Run only selected tools

[Chrispy]

This functionality would allow the user to select (through a highlight box, or ctrl+click), only the tools in a workflow they would want to run, and the tools that are not selected would be skipped. The idea is similar to the new "add selected tools to a new tool container", but it would run them instead. 

I know the conventional wisdom it to either put everything you don't want run into a tool container and disable it, or to just copy/paste the tools you want run into a blank workflow. However, for very large workflows, it is very time consuming to disable a dozen or more containers, only to re-enable them shortly afterwards, especially if those containers have to be created to isolate the tools that need to be run. Overall, this would be a quality of life improvement that could save the user some time, especially with large or cumbersome workflows.

[bobpeers]

Great idea! I've used RapidMiner before Alteryx and they have a very similar implementation.

If you select some tools, either by ctrl+click or dragging over an area containing tools, then you can use a context menu to enable or disable the tools. They are greyed out when disabled. It works really well and I'd love to see this in Alteryx.

[RicardoCaro]

Great idea!

SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) also has this feature to execute only a part of the whole workflow. It's efficient for testing or data validation purposes.

[jacobnye]

If this is already an option please refrain from laughing as i am new! Anyway.... Can you add an option  that will allow you to select a cluster of tools and run only what is selected? Basically select only the tools you want to test and then run those selected tools? 

[SeanAdams]

Hey @jacobnye

Not a bad question at all - in fact this is a very common request - with many variants of this in the Ideas history.

One version of this is already marked as "on the roadmap" - it's worth you adding your support (star) and commentary to that thread:

https://community.alteryx.com/t5/Alteryx-Designer-Ideas/Restart-from-Here/idi-p/46506

[aweiss2k]

+1 I would very much like to have tool-level options to "disable tool" as well as the option to select a group of tools and disable/enable them as a group.

[hroderick]

This would be VERY useful