How does Alteryx Server handle files when you upload applications?

[Animanga008]

If there is documentation or useful prior threads, please share; but my question is around how the Alteryx Server manages files uploaded to your Gallery.

Say I have an input file that is 50mb. When I uploaded three separate apps/workflows to the gallery that uses the same input file as the first input step...am I uploading the same input file three times (150MB total) or does it reference the one file (50MB total) like a workflow normally would on your personal computer offline?

[joshuaburkhow]

Hey @Animanga008 That would be 3 different files. 

One way you can handle this or teach users to handle this is to convert to an app and use the file browse interface tool to upload the data at runtime. 

This has a benefit for those of us who have the persistence settings on the server set to purge data after a time period (say for example 30 days). What happens when you upload data that is attached to your workflow is that it stays with the workflow. If you upload 10 versions of that workflow you are loading a copy each time and the mongo will hold onto that file the entire life of the workflow. However if you upload via file browse during run time it's part of the run and therefore mongo will purge it as part of the persistence settings in the time period that has been set. 

Hopefully this makes sense! Let me know if you have any questions. 

[mbarone]

When you send your app to the Gallery, if you mark it as an asset, then yes it will go to the Gallery with the app, and the app will reference that one.

If you want all three apps to reference the one file on, say, a shared drive, then don't send it up as an asset and they will just reference the file path your entered (but be sure to make it a UNC path).

[Animanga008]

@joshuaburkhow  

Totally makes sense. Neat to know. Probably won't work in my case this time because I control the starting input file...but neat to know for the future!

[Animanga008]

@mbarone , can you provide some additional details on how to do that or provide some reference links? I tried googling and although I think I get the general concept, I'm still unclear on the specifics on how to execute the idea.

If my current save path is something like C:\Users\Animanga\Animal_Folder\Dog_Documents\Dog_Dashboards...and say this is a Sharepoint folder...would I simply change the path to \\Animal_Folder\Dog_Documents\Dog_Dashboards? As well as unclick the output/input boxes under asset management?

I guess to get straight to the point, how would I set up a situation where I have multiple apps referencing one master data file, such that...when I upload these 10-20 apps, I am NOT uploading 10-20 master data files onto my Alteryx Server/Gallery but rather referencing the same file?

[mbarone · Accepted solution]

Sure.

Say you have 10 apps all with the following input ("MasterDataFile.yxdb"):

When you send each app up, just make sure it's unchecked as an asset, and make sure the path is full UNC (as shown above):

Having that box unchecked will leave the actual physical YXDB where it lives, and just the reference to it will go up to the Gallery.  When the app(s) run, they will all just read in the one YXDB from that one location (and thankfully the same YXDB can be read in to different modules/apps at the same time without locking it up).