- Pull files from external directories into the flow
- Push files from the 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 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 flow. When a file in the 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 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.| 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. |
| Path | The external filepath where the connector pulls files from or pushes files to. The path can include macros for dynamic evaluation, as described in Macros. |
Receive
Settings related to pulling files from the external filepath.| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| File Mask | A glob pattern for filtering files that should be pulled from the configured path. Only files matching the filemask are pulled. This setting can be combined with Receive Filter on the Advanced tab to specify multiple filters. |
| Delete files (after received) | Whether to remove files from the external path after they are pulled into the flow. |
Authentication
| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Username | The Windows user account that is used to access the files. If this is not specified, the connector uses the current user account. |
| Password | The password for the specified user account. |
| Domain | The domain for the Windows user account. This can be empty if the specified user is a local user account. |
Caching
Settings related to caching and comparing files between multiple downloads.| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| File Size Comparison | Check this to keep a record of downloaded file names and sizes. Previously downloaded files are skipped unless the file size is different than the last download. |
| Timestamp Comparison | Check this to keep a record of downloaded file names and last-modified timestamps. Previously downloaded files are skipped unless the timestamp is different than the last download. |
When you enable caching, the file names are case-insensitive. For example, the connector cannot distinguish between
TEST.TXT and test.txt.Advanced Tab
Advanced Settings
Settings not included in the previous categories.| Setting | Description |
|---|---|
| Max Receive Files | The maximum number of files that are pulled in a single receive interval. If this is not a positive integer, no limit is applied. |
| Overwrite Option | Specifies how the connector should handle the case when it attempts to write a file to the external path and that file already exists. The connector can rename the current file to a unique filename, overwrite the existing file, append the current file to the existing file, skip the operation without error, or stop the operation and throw an error. |
| Receiving Delay | The amount of time (in seconds) that the connector waits before receiving files from the remote path. |
| Recurse | Set this to true to download files in all subfolders of the target remote path. The directories are preserved for the received files. |
| Temp Send Path | A directory to use as a staging folder before moving the file to its configured destination path. |
| Temp Send Prefix | If specified, the connector uploads the file with the temporary prefix, then renames the file to its original filename after the operation is complete. |
| Temp Send Extension | If specified, the connector uploads the file with the temporary extension, then renames the file to its original filename and extension after the operation is complete. |
| Minimum File Size | The minimum file size to process, in bytes. If a file being uploaded is smaller than the specified size, it is finalized as Skipped. For files being downloaded, the connector adds a transaction log entry indicating that the file was skipped because of its size. |
| 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. |
| Receive Filter | A glob pattern filter to determine which files should be downloaded from the remote storage (e.g. *.txt). Use negative patterns to indicate files that should not be downloaded (for example, -*.tmp). Use this setting when you need multiple File Mask patterns. Separate multiple patterns by commas; later filters take priority except when an exact match is found. |
| 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 to manage local file systems instead of this setting. |
Message
Logging
Miscellaneous
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. |
| Retry Interval | The interval the connector waits before retrying a failed send. |
| Max Attempts | The number of attempts the connector makes to send the message. Setting this value to 1 instructs the connector to only make the initial send attempt without retrying. The connector waits the duration specified by Retry Interval between each attempt. |
| Receive | A toggle that instructs the connector to automatically process files when they are ready and send them to the Transactions tab. |
| Interval | The interval at which the connector processes all pending files and sends them to the Transactions tab. The next field depends on the selection here: Hourly — A Minutes Past the Hour dropdown menu allows you to specify the number of minutes past the hour to process receive files. Daily — A Time field appears to specify the time of day (in UTC) to process receive files. Weekly — Two fields appear. Day allows you to select the day of the week for processing, and Time allows you to specify the time (in UTC) to process receive files. Monthly — Two fields appear. Day allows you to select the day of the month for processing, and Time allows you to specify the time (in UTC) to process receive files. Minute — A Minutes field appears to specify the number of minutes between processing intervals. Advanced — A five-position Cron Expression field allows you to specify exact processing intervals. |
Performance
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 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.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.