Processors
A processor is a vital definition that processes messages that it receives. There are many kinds of processors in RIDDL:
some transformation of the data flowing in from its inlet, and produces different data to its outlet.
An inlet provides the name and data type for an input to the processor. There can be multiple inlets to the processor or none. A processor with no inlets defined is called a source since it originates data by itself.
An outlet provides the name and data type for an output from the processor. There can be multiple outlets defined by the processor or none. A processor with no outlets is called a sink since it terminates data flow.
RIDDL supports six kinds of processors. The kind of processor depends solely on the number of inlets and outlets that are defined by the processor, as shown in the table:
| # Inlets | # Outlets | Kind | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | any | Source | Sources originate their data, and publish it to an outlet |
| any | 0 | Sink | Sinks terminate their data, and consume it from their inlet |
| 1 | 1 | Flow | Flows transform their data from inlet to outlet |
| 1 | any | Split | Splits their data from one inlet to multiple outlets |
| any | 1 | Merge | Merges their data from multiple intles to a single outlet |
| any | any | Multi | Any other combination is a many-to-many flow |
A processor contains handlers that specify how the business logic should proceed. For sources, sinks, and flows, this is trivial. But for splits, merges and multis, there is a need to specify how the messages received on inlets are processed (transformed) and then put out to the outlets.