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Alteryx Designer Desktop Discussions

Find answers, ask questions, and share expertise about Alteryx Designer Desktop and Intelligence Suite.

Searching a Specific Excel File for a String Produced by a Formula in an Alteryx Workflow

THECUSE4463
6 - Meteoroid

The workflow I've designed has a formula which extracts a string from the inputted data. I also have an Excel file that has a one-column list of values. How do I "configure" my Alteryx workflow to validate whether or not the string the formula has produced exists in the Excel file? 

 

Example: The formula produces a character string representing the Province. The Excel file has a one-column list of "valid" two-character Province Codes (i.e. BC, ON, QC, etc.). I'm looking for a way to determine whether or not the string produced by the formula exists in the Excel list.

 

Also, is using the "external" Excel file/list the best way of doing this, or can I eliminate the need for the Excel file, and use Alteryx to do the search/lookup/validation?

2 REPLIES 2
Clifford_Coon
11 - Bolide

Hi @THECUSE4463 ,

 

My suggestion: the province codes are unlikely to change so a text input should suffice. I would go for an excel file if there is a likelyhood of the codes changing.

 

You can use a combination of a join and either message or test tool to report the error.

Province.jpg

Happy Solving ;-)

THECUSE4463
6 - Meteoroid

Being extremely new to Alteryx (i.e. this is the very first workflow I've designed), I'm still not sure exactly how to proceed. I've attached a file which shows the workflow as it currently exists, which I hope will allow you to answer the following question: 

 

If the TEXT INPUT Tool lists the valid two-character Province codes and the FORMULA Tool pulls the Province Code from the data it is reading, how (i.e. which Tools, linked in which way) do I configure my workflow to determine if the result of the Formula exists in the List.

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