Skip to main content

FIND Function

Returns the index value in the input string where a specified matching string is located in provided column, string literal, or function returning a string. Search is conducted left-to-right.

  • A column reference can refer to a column of String, Object, or Array type, which makes the FIND function useful for filtering data before it has been completely un-nested into tabular data.

  • Returned value is from the beginning of the string, regardless of the string index value.

  • If no match is found, the function returns a null value.

  • If you need to determine if a value is in an array or not, you can use the MATCHES function, which returns a true/false response. See MATCHES Function.

You can also search a string from the right. For more information, see RIGHTFIND Function.

Wrangle vs. SQL: This function is part of Wrangle, a proprietary data transformation language. Wrangle is not SQL. For more information, see Wrangle Language.

Basic Usage

Column reference example:

find(MyName,'find this',true,0)

Output: Searches the MyName column value for the string find this from the beginning of the value, ignoring case. If a match is found, the index value where the string is located is returned.

String literal example:

find('Hello, World','lo',false,2)

Output: Searches the string Hello, World for the string lo, in a case-sensitive search, beginning at the third character in the string. Since the match is found at the fourth character, the value 3 is returned.

If example:

if(find(SearchPool,'FindIt') >= 0, 'found it', '')

Output: Searches the SearchPool column value for the string FindIt from the beginning of the value (default). Default behavior is to not ignore case. If the string is found, the value found it is returned. Otherwise, the column is empty.

Syntax and Arguments

find(string_to_search, search_for,[ignore_case], [start_at])

Argument

Required?

Data Type

Description

string_to_search

Y

string

Name of the column, function returning a string, or string literal to be applied to the function.

search_for

Y

string

The string or pattern you want to look for. This can be a string, function returning a string, or string literal or Wrangle pattern or regular expression.

ignore_case

N

boolean

Indicates if the Find function ignores case when trying to match the string or pattern. The default value is false.

start_at

N

integer (non-negative)

Indicates the position in the column or string literal value at which to begin the search. This value can be an integer, a function returning an integer, or a column containing integers. The default value is 0.

If not specified, the entire string is searched.

For more information on syntax standards, see Language Documentation Syntax Notes.

string_to_search

Name of the item to be searched. Valid values can be:

  • String literals must be quoted ('Hello, World').

  • Column reference to any type that can be inferred as a string, which encompasses all values.

  • Function returning a string value.

Missing values generate the start-at parameter value.

  • Multiple values and wildcards are not supported.

Usage Notes:

Required?

Data Type

Example Value

Yes

String literal, function returning a string, or column reference (String, Array, or Object)

myColumn

search_for

Column of strings, function returning a string, string literal or pattern to find. An input value can be a literal, Wrangle , or a regular expression.

  • Missing string or column values generate the start-at parameter value.

    • String literals must be quoted ('Hello, World').

  • Multiple values and wildcards are not supported.

  • Column names are not supported.

Usage Notes:

Required?

Data Type

Example Value

Yes

String literal or pattern

'Hello'

ignore_case

If true, the FIND function ignores case when trying to match the string literal or pattern value.

Default value is false, which means that case-sensitive matching is performed by default.

Usage Notes:

Required?

Data Type

Example Value

No

Boolean

true

start_at

Indicates the position in the column or string literal value at which to begin the search. For example, a value of 2 instructs the FIND function to begin searching from the third character in the column or string value.

Nota

Index values begin at 0. If not specified, the default value is 0, which searches the entire string.

  • Value can be an integer, a function returning an integer, or a column containing integers.

    • If a column name is specified, start_at can be different for each row.

    • If a constant integer value is specified, the start_at is same for all rows.

  • Value must be a non-negative integer value.

  • If this value is greater than the length of the string, then no match is possible.

Usage Notes:

Required?

Data Type

Example Value

No

Integer (non-negative)

2

Examples

Sugerencia

For additional examples, see Common Tasks.

Example - Locate product purchases in transaction stream

Source:

You have the simplified transaction stream listed below in which master information about a transaction (TransactionId and CustomerId) is paired with order detail information that is brought into the application as an array in the OrderDetail column. The array column contains information about product ID, quantity, and the type of transaction.

TransactionId

CustomerId

OrderDetail

12312312

100023

[{"ProdId":"54321","Qty":"5","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312313

100045

[{"ProdId":"94105","Qty":"12","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312314

100066

[{"ProdId":"54321","Qty":"1","TransType":"TEST"}]

12312315

100068

[{"ProdId":"85858","Qty":"9","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

The transaction stream includes test transactions, which are identified by the value TEST for TransType in the detail column. You want to remove these transactions early in the process, which should simplify your dataset and speed up its processing.

Transformation:

First, you must identify the records that contain the test transaction value. The following transform generates a new column containing true/false values for whether the value "TEST" appears in the OrderDetail transform.

Sugerencia

You should include the double-quotes around the value, in case the other fields in the array could contain some version of the value TEST. Note that the double quotes need to be escaped, as in the value below.

Transformation Name

New formula

Parameter: Formula type

Single row formula

Parameter: Formula

find(OrderDetail, '\"TEST\"', false, 0)

Parameter: New column name

find_OrderDetail

When the step is added to the recipe, the find_OrderDetail column is generated, containing the index value returned by the FIND function. In this case, there is only one row that contains a value: 53 for the third transaction.

TransactionId

CustomerId

OrderDetail

find_OrderDetail

12312312

100023

[{"ProdId":"54321","Qty":"5","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312313

100045

[{"ProdId":"94105","Qty":"12","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312314

100066

[{"ProdId":"54321","Qty":"1","TransType":"TEST"}]

53

12312315

100068

[{"ProdId":"85858","Qty":"9","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

You can then add the following step to keep the rows where the FIND function returned a null value in the find_OrderDetail column:

Transformation Name

Filter rows

Parameter: Condition

Is missing

Parameter: Column

find_OrderDetail

Parameter: Action

Keep matching rows

Results:

TransactionId

CustomerId

OrderDetail

find_OrderDetail

12312312

100023

[{"ProdId":"54321","Qty":"5","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312313

100045

[{"ProdId":"94105","Qty":"12","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

12312315

100068

[{"ProdId":"85858","Qty":"9","TransType":"PURCHASE"}]

You can delete the find_OrderDetail column at this time.

En esta sección: