The setdatafield Action

The setdatafield Action, when triggered, changes the value of a Data Field. If a second Action is configured to be triggered by the setting of that exact value in the exact Data Field, the second Action will be run automatically. Be warned that this can cause loops or other undesirable behavior.

The New Setting page will provide you with a Data Field pop-up list of Fields that already exist on your system. The Arguments you supply after you select a Field vary according to the Field Type, for example, a boolean Field requires different information than an integer Field requires.

Ignore Template Restrictions

Each Field Type offers an Ignore Template Restrictions check box. If the Action is to change a Data Field, that Field should, in most cases, be one that is accessible to the user that triggers the Action. In other words, the Data Field should be in the user’s Permission Set and the user should be allowed to modify it. Normally, if that Field were off limits, you would not want the user to modify it.

Consider, for example: If an AFP user triggers something by adding a file to a folder when a new file event trigger has been set up, and if the Action setdatafield has been established, the AFP user must also be a Xinet user who has permission to modify the particular metadata Field before you want anything to happen—normal and sensible behavior.

There are, however, some cases where one might want to override this restriction. Ignore Template Restrictions exists for these few cases. Consider, for example, that you might have established a folder where print jobs arrive. After they arrive, you want to use a trigger based on a new file appearing in the folder. This trigger will rely on a setdatafield Action. However, in this case, the owner of printed jobs will always be lp, never a registered Xinet user. Engaging Ignore Template Restrictions can eliminate permission-checking for the user triggering the event and allow things to move forward.

Value and Set Value Arguments

Value and Set Value arguments allow you to establish how the Data Field in question will be changed. The options, which vary according to the Field Type

.

Field Type	Set Value options	Explanation
text	Overwrite Append Prepend	When the Data Field is text and a value pre-exists, you can completely overwrite what’s there with the Value in the type-in box or add the string in the type-in box to the beginning or end of what is already there.
Integer	Overwrite Increment Decrement	When the Data Field is an integer and a value already exists, you may substitute (or overwrite) it with the Value in the type-in box, add to it using the Value in the type-in box or subtract the Value in the type-in box from it.
Float	Overwrite Increment Decrement	Exactly like Integer but with digits after the decimal point.
Date	Toggle between:   Value Date format established by Data Field Settings (or to use Today’s date). or Set to Trigger Date Periods ranging from 2 weeks before... to No Delay to 90 days after	Use the Radio buttons to establish whether you want to use an absolute Value or use a relative Set to Trigger Date value.   Value allows you to “hard code” an absolute value using the Date format established by the Data Field Settings (or to use Today’s date).   The Set to Trigger Date option allows you to use the pop-up list to set a relative time for the change, for example a few hours before or after the value in the Field.
Boolean	Checkbox or True/False pop-up or Yes/No pop-up	Options depend on the kind of boolean the Data Field happens to be. If the Data Field is a check box boolean, its value will be set as you specify using the check box, for example., it will either be checked or unchecked. If the Data Field is a True/False boolean, you set its value with a pop-up list. Similarly for a Yes/No boolean you set the value with a pop-up list.