Troubleshooting "Translate Alias" Error after Performing a Search/Update on One or More Data Sources

Troubleshooting "Translate Alias" Error after Performing a Search/Update on One or More Data Sources

Introduction to the Issue

Sometimes, after performing a Mass Search/Update on a workflow, the workflow will error when trying to run it through the Alteryx Gallery. This error occurs because of a limitation in the Alteryx API endpoints, which cannot synchronize the data connections after performing the data source update. The TemporaryAlias.xml file gets created when you save a workflow through the designer and gets pushed up with the workflow to the Gallery. This file cannot be pushed through the API and must be done manually on the Server machine that houses your Alteryx Server. In order to resolve this issue, you must sign in to the Alteryx Server as the default Run As account and synchronize your data connections in Alteryx Designer. The following article will break down step-by-step how to perform the actions needed to resolve the "unable to translate alias" issue.

Possible Disclaimer

First and foremost, before reading the rest of the article, ensure that the data source your workflow is accessing exists on the Alteryx Server it is located in. If a workflow is migrated from Sandbox to Production but the data connection was not updated to use the Production connection, when you go to run the workflow, the translate alias error will appear because it cannot find the Sandbox connection in the Production gallery. If you have confirmed this is not the case and the workflow is still throwing that error, please proceed with the following steps.
First, we must access your Alteryx Server, for most users, this is accessing Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP), logging into the Production Virtual Machine (or wherever the workflow is located that is hitting the translate alias error). You may need to get your IT team involved to get access to this server unless you are one of the Admins of the server. Once you have logged into the server, open the "Alteryx System Settings" and navigate to "Worker" > "Run As" by clicking the "Next" button in the bottom right-hand side of the application window.
Once you have the default "Run As" user, please log into the same server Virtual Machine (VM) with the "Run As" credentials. Once you have relogged into the server VM as this user, please open Alteryx Designer. In Alteryx designer, Designer, click "File" > "Manage Connections".

After clicking "Manage Connections", a prompt will appear that contains all available data connections that can be connected to inside of Designer. Click the "Synchronize" button on the left-hand column. The window will generate a complete list of all the connected Alteryx Galleries in Designer. If your Gallery list is blank, please select "+ New" and follow the prompts on screen to connect to an Alteryx Gallery. You will need the Gallery URL and user login credentials (will need admin access). Once the connection has been established, please select the Gallery in the list below.

Once you have selected the Gallery, the window will update with all data connections from the selected server. Next, click the "Synchronize" button to refresh and synchronize all the data connections to the Gallery.

You will know the synchronization succeeded if the window looks like the screenshot below.

Lastly, once the data connections have been synchronized, re-run the workflow on the Alteryx Server and see if the "translate alias" error is still present. If the error is still persisting, please contact our WAM helpdesk (WAMhelpdesk@capitalizeconsulting.com) and detail the issue, errors, and whether you synchronized your data connections or not.