How to Use the Spawn Batch Activity

Overview

The Spawn Batch activity is a powerful utility for splitting, distributing, and managing batches in Grooper workflows. It allows you to create one or more new batches from a subset of folders in the current batch based on various filtering criteria. This activity is essential for:

Quality assurance sampling: Extract a random or systematic sample for QA review
Document type segregation: Split mixed batches by content type or MIME type
Workflow routing: Route specific documents to different processing paths
Batch size management: Split large batches into smaller, more manageable units
Exception handling: Separate flagged or invalid items for special processing

Key Features

Multiple selection methods: Filter, Every N, Random
Flexible filtering criteria: Content type, MIME type, flag status, validity
Copy or move operations
Automatic batch naming with customizable patterns
Maximum batch size controls
Optional field value copying
Source batch cleanup options

When to Use Spawn Batch

Ideal Scenarios

Use Spawn Batch when you need to

Split a batch by document type (invoices vs. purchase orders)
Extract a QA sample (10% random or every 10th document)
Route flagged items to a review process
Separate valid and invalid documents
Create smaller batches from a large import
Filter by file type (PDFs only, images only, etc.)
Create parallel processing workflows

Don’t use Spawn Batch when

You just need to process documents sequentially (use normal batch processing)
You want to modify documents in place (use other activities)
You need to merge batches (use different techniques)

Basic Configuration

Step 1: Add the Activity to Your Batch Process

Open your Batch Process in Grooper Desktop
Navigate to the step where you want to spawn batches
In the Activities panel, find Spawn Batch under the Utilities category
Drag and drop Spawn Batch into your process step

Step 2: Essential Properties

Processing Level

What it does

Determines which folder hierarchy level to examine.

Default

1 (top-level folders/documents)

When to change

Use 0 to process all folders at all levels
Use 2+ to process subfolders (e.g., pages within documents)

Example Batch Structure

Batch Root (Level 0)
- Document 1 (Level 1) – Processing Level = 1
  - Page 1 (Level 2) – Processing Level = 2
  - Page 2 (Level 2)
- Document 2 (Level 1)
  - Page 1 (Level 2)
  - Page 2 (Level 2)

Spawn Methods

Filter Method

Use when: You need to select documents based on specific attributes

Configuration Steps

Set Method = Filter
Choose your FilterBy criteria:

AllItems

Includes all folders at the processing level.

Use Case

Split entire batch into fixed-size batches

Settings

FilterBy: AllItems
Action: Move
Maximum Batch Size: 100

Result

Creates multiple 100-item batches from source

MimeType

Filters by file attachment type.

Use Case

Separate PDFs from images

Settings

FilterBy: MimeType
Configure MimeTypeLexicon to include:
- application/pdf
- application/vnd.ms-excel
Action: Move

Result

Only documents with PDF or Excel attachments are spawned

Mime Type Lexicon Configuration

Expand Mime Type Lexicon property
Click Add Entry
Enter MIME types (one per line):
- application/pdf – PDF documents
- image/tiff – TIFF images
- image/jpeg – JPEG images
- application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document – Word .docx

ContentType

Filters by assigned content type.

Use Case

Separate invoices from purchase orders

Settings

FilterBy: ContentType
Included Content Types: select Invoice
Action: Move
Target Step: Invoice Processing / Import

Result

All invoices moved to invoice processing workflow

FlaggedItems

Selects documents that have been flagged.

Use Case

Route exceptions to review

Settings

FilterBy: FlaggedItems
Action: Move
Target Step: Exception Review / Review
Batch Name Prefix: Review-

Result

Flagged items moved to review batch

InvalidItems

Selects documents with invalid index data.

Use Case

Separate invalid documents for correction

Settings

FilterBy: InvalidItems
Action: Move
Target Step: Data Correction / Manual Review

Result

Documents with validation errors moved to correction workflow

Invert Filter

The Invert Filter checkbox reverses your filter logic.

Example – Get Non-PDF Documents

FilterBy: MimeType
MimeTypeLexicon: application/pdf
Invert Filter: checked

Result: All non-PDF documents are selected

Example – Get Non-Flagged Items

FilterBy: FlaggedItems
Invert Filter: checked

Result: All unflagged documents are selected

Every N Method

Use when: You need systematic sampling (every 10th, 25th, 100th document)

Configuration

Set Method = EveryN
Set Step Size: The interval for selection

Example – 10% Systematic Sample

Method: EveryN
Step Size: 10
Action: Copy
Create Batch: checked
Batch Name Prefix: QA-Sample-

Result: Every 10th document copied to individual QA batches

Example – Quality Assurance Sample: Scenario: 1000-document batch, need 50 documents for QA

Method: EveryN
Step Size: 20 (1000/50 = 20)
Action: Copy (preserve originals)
Create Batch: unchecked (group into single batch)

Result: 50 documents (every 20th) copied to one QA batch

Create Batch Property

Controls whether to create individual batches per item.

Setting	Result
Checked	One batch per selected document
Unchecked	All selected documents in one batch

Example – Individual Batches

Step Size: 5
Create Batch: checked
15 documents in source

Result: 3 batches created (documents 5, 10, 15)

Example – Grouped Batch

Step Size: 5
Create Batch: unchecked
15 documents in source

Result: 1 batch with 3 documents (5, 10, 15)

Random Method

Use when: You need random sampling for QA or statistical analysis

Configuration

Set Method = Random
Set Spawn Percentage: Fraction of documents to select (0.0 to 1.0)

Example – 10% Random Sample

Method: Random
Spawn Percentage: 0.10 (10%)
Action: Copy
Batch Name Prefix: Random-QA-

Result: Approximately 10% of documents randomly selected

Example – Large Random Sample: Scenario: 5000 documents, need 500 for review

Method: Random
Spawn Percentage: 0.10 (500/5000)
Action: Move
Maximum Batch Size: 100

Result: 500 random documents split into 5 batches of 100 each

Understanding Spawn Percentage

Percentage	Decimal	Example (100 docs)
5%	0.05	~5 documents
10%	0.10	~10 documents
25%	0.25	~25 documents
50%	0.50	~50 documents

Note: Random selection is probabilistic. Results may vary slightly from exact percentages.

Action Types

The Action property determines what happens to selected folders.

Copy

Effect

Duplicates folders to new batch; originals remain in source batch.

Use Case

QA Sampling (preserve originals)

Settings

Action: Copy
Method: Random
Spawn Percentage: 0.05

Result: 5% of documents copied to QA batch; 100% remain in production

When to use Copy

Quality assurance sampling
Creating backup batches
Parallel processing workflows
Testing without modifying originals

Move

Effect

Transfers folders to new batch; removes from source batch.

Use Case

Route by Document Type

Settings

Action: Move
FilterBy: ContentType
Included Content Types: Invoice
Target Step: Invoice Processing / Classification

Result: Invoices moved to invoice workflow; other docs remain

When to use Move

Document type routing
Exception handling
Workflow branching
Batch size management

Delete

Effect

Removes folders from source batch; no new batch created.

Use Case

Remove Invalid Items

Settings

Action: Delete
FilterBy: InvalidItems

Result: Invalid documents removed; no new batch created

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Batch Naming

Batch Name Prefix

A string prepended to all spawned batch names.

Examples

"QA-" → QA-Invoice Batch 2024
"Review-" → Review-Invoice Batch 2024
"Invoices-" → Invoices-0001
"" (empty) → Uses default naming

Batch Name Suffix

Controls how the batch name is completed.

None

Uses default naming with conflict resolution.

Settings

Batch Name Prefix: QA-
Batch Name Suffix: None

Result

"QA-[generated name]" or "QA-[generated name] (1)" if conflict

SourceBatchName

Appends original batch name to prefix.

Source Batch

"Invoice Batch 2024-01-15"

Settings

Batch Name Prefix: QA-
Batch Name Suffix: SourceBatchName

Result

"QA-Invoice Batch 2024-01-15"

Use when

Traceability is important
You want to preserve batch lineage
Auditing spawned batch origins

NumberedSuffix

Creates sequential numbered batches with zero-padding.

Settings

Batch Name Prefix: Invoice-
Batch Name Suffix: NumberedSuffix
Batch Name Suffix Zero Padding: 4

Results

First batch: Invoice-0001
Second batch: Invoice-0002
Third batch: Invoice-0003
…
10th batch: Invoice-0010
100th batch: Invoice-0100

Zero Padding Examples

Zero Padding	Format	Example
0	No padding	Batch-1, Batch-2
2	2 digits	Batch-01, Batch-02
3	3 digits	Batch-001, Batch-002
4	4 digits	Batch-0001, Batch-0002
6	6 digits	Batch-000001, Batch-000002

Advanced Features

Maximum Batch Size

Limits the number of folders in each spawned batch. When the limit is reached, a new batch is created.

Example – Split Large Import: Scenario: 1000 documents imported, want batches of 100

FilterBy: AllItems
Action: Move
Maximum Batch Size: 100
Batch Name Suffix: NumberedSuffix

Result: 10 batches created (Import-0001 through Import-0010)

Example – Balanced QA Samples

Method: Random
Spawn Percentage: 0.20 (20%)
Maximum Batch Size: 25
Action: Copy

Result: Random 20% split into batches of max 25 documents each

Set to 0: No limit (all selected documents in one batch)

Starting Step

Routes spawned batches to a specific batch process step.

Example – Route to Different Process

Target Step: Invoice Processing / Classification
Start Paused: unchecked

Result: New batch begins processing at Classification step

Example – Manual Review

Target Step: Review Process / Manual Review
Start Paused: checked

Result: New batch created in Paused state for manual intervention

Leave blank: Creates batch without launching into a process (test batch)

Start Paused

When checked, spawned batches are created in a paused state.

Use cases

Manual review before processing
Configuration or setup required
Quality checks on spawned content
Scheduled batch processing

Copy Batch Fields

When checked, copies index field values from source batch to spawned batch.

Example – Preserve Metadata
Source Batch Fields

Customer: Acme Corp
Department: Accounting
Period: Q1 2024

Settings

Copy Batch Fields: checked

Result: New batch inherits all field values

Requirements

Source batch must have a content type assigned
Target batch process must have a content type assigned
Both content types must match

Common Error

"Copy Batch Fields is set to true, but the source and target batch process content types do not match."

Solution

Ensure both batch processes use the same content type or leave Copy Batch Fields unchecked.

Source Batch Disposition

Controls what happens to the source batch after spawning.

None (Default)

Behavior

Source batch remains unchanged.

Use when

Using Copy action (originals should remain)
Source batch needed for other processing
Auditing or archival purposes

DeleteIfEmpty

Behavior

Deletes source batch only if all folders were moved/deleted.

Use when

Using Move action with intent to replace source
All documents routed to new batches
Source batch should only exist if documents remain

DeleteAlways

Behavior

Always deletes source batch after spawning.

Use when

Source batch is temporary/intermediate
All documents have been routed
Clean up is required regardless of remaining items

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Common Use Cases

Use Case 1: Quality Assurance Sampling

Scenario: Extract 10% random sample from production batch for QA review

Configuration

Method: Random
Spawn Percentage: 0.10
Action: Copy
Batch Name Prefix: QA-
Batch Name Suffix: SourceBatchName
Target Step: QA Review / Review
Start Paused: unchecked
Source Batch Disposition: None

Result

~10% of documents copied to QA batch
Original batch continues normal processing
QA batch routed to review process
Traceable batch naming

Use Case 2: Separate by Document Type

Scenario: Split mixed batch into invoices and purchase orders

Step 1 – Extract Invoices

Method: Filter
FilterBy: ContentType
Included Content Types: Invoice
Action: Move
Target Step: Invoice Process/Import
Batch Name Prefix: INV-
Source Batch Disposition: None

Step 2 – Extract Purchase Orders

Method: Filter
FilterBy: ContentType
Included Content Types: PO
Action: Move
Target Step: PO Process/Import
Batch Name Prefix: PO-
Source Batch Disposition: DeleteIfEmpty

Result

Invoices → Invoice Processing workflow
Purchase Orders → PO Processing workflow
Source batch deleted if empty

Use Case 3: Exception Handling

Scenario: Route flagged items to manual review

Configuration

Method: Filter
FilterBy: FlaggedItems
Action: Move
Batch Name Prefix: Exceptions-
Target Step: Exception Review / Manual Review
Start Paused: checked
Source Batch Disposition: None

Result

Flagged documents moved to exception batch
Exception batch paused for manual intervention
Remaining documents continue processing

Use Case 4: Split Large Batch

Scenario: Split 5000-document batch into 100-document batches

Configuration

Method: Filter
FilterBy: AllItems
Action: Move
Maximum Batch Size: 100
Batch Name Prefix: Batch-
Batch Name Suffix: NumberedSuffix
Batch Name Suffix Zero Padding: 4
Target Step: [Same Process/Import]
Source Batch Disposition: DeleteIfEmpty

Result

50 batches created (Batch-0001 through Batch-0050)
Each batch contains 100 documents
Source batch deleted when empty
All batches continue in same workflow

Use Case 5: Filter by File Type

Scenario: Process only PDF documents, archive others

Configuration

Method: Filter
FilterBy: MimeType
MimeTypeLexicon:
- application/pdf
Action: Move
Target Step: PDF Processing/Import
Source Batch Disposition: None

Follow-up (Optional – Remove non-PDFs)

Method: Filter
FilterBy: AllItems
Action: Delete

Result

PDFs moved to PDF processing workflow
Non-PDF documents deleted from source

Use Case 6: Systematic Validation Sample

Scenario: Every 25th document goes to validation for accuracy tracking

Configuration

Method: EveryN
Step Size: 25
Action: Copy
Create Batch: unchecked
Batch Name Prefix: Validation-
Batch Name Suffix: SourceBatchName
Target Step: Validation/Review
Copy Batch Fields: checked
Source Batch Disposition: None

Result

4% systematic sample (1/25)
All samples in single validation batch
Batch metadata preserved
Original batch continues processing

Troubleshooting

Problem: No Batches Created

Symptoms

Activity completes but no new batches appear.

Possible Causes & Solutions

No matching folders
- Solution: Check filter criteria
  - Verify FilterBy settings
  - Check MimeTypeLexicon entries
  - Confirm ContentTypes are correct
  - Review Processing Level
Action set to Delete
- Solution: Change Action to Copy or Move if you need new batches
Spawn Percentage too low
- Method: Random; Spawn Percentage: 0.01; Batch with 10 documents ⇒ 0.1 documents (rounds to 0)
- Solution: Increase percentage or use different method

Problem: “No folders found to process”

Log Message

"No folders found to process"

Diagnosis Steps

Check Processing Level:
- Processing Level: 1
- Batch Structure: All folders at level 2
- Solution: Change Processing Level to 2
Verify filter criteria:
- FilterBy: ContentType
- Included Content Types: [empty]
- Solution: Add content types to list
Check Invert Filter:
- FilterBy: FlaggedItems
- Invert Filter: checked
- No unflagged items exist
- Solution: Uncheck Invert Filter

Problem: Batch Process Not Published

Error

"Batch Process 'ProcessName' is not published."

Cause

Target Step references an unpublished batch process.

Solution

Open the target batch process
Click Publish in the ribbon
Confirm publication
Re-run the Spawn Batch activity

Problem: Content Type Mismatch

Error

"Copy Batch Fields is set to true, but the source and target batch process content types do not match."

Cause

Attempting to copy fields between incompatible content types.

Solutions

Option 1: Match content types

Source process content type: Invoice
Target process content type: Change to Invoice
Re-run activity

Option 2: Disable field copying

Copy Batch Fields: uncheck

Problem: Batch Naming Conflicts

Symptom

Batches named "Batch-0001 (1)", "Batch-0001 (2)".

Cause

Batch names already exist.

Solutions

Use SourceBatchName suffix:
- Batch Name Suffix: SourceBatchName
- Result: Unique names based on source
Include timestamp in prefix:
- Batch Name Prefix: Batch-2024-01-15-
- Result: Date-specific names
Clean up existing batches:
- Delete or complete old batches with conflicting names

Problem: Spawned Batches Not Processing

Symptom

Batches created but remain in "Ready" status.

Possible Causes & Solutions

Start Paused is checked
- Solution: Manually resume batches or uncheck Start Paused
No Target Step specified
- Solution: Select appropriate batch process step
Service not running
- Solution: Check Grooper Service status; start if stopped

Problem: Source Batch Not Deleted

Symptom

Disposition set to DeleteAlways but batch remains.

