Task stage hook

Task stage hooks are snippets written in Ant, Groovy or JavaScript that can be executed during a task execution or during the execution of a workflow. Typical use cases when task stage hooks are used:

  • Prepare an environment before a copy process is started. For instance notify users, shutdown other systems, etc

  • Set up a task by modifying parameters. For example if task parameters must be adjusted based on information of external systems. In that case a task stage hook can be used to query the external system and adjust the XDM task, before a copy process is started.

  • Post actions, that must be applied after a copy process has been succeeded. For instance some applications need to trigger a rebuild of a search index after new data has been provided, trigger rebuild of a graph database.

  • Notify users by e-mail or slack after a copy process finished.

Concepts and more information

Useful Examples

Find useful examples for task stage hooks in the task stage hooks section of useful examples.

Permissions

Task Stage Hooks have specific permissions to manage user access. The table below displays the available permissions and their purposes.

For more details about the concept of XDMs permission management refer to Permission Management.

Permission

Description

ADMINISTRATION

Specifies that the grantee can grant and revoke permissions to and from other users.

A user that creates an object automatically receives the ADMINISTRATION permission on that object.

DELETE

Specifies that the grantee can delete objects of the selected types.

READ

Specifies that the grantee has read permission on the object. The grantee is able to see the object in lists and can see all of the object’s details, such as rules or access permissions.

In addition, the grantee can reference this object. For example, a user who has READ permission on a credential object can refer to this credential object when creating a new database connection.

WRITE

Specifies that the grantee has the permission to change the settings and attributes of an object. This also includes modifying any rule lists that might be associated with the object (for example, the selection rules of a task template).

Properties

The table below documents the available properties for task stage hooks. The 'name' column displays the property name as it can be used in Groovy and Java Scripts.

Name

Type

Default

Description

Code

code

String

<?xml version="1.0"?> <project name="Hook" default="run"> <import file="${inst.dir}/config/taskdef.xml"/> <target name="run"> <!-- Insert your code here -→ </target> </project>

Contains the source code of the hook. This can be either written in Ant, Groovy or JavaScript.

Task stage hooks have access to predefined runtime variables that can be used in the hook. These variables can be referenced depending on the used language:

Ant

Variables are referenced by ${var}. Variables can also be embedded in strings by just referencing the variable in the mentioned form within the string started end terminated by apostrophe (").

Groovy

Variables are referenced by taskStageHook.<name>. If the value of a variable should be used in a string it must be concatenated using the plus (+) sign.

JavaScript

Variables are referenced by taskStageHook.<name>. If the value of a variable should be used in a string it must be concatenated using the plus (+) sign.

Details about the possible parameters can be found here.

Code type

codeType

CodeType

ANT

This code type specifies in which language the source of the task stage hook is written. Currently, the following languages are supported:

Ant

Specifies that the code is written in Ant. This can in turn reference other Ant tasks, including those defined in XDM.

Groovy

Specifies that the code is written in Groovy.

JavaScript

Specifies that the code is a JavaScript.

Description

description

String

n/a

An optional description for this object. The description can contain multiple lines to give more context on the configured object. The description is not used in a technical context.

Name

displayName

String

n/a

Specifies the name of the object. The name is used to display and identify the object in lists. The name can contain any valid UTF-8 characters.

Libraries

libraries

File

n/a

A list of files that can be accessed in the task stage hook code. When editing the hook, all XDM files of the specified script language are made available for selection. The content of the selected XDM files is automatically added to the script context before the task stage hook is executed. All methods, variables or classes of the files can be accessed in the hook code.

Mapping table access mode

mappingTableAccessMode

AccessMode

READ

Specifies the mode in which the stage hook accesses the mapping table container.

READ

The hook access the mapping table container in read mode. The hook will only read data from the container. An exception is thrown, if the method tries to update the container.

READ_WRITE

The hook will open the container for read/write access. The hook can update the data of the mapping table container.

Mapping table containers

mappingTableContainers

MappingTableContainer

n/a

A list of mapping table containers that can be used in the code of the task stage hook. The mapping table container can be accessed by the variable name that is specified in the mapping table container declaration. The injected mapping table container is an established JDBC connection to drop and create new tables and to modify their contents.

Tags

tags

Tag

n/a

Contains the tags that apply to this object. These tags can be used in the search to find objects quickly and effortlessly.

Embedded parameters: parameters

A task stage hook can have zero or more parameters. These parameters can be accessed in the code script. The values must be provided when the hook us used in a workflow, or with a task stage hook usage.

Name

Type

Default

Description

dataType

String

n/a

Specifies the type of the parameter. The available values are:

Boolean

A boolean value that can be true or false.

