Automation Workshop includes the If Remote File Action that allows you to alter the control flow of an automated or scheduled Task based on whether a specific file exists on a remote server or cloud storage. This enables you to modify your workflow's control flow.
Features & highlights
- Increase the reliability and robustness of automation workflows by incorporating checks that validate the presence of necessary files, reducing the likelihood of runtime errors and handling potential issues.
- It supports wildcards and file masks to verify the existence of files from a set of similar files.
- This Action can be complemented with the Else Action, which executes a different part of the workflow when the If Remote File condition is not met.
- Enables the creation of Tasks that are performed only when a specific file is available or missing.
- Verify the existence of a remote file to prevent unintentional data loss by avoiding overwrites to files where data should be appended or new versions created.
Usage examples
- Check for log files, temporary files, or output files to determine if previous steps were successful, enhancing error handling. This helps automated workflows identify and handle errors gracefully, improving their robustness.
- Enable conditional processing in your workflows by checking for specific remote configuration files, input files, or resources to ensure necessary resources are available before starting a Task, avoiding errors or incomplete operations.
- Create a new remote file only if it does not already exist to prevent overwriting existing files and ensure new files are created as needed.
- Switch to alternative resources or perform alternative Actions if a remote file is missing to ensure the automated process continues smoothly.
- Log an error or send an alert email if an essential file is missing on a remote FTP, SFTP, FTPS, WebDAV, or cloud storage server to provide immediate feedback about issues.
- Check for the existence of particular file types, such as PDF invoices
*.pdf, to efficiently verify files with dynamically generated filenames.
Documentation
- Compare · Verify whether a file exists on a remote machine.
- Options · Set the Action state and custom display name, define automated error workarounds, and enable an option to log only critical errors.
Interconnect
- If Remote File integration—Variables (manipulate data dynamically within a workflow) and Events (recorded entries that detail the activity within the system).
- Effortlessly streamline your automation processes by visually connecting your workflow using Variable Wizard—a powerful tool to access all 1,000+ variables—system, network, Triggers, Actions, globals, web, and much more…
- Moreover, not only utilize If Remote File variables, but also seamlessly integrate them with a diverse array of other file and folder variables from local disks, mapped drives, network shares, and remote servers—FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, and more…
Quick access
To streamline your workflow creation, you can locate the If Remote File Action throughout the entire Automation suite's search tools—including the knowledge base, menu, and Add Action feature—using the quick ยซIRFยป shortcut.
More comparisons…
Automation Workshop offers specialized Actions tailored to various resources. Each of them features an intuitive interface designed for a specific resource type. Explore more comparison options:
- If · Overview
- If Remote Directory · Overview
- If File · Overview
- If Folder · Overview
- If Service · Overview
- If App · Overview
File comparison Actions allow you to verify the existence or absence of files and check if a file is currently being written to or used by other applications. Folder and directory comparison Actions enable you to verify the existence or absence of local folders and remote directories, as well as check if they are empty, not empty, or does not contain files.
Branching alternatives…
While If–then logic is the most widely used approach to split a Task into two execution paths, there are additional methods to branch an automated workflow · Action flow explained
Discover
Automation Workshop includes many more awesome Triggers and numerous Actions to aid you to automate any repetitive computer or business task by providing state-of-the-art GUI tools.
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