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Version Pentaho
Hitachi Vantara Lumada and Pentaho Documentation

Use the Job Menu

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Right-click any entry in the job canvas to view the job menu. Each item is described in the following table:

Menu Item Description
New Hop Creates a new hop.
Edit Shows the configuration window for the entry.
Description Allows you to add a description to the entry.
Open Referenced Object Opens referenced transformations.
Copy Copies selected items to the clipboard.
Duplicate Makes a copy of the selected items, then pastes them to the canvas.
Delete Deletes selected items from the canvas.
Hide

Hides the entry from the the PDI client canvas.

Caution: if you hide the entry, you will need to open the job XML file and hand edit it to view it again. For more details, see the troubleshooting section.
Detach Detaches the entry from the job.
Align/Distribute

Arranges entries on the canvas so that they are aligned properly or distributed evenly. This helps create a visually pleasing job that is easier to read and digest. Align refers to where the entries are permitted along the x (horizontal) or y (vertical) axis. Distribute makes the horizontal and vertical spacing between entries consistent. Typically, you turn on the grid, then move the different entries on the canvas so that they form some sort of pattern, like a straight or branching line.

You select entries and apply the following options, as needed:

  • Align Left - Positions all entries so their left sides start on the same "x" (horizontal) coordinate as the left-most entry. After applied, entries are arranged in a straight vertical line. No changes are made to the spaces between entries.
  • Align Right - Positions all entries so their right sides start on the same "x" (horizontal) coordinate as the right-most entry. After applied, entries are arranged in a straight vertical line. No changes are made to the spaces between entries.
  • Align Top - Positions all entries so their top sides start on the same "y" (vertical) coordinate as the entry positioned closest to the top of the canvas. After applied, entries are arranged in a straight horizontal line. No changes are made to the spaces between entries.
  • Align Bottom - Positions all entries so their bottom sides start on the same "y" (vertical) coordinate as the entry positioned closest to the bottom of the canvas. After applied, entries are arranged in a straight horizontal line. No changes are made to the spaces between entries.
  • Distribute Horizontally - Positions all entries so that they are evenly spaced horizontally. After applied, entries are arranged evenly. No changes are made to the alignment.
  • Distribute Vertically - Positions all entries so that they are evenly spaced vertically. After applied, entries are arranged evenly. No changes are made to the alignment.
  • Snap to Grid - Aligns entries on the canvas to the grid. If grid markers do not appear on the canvas, select Tools > Options > Look & Feel > Show Canvas Grid. See the Customize PDI Client Options for more information on how to customize the PDI client.
Restartable Checkpoint

Restarts a failed job at specific checkpoints, instead of rerunning the entire job from the beginning. You add checkpoints at hops that connect one job entry to another. Checkpoints are addressed in detail in the Use Checkpoints to Restart Jobs topic.
Run Next Entries in Parallel Allows you to launch job entries in parallel (on the same machine or remotely).