Manual triggers and parameters in Apache Airflow - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What is a manual trigger in Airflow?

A manual trigger is when you start a workflow (DAG) by clicking a button in the Airflow UI instead of waiting for a scheduled time.

beginner

How can you pass parameters when manually triggering a DAG in Airflow?

You can pass parameters by entering a JSON object in the 'Trigger DAG' dialog box in the Airflow UI before starting the DAG.

beginner

What is the purpose of parameters in a manually triggered DAG?

Parameters let you customize the behavior of the DAG run, like choosing which data to process or setting options for tasks.

intermediate

How do you access parameters inside a DAG's Python code?

You access parameters using the 'dag_run.conf' dictionary inside your task's Python function.

beginner

Why is it useful to use manual triggers with parameters in Airflow?

It allows you to run workflows on demand with specific settings, making your workflows flexible and interactive.

How do you start a DAG manually in Airflow?

A Restart the Airflow server

B Wait for the scheduled time

C Click the 'Trigger DAG' button in the Airflow UI

D Run a shell script outside Airflow

Manual triggering is done by clicking the 'Trigger DAG' button in the Airflow UI.

What format should parameters be in when manually triggering a DAG?

A YAML

B XML

C Plain text

D JSON

Parameters must be entered as a JSON object in the trigger dialog.

Where do you find the parameters inside your DAG code?

A task_instance.xcom_pull()

B dag_run.conf

C os.environ

D airflow.cfg

Parameters passed during manual trigger are accessed via dag_run.conf.

What happens if you trigger a DAG manually without parameters?

A The DAG runs with default settings

B The DAG runs twice

C Airflow throws an error

D The DAG will not run

If no parameters are given, the DAG runs with its default behavior.

Why use manual triggers with parameters?

A To customize runs on demand

B To automate workflows only

C To schedule DAGs in the future

D To stop running DAGs

Manual triggers with parameters let you customize workflow runs when you want.

Explain how to manually trigger a DAG with parameters in Airflow.

Think about the steps you take in the Airflow web interface.

Describe how parameters passed during manual trigger affect the DAG run.

Consider how parameters change what the DAG does.