Creating and working with template nodes

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Save a configured IBM® Optim flow node as a reusable template node. Use templates to create new nodes across multiple flows.

By saving your configured nodes as templates, you can create reusable node configurations that streamline node creation and ensure consistency across multiple flows.

When you save a node as a template, the complete configuration is stored in the template library, where it becomes available for reuse. The original node remains unchanged in its original flow.

Before you begin

Before you save a node as a template, ensure the following conditions are met:
  • The node is fully configured with all required settings.
  • The node is one of the supported types:
    • Access definition
    • Subset
    • Masking
Restriction: Source nodes, target nodes, archive nodes, connection nodes, and extract nodes cannot be saved as templates.

Saving a node as a template

To save a fully configured node as a template:

  1. From the navigation menu, click Workflow icon Workflow > Flow builder.
  2. Define a new flow or load an existing flow.
  3. From the IBM Optim flow canvas, right-click the configured node that you want to save as a template.
  4. From the context menu, choose Save as new template. A modal dialog appears prompting for template details.
  5. Provide a name and, optionally, a description for this node template. The name should be descriptive of this template's purpose.
  6. Click Save as to create the template.

The template is now available in the template library. You can use it create new nodes in any flow within the IBM Optim workspace.

When the template saves successfully, the following notification is displayed: Node template successfully saved — The template name node template is saved.

If the save fails, the following error notification is displayed: Couldn't save the template — The template name node template didn't save. Try again or contact an administrator.

Creating a node from a template

After saving a node as a template, you can use the template to create a new node in any flow. Create new flow nodes based on existing templates by adding them to your canvas from the Node templates panel.
Note: When you create a node from a template, the new node must be compatible with the existing nodes in the flow. For example, an access definition node must contain all tables and columns referenced by downstream nodes such as subset and masking nodes. For more information, see Node validation.

To create a new node based on a template node:

  1. Open the flow where you want to add a node.
  2. In the Node templates panel, find the template that you want to add to the canvas as a new node.
  3. Add the template to the canvas in one of the following ways:
    • Drag the template from the panel and drop it onto the canvas.
    • Right-click the template and select Add to canvas.
    The node creation dialog opens with all fields prepopulated from the template.
  4. Modify the node configuration as needed. Click Next to go through each section of the node configuration dialog, then click Create to add the new node to the flow canvas.
    Tip: If you want to accept all of the configuration options from the template without changes, select Create from template, then click Create.

You can now connect the new node to other nodes in the flow and modify its configuration as needed.

Updating a node template

You can update an existing template with a node's current configuration.

Before you update a template, ensure the following conditions are met:

  • The node was created from a template or previously saved as a template.
  • The node has a valid template ID (not a placeholder ID).
  • The node is not a source node, target node, archive node, connection node, or extract node.

The Save template and Save as new template options are not available for source nodes, target nodes, archive nodes, connection nodes, and extract nodes.

The Save template option is also disabled for nodes created directly in the flow without using a template. For these nodes, use the Save as new template option to create a new template first.

  1. From the flow canvas, locate a node that was created from a template or previously saved as a template.
  2. Make the necessary modifications to the node configuration and save the node.
  3. Right-click to open the node's context menu, then click Save template.
  4. Click Save to confirm the update.

    A confirmation dialog is displayed: Save changes to this template? This action cannot be undone. If you save your changes, the previous template settings are overwritten. To create a new template instead, select Save as new template from the menu. Click Save to confirm or Cancel to abort.

The template is updated with the current node's configuration.

When you save changes to a template, all future nodes created from the template use the updated configuration, but existing nodes created from the previous template version are not affected.

Managing node templates

You can manage templates directly from the Node templates panel. Use the search and filter capabilities to quickly locate specific templates.