A regular expression is a combination of characters and operators that specifies a pattern. You can use regular expressions with certain attributes in rules to match patterns in messages.
You can test regular expressions using the Test Regular Expressions tool. After creating an expression, in the Attributes section, select "matches the regular expression" in the If the Attribute menu, then:
Click Test Regular Expressions.
A new window containing the expression opens.
Click OK if the expression is okay.
Click Test to test the expression.
NOTE: KANA Response rules use regular expressions that are compatible with Perl 5. For more information about using regular expressions, see a Perl 5 reference guide.
Use the following reserved characters to indicate the pattern that you are trying to match.
|
Character |
Description |
Example |
|
/ |
Encloses a regular expression |
/productA|productB/ |
|
| |
The OR operator |
productA|productB |
|
() |
Encloses a group |
(\w+) |
|
[] |
Defines a character range |
[a-e] |
|
{} |
Defines the number times the preceding character or |
{4} |
|
^ |
Begins with the character range that follows |
^ab |
|
$ |
Matches only at the end of the text |
html$ |
|
* |
Matches the preceding character or character group 0 or more times |
^z.*e$ |
|
+ |
Matches the preceding character or character group 1 or more times |
cat+ |
|
? |
Matches the preceding character or character group 0 or 1 time |
htm(l)? |
|
. |
Matches any character, including white space |
.*mycompany\.com |
|
\ |
Escapes other reserved characters, including itself |
\(800\) |
NOTE: When using the | operator, make sure that there are always characters preceding and following the operator. Otherwise, the attribute will always be true.
Use the following modifiers to specify how KANA Response should handle the specified attribute.
|
Character |
Description |
|
i |
Ignore case |
|
m |
Treat string as multiple lines |
|
s |
Treat string as a single line |
|
x |
Ignore white space |
Important! Using an x option in an expression does not mean that the white space is ignored in the text. It means that white space (including comments) is ignored in the regular expression. For example, the expression '/[A-Z] [0-9] {6} [0-9X]/xsi' is equivalent to '/[A-Z][0-9]{6}[0-9X]/si'. This x option is useful for spacing out the regular expression so that it's more readable.
Learn about rules and rule groups.