Performing System Processes

In addition to the various MicroStrategy configurations that can be completed as part of a System Manager workflow, you can also perform various system processes. This lets you perform system processes such as copying, moving, or deleting a file.

You can also execute any process that uses system or third-party tools. This lets you perform custom processes that can be executed from the system's command line.

The system processes that are supported include:

Encrypting/Decrypting Text or Files
Copying a File or Folder
Deleting a File or Folder
Moving a File or Folder
Find and Replace Information in a File
Renaming a File or Folder
Unzipping a Compressed File
Compressing Files into a Zip File
Downloading Files from an FTP or SFTP Site
Uploading Files to an FTP or SFTP Site
Executing a SQL Statement
Sending an Email
Delaying a Workflow to Allow for Task Completion
Updating Workflow Parameters
Retrieving Machine Information

Encrypting/Decrypting Text or Files

You can configure a process to encrypt or decrypt specified text or a file.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Cryptographic Service process to your workflow. The following information is required to perform this process:

Action: Select either Encrypt or Decrypt from the drop-down list. Encrypt algorithmically encodes plain text into a non-readable form. Decrypt deciphers the encrypted text back to its original plain text form.
The Decrypt action only works on text that was encrypted using the Encrypt action. Also, files encoded using the Encrypt action must be decrypted using the Decrypt action. Other encryption/decryption programs will not work.
Password: Select the check box and type the required password if a specific password is required to perform this process. If this option is not selected, it will use the default password specified by System Manager.
Text: Select this option and type the text to be encrypted or decrypted in the text box. This is useful for encrypting or decrypting a small amount of text.
File: Select this option and click the folder icon to select the file to encrypt or decrypt. This option is useful if you have a large amount of text to encrypt or decrypt.
Output File: Click the folder icon to select the file in which to store the encrypted or decrypted results.
Overwrite: Select this check box to overwrite the output file if it already exists.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Performing Custom Processes

You can execute a custom process as part of a System Manager workflow. This can be any process that uses system or third-party tools. However, the process must be executable from the system's command line.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Execute Application process to your workflow. The following information is required to execute a custom process:

Application To Execute: The command to execute the custom process. This command must meet the syntax requirements of the system it is executed on.
Execute In System Shell: Select this check box to execute the application and any parameters in a Windows command prompt or UNIX shell. If you select this option, the exit code for this process represents the success or failure of creating a new Windows command prompt or UNIX shell. If you clear this option, the exit code for this process represents the success or failure of executing the application, which could fail if an incorrect application name or path is used.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Copying a File or Folder

You can copy a file or folder as part of a System Manager workflow.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Copy Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to copy a file or folder:

Source File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to copy. If the path to a file is provided, only that file is copied. If the path to a folder is provided, the folder along with all the files within it are copied. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
You can also use wildcard characters (* and ?) to select files or folders to copy. For example, you can use the syntax *.txt to copy all files with the extension .txt in a folder. For additional examples of how you can use these wildcard characters, see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes.
Destination File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to copy the file or folder to.
- If you are copying a file, you can provide a path to a specific folder location and file name to store the new copy.
- If you are copying a folder or have used wildcard characters to select multiple files or folders, you can provide a folder location at which to store the files or folders.
- If the location you provide does not exist, a new directory is created with the name of the destination and all source files are copied to the directory. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
Overwrite: If this check box is selected, the system replaces the destination file or folder with the same name as the source file or folder provided. If this check box is cleared and a file or folder with the same name exists on the system, the source file or folder is not copied to the specified location.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Creating a File or Folder

You can create a file or folder as part of a System Manager workflow.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Create File process to your workflow. The following information is required to create a file or folder:

Select Type: Determines whether to create a file or folder. Select either File or Directory.
Parent Directory: The location in which to create the file or folder in. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a folder.
File or Directory Name: The name for the new file or folder:
- For files, type any file name and extension to create an empty file of that file type. Be aware that this process does not validate whether the file type is valid.
- For folders, type the folder name. Along with creating a single folder at the parent directory location, you can create a series of subfolders by using backslashes (\). For example, if the parent location is C:\, you can create the following folders:
  - Type test. This creates a single folder C:\test.
  - Type test1\test2\test3. This creates the folder structure C:\test1\test2\test3.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Determining the Number of Files in a Folder

You can determine the number of files in a folder as part of a System Manager workflow.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Count Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to determine the number of files in a folder:

