Add additional functionality to your playbook in using the Utility block

This feature is currently in beta.

Use the Utility block to expand the functionality of your playbooks in . You can use custom functions and APIs from the Utility block. Custom functions enable you to use your Python skills to expand the kinds of processing performed in a playbook, such as applying string transformations, parsing a raw data input, or calling a third party Python module. Custom functions can also interact with the REST API in a customizable way. You can share custom functions across your team and across multiple playbooks to increase collaboration and efficiency.

Configure a utility block

To configure a Utility block, follow these steps:

1. Drag and drop the half-circle icon attached to any existing block in the editor. Select a Utility block from the menu that appears.
2. Select whether to use a Custom Function or API utility.

Expand playbook functionality with the Custom Function utility

The following prerequisites are needed for using a custom function.

• To use custom functions from the Utility block, you must be using a custom function from a local or community repository, or you must have already created a custom function. See the following documentation for details:
  • Create a custom function
  • Add an input parameter to a custom function
  • Add an output variable to a custom function
  • Using draft mode with custom functions.
  • Delete a custom function
• To create custom functions, you must have Edit Code permissions, which can be configured by an Administrator in Administration > User Management > Roles and Permissions. For more information on the Edit Code permission, see Add a role to in the Administer manual.

If you selected a Custom Function, complete the following steps:

1. Click in the search bar to display all of your repositories.
2. Click the repository your custom function is saved to and either search for your custom function, or select it from the list.
3. (Optional) Once you have selected a custom function, you can configure the value of the input parameters.
   1. (Conditional) To configure the value of the input parameters, click the > icon to set the properties.
   2. (Conditional) Create a custom datapath for your input parameters if the datapath you need isn't available. When you add a custom datapath, it is only available for the block you add it to. To see an example of a custom datapath, see Example: Add a custom datapath to a playbook block. To create a custom datapath, follow these steps:
      1. Hover over a datapath field title and click +.
      2. Enter the datapath name.
      3. Select either Key or List from the drop-down menu. Use Key to use one value, and use List to use a list of values. Using List adds a .* value to the datapath and it appears as <list_name [] > with datapaths nested below it in the datapath picker. To add more values to your List, click the + icon under the top value of the list.
   3. Click Save.

Set parameters with the API utility

Use the Utility block API to set parameters of the container it's running in. For example, you can use a utility call from the Utility block to set the severity of a container.

If you selected an API, select the utility property you want to set. The following table summarizes the properties that you can set.

Property	Description
add comment	Add a comment to the container. You can either supply a variable or a static string in the input.
add to list	One of two API calls that doesn't operate directly on the container itself. The add list property takes two parameters: the list that you want to add to, and the data you are adding. If the list doesn't exist, it is created by . You can point the data field to a variable by selecting from the drop-down menu or you can type in a fixed string.
add note	Add a note to the container.
add tag	Add a tag to the container.
promote to case	Promote the container to a case.
pin	Pin data to the summary tab in the container. This property takes the following parameters: Message Data Pin Type Pin Color Name
remove list	One of two API calls that doesn't operate directly on the container. The remove list property takes a list name as the single parameter, and deletes that list when it has run.
remove tag	Remove a tag from the container.
set label	Set the label of the container. The drop-down lists all of the labels available on your instance.
set owner	Set the owner of the container.
set sensitivity	Set the sensitivity of the container.
set severity	Set the severity of the container.
set status	Set the status of the container, such as closed.

Finish editing the playbook

When you are finished editing your playbook, do the following:

1. Click Save to enter your desired settings and playbook name.
2. Once you have selected a utility, configure the datapaths. Search for the datapath you want to use. Click Enter to go to the next result or use the icons to navigate results. You can also expand or collapse the lists by using the icons. To create a custom datapath, see Example: Add a custom datapath to a playbook block.
3. Click Done.

You can configure multiple utility calls in any utility block. For example, you can set the label, severity, and status of a container using one utility block.