Default Pipeline Rules for Linking to and from Array Variables

When you create links between scalar and array variables, you can specify which element of the array variable you want to link to or from. Scalar variables are those that hold a single value, such as String, Document, and Object. Array variables are those that hold multiple values, such as String List, String Table, Document List, and Object List. For example, you can link a String to the second element of a String List.

If you do not specify which element in the array variable that you want to link to or from, Designer uses the default rules in the Pipeline view to determine the value of the target variable. The following table identifies the default pipeline rules for linking to and from array variables.

If you link…	To…	Then…
A scalar variable	An array variable that is empty (the variable does not have a defined length)	The link defines the length of the array variable; that is, it contains one element and has length of one. The first (and only) element in the array is assigned the value of the scalar variable.

If you link…	To…	Then…
A scalar variable	An array variable with a defined length	The length of the array is preserved and each element of the array is assigned the value of the scalar variable.

If you link…	To…	Then…
An array variable	A scalar variable	The scalar variable is assigned the first element in the array.

If you link…	To…	Then…
An array variable	An array variable that does not have a defined length	The link defines the length of the target array variable; that is, it will be the same length as the source array variable. The elements in the target array variable are assigned the values of the corresponding elements in the source array variable.

If you link…	To…	Then…
An array variable	An array variable that has a defined length	The length of the source array variable must equal the length of the target array variable. If the lengths do not match, the link will not occur. If the lengths are equal, the elements in the target array variable are assigned the values of the corresponding elements in the source array variable.

		No link occurs.

A source variable that is the child of a Document List is treated like an array because there is one value of the source variable for each Document in the Document List. For example:

Where the value of DocumentList1 is...	Then the value of StringList1 is…