The Directory: The location of the top level folder to determine the number of files. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a folder.
File Filter: Select this option to apply a single filter to the files that are to be included in the count of files in a folder. You can then type the filter, including wildcard characters such as an asterisk (*) to represent multiple characters, and a question mark (?) to represent a single character. For example, if you type *.exe, only files that end with the .exe extension are included in the count. If you type test?.exe, files such as test1.exe, test2.exe, test3.exe, and testA.exe are included in the count. If you clear this check box, all files in a folder are included in the final count.
Among All Files: Select this option to count files only in the top-level folder.
Among All Files and Subfolders Recursively: Select this option to count files in the top-level folder and all subfolders.
Output Parameter: The number of files in the folder must be stored in a parameter so that it can be passed to another process in the System Manager workflow. Select an output parameter from the drop-down list to store this value.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Deleting a File or Folder

You can delete a file or folder as part of a System Manager workflow.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Delete Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to delete a file or folder:

File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to delete. If the path to a file is provided, only that file is deleted. If the path to a folder is provided, the folder and all the files in it are deleted. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
You can also use wildcard characters (* and ?) to select files or folders for deletion. For example, you can use the syntax *.txt to delete all files with the extension .txt in a folder. For additional examples of how you can use these wildcard characters, see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Moving a File or Folder

You can move a file or folder to a new location as part of a System Manager workflow. When a file or folder is moved, the file or folder only exists in the new location provided. This means the file or folder is no longer available in the original location it was moved from.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Move Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to move a file or folder:

Source File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to move. If the path to a file is provided, only that file is moved. If the path to a folder is provided, the folder along with all the files and folders within it are moved. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
You can also use wildcard characters (* and ?) to select files or folders to move. For example, you can use the syntax *.txt to move all files with the extension .txt in a folder. For additional examples of how you can use these wildcard characters, see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes
Destination File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to move the file or folder to.
- If you are moving a file, you can provide a path to a specific folder location and file name to store the file.
- If you are moving a folder or have used wildcard characters to select multiple files or folders, you can provide a folder location at which to store the files or folders.
- If the location you provide does not exist, a new directory is created with the name of the destination and all source files will be copied to this directory. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
Overwrite: If this check box is selected, the system replaces the destination file or folder with the same name as the source file or folder provided. If this check box is cleared and a file or folder with the same name exists on the system, the file or folder is not moved to the specified location.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Find and Replace Information in a File

You can search a file for various keywords and phrases, and then replace this information with new content, as part of a System Manager workflow. These changes can be applied by overwriting the file or by creating a new file with all the applicable changes.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Find and Replace File Content process to your workflow. The following information is required to find and replace content in a file:

Source File: The location of the file to search for content to replace. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file.
Destination File: The location and name of the file that is created with all content replacements. You can create a new file to retain a copy of the original file, or select the same file as the source file to overwrite the existing file. To overwrite the existing file, you must also select the option Overwrite Destination File If It Already Exists described below. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file.
Overwrite Destination File If It Already Exists: If this check box is selected, the system replaces the original file with an updated version of the file that has all relevant content updates applied. If this check box is cleared and a file with the same name exists on the system, the file is not updated.
Match Case: If this check box is selected, the system replaces keywords and phrases if the content and the case of the content matches. If this check box is cleared, keywords and phrases are replaced if the content matches, regardless of the case.
Keyword: The keyword or phrase to search for in the file. The search finds and replaces all instances of the keyword or phrase in the file. You must type the keyword or phrase exactly; wildcard characters cannot be used. To replace multiple lines in the file, use $\n$ to indicate a line break.
Value: The content used to replace the keyword or phrase. To replace a keyword with multiple lines, use $\n$ to indicate a line break.

For example, if you have an XML file that includes multiple instances of the same address, and the person or company with that address has recently moved to another city, you can find and replace all instances of the customer address. If the XML for the address is:
Copy
```
<address1>123 Main Street</address1>
<city>Vienna</city>
<state>Virginia</state>
<zip>22180</zip>
```
In the Keyword text box enter the following:
Copy
```
<address1>123 Main Street</address1>$\n$<city>Vienna</city>$\n$<state>Virginia</state>$\n$<zip>22180</zip>
```
If the new address should read as follows in the XML:
Copy
```
<address1>4000 Connecticut Ave NW</address1>
<address2>Suite 600</address2>
<city>Washington</city>
<state>District of Columbia</state>
<zip>20008</zip>
```
In the Value text box, type the following:
Copy
```
<address1>4000 Connecticut Ave NW</address1>$\n$<address2>Suite 600</address2>$\n$<city>Washington</city>$\n$<state>District of Columbia</state>$\n$<zip>20008</zip>
```
Use This Additional Keyword / Value Pair: If this check box is selected, the system includes a find and replace action to search for and replace a given keyword or phrase. Each of these check boxes includes a single, additional find and replace action. For each find and replace action that you include, you must provide the following information:
- Keyword: The keyword or phrase to search for in the file. The search finds and replaces all instances of the keyword or phrase within the file. You must type the keyword or phrase exactly; wildcard characters cannot be used. If you want to replace multiple lines within the file, you can use $\n$ to indicate a line break.
- Value: The content used to replace the keyword or phrase. If you want to replace a keyword with multiple lines, you can use $\n$ to indicate a line break.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Renaming a File or Folder

