Parameters

Parameters

• The Parameter values are automatically encoded into a format suitable for passing via a URL
• Refer to attributes mapped into the HTTP action using the syntax: ${ConnectorName.AttributeName} in the Expression
• The parameter names must match those set on the API

If a “timeout” parameter is required, this can be set on the HTTP action but is not needed as an Input Parameter on the API Endpoint. This is because it is a reserved value. See API Endpoint Properties and Setting up an API Endpoint.

When sending an authorisation header to a PhixFlow API Endpoint, the Name must be Authorization. See Setting up an API Endpoint.

Here is a worked example using the Retail Data (available from the Learning Centre) and JSON data from the UK government website (https://www.gov.uk/bank-holidays.json).

In this example, we are using:  

• A Shop Shipping screen containing a grid of Orders data, a grid of Order Lines data, an area containing a Date form field and buttons  - this screen was created using the Multi-Tile template
• A Shop Shipping Popup screen containing a grid of the bank holiday data  - this screen was created using the Tile no Buttons template

Identify Bank Holiday Dates

In this example, we'll create an Actionflow that retrieves bank holiday dates in the UK from the government website in JSON format and map this onto a screen in a grid. 

Table Setup

1. Create a new

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    on your

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    to save the bank holiday data to, and ensure it contains the following attributes:
   1. Name: UID
      1. Type: String
      2. Length: 50
      3. Expression: _NULL
   2. Name: Name
      1. Type: String
      2. Length: 200
      3. Expression: _NULL
   3. Name: Date
      1. Type: Date
         1. Leave the Expression field blank
   4. Name: Country
      1. Type: String
      2. Length: 50 
         1. Leave the Expression field blank

HTTP Action Setup

1. On the Shop Shipping screen, add an Actionflow to the  ("GetDates") button 

2. Select Click to Connect and choose On Click

3. Drag a 

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    action onto the canvas and give it a suitable name - this will be used to retrieve the bank holidays from the government JSON URL

4. Drag the 

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    connection point node onto the

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    action

5. Click on the 

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    action to open its Properties
   1. HTTP Method: GET
   2. URL: https://www.gov.uk/bank-holidays.json

   
   

6. Drag a 

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    action onto the canvas and give it a suitable name - this will be used to convert the JSON data into data suitable for our bank holiday table
7. Connect the out connector from the HTTP node to the JSON node

   1. Map across attribute, body
      

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      title Checkpoint

      
      

JSON Action Setup

1. Click on the 

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    action to open its Properties
   1. Input Expression: in.body
   2. Path: $..events

   3. Output Attributes:
      

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      theme Emacs title Name: Country, Type: String
      _result.^.^.division

      
      

      Code Block
      theme Emacs title Name: Date, Type: Date
      toDate(_result.date, "yyyy-MM-dd")

      
      

      Code Block
      theme Emacs title Name: ID, Type: String
      toString(_result.date, "yyyyMMdd") + substring(_result.^.^.division, 1,1)

      
      

      Code Block
      theme Emacs title Name: Title, Type: String
      _result.title

      
      

2. Hover over the JSON action and select out
3. Create a

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    action
   1. Primary Table: The Bank Holidays table you created earlier
   2. Map across the JSON attributes to their relevant attributes on the Save action
      

      
      

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4. Hover over the Save action and choose out

5. Create an 

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    action to open the Shop Shipping Popup screen

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Screen Setup

1. Open the Shop Shipping Popup screen
2. Click on 

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    in the toolbar, then select the Bank Holidays table you created earlier
3. In the Available Attributes selector, select all attributes and drag them onto the screen, then choose to display the data as a 

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Testing

1. Close all open screens and reopen the Shop Shipping screen
2. Click the  button to run the Actionflow
3. If the Actionflow is working, the Shop Shipping Popup screen should open containing all of the bank holiday data from the government website

Background Filter and Default Sort Order

Tidy up your Shop Shipping Popup screen by hiding the UID column on the grid, adding a Default Filter to show only bank holidays in the future, and Default Sort Order to show the most recent bank holidays first.