Name

Enter the name of the HTTP collector.

Enabled

HTTP Request Method

URL Expression

The HTTP collector follows any HTTP redirections and returns the final response.

Statement Expression

An expression to generate the data that will be sent by the collector to the datasource.

Example

XML Statement

<?xml version ="1.0"?>
<!DOCTYPE CORPORATE DASHBOARD "corpDash.dtd">
<results user="%USERNAME%" password="%PASSWORD%">
	<monthlyTotals region=${'"' + Region + '"'} division=${'"' + Division + '"'}>
		<totalBilled>${'"' + TotalBilled + '"'}</totalBilled>
		<totalCollected>${'"' + TotalCollected + '"'}</totalCollected>
	</monthlyTotals>
</results>

Example JSON Statement

{
	user: '${user}',
	code:  ${'{size: "big"}'}
	price: ${price},
	currency: '${currency}'
}

See also HTTP datasource instance and Expressions and PhixScripts.

Return  Type

Select the type of the expected response:

• String

• XML

• HTTP

• JSON

XPath or JsonPath

Available when Return Type is XML, HTTP or JSON.

The expression used to resolve or filter the data that comes back in the selected format.

HTTP Datasource

Select the HTTP datasource that this collector will collect from. For how to add a new one, see HTTP Datasource.  To select from a list, click 

Datasource Instance Expression

The datasource to which this collector is connected may list multiple instances from which the data may be accessed. Each HTTP datasource instance is identified by a unique string. This expression should evaluate to a string which allows the collector to determine the specific instance to use. If the expression is blank then the collector will assume that there is only one instance and will use that one by default. If there is more than one instance and no expression is provided here then an error will be thrown during analysis since the collector will be unable to determine which source to use.

See also  HTTP datasource instance and Expressions and PhixScripts.

Timeout (secs)

The number of seconds to wait for a response from the corresponding HTTP datasource before a timeout is recorded.

Icon

Enter the path for an image file that has been uploaded to the PhixFlow database. PhixFlow displays this icon in controls when the HTTP collector is used.

Allow Non-Scheduled Collection

Log Traffic

String

n/a

A String response should be referenced in the attribute expressions as in.value Note that in.value will contain the complete string data referenced above.

XML

/root/main/title

This path expression will bring back all elements matching the xpath expression including the parent/grandparents and all child elements/subelements. 

The following examples show how to reference the returned xpaths html/xml data structure in attribute expressions:-

• Xpath element text value: in.value -> returns 'PF Title Text'

• Xpath element attibutes: in.name -> returns 'PF Title'

• Xpath parent attributes: in.^.page -> returns 'PF Main Page'

• Xpath child attributes: listToString(in.datarow.data.initials) -> returns 'AA,BB'

• Xpath child attribute text values: listToString(in.datarow.data.value) -> returns 'Alistair Andrews,Bert Brown'

Note the use of

• ^ to traverse to the immediate parent element.

• the listToString function to handle multiple matching child elements/attributes.

Namespaces

XML documents containing namespaces are supported.

• Within path expressions they are referred to using semicolons. 

  • /root/main/h:title

• Within attribute expressions a $ is used instead of the normal : namespace notation

  • Xpath element attibutes: in.h$name -> returns 'PF Title''

  • Xpath child attributes: listToString(in.h$datarow.h$data.h$initials) -> returns 'AA,BB'

  • Xpath child attribute text values: listToString(in.h$datarow.h$data.value) -> returns 'Alistair Andrews,Bert Brown'

    
    

    Note
    The namespace prefix used here 'h' must be configured in the XML Namespace.

    
    

HTML

/html/body/table

This Path expression will bring back all elements matching the xpath expression including the parent/grandparents and all child elements/subelements. 

The following examples show how to reference the returned xpaths html/xml data structure in attribute expressions:-

• Xpath parent attributes: in.^.nodename -> returns 'Html Body'

• Xpath child attributes: listToString(in.tbody.tr.td.initials) -> returns 'AA,BB'

• Xpath child attribute text values: listToString(in.tbody.tr.td.value) -> returns 'Alistair Andrews,Bert Brown'

Note the use of:

• ^ to traverse to the immediate parent element.

• the listToString function to handle multiple matching child elements/attributes.

• the optional html <tbody> tags. If these are not in your html data, then PhixFlow will insert them to conform with the HTML standards. Therefore when using absolute XPath expressions, the tbody tags need to be included even if they are not present in the incoming HTML data. That means /html/title/table/tr should be replaced with /html/title/table/tbody/tr or use //tr
  The same applies when referencing parent/child nodes within the attribute expressions.

JSON

$.main_page.title

This path expression will bring back all elements matching the jsonpath expression including the parent/grandparents and all child elements/subelements.

The following examples show how to reference the returned jsonpath html/xml data structure in attribute expressions:-

• Immediate properties text value: in.name-> returns 'PF Title Text'

• Parent properties: in.^.page -> returns 'PF Main Page'

• Array properties: listToString(in.data.initials) -> returns 'AA,BB'

• Array index in.data.initials.1 → returns 'AA'

Note the use of:

• ^ to traverse to the immediate parent element.

• the listToString function to handle multiple matching child elements/attributes.

• Array indexes can be used, these are 1 based.