You can rename a file or folder as part of a System Manager workflow.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Rename Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to rename a file or folder:

Source File or Directory: The location of the file or folder to rename. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file or folder.
New Name of File or Directory: The new name for the file or folder.
Append Current Date: Determines whether the current date is automatically added to the end of the new name. The date is added in a YYYY-MM-DD format, such as NewName-2015-12-21.txt.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Unzipping a Compressed File

You can extract the contents of a compressed file as part of a System Manager workflow. The files are extracted to the location that you specify.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Unzip Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to extract the contents of a compressed file:

Zip File: The location of the compressed file to extract, which can use either zip or gzip format. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file.
Output Directory: The location of where the files in the compressed file are to be extracted to. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a folder.
Overwrite: Replaces any existing files in the output directory with the files that are being extracted. If this check box is cleared and a file with the same name exists in the output directory, the file is not updated.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Compressing Files into a Zip File

You can compress files and the contents of folders into a zip file as part of a System Manager workflow. The files are extracted to the location that you specify.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Zip Files process to your workflow. The following information is required to compress files and folders into a zip file:

Source File or Directory: The location of the file or folders to include in the zip file. If you select a folder, all of the contents of the folder are included in the zip file, which includes the subfolders and their content. Click the folder icon to browse to and select files and folders.
- You can also use wildcard characters (* and ?) to select files or folders to compress into a zip file. For example, you can use the syntax *.txt to select all files with the extension .txt in a folder for compression into a zip file. For additional examples of how you can use these wildcard characters, see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes.
Output File: The location and name of the final compressed zip file. Click the folder icon to browse to and select an existing zip file.
Operations for Output File: Determines how an existing zip file is updated. If this check box is cleared and an existing zip file is found, the zip file is not updated and the files are not compressed into a zip file. If you select this check box, you have the following options:
- Overwrite: If an existing zip file is found, the old version is completely replaced by a new zip file.
- Append: If an existing zip file is found, the new files and folders are added to the existing zip file.
  However, if a folder already exists in the same location in the zip file, it is ignored along with any contents of the folder. This means that if a folder has new files, they are not included as part of appending files to the existing zip file.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Downloading Files from an FTP or SFTP Site

You can download files from an FTP or SFTP site as part of a System Manager workflow. These files are downloaded and saved to a folder that you select.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Download using FTP process to your workflow. The following information is required to download files from an FTP or SFTP site:

FTP Server: The URL for the FTP or SFTP site. You must also define whether the site allows anonymous access or requires a user name and password:
- Port Number: The port number to access the FTP or SFTP site. By default a value of 22 is expected. Select this check box and type the port number for your FTP or SFTP site.
- Anonymous: Defines the connection to the FTP site as anonymous. You cannot use this option if you are connecting to an SFTP site. Type an account for the anonymous connection, such as an email address.
- Login: Defines the connection to the FTP or SFTP site as one that requires a user name and password to log into the FTP or SFTP site. You must provide the following information:
  - User Name: The name of a valid user for the FTP or SFTP site.
  - Password: The password for the user name that you provided to connect to the FTP or SFTP site. You can use the button to the right of the Password field to determine whether the password characters are shown or asterisks are displayed instead.
  - Use SFTP: Encrypts the entire download communication. You must have a secure FTP site for this encryption to work successfully. If you clear this check box, the communication is not encrypted.
    If you have both an FTP and an SFTP site, you can choose to clear this check box to use the FTP site, or select this check box to encrypt the communication and use the SFTP site. However, if you only have an FTP site or an SFTP site, your use of this option must reflect the type of site you are using.
Download Options: Determines whether to download a single file or multiple files:
- Single File: Downloads a single file from the FTP or SFTP site. Type the location of the file on the FTP or SFTP site to download.
- Multiple Files: Downloads multiple files from a directory on the FTP or SFTP site. You must provide the following information:
  - Remote Directory: The folder within the FTP or SFTP site to download files from.
  - All Files: Downloads all the files directly within the folder selected. Subfolders are not downloaded recursively if you select this option.
  - All Files And Subfolders Recursively: Downloads all the files and subfolders recursively, within the folder selected.
Download To Directory: The location of the folder to download the files from the FTP site to. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a folder.
Overwrite: If this check box is selected, the system replaces files with the same name as the files or folders downloaded from the FTP or SFTP site. If this check box is cleared and a file or folder with the same name exists on the system, the file or folder is not downloaded from the FTP or SFTP site.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Uploading Files to an FTP or SFTP Site

