Alteryx Designer: The Definitive Guide

Chapter 13. Macros

A macro is simply a workflow that allows a single tool to be inserted into another workflow. Building a macro allows you to benefit from a standard process that is created once and used as many times as you need. You no longer need to build the same 5-, 10-, or 100-tool workflow. When you can build a macro, a single tool can be used as many times as you need. A macro also has its own file type, the .yxmc file extension. Interestingly, most users already use macros without knowing it. Many Alteryx tools are actually macros! Let’s talk about one specific example.

With an Alteryx macro, you can create something quite involved (see Figure 13-1).

Figure 13-1. Sample macro

Or you can create something that’s nicely packaged, like this Data Cleansing Macro:

Note the black circle with white plus sign on the macro in this icon. That indicates that it is a macro, not a standard tool. You can enable that plus sign by going to Options > User Settings > Edit User Settings, going to the Canvas tab, and clicking the box “Display macro indicators on tools” (Figure 13-2).

Figure 13-2. Macro indicator setting

You can get into any of these macros and see the underlying macro ...