Specifications

In this option the user enters a license key in a Switch dialog box that is accessed through a
context menu item on the configurator’s icon in the Elements pane. Switch can pass the license
key on to the third-party application at the time the user enters the license key (the most
frequently used option) and/or each time an action is executed. The third-party application
should document the licensing process for the configurator.
Application licensing is implemented in the licenseApplication entry point.
Licensing state
Assuming that it is possible to automatically detect the licensing state of a third-party application,
Switch can display this information through a context menu item on the configurator’s icon in
the Elements pane. This feedback is meaningful regardless whether the licensing operation itself
can be performed from within Switch or not. Thus wherever feasible the third-party application
should document a way for the configurator to detect licensing state.
Detecting licensing state is implemented in the getApplicationLicensing entry point.
Configuring properties
Flow element properties
Each configurator instance in a Switch flow offers properties to control the behavior of the
third-party application for jobs passing through that instance. A property can have various simple
data types such as string, number or enumeration, it can reference a named collection of
properties (see property sets below), or it can be a value edited by a wide range of property
editors. These properties are defined in the script declaration.
Property values for each configurator instance are entered in the Switch designer's Properties
pane and they are stored (and exported/imported) with the flow definition.
Preferences and persistent settings
The third-party application may offer preferences or other settings that are persistent between
invocations and cannot be controlled from Switch. This is no problem as long as the user has a
way to influence these settings independently from Switch, for example through a user interface
that is part of or ships with the third-party application.
Property sets
A property set is a collection of controls, settings or options used to configure a third-party
application. A property set usually combines a large number of options and it vastly simplifies
the user interface required in Switch for configuring the application because it can be referred
to as a single entity.
Referring to a property set
Depending on how a property set is stored by the third-party application, Switch keeps a different
type of reference to the property set – as illustrated in the following table.
Stored in exported
flow
Reference in SwitchStorage model
Full copy of the fileAbsolute file pathAs a regular file anywhere in the file system
Full copy of the fileAbsolute file pathIn an open repository (folder) controlled by the
third-party application but directly accessible
to Switch as a regular file
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