You can upload files to an FTP or SFTP site as part of a System Manager workflow. These files are uploaded to the FTP or SFTP site that you select.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Upload using FTP process to your workflow. The following information is required to upload files to an FTP or SFTP site:

FTP Server: The URL for the FTP or SFTP site. You must also define whether the site allows anonymous access or requires a user name and password:
- Port Number: The port number to access the FTP or SFTP site. By default a value of 22 is expected. Select this check box and type the port number for your FTP or SFTP site.
- Anonymous: Defines the connection to the FTP site as anonymous. You cannot use this option if you are connecting to an SFTP site. Type an account for the anonymous connection, such as an email address.
- Login: Defines the connection to the FTP or SFTP site as one that requires a user name and password to log into the FTP or SFTP site. You must provide the following information:
  - User Name: The name of a valid user for the FTP or SFTP site.
  - Password: The password for the user name that you provided to connect to the FTP or SFTP site. You can use the button to the right of the Password field to determine whether the password characters are shown or asterisks are displayed instead.
  - Use SFTP: Encrypts the entire upload communication. You must have a secure FTP site for this encryption to work successfully. If you clear this check box, the communication is not encrypted.
    If you have both an FTP and an SFTP site, you can choose to clear this check box to use the FTP site, or select this check box to encrypt the communication and use the SFTP site. However, if you only have an FTP site or an SFTP site, your use of this option must reflect the type of site you are using.
Upload Options: Determines whether to upload a single file or multiple files:
- Single File: Uploads a single file to the FTP or SFTP site. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file.
- Multiple Files: Uploads multiple files from a directory to the FTP or SFTP site. You must provide the following information:
  - Local Directory: The local folder to upload the files from. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a folder.
  - All Files: Uploads all the files directly within the folder selected. Subfolders are not uploaded recursively if you select this option.
  - All Files And Subfolders Recursively: Uploads all the files and subfolders recursively, within the folder selected.
- Upload To Remote Directory: The location of the folder to upload the files to in the FTP or SFTP site. Type the FTP or SFTP site location.
- Overwrite: If this check box is selected, the system replaces files with the same name as the files or folders uploaded to the FTP or SFTP site. If this check box is cleared and a file or folder with the same name exists on the FTP or SFTP site, the file or folder is not uploaded.
- Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Executing a SQL Statement

You can execute a SQL statement against a database as part of a System Manager workflow. This lets you perform tasks such as updating tables in a database.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Execute SQL process to your workflow. The following information is required to execute a SQL statement against a database:

Connection Information: Determines whether to connect using a data source name (DSN) or a connection string:
- Specify a DSN: Defines the connection to the database through the use of a DSN. You must provide the following information:
  - Data Source Name: The DSN used to access the database.
  - Authentication for DSN: Determines if authentication is included as part of the SQL statement. Be aware that some SQL statements can require specific permissions, which means that authentication would be required. Select this check box to authenticate the connection, and supply the following information:
    - Login: The name of a valid user for the database.
    - Password: The password for the user name that you provided to connect to the database. You can use the button to the right of the Password field to determine whether the password characters are shown or asterisks are displayed instead.
- Specify a JDBC Connection String: Defines the connection to the database through the use of a JDBC connection string. Type a valid connection string in the field provided.
- Encoding: From this drop-down list, select the character encoding for the data source you are connecting to:
  - Non UTF-8: Select this option if the data source uses a character encoding other than UTF-8. This can support character encodings such as UTF-16 and USC-2. This encoding option is selected by default.
  - UTF-8: Select this option if the data source uses UTF-8 character encoding. For example, Teradata databases may require UTF-8 encoding.

