Pass parameters to FME Server App via URL

I 2nd this. I thought I was just missing something... and also exposing it just to prepopulated some in a standard workspace also. As currently its "all and execute", or nothing.

Totally agree....

As a temporary work around you could populate a text file with the value and read it in so you don't have a dynamic a parameter.

I would totally use this function to link FME Server workspaces to other applications!!

Tis would be a great way to link FME Server workspaces to other applcations!

Maybe private parameters could be shown as read-only in an app? That way you could send them through a URL, but the end-user couldn't change them! Would that be helpful?

Would love this feature!!! Please include this in a future release to enable interoperability from other products to FME Server workspaces.

I'd echo this also.

Almost a halfway house between webhook and app - essentially Server App, but with pre filled attributes based on the URL..

In our situation we've got a decision point where it's either:

• Everything is present and correct - this goes to a webhook
• Most information is present, but some missing - add in the missing stuff - this goes to a server app to let the end user add in the missing stuff.

I think the text file etc workarounds might do it however - so going to investigate those.

This would be great if we could do this. For a lot of my reports, it would be like having SSRS in overdrive!!

This would substantially enhance integration. In our case generating reports form configurable web apps etc.

My scenario: if a layer has missing metadata or it is time to review, it would be nice if I could send the link with existing metadata pre-populated. Some parameters would be hidden/read only (eg: layer identifiers), the rest could be edited.

Adding this would be a game changer :) Please!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes, please. I would like that you can send an url to the app with parameters, and any parameter not mentioned in the url must be filled in via the screen. In my case we want to collect input from users, but want to keep their name and the project it is about as an un-alterable input.

Hello FME Community! First off - thanks for your interest in this Idea. Lots of good discussion on use cases going on below. 👇 I believe this Idea was mistakenly set to "In Development", and I want to clarify that we are not currently working on this feature; I've also changed the status back to "Gathering Interest".

This Idea has garnered quite a lot of votes and interest and I would like to try to understand the gap in functionality a little bit better. From the initial post, it sounds like either Workspace Webhook URLs or FME Server Apps and user parameters with default values might cover the use case (more on Webhooks in general here, as well). With those features, it should be possible to (1) receive user input for parameter values, (2) set up some default values in case the user does not know what to input, and (3) hard code some default values that users won't be able to alter. I wonder if some of these features are just not easy enough to discover or set up, or if there is another gap in functionality that we are missing.

If you feel strongly that there is a gap here, we would love to get more information about your use case and what you're struggling to implement with the current FME Server features. Feel free to post here or reach out to me directly at nathan.hildebrand@safe.com.

Thanks,

Nathan Hildebrand

FME Server Product Manager

😭

Nathan, thanks for looking into this. Having the FME Server App accept URL parameters and run with defaults fit the need for workspaces to autorun in cross application interactions where webhooks are not an option. Would love to see this get implemented soon.

@ericchez Could you elaborate a bit on what you mean by "application interactions where webhooks are not an option"? With Workspace Webhook URLs, for example, there is no need for a JSON body or payload because they use query string parameters. This sounds a bit like what you're looking for, but I could be wrong! Let me know.

Thanks,

Nathan

I'm referring to the ability to use dynamic urls in (for example: esri webmaps) that would trigger a workflow. I wouldn't have a way to set up a webhook to accept external requests.. this all must be on the internal network.

I would like to pass parameter directly via url opening App. Example: click on external map and send in url opening FME Server App parameter from clicked item. Simple

Hi @nathanatsafe​, could you please elaborate how I can achieve the following using Workspace Webhook URLs:

• user follows a customized URL to the FME Server App (URL taken from QR code)
• FME Server App opens up with fields pre-populated based on custom URL (the pre-populated field values will depend on the parameters passed via the URL from the QR code)
• user interacts with the FME Server App, changing/adding field values
• user submits FME Server App

Thanks

Ekki

@ekkischeffler​ "FME Server App opens up with fields pre-populated based on custom URL" - exacly what I needs!

Hi @nathanatsafe​ - although I've now moved on from the role in which this specific idea was particularly sought, I'm really disappointed to read that it not in fact in development - my colleagues and I been eagerly awaiting each release ever since it was set to 'in development!'

I think @Matthew Banyard​ has summarised it pretty well - we'd use this in scenarios where some, but not all, of the required values to execute a workspace are known. The known ones would be pre-populated to the Server App via the URL, with the user prompted to enter the remaining values.

Specifically for my original use case, we would want to dynamically generate URL's in a PowerBI report which link out to a Server App, perhaps to update a database for that same entity, or perhaps to create another summary report. So you might have a table like this:

ID

1

2

3

Which you would use to generate another attribute in the table like this:

URL

https:/myfmeserver/myappname&ID=1

https:/myfmeserver/myappname&ID=2

https:/myfmeserver/myappname&ID=3

So that the App launches with a user parameter named 'ID' populated accordingly. The user may then be prompted to add further values to the app before running it.

Please do re-consider this for development, as far as I can see the existing functionality for Server Apps and Webhooks still doesn't meet this use case, which we can see from the comments is fairly widespread.

yes!

Hi Nathan,

Our use case is we have systems which let us put in custom links/buttons on certain screens, and pass variables such as a record ID in the URL. We have used this in several occasions to create small web apps ourselves, to solve issues or fill gaps that the vendor hasn't implemented into those systems themselves.

We would like to use FME Server Apps to do this instead, so we can centralise these as workspaces in FME, rather than writing dozens of small apps. In most cases, we would be passing a database record ID, and then want the user to fill in some other parameters in the FME app before it runs.

Thanks,

Andrew

Hi Nathan,

just stumbled over this discussion and wanted to reply to your question concerning a potential gap in functionality. In my opinion there is indeed one that can't be solved without rileyms idea easily.

I have a Flow (Server) App that produces an html report straight out from the workspace on success and streams it back to the user in the browser. This works fine but requires the user to fill in some parameters that are all known to a CRM system from which a call the link to the Flow (Server) App.

If I use a webhook instead user interaction can be completely removed but my html report never reaches the page of the called webhook.

So it looks like I can choose between user input/report and one click solution without feedback. Both doesn't look advantageous to me.

Best regards

Wolfgang

a wizard that leads a user through a sequence of small steps would be great.

Server apps works nice if all functionality can be put in one page. If the user should post data, you have to use the rest- API, and the user has to sign in to his account if you want to know the username .