Message Definition Field Properties

You can set default field properties for a single message definition when you create a new message definition or globally for your entire workspace by setting message defaults preferences.

Table 1. Default field properties
Field	Description
Field Type	Select the default Field Type setting, which specifies whether the field consists of data, a literal tag, or both, and if the data conforms to a specified length:
	Data Only	The data occurs by itself with no tag, for example, `90210`.
	Length & Data	The data is preceded by a numeric value indicating the fixed length of the data.
	Tag & Data	The data is preceded by a tag identifying the field, for example, `TAGZIP:90210`.
	Tag, Length & Data	The data is preceded by a tag identifying the field and a numeric value indicating the fixed length of the data.
	Length, Tag & Data	The data is preceded by a numeric value indicating the fixed length of the data, for example, `4096`, and a tag identifying the field, for example, `__IMAGERY_`.
Field Termination	Select the default method of specifying how the end of the field is identified:
	Delimiter	The end of the field is marked by a character string or binary sequence, for example, a semicolon (;).
	Fixed Length	For all message instances, the field length is defined by an integer value.
	Minimum Length & White Space	A minimum number of characters are read from the field, continuing until whitespace data is read, which may include spaces, carriage returns, line feeds, horizontal tabs, or vertical tabs.
	Minimum Length & Delimiter	A minimum number of characters are read from the field, continuing until a delimiter is reached.
	White Space	The end of the field is marked by whitespace data, which can include spaces, carriage returns, line feeds, horizontal tabs, or vertical tabs.
	End of Container	The field accepts input until the end of its container or the end of the message.
Data Type	Select the default datatype setting. For complete definitions, refer to the Supported Datatypes.
Delimiter Defaults
Type	A delimiter is a tag identifying the end of a field. If you know that the majority of the delimiters used in your message definitions are either character strings or binary sequences, make the appropriate selection below.
	String	Select String if you are entering the delimiter value as a regular string, for example, `$$`.
	Binary	Select Binary if you are entering a hex code, for example, `2626`.
Enter Delimiter Value	If you know that the majority of the fields in your message definition use the same delimiter value, for example, />, enter the delimiter here. If delimiter values are different from field to field, you may want to select the No Default check box.
No Default	Select the check box if you want the Delimiter Value to default to null. When editing a message definition lacking a default delimiter for fields, each time you add a field and select one of the Delimiter types for the Field Termination property, you must enter the delimiter value manually.
Cardinality Defaults
Optional	If the majority of the fields in your message definition are optional, select the check box. If the majority of fields are required, clear the check box.
Repeat Type	Select the default rule that determines how many fields of this type are expected to occur in each message:
	None	The field always occurs once and only once.
	Unbounded	For each message, the field can occur any number of times or not at all.
	Fixed Count	The field occurs X number of times in each message, where X = the value of the field'sInstances property, which you set for each field.
	Field Driven	The field appears X number of times, where X = the integer value of the field specified by the field's Instance Count Field property, which you set for each field.
	Range	The field may appear any number of times between and including X and Y, where X is the value of Min and Y is the value of Max, which you set for each field.