Select In-DB Tool
The Select In-DB tool selects, deselects, renames, and reorders fields in an In-DB workflow.
Use the Select In-DB tool to limit the amount of fields in an In-Database data stream. In many cases, limiting the amount of data passing through a workflow can significantly improve runtimes and performance. There are other common use cases for the Select In-DB tool as you can rename and reorder data fields, and change field data types.
In-Database enables blending and analysis against large sets of data without moving the data out of a database and can provide significant performance improvements over traditional analysis methods. For more about the In-Database tool category, see In-Database Overview.
Configure the tool
Use the table to modify the incoming data stream. Each row in the table represents a column in the data.
Select, deselect, and reorder columns
To include a column in data, select the check box to the left of the column name. Deselect the check box to exclude the column.
To reorder the columns of data:
- Click to highlight a row, or click and drag down to highlight multiple rows.
- Click the
or 
arrows, or right-click and drag, to move the rows to a new location.
The Unknown column is selected by default. It allows new columns in the data. Move the column to the location where you want a new column to be.
Modify data type and size
To change the supported length (characters for string and numeric fixed decimal types) or measurement (bytes for other numeric types) of data in a column, click Size and type a number. Size varies by data type and can be edited for fixed decimal numeric types and all string types. See Data Types.
Use the [data type]: Forced option to ensure a column always contains the expected data type; this is helpful when creating macros. See Macros.
Rename a column or add a description
To change the name of a column, click Rename and type the new name.
To add a description, click Description and type a description.
View more options
After selecting or highlighting rows (columns of data) in the table, click Options to view more configuration options:
- Save/Load: Save the column configuration as a .yxft file. The Alteryx Field Type File is a text file can be used in other workflows using the Load Field Names or Load File Names and Types options.
- Select: Select or deselect all or highlight columns. Options include Select All and Deselect All.
- Change Field Type of Highlighted Fields: Change the data type of all highlighted columns at once.
- Sort: Sort the column order in ascending or descending order. Options include Sort on Original Field Name, Sort on New Field Name, and Sort on Field Type, or Revert to Incoming Field Order.
- Move: Move highlighted columns to the top or bottom of the list.
- Add Prefix to Field Names: Add a prefix to the selected or highlighted column name.
- Add Suffix to Field Names: Add a suffix to the selected or highlighted column name.
- Remove Prefix or Suffix: Remove the prefix or suffix from the selected or highlighted column name.
- Clear All Renames: Remove the new name for all column.
- Clear Highlighted Renames: Remove the new name for all highlighted columns.
- Revert All to Original Type and Size: Undo all changes to type and size in all columns and use the original values.
- Revert Highlighted to Original Type and Size: Undo changes to type and size in the selected or highlighted columns and use the original values.
- Forget All Missing Fields: Remove all columns that are no longer included in the data.
- Forget Highlighted Missing Fields: Remove all highlighted columns that are no longer included in the data.
- Deselect Duplicate Fields: Deselect the second column when duplicate column names exist; this optional is only available with multiple inputs.