Connection

A XDM connection object.

Credential

A XDM credential.

Date

A data type to store date and time information.

Environment

A XDM environment object.

File

A XDM file reference.

Number

A numeric data type.

Storage Location

A XDM storage location.

String

A string data type.

defaultValue

String

n/a

Allows the specification of a default value for the parameter.

description

String

n/a

An optional description for the specified parameter. The description can contain multiple lines to give more context on the configured object. The description is not used in a technical context.

displayName

String

n/a

This is the name that is used to identify the parameter when it is referenced in a task stage hook.

possibleValues

List

n/a

Specifies a list of possible values for the parameter. These values will be displayed when the hook is used in a task stage hook usage. The user is limited to selecting values from this list when filling out the parameter.

Actions

The available actions are described below. Some actions apply to the list, while others are specific to selected task stage hooks.

List Actions

The following actions are available on the task stage hooks list. If the action is disabled a tooltip will provide the exact reason for the deactivation. The required permissions are described in detail for each action.

  • Bulk Create Permission

  • Bulk Delete

  • Bulk Export

  • Create

  • List History

Create a new permission on the selected objects. Shows in the result list whether the permission could be granted on the respective object. Only these permissions can be granted that are existing on the underlying object.

A permission in the result list can have three different states, these are:

CREATED

The permission successfully granted on the object.

MERGED

The granted permission already exists on the object and merged with the new permission.

SKIPPED

The permission could not be granted, because of missing administration permission on the object.

The following permissions are required on the list:

  • ADMINISTRATION

  • READ

Delete the selected objects.

The following options are available:

Cascade

Recursively delete depending objects.

When using cascade, dependent objects are deleted first also with cascade enabled. Thus, a cascade deletion is a recursive function that deeply searches for dependent objects and deletes them first. There is only a confirmation for the first object. The dependent objects are deleted without confirmation but only when the user has the DELETE permission.

This feature is only available in development mode. More information about development mode can be found in the chapter User Settings. It should be used with caution.

An object in the result list can have two different states, these are:

DELETED

The object could be deleted.

NOT_DELETED

The object could be not deleted. This may be because the executing person does not have a delete permission on the object or the object is still referenced by others. A detailed reason can be determined with the help of the error message. If the object is still in use, these objects are also displayed.

The following permissions are required on the list:

  • DELETE

  • READ

Exports the selected objects.

YAML

Generates a YAML file containing all the object’s settings. The user has the option to download the export file, or to paste the content in the import dialog. The YAML export is particularly suitable for importing the exported objects again via the XDM UI.

ZIP

This export writes several individual YAML-files. Each YAML-file is stored in a directory according to its type. For example, when exporting a native table backup task template named 'A backup template', a YAML-file 'A backup template.yaml' is created inside the directory /TaskTemplate/native-table-backup-task-template/ of the ZIP-file. This kind of export is suitable for usage in git-repositories together with XDM’s configuration as code feature.

Related and dependent objects can optionally be included in the export. The export dialog has the following options:

Include dependent objects

Dependent objects only belong to the exported object like rules and tasks.

Include permissions

Permissions of each exported object, only when the object supports permissions. Some objects like rules don’t have permissions.

Include referenced objects

Referenced objects exist by their own and are used in the exported object like connections and environments.

Include objects that depend on referenced objects

Also include the dependent objects of the referenced objects. E.g. the rules of a modification set or the rules in an application model version.

Objects on which the user does not have READ permission are not exported. This includes dependent and referenced objects. However, the reference to an object will be exported. For example a connection object would refer to the credential, even if the user does not have READ permission on the credential. The definition of the credential object itself will not be part of the export file. This can lead to issues during the import, because the connection cannot be created without an existing credential.

The following permissions are required on the list:

  • READ

Creates a new object in the current list. Depending on the object type either a popup dialog is shown for the most important settings, or the complete object is shown in edit mode. The dialog provides the option to create the object and remain in the current list or to switch to the newly created object in edit mode to perform further changes.

The following permissions are required on the list:

  • CREATE

The history list tracks all modifications made to objects within it. A new record is added each time an object is created, edited, or deleted. A record indicates who made the change, which object was affected, and when the change was made.

For more information about the concept of the history refer to the history concepts.

The following permissions are required on the list:

  • READ

Object Actions

The following actions are available on specific task stage hooks. In order to execute the action, the user must possess the necessary permissions for the object. The permissions required for each action are described individually. If the user does not have these permissions, the action will be disabled and the tooltip will provide the exact reason for the deactivation.

  • Check

  • Delete

  • Duplicate

  • Edit

  • Event List

  • Export

  • Object History

  • Permission Check

  • Usage

  • Uses

This action validates the object and its dependencies, reporting configuration errors that could cause issues during task or workflow execution. The validation will cascade through the child objects of the checked objects and objects referenced by them.

For instance, if an installed application of an environment is checked, the check will process the application model, the specified version, the connection, modification sets, and involved modification methods. If an object has rules, all active rules will be checked. The modeling connection and version, including their modification sets and methods, will also be checked. Deactivated objects will not be included in recursive checks, but can be checked individually if the check is executed on the object itself.

Checks often require additional information from the context of the objects being checked, such as necessary connections or custom parameter values. The check will gather information from the objects being checked and use it to perform checks on child objects. Any required additional information must be provided before the check begins. The check queries the user to provide these missing information.

Database object checks

For all rules which reference database objects such as tables, columns, etc, the check verifies that the those objects exist in the database system. If a connection can be inferred from the context, then this connection is used. If no connection is available in the context, it must be specified before the check is executed.

Connection checks

For objects which configure access to external systems, such as connections or storage locations, the configuration check verifies that access can be established using the given credentials. Furthermore, additional operations on database connections are performed to check whether the credential user has the necessary authorization to access relevant database objects. In particular, the credential user’s permission to read source tables and write to target tables is verified. Similarly, for storage locations the check verifies that the credential user has permission to write to the working directory.

Code checks

For all entities containing code segments, such as modification methods or condition scripts, the syntax for the code is checked. This does not check, however, whether at run time all necessary variables are likely to be available.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

Delete the object. If the object is still used by another entity, an error message is displayed, and the object is not deleted. The delete operation must be confirmed in a separate popup.

The following options are available:

Cascade

Recursively delete depending objects.

When using cascade, dependent objects are deleted first also with cascade enabled. Thus, a cascade deletion is a recursive function that deeply searches for dependent objects and deletes them first. There is only a confirmation for the first object. The dependent objects are deleted without confirmation but only when the user has the DELETE permission.

This feature is only available in development mode. More information about development mode can be found in the chapter User Settings. It should be used with caution.

The following permissions are required:

  • DELETE

  • READ

Will create an exact copy of the current object with a different display name in the same list. Users can decide whether they want to copy child objects like rules, permissions or tasks. It is only possible to select complete classes of objects and not to select individual child objects. Copied child-objects will preserve their display name. The default is to copy all child objects.

The following permissions are required:

  • CREATE

  • READ

Opens the current entity in edit mode.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

  • WRITE

This list shows all registered events for the object. It includes events that are specific to the object, or for that type.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

This action allows to export XDM objects in different formats in order to import them via export or CasC in another environment.

Refer to configuration of export for more information.

Related and dependent objects can optionally be included in the export. The export dialog has the following options:

Include dependent objects

Dependent objects only belong to the exported object like rules and tasks.

Include permissions

Permissions of each exported object, only when the object supports permissions. Some objects like rules don’t have permissions.

Include referenced objects

Referenced objects exist by their own and are used in the exported object like connections and environments.

Include objects that depend on referenced objects

Also include the dependent objects of the referenced objects. E.g. the rules of a modification set or the rules in an application model version.

Include implicit created objects

Implicit created objects are tasks or workflows which were automatically created for execution. These objects won’t be exported by default, but can be included by setting this flag. When exporting implicit objects, make sure that the Include dependent objects flag is also enabled.

Objects on which the user does not have READ permission are not exported. This includes dependent and referenced objects. However, the reference to an object will be exported.

For example a connection object would refer to the credential, even if the user does not have READ permission on the credential. The definition of the credential object itself will not be part of the export file. This can lead to issues during the import, because the connection cannot be created without an existing credential.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

The history displays all changes made to the respective XDM object, including any changes made to its rules.

Each change record includes information about the operation performed (e.g. CREATE, UPDATE, DELETE), the timestamp, and the user responsible for the change.

For more information about the concept of the history refer to the history concepts.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

The check verifies that the current user has the authorization to access the object. The check can also be performed for a specific user or role, if needed. By default, the check is performed using the current user’s credentials. It is then applied to child and referenced objects.

Additional permission checks are applied when these can be inferred from the context in which the check was started. For example, if the check is performed on a table copy task, the referenced source and target connections are checked to determine whether the given identity has source or target usage permission respectively.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

The Usage List shows all objects that refer to the current object. It provides an overview of the relationships and makes it easy to track these relationships.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

The Uses List shows all objects that the current object uses. It provides an overview of the relationships and makes it easy to track these relationships.

The following permissions are required:

  • READ

License Options

This object is available if the following license option is enabled:

  • COMPONENT:HOOK

The object is also available if the license package is at least: STANDARD.