this to Debug. |
| Log Subfolder Scheme | Instructs the connector to group files in the Logs folder according to the selected interval. The Weekly 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. |
| Log Messages | 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 Transactions tab. |
Miscellaneous
Miscellaneous settings are for specific use cases.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Other Settings | Enables you to configure hidden connector settings in a semicolon-separated list (for example, setting1=value1;setting2=value2). Normal connector use cases and functionality should not require the use of these settings. |
Automation Tab
Automation Settings
Settings related to the automatic processing of files by the connector.Automation Status
Performance
Settings related to the allocation of resources to the connector.
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Max Workers | 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 Performance Settings portion of the Advanced Settings page. |
| Max Files | The maximum number of files sent by each thread assigned to the connector. If set, this overrides the default setting on the Performance Settings portion of the Advanced Settings page. |
Alerts Tab
SLAs Tab
Establishing a Connection
File connectors must have the appropriate permissions to read/write from the configured path. Permissions issues are primarily a concern when the configured path is a UNC path to another server on the network, but can also arise when pushing or pulling files from a protected folder on the local disk. If the user running Arc does not have permission to access the path, set the Username, Password, and Domain fields in the Authentication section of the Settings tab to a specific user with the appropriate permissions.Sending and Receiving Files
Sending Files
The File connector sends files from the Transactions tab to the external folder specified in the configured path. Files are automatically sent if Send is enabled on the Automation tab.Receiving Files
The File connector receives files from the external folder specified in the configured path and places them in the connector’s Transactions tab. If the File connector is connected to another connector in the flow, the file does not remain in this folder and is instead passed along to the next connected connector. The connector automatically polls the external folder for files if Receive is enabled on the Automation tab. The connector only pulls files that match the specified File Mask. If Enable Timestamp Comparison or Enable File Size Comparison is enabled, the connector caches file names pulled from the remote path and only receives files that are new or have been modified since they were last received. When multiple eligible files are available in a single receive operation, the connector processes them in ascending order by last-modified timestamp, so older files enter the flow first. Files with identical timestamps are processed in a consistent, predictable order.Deferred Finalization
By default, the connector completes a file as soon as it receives it, and any configured cleanup, such as Delete files (after received), happens immediately. If a later step in the flow fails, the source file is already gone. When Defer received-file finalization is enabled, the connector instead holds each received file in a pending state and waits for a downstream Finalize connector to confirm that the flow succeeded. This is the recommended way to use Delete files (after received) when you need to keep the source file until processing is complete. To use deferred finalization:- Enable Defer received-file finalization on the File connector that receives the files.
- Add a Finalize connector at the end of the success path of the flow.
- The connector does not receive the file again.
- If the file reaches the Finalize connector, the connector completes the file and performs the configured cleanup.
- If the file does not reach the Finalize connector before Receive Pending Timeout (minutes) elapses, the message is marked with a Pending Timeout error and the file is released so that it can be received again. The source file is not deleted. The connector records a Send Failure: Pending Timeout error notification.
- If the source file changes after it was received, the connector does not delete it, even when the file is finalized.
Subfolder Headers
If Recurse Subdirectories is set to True, when receiving a file:- The message for the received file contains a Subfolder header in its metadata.
- This header contains the subfolder, relative to the configured path, that the file was received from.
- This subfolder header is supported by other connectors that support a Subfolder header in Send operations.
- The file is placed in the subfolder (relative to the path setting in the File connector) that is specified in the subfolder header.
- The subfolder is created if permissions are available.