question How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items. in Developer forum

How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 12:49:25 GMT

So we have a number of Catalog items that are order-able. They can range from Windows/Linux servers to database servers ...etc.

We've successfully created them in the catalog and are starting to create their forms and create the workflow for them. I was hoping to have a single workflow for all of the items that follows a single idea. Please see the image below.

Each catalog item has a field that is hard-coded into it, a Service Identifier. We don't have it as a choice field or anything like that, just a simple Text field that we set a default value into and make it ReadOnly.

I'd like to create a Switch/Case statement that allows me to put in a condition for each separate identifier. I'm able to create the Switch statement now, but it makes me select a Service Identifier field on a specific Catalog Item.

Is there a way to make it possible to select the Service Identifier field from EACH item and create the Switch/Case statement for that? I could simply add a condition on the Switch/Case but I'm still left with the Always action. Something like this:

switch serviceIdentifier:

case "this one":

do blah;

case "that one"

do blah2;

- Will

It's not an Out-Of-The-Box field. It's a field that we have put in ourselves. Message was edited by: William Karavites

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

Uncle Rob — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 12:56:06 GMT

The following two doc links should help:

Switch workflow activity

Activity result value

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:00:22 GMT

I took a look at those and when it has me select a Variable, it makes me select one for a single catalog item. Not the field in general, see the above image. I need to be able to have a switch/case statement on the variable across all items. Not just for an instance of that variable in a single item.

Even when I select one of those variables, it can't auto-fill it with the choices because it doesn't come from a Choice list, just a text box that we put a value into. That also forces it to have an Always action which I wouldn't need to use.

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

Uncle Rob — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:08:12 GMT

So you have a variable that appears on each of these Catalog Items. Is it the same variable (as in, present via variable set), or just named the same?

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:10:52 GMT

It's not currently in a variable set, but we could put it into one.

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

Goran WitchDoc — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:11:09 GMT

Hmm. Not sure if I understand the problem. But how about making a custom field on Requested Item(RITM) which I guessing you are using. Having the service identifier fill in that field. Then you should have no problem doing a switch in that field.

or am I missing somethingf?

//Göran

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

Uncle Rob — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:13:06 GMT

I suspect that's your issue. System thinks its three separate variables. They may have the same name, but they all have different sys_id's which makes them as different from a system perspective as peanut-butter is from corduroy.

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 13:15:42 GMT

Gotcha, I'll put it into a variable set and see what happens. Would this require me to put all of options into a Choice List instead of a regular text-box?

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 14:17:49 GMT

I understand the idea/reason to add it to a Variable Set. What I don't get is how we'd then set the default values for each item. I added it to some items, but you can't set the default value on a per-item basis then.

The user shouldn't be selecting a value for it. We just need the value to be pre-selected for each item. Then in the workflow, we can go over the values with a switch/case.

I just added a Switch/Case block to the workflow and the only option I see is still only Always. I don't see any of the options.

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 14:52:43 GMT

What I don't understand about the Switch/Case block in the workflow is how it relates to the Choice list for the variable.

I had just created a Variable in a Variable Set and connected it to a table which held the possible values. I had entered in a few test values and they still didn't show up as options when I went back to the Workflow Editor to create the Switch/Case block.

Even if I do get that get figured out, I still have the problem of setting a default value for each item. If an item is in a variable set, then you can't set defaults per item....correct?

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

Uncle Rob — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 15:31:14 GMT

Ok, so if your user is to have no interaction with this field, then why make it a variable in the first place?
Why not just do evaluations in the workflow that ask what Catalog Item it is and branch logic from there (using IFs or Runscript)

Re: How to create a Switch Statement in the workflow that acts on a custom field across all ordered Catalog items.

willkara — Mon, 17 Jul 2017 17:11:38 GMT

UPDATE:

I was able to get at least ONE condition working in the "if activity"! I'm still trying to figure out how to get an if/else if/else if.... or Switch statement working. No matter what I do for the switch statement, nothing ever gets populate for the output conditions and manually adding one doesn't work.

Original Feedback:

I tried So I'm in the If Activity Editor now and I'm figuring out the condition. Instead of creating another variable to run the condition on, which one would I use to sort the condition by item?

Is it Display Name? or Item.Name?

It seems like this only allows me to set the conditions for a single action, not a 1<>1 mapping of condition to action.

Would the Switch Statement work instead? I tried the switch statement on Item Name and I don't get any output activities generated for my items. I even tried manually creating a condition and it looks like that didn't trigger either.

I'd need to send the user to a different next activity depending on the value:

if (itemName == "this"){

do this;

}

else if(itemName == "other this"){

do this2;

}