About Connect Robot rules

Connect Robot is a Pega-supplied rule that you can use to import automation packages from Pega Robotic Studio into your Pega Platform development environment. When you use the Connect Robot rule, you can use robotic desktop automations as data sources for data pages.

Note: To use this feature, download and install the Pega Robotic Automation Importer component. For more information, see Using Pega Robotic Automation Importer component on Pega Community.

When you select a robotic desktop automation as a data source for a data page, Pega Platform automatically generates and displays the list of automations that are available to your application. Each robotic automation is represented by an instance of the Connect Robot rule. You can view an automation to understand its inputs, outputs, and implementation.

The process of importing automation packages into the Pega Platform development environment proceeds as follows:
  • In Robotic Studio, an automation developer creates a solution that contains, for example, two automations, and then publishes the package to the Pega Platform development server.
  • A REST Service accepts the package data and performs the following tasks:
    1. Creates a component. The component name is the package name.
    2. Creates an unlocked ruleset (01-01-01) inside the component.
    3. Creates two automation rules in the new ruleset.
    4. Generates data records that describe the automation package, version, and configurations.
    5. Associates each data record with the new ruleset.
    6. Locks the ruleset.
    7. Packages and closes the component.
    8. Attaches the component to the application that is authenticated.

After the REST Service process is completed, you can select the new robotic desktop automation as a data source for data pages.