Configure local Desktop Automation Service
The Local Desktop Automation feature helps you design and run your robots on the same computer as the devices you wish to automate, which accelerates and facilitates the process of automating your computers. Local Desktop Automation is only supported on the Windows operating system. Only one robot can be run at a time on a local automation device. The feature is for development purposes only.
To enable Local Desktop Automation, follow these steps:
- Install the
Desktop Automation
Service and
Design Studio
on the same computer, which is also the computer that runs the applications you wish to automate. For more information,
see the
Kofax RPA
Installation Guide.
If your computer is set up with dual monitors, you can open the automated applications on one monitor and Design Studio on the other for convenience.
-
Configure the Desktop Automation Service as described in the Kofax RPA Desktop Automation Service Guide. When specifying the properties in the Desktop Automation Service configuration window, we recommend that you select the Single User option to set up a direct connection to the automated applications from Design Studio. Do not forget to type tokens to use for mapping.
When finished, follow these steps:
-
Create a mapping to the
Desktop Automation
Service installed on a local computer.
- Right-click the project you are working on and click .
- Fill in the fields as described in Add automation device mapping and click Finish.
- Open Design Studio.
-
Create a Robot.
-
Click .
-
Specify the name of the robot and select a project. Click Finish.
The new robot appears on a new tab in the editor window. At this point, you cannot edit the Robot
workflow as you need to first call the
new robot from the Basic Engine Robot
.
-
- Open an existing Basic Engine Robot or create a new one by clicking .
-
Insert an action step.
-
Click Select an Action on the Action tab and choose Call Robot.
-
In the Robot drop-down list, select the Robot created in Step 4.
On the same tab, configure input values and return variables.
-
In the Devices property, click the plus icon, select Static Reference, and then select the mapping you made in Step 1.
-
Click OK.
-
-
-
Execute the newly added action step by clicking
Start Execution on the toolbar.
After you execute the Call Robot step, you can edit the workflow itself. To do so, click Step Into Robot on the toolbar.
The tab with your Robot is opened and the editor is now active. The title bar indicates that you are in the Local Desktop Automation mode. You can now start designing the Robot.
-
In the
Recorder View, select a tab with the application to automate. It must already be open on the
computer, or you can add an
Open action step to your robot that opens
the application. Now you can create steps that you wish to perform on the application.
-
If you need to automate application elements that disappear when you remove the pointer, such as context and drop-down menus, use a Bundle step. A Bundle step connects a number of steps that you perform on the automated application and turns them into a sequence that will be executed in order, starting with the first step.
-
To wrap existing steps in a Bundle step, in the editor, select the steps containing the use of disappearing elements, right-click the group, and then click Surround with Bundle step. Also, you can insert a Bundle step directly inside the workflow and then add the necessary steps to it.
-
To insert a Bundle step that contains a right-click or left-click action or points to an application component, in the Recorder View, right-click the required component of an application and click Smart Focus Menu Click. Click Right, Left, or Hover, respectively.
To add action steps to the Bundle step, right-click the flow point inside it and make a selection. Some steps are not available inside the Bundle step, but you can add them to your robot before or after the Bundle step.
To execute a Bundle step from its beginning to a particular flow point inside it, double-click the flow point or right-click it and then click Execute to here. If you use the Step Over or Start Execution buttons on the toolbar, the Bundle step is always executed from beginning to end.
-
-
You can immediately execute and stream newly added action steps. Prior to adding a step or a number of steps, under the Recorder View, click Auto Execute (the circle on the button becomes red). If a step opens a new application or a dialog box, a respective tab appears in the stream view and becomes the active tab. To stop auto execution, click Auto Execute again.
-
To interact with application elements that disappear once you remove the pointer, use the following hotkey combinations:
-
To pause the streaming view, press Ctrl+Shift+Alt+P.
-
To cycle through the tabs in the streaming view, for example, to interact with an application visible only as a separate application, press Ctrl+Shift+Alt+T.
These key combinations work even if no focus is present.
-
-
- When you are automating several applications in your robot, switch the focus among them. By default, when the execution starts, the focus is set on the first application being automated in the robot. To change or switch the focus to the other automated applications, add a Click action step to each of them. You can add a step that clicks inside the application, or one that clicks the application on the Windows taskbar.
-
Save the changes. To execute the created workflow, click the
Start Execution button.
When the workflow execution starts, the focus is instantly switched to the automated applications, and the stream status is changed to LIVE, which is shown in the bottom right corner of the Recorder View.
When the execution is completed, to return the focus to the Robot workflow, click inside it. The stream status will be changed to PAUSED. When the stream is paused, the application status is not updated in the Recorder View.
During the execution of the Robot steps, the keyboard and mouse are automatically blocked to prevent accidental interaction with the execution, and then unblocked when it is completed. If you need to use the keyboard and mouse during the execution, press Esc.