Execution: Determines whether to use a SQL script to supply the SQL statements, or provide a single SQL statement directly in the workflow:
- Execute the Contents of an Input File: Uses a SQL script file to provide the SQL statements. The SQL script file can contain multiple SQL statements to be executed. The syntax of the SQL must be valid for the database it is executed against. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a SQL script file.
- Execute a Single SQL Statement: Lets you type a single SQL statement for execution. The syntax of the SQL must be valid for the database it is executed against, and the statement must end with a semicolon.
Save Execution Output Into a File: If this check box is selected, the system saves all resulting output of executing the SQL statements to the selected file. No output or data is included in the file for SQL statements that do not return any output, such as create table or update table statements. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file, which can either be a .txt or .csv file.
If this check box is cleared, the output of executing the SQL statements is not saved to a file.
Include column headers in the output: Determines whether the column headers are included as part of the SQL statement output. By default, this check box is cleared and the column header information is not included in any output that is saved for the SQL statement. This can be helpful if you plan to use the output of a SQL statement to update the value of a parameter in your System Manager workflow.
If you select this check box, the column header information is provided in the SQL output along with the associated values. This can provide additional context to the values.
Output Parameters: As part of executing SQL, you can store any results in parameters:
- SQL Execution Result: The resulting output of executing the SQL statements. Select a parameter from the drop-down list to store the SQL result.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Sending an Email

You can send an email as part of a System Manager workflow. The email can include the results of the workflow, which can provide verification of what processes have been successfully completed.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Send Email process to your workflow. The following information is required to send an email:

From: The email address of the sender. For an email sent from a System Manager workflow, you must type the email address of the person who deploys the workflow.
To: The email addresses for the intended primary recipients of the email. Use a comma to separate each email address.
Cc: The email addresses of the secondary recipients who should receive a copy of the email addressed to the primary recipients. Select the check box to enter the email addresses. Use a comma to separate each email address.
Bcc: The email addresses of the recipients who should receive the email while concealing their email address from the other recipients. Select the check box to enter the email addresses. Use a comma to separate each email address.
Message Subject: The title of the email that is displayed in the subject line. This can be used to give a brief description of the purpose behind deploying the workflow. Select the check box to enter the message subject.
Message Body: The main content of the email. This can give additional details on what was completed as part of the workflow and next steps for a user or administrator to take. Select the check box to enter the message content.
- HTML: Defines the body content of the email to be provided in HTML format. If you clear this check box, the content is provided in plain text format.
High Importance: Defines the email as having high importance. If this check box is cleared, the email is sent without any importance defined for the email.
Attach System Manager Log: If this check box is selected, the system includes the System Manager log file as an attachment to the email. This log file includes all the results of the workflow up to the time of the email request. Any processes in the workflow that are completed after the email request are not included in the log file. If this check box is cleared, the log file is not attached to the email.
Attach Any Other File: If this check box is selected, the system includes a file as an attachment to the email. Click the folder icon to browse to and select a file to include as an attachment. You can also use wildcard characters if the folder or file name is not known when creating the workflow (see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes).
- If you need to send multiple files, you can do one of the following:
- Compress the required files into a single file such as a .zip file. You can include compressing files into a single .zip file as part of a System Manager workflow, using the process described in Compressing Files into a Zip File.
- Use wildcard characters (* and ?) to select multiple files in a folder. For examples of how you can use these wildcard characters, see Using Wildcard Characters in Processes.
Outgoing SMTP Server: If this check box is selected, the system lets you define the outgoing SMTP server to use to send the email. If this check box is cleared, a default SMTP server is used to send the email. If you choose to specify an SMTP server, you must provide the following information:
- SMTP Server: The SMTP server to use to send the email.
- You must select the type of port used for the SMTP server. Contact your SMTP server administrator to determine the proper port type:
  - Plain Text: Defines the connection to the SMTP sever in plain text, without using any security protocol. By default, this option is selected.
  - TLS Port: Defines the connection to the SMTP server as using a Transport Layer Security port.
  - SSL Port: Defines the connection to the SMTP server as using a Secure Sockets Layer port.
- Port Number: The port number for the SMTP server.
- User Name: The name of a user account that has the necessary rights to send emails using the SMTP server.
- User Password: The password for the user name that you provided to send emails using the SMTP server. You can use the button to the right of the Password field to determine whether the password characters are shown or asterisks are displayed instead.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Delaying a Workflow to Allow for Task Completion

While deploying a System Manager workflow, some processes can take a considerable amount of time. In certain scenarios, your workflow may need these processes to be completed before other processes in the workflow can be started. To support this scenario, you can include a process in your workflow to wait for a specific amount of time.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Wait process to your workflow. The following information is required to delay the workflow:

