Automise's graphical interface has been carefully crafted to balance functionality with usability. System Administrators will find automating Windows tasks in the structured graphical interface a breath of fresh air compared to scripts and batch files.

The Automise Interface

Automise provides a structured graphical interface for creating, debugging and running Windows automation projects.

Creating a project involves adding actions from the left side of the interface into a hierarchal tree on the right of the interface.

You can add as many or as few actions as required to automate your task and also group actions to help organise the project.

Once a project is defined, you can run it from within the interface and view the log files for it once completed.

Main Action List

The main action list is where you define your Windows automation project. The project script is a set of actions, which are executed from the top to the bottom. Actions may be laid out in a hierarchal manner so that you can add structure to your project. In the example to the right, the "Try" and "Catch" nodes have been collapsed to draw attention to other steps in the "Finally" action group.

The OnFailure action list is a special list of actions which will only be executed if your project fails. OnFailure actions typically "clean up" so that the next project runs without error eg. Delete files created during the project.

Action Types

The “Action Types” tab lists all the actions available for adding to your Window’s automation project. Actions are grouped into categories, like File Operations, Archivers, CD/DVD burning, PsTools, Internet etc.. There are hundreds of actions to automate many different tasks. So the best way to find an action is using the "Search" box provided at the top of the Actions Type tab.

Executing a Project

To execute a project, you can click the run button on the Automise toolbar. Running a project puts the Automise IDE into a running state where it automatically selects the current action being executed as well as displaying logging information in the log (see below). When a project is running you cannot edit any actions, but you can change tabs to access the Run Status or Variable Watches for example. You can also pause or stop a project using the Run menu or the toolbar buttons.

Run Log

The run log is where the output and logging messages go during the execution of an automation project. The log is organised in the same hierarchy as your project and records all the timing, status, and messages which occurred during the project’s execution. If “Live Log View” is selected, the run log is updated in real time, so that you can watch the progress of you Windows automation project.

350+ Actions

Automise includes hundreds of pre-written scripts, called actions. Actions can automate file transfers; file and folder archiving; interacting with files & directories; administering Windows; and much more. You just fill in the details and Automise will do the rest.

Feature Matrix

Automise gives system administrators the tools for automating IT processes in corporate Windows environments.

Features included in Automise are detailed below:

Easy to use and powerful GUI

Hierarchical logging to database

Debugging (Watches, Breakpoints, etc)

Integrated ActiveScript

Run projects in IDE or on command line

Schedule projects

Action Studio

Run multiple actions in parallel

Set and change project edit password

Flow Control

Automise features Try/Catch/Finally actions which enable you to use structured exception handling in Windows automation projects. It also provides If Then, Else, Switch/Case and Loop actions for controlling the flow of your project’s execution.

Try, Catch and Finally

Automise's Try, Catch and Finally actions enable structured exception handling. The image to the right shows how these actions can be used to create localised error handling.

The Try, Catch and Finally actions also need an End action to complete the block and they all need to be at the same node level in the tree to form a valid block. You can also nest the Try, Catch and Finally blocks, and they can be used in Try/Catch/Finally/End or Try/Catch/End or Try/Finally/End constructs.

Switch, Case and Else

The Switch, Case and Else actions provide a selector construct using simple case insensitive string comparisons.

The Case Action must be a child of the Switch Action, the same goes for the Else. Note that the Else can also be used with the If..Then action as part of your Windows automation project.

When used with the If..Then action, the Else action must be the next sibling action of the If..Then action. Another conditional action is the "If Previous Action Failed" action. This action will only work if it's previous sibling action has Ignore Failure enabled (otherwise the project would stop).

Async Action Group

The Aysnc Action Group enables you to run multiple tasks simultaneously in projects. Run multiple actions simultaneously or entire projects in parallel to speed up the execution of your automation. The image below shows a very simple implementation of the Aysnc Action Group executing 3 DOS commands simultaneously.

Scheduling Tasks

Automise provides tight integration with the Windows scheduling service to allow automated Windows tasks to be run daily, weekly or whenever you wish.

Scheduling Tasks

Automise provides tight integration with the Windows' scheduling service, which allows projects to be scheduled to run daily, weekly or whenever you wish. To create a scheduled project, open your project in Automise, and click on the “Tools | Scheduler” menu item.

Clicking on the New Task button will invoke a wizard to guide you through creating a scheduled project. For more advanced control over the schedule, you can edit the scheduled task using the windows scheduler editor by clicking on the Edit Task (Advanced) button.

Screenshots

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