Copy Process Node

A Copy node is a Production process node that copies or moves files from one location to another.

Production Copy Node

NOTE: Wildcard characters are supported wherever you list files.

The Copy node has Closedthree panes where you set attributes.

Production Copy Node All Panes

You set attributes for the Copy node in the Closednode attributes pane.

Production Copy Node Attributes

Attribute Description
Name

Specify a descriptive name for the node. Lower case names maximize usage of the available space.
Copy or Move Select operation type. The default is Copy.
Destination directory

Set the default destination directory where files are copied or moved.

For individual files, you can override the default destination directory by specifying a different directory in the Destination column in the Copy Operations pane.
Failure type Specify how to handle a Copy node failure:
  • If set to Any, which is the default and is recommended, the node fails if any of the copy or move operations fail.
  • If set to Any and a Failure node is specified, the task flow goes to the Failure node if any of the copy or move operations fail.
  • If set to All, the task flow stops only if all of the copy and move operations fail; otherwise, the task flow continues to the next node.
Recursive

Set to True to include files in subdirectories that match the files and file types that are specified in the Source list in the Copy Operations pane. The default is False.
When file exists

Select the behavior when a file of the same name exists in the destination directory. Use one of the following settings:

  • Fail (default)—Protects files from being replaced accidentally or while in use by another operation.
  • Replace—Overwrites the existing file.

  • Publish—If the destination file is in use, this setting temporarily creates a renamed copy of the existing file before placing the new version of the file in the destination folder. Use this option to protect against conflicts when a process or individual has the file open.

    1. Moves the source into the destination folder with a random name.
    2. Renames the old file in the same folder. This operation succeeds even if the file is in use.
    3. Moves the new file into place.
    4. Deletes the old, renamed file. If the file is open elsewhere, this operation might fail for cBases, or it might work on a delay for models.

    Publish does not know if the file is in use. The attempted behavior is the same either way—the result of the delete in step 4 is different depending on whether the file is a cBase or a model and whether or not it is in use.

    For example:

    The file sales_tempsource.cbase is temporarily created and copied or moved while sales.cbase is in use. Once sales.cbase is released, the temporary file replaces the original file with the original name. If the temporary file cannot be deleted, the Copy node is flagged with a warning and the file that cannot be deleted is noted in the log. For more information, see Publish in Production.

  • Publish (Don't warn if existing file is open)—Same as Publish, but the node result type is success rather than warning. The warning text still appears in the node output.

NOTE: When configuring batch housekeeping chores, it is a best practice to include a step to disconnect users before moving models and cBases. See Command Line Utility dictl.
When no files are copied

Specify how to handle a copy or move operation failure: Warn, Fail, or Succeed. The default is Warn.
Email Object for failure

Select a predefined mailing list to send an email to if the node fails. The pull-down list is populated with items that can be found in Project Settings > Mailing Lists > Email Templates. See Mailing Lists Tab for information about setting up Mailing Lists and Email Objects.
Email Object for success

Select a predefined mailing list to send an email to if the node succeeds. The pull-down list is populated with items that can be found in Project Settings > Mailing Lists > Email Templates. See Mailing Lists Tab for information about setting up Mailing Lists and Email Objects.
Email Object for warning

Select a predefined mailing list to send an email to if the node generates a warning. The pull-down list is populated with items that can be found in Project Settings > Mailing Lists > Email Templates. See Mailing Lists Tab for information about setting up Mailing Lists and Email Objects.
Failure node

Select the next node upon failure. The pull-down list contains all nodes that are on the Task Flow.
Success node

Select the next node upon successful completion. The next node automatically populates if a connecting line is set on the Task Flow. The pull-down list contains all nodes that are on the Task Flow.
Working Directory

Specifies the directory in which this node runs. If left blank, the Default Working Directory attribute that is set in the Start Control Node is used. When running a script, Production sets the working directory for the child process to the directory that contains the script, unless the node specifies a different directory.

See Start Control Node.

Default Working Directory

Displays the Default Working Directory that is set the the Start Control Node. If a Default Working Directory is not specified, this attribute is blank. Applies to all nodes.

See Start Control Node.

External File Encoding

Select the format for the node input files. If this attribute is blank, Workbench attempts to detect the type of encoding.

This attribute is also used when saving log files. The encoding might need to be adjusted when using data with high bit Latin-1 characters or Unicode characters.

Each node has an area where you can enter comments.

It is a DI best practice to enter a note for every node in a Production script. These notes can help you or a coworker understand the intent of the node and troubleshoot issues in the future.

ClosedCopy node with comments

Production Copy Node with Comments

Specify one or more files to copy or move in the Source column in the ClosedCopy Operations pane.

Production Copy Node Copy Operations Pane

The destination for the copy or move operation defaults to the setting in the Destination directory attribute, but can be overridden with an entry in the Destination column in the Copy Operations pane.