Control / params · All operations
Ask for a parameter value
A variant of Set parameters
Expose a typed input on a reusable component or app, such as a checkbox, a number or a file picker, whose answer becomes a variable.
Status
- In arcform
Not built yet
arcform does not do this yet; it would live in how a Protocol runs. Its place on the roadmap
What other tools call it
Meridian's classification; an independent blind rating agreed on 95.7% of 324 rows (variant, version 3).
Alteryx Designer (1)
Actionread 2026-09-27Update a tool's configuration with values from interface questions when run as app or macro
EasyMorph (1)
Uploaded filesread 2026-09-27List the files supplied through the workflow's file-upload parameters
KNIME Analytics Platform (16)
Boolean Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog checkbox; outputs a boolean or integer flow variable
Column Filter Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog column picker; outputs the table reduced to the chosen columns
Column Selection Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog single-column picker; outputs the column name as a flow variable
Credentials Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog user name and password entry; outputs a credentials flow variable
Date&Time Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog date&time picker; outputs the value as a string flow variable
Double Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog decimal number entry; outputs a double flow variable
Integer Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog whole number entry; outputs a flow variable
Integer Slider Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog slider; outputs an integer flow variable
List Box Configuration (legacy)read 2026-09-27Component-dialog text area; outputs a one-column table holding the entered list
Local File Browser Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog local file picker; outputs the chosen path as a flow variable
Multiple Selection Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog multi-select over a list of strings; outputs the chosen values
Nominal Row Filter Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog value picker; outputs rows having the chosen values of a column
Repository File Chooser Configuration (legacy)read 2026-09-27Component-dialog chooser for files, workflows or folders on a remote mountpoint
Single Selection Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog single-select over a list of strings; outputs the chosen value
String Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog text entry; outputs a string flow variable
Value Selection Configurationread 2026-09-27Component-dialog single-select over a column's domain values; outputs the chosen value
RapidMiner Studio (11)
Attribute Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator parameter chosen from a table's columns, exposed as a macro
Boolean Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator checkbox parameter, exposed as a true/false macro
Category Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator dropdown parameter with fixed categories, exposed as a macro
Datetime Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator date-time parameter, exposed as a macro
Directory Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator directory-chooser parameter, exposed as a macro
Double Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator decimal-number parameter, exposed as a macro
File Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator file-chooser parameter, exposed as a macro
Integer Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator integer parameter, exposed as a macro
Process Suggestion Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator dropdown whose suggestions come from a process, exposed as a macro
Repository Location Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator repository-location parameter, exposed as a macro
Text Parameter Macroread 2026-09-27Custom-operator free-text parameter, exposed as a macro
Background
In KNIME, a Configuration node provides input parameters for other nodes, and a component's dialog shows the options of every Configuration node inside it.[1] KNIME's Configuration nodes take different types of user input, such as a string, an integer, a value chosen from a list, or a date and time.[1] In Tableau Prep, users running a flow are prompted to enter its parameter values, and required values must be entered before the flow can run.[2]
When to use it
In KNIME, a component can be designed so that a user configures it from the outside, without changing the configuration of the nodes inside it.[1] Reach for a typed input when a workflow is handed to someone who should change its settings without opening it up. (Meridian's view)
SQL injection is a code injection technique in which malicious SQL statements are inserted into an entry field for execution.[3] In Tableau Prep, a parameter's allowable values can be All, which lets users type any value, or a List of values for users to choose from.[2] In Tableau Prep, an All parameter used in input and output steps can be a security risk, because custom SQL queries that allow any value can expose data to SQL injection attacks.[2] Offer a fixed list wherever the answer becomes a file path, a table name or part of a query, and keep free text for values that are only compared. (Meridian's view) In Tableau Prep, every user parameter needs a current value, which acts as its default and fills in optional parameters that are not given at run time.[2] Choose a default that is safe to run unattended, since an optional answer that nobody gives still runs. (Meridian's view)
The method
KNIME's Credentials Configuration node takes a user name and password in the component's dialog and outputs them as a credentials flow variable.[4][1] KNIME's Local File Browser Configuration node lets the user select a local file and exposes the file's path as a flow variable.[5]
In Tableau Prep, a parameter has a unique name, an optional description and a data type of number, string or Boolean, and its values must match that type.[2] In Tableau Prep, the parameter values entered for a flow run are applied everywhere that parameter is used in the flow.[2]
Sources
- [1]Components Guide | KNIME Documentationdocumentation
- [2]Create and Use Parameters in Flows - Tableaudocumentation
- [3]SQL injectionsecondary source
- [4]Credentials Configurationdocumentation
- [5]Local File Browser Configurationdocumentation