Waiting Time (sec): The number of seconds to remain on the current wait process before proceeding to the next process in a workflow. Type a numeric, integer value to represent the number of seconds to wait before proceeding to the next process in a workflow.
You can add additional time to the waiting process using the following options:
You must supply a valid numerical value for the seconds of the wait process, regardless of whether you define the minutes and hours for the wait process. You can type a value of zero (0) to define the wait process as a length of time in only minutes and hours.
- Minutes: Select this check box to determine the number of minutes to remain on the current wait process before proceeding to the next process in a workflow. Type a numeric, integer value to represent the number of minutes to wait before proceeding to the next process in a workflow. This time is added to any seconds or hours also defined for the wait process.
- Hours: Select this check box to determine the number of hours to remain on the current wait process before proceeding to the next process in a workflow. Type a numeric, integer value to represent the number of hours to wait before proceeding to the next process in a workflow. This time is added to any seconds or minutes also defined for the wait process.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Updating Workflow Parameters

While deploying a System Manager workflow, you can update the values of parameters that are used in the workflow. Updating parameters during workflow deployment can allow you to react to changes made as part of deploying a workflow. This technique can also be used to help exit a loop in a workflow that is used for troubleshooting purposes, such as checking the availability of an active Intelligence Server.

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Update Parameters process to your workflow. The following information is required to update parameters for a workflow:

Parameter Name: The name of the workflow parameter to update.
Resolve the value from: Determines if the parameter value is updated using the contents of a file or a registry. If you clear this check box, the constant value or equation you provide in the New Value field is used to update the parameter. If you select this check box, you must choose one of the following:
- File: Updates the parameter value with the entire contents of a file. If you select this option, you must type the full path to the file in the New Value field. You can use .txt or .csv files to update the value of a parameter.
- Registry: Updates the parameter value with the value of a registry key. If you select this option, you must type the full path to the registry key in the New Value field.
New Value: The new value to assign to the parameter. If you selected the Resolve the value from check box listed above, you must type the full path to the file or registry key.
If the Resolve the value from check box is cleared, in addition to providing constant values such as integers or strings of characters, you can also use equations to update parameter values. To build these equations, you can include the parameter's value by typing ${ParameterName}, where ParameterName is the name of the parameter that you are updating. You can then include any of the arithmetic operators +, -, /, and * along with other numeric values. For example, you can create a Loop parameter, and update its value with the following new value equation:
```
${Loop} + 1
```
it increases the value of the Loop parameter by one each time the Update Parameters configuration is processed in the workflow. This type of parameter value update supports exiting loops in a workflow after a certain number of attempts. For best practices on using the Update Parameters process to support loops in workflows, see Supporting Loops in a Workflow to Attempt Configurations Multiple Times.
Update this additional parameter: Determines if an additional parameter is updated as part of the parameter update process. For each Update this additional parameter check box you select, you must type a Parameter Name and New Value in the respective fields.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.

Retrieving Machine Information

You can retrieve information about the machine that System Manager is running on as part of a System Manager workflow. Each system property that you retrieve must be stored in a parameter for the workflow (see Using Parameters for Processes).

To perform this configuration, in System Manager, from the Connectors and processes pane, add the Retrieve System Properties process to your workflow. The following information is required to retrieve information on the machine:

System property: The information about the system that is retrieved. You can select from the following options:
- Operating System Name: The descriptive name of the operating system, such as Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
- Operating System Version: The version number of the operating system. The version numbering of operating systems varies greatly, so it is important to also know the operating system name along with the operating system version.
- User Home Directory: The path that acts as the current user's home directory, which can be used to store files if other paths are restricted for security reasons.
- IP Address: The IP address of the system, which can be used to connect to the system.
- Hostname: The host name of the system, which can be used to connect to the system.
- Java Virtual Machine (JVM) bit-size: The size allowed for the Java Virtual Machine, which is also often referred to as the heap size. This determines how much memory can be used to perform various Java tasks. You can tune this value to improve the performance of your machine.
- Local Machine Date: The date and time for the system. The time is returned as the time zone for the system. If the time zone for the system is changed, you must restart System Manager to return the new time zone for the machine.
Parameter: The System Manager parameter that is used to store the machine information that is retrieved.
Retrieve this additional property: Select this check box to retrieve additional information about the machine. For each of these check boxes that you select, an additional System property and Parameter pair is made available.
Notes: Information to describe this process as part of the workflow.