Possible Causes & Solutions

Test batch
- Test batches are never deleted by design
- Solution: This is expected behavior
Folders still remain
- Disposition: DeleteIfEmpty
- Some folders don't match filter
- Solution: Use DeleteAlways or adjust filter
Batch locked
- Solution: Unlock batch manually and re-run

Best Practices

1. Test with Test Batches First

Always test new Spawn Batch configurations with test batches

Testing Workflow

Create small test batch (5–10 documents)
Configure Spawn Batch activity
Run test batch through process
Verify:
- Correct documents selected
- Batches named properly
- Target workflow correct
- Source batch handled correctly
Adjust configuration as needed
Move to production

2. Use Descriptive Batch Name Prefixes

Clear prefixes make batch management easier

Good Examples

"QA-Sample-" — clearly indicates QA batches
"Invoice-" — document type identification
"Exceptions-" — special handling indicator
"Split-" — indicates split from larger batch

Poor Examples

"B-" — not descriptive
"" (empty) — no identification
"Test123-" — unclear purpose

3. Choose Appropriate Action Type

Match action to use case

Use Case	Recommended Action
QA Sampling	Copy
Document Routing	Move
Cleanup	Delete
Parallel Processing	Copy
Exception Handling	Move

4. Set Reasonable Maximum Batch Size

Balance performance and manageability

Guidelines

Small batches (50–100): Interactive review processes
Medium batches (100–500): Standard processing
Large batches (500–1000): Bulk processing
No limit (0): Use cautiously; can create very large batches

Example – Balanced Approach

Large import: 5000 documents
Maximum Batch Size: 250

Result: 20 manageable batches

5. Manage Source Batch Disposition Carefully

Choose disposition based on workflow needs

Decision Tree

Using Copy action?
- Yes → Disposition: None
- No (Move/Delete) →
  - Need source batch for reference?
    - Yes → Disposition: None
    - No →
      - Some documents might remain?
        Yes → Disposition: DeleteIfEmpty
        
        No (all documents processed) → Disposition: DeleteAlways

6. Use Copy Batch Fields Wisely

Only when content types match

Checklist

[ ] Source batch has content type
[ ] Target process has content type
[ ] Content types match exactly
[ ] Fields are relevant to spawned batch

If any condition is false → Leave Copy Batch Fields unchecked.

7. Leverage Invert Filter

Powerful for exclusion scenarios

Scenario 1 – Process Non-PDFs

FilterBy: MimeType
MimeTypeLexicon: application/pdf
Invert Filter: checked

Result: All non-PDF documents selected

Scenario 2 – Process Valid Items

FilterBy: InvalidItems
Invert Filter: checked

Result: All valid documents selected

8. Monitor Activity Statistics

Review stats after processing

Available Statistics

Folders Moved: Count of folders moved to spawned batches
Folders Copied: Count of folders copied to spawned batches

Use stats to

Verify expected document counts
Track QA sample sizes
Audit document routing
Troubleshoot issues

9. Plan for Batch Process Dependencies

Ensure target processes are ready

Pre-flight Checklist

[ ] Target batch process is published
[ ] Target step exists in published version
[ ] Content types are configured
[ ] Downstream activities are configured
[ ] Service has permissions to target folder

10. Document Your Configuration

Maintain configuration documentation

Template

Activity: Spawn Batch
Purpose: [Describe why this spawn is happening]
Method: [Filter/EveryN/Random]
Filter Criteria: [Specific settings]
Action: [Copy/Move/Delete]
Target: [Destination process/step]
Naming Pattern: [Prefix and suffix pattern]
Special Notes: [Any caveats or special handling]

Example

Activity: Spawn Batch
Purpose: QA Sampling for Invoice Processing
Method: Random
Filter Criteria: 10% random sample
Action: Copy (preserve originals)
Target: QA Review Process / Manual Review Step
Naming Pattern: "QA-[SourceBatchName]"
Special Notes: Runs weekly, samples archived after 30 days

Summary

The Spawn Batch activity is an essential tool for:

Splitting batches by document type, status, or attributes
Quality assurance through systematic or random sampling
Workflow routing to specialized processing paths
Batch management by controlling size and organization
Exception handling for special cases and errors

Quick Reference

Task	Method	Action	Key Settings
QA Sample	Random	Copy	Spawn Percentage: 0.10
Route by Type	Filter	Move	FilterBy: ContentType
Every Nth	EveryN	Copy	Step Size: 10
Split Large Batch	Filter	Move	Maximum Batch Size: 100
Exception Handling	Filter	Move	FilterBy: FlaggedItems
Remove Invalid	Filter	Delete	FilterBy: InvalidItems