Render tool creating folder & file before workflow run

[kell2604]

Hi - 

I am using a Render Tool to create an Excel file. If I change the folder name or Excel file name (in the tool configuration) to a folder/file that does not yet exist and then browse to that location - the folder and file are there - and I haven't run the workflow yet. It looks as though the Render tool is creating the new folder/file before I have even run the workflow. For example - the Test6 folder in my screenshot did not exist before I added it to the file path in the Render tool. The XS_WAAG file didn't exist either.

Is someone able to confirm that this is in fact how that tool is supposed to work? Is it normal that the tool would create a folder/file before the workflow run? If yes - is there a way (a setting maybe) to turn this off?

It is causing me issues because when I open the workflow, it is (apparently) overwriting my existing file with a new/blank version and I lose the data I had in the file before.

Thanks so much for any help!!

[geraldo]

@kell2604 

Version 2023.1 is creating automatically just by configuring the tool.
In previous versions this did not happen

[Qiu]

@kell2604 
I confirmed your assumption is true on my end.
I dont know how to avoid this situation and will dig a bit more.

[Charles_B]

We just upgraded to 2022.3.1.532 Patch: 5 and I began experiencing the same issue. Here's what I found:

Behavior:

Alteryx is now creating blank placeholder files when configuring the render tool - without ever running the workflow. It also does this anytime the workflow is updated elsewhere or initiated to run. I tested and confirmed this happens consistent across all output file types: xlsx, xls, pdf, pptx, png, html, rtf, mht, & pcxml.

Issues:

• Self-referencing workflows no longer work.
  1. Currently I have several workflows that read an existing excel file on a network drive, unions the data in the existing file with the new workflow results, and then resaves the results as the same file on the network drive to reference again next time it runs.
  2. Now when the workflow initializes, the render tool overwrites the existing excel file with a blank version before the input tool has an opportunity to read the data.
• Successful workflow output can be lost.
  1. Even on workflows that are not self-referencing, if the report is rendered successfully but the user changes an unrelated configuration somewhere else (for example in the email tool) afterwards, even if they don’t save or run the workflow, the render tool ‘updates’ itself and overwrites the previously successfully rendered report with a now blank file of the same name.

Potential Workarounds:

• The Behavior only seems to occur with the Render Tool, the Data Output Tool appears unaffected in my testing;
  • Switching from Render to Data Output where possible should avoid the issue.
• The Behavior only seems to occur when the Output File Path is configured static inside the Render Tool;
  • Selecting Group Data Into Separate Reports and Replacing Entire Path With Group from a data field within the workflow did not reproduce the bug.

[E097589]

What i have done as a work around, is to add the render tool in its own container and turn it off. Meaning when the workflow is is open the container housing the render tool is off. The only time it is turned on is when i'm ready to run the workflow. I have it turned off even making any updates to the workflow as it overwrites when changes are made.