Pipeline Nodes

WP-Nexus pipelines are built from 51 nodes organized into 9 categories. Each node performs a single, well-defined operation on data as it flows through the pipeline. Nodes are connected by edges in a directed acyclic graph (DAG) and executed in topological order.

How Pipelines Work

1. Source nodes produce data -- they query databases, fetch APIs, or provide static values.
2. Logic nodes control flow -- branching, validation, authentication, and rate limiting.
3. Transform nodes reshape data -- filtering, sorting, mapping, grouping, and aggregation.
4. String/Format nodes format text -- templates, JSON parsing, and date formatting.
5. Integration nodes communicate externally -- HTTP requests, email, and events.
6. Data Write nodes persist changes -- inserting, updating, and deleting rows.
7. Action nodes compose pipelines -- running saved actions and iterating.
8. Utility nodes help with debugging during development.
9. Output nodes mark the terminal result of a pipeline.

Categories

Data Sources

Nodes that produce data for the pipeline. Every pipeline starts with at least one source.

Node	Description
Table Query	Query rows from a WP-Nexus custom database table
Post Query	Query WordPress posts, pages, or custom post types
Term Query	Query taxonomy terms (categories, tags, custom)
REST API	Fetch data from any REST API endpoint
Static Data	Provide a hardcoded JSON array
Parent Data	Access the parent component's data context
Current User	Get the logged-in WordPress user's profile
Related Items	Fetch related rows via foreign key relationship
Get Store Items	Retrieve items from a user data store
Get Context	Retrieve the current pipeline context data
POST Data	Access raw POST request data

Logic

Nodes that control pipeline execution flow.

Node	Description
If/Else	Branch rows based on a condition expression
Switch	Multi-way branch based on a field's value
Require Auth	Gate pipeline execution behind authentication
Validate	Validate input fields against rules
Sanitize	Clean and sanitize input field values
Rate Limit	Throttle pipeline execution per IP, user, or globally
Is In Store?	Check if an item exists in a user data store

Transforms

Nodes that reshape, filter, and aggregate data.

Node	Description
Filter	Keep rows matching a condition
Mapping	Transform each row with an expression
Sort	Sort rows by a field
Limit	Take a slice of rows (offset + count)
Combine	Merge up to 5 inputs into a single object
Group By	Group rows by a field value
Unique	Deduplicate rows by a field
Flatten	Flatten nested arrays into a single list
Pick Fields	Keep only specified fields from each row
Set Field	Add or overwrite a field using an expression
Math	Aggregate a numeric field (sum, avg, min, max, count)
Lookup	Enrich rows by joining data from another table
Distance Filter	Filter rows by geographic distance (Haversine)
For Each	Run a saved action for each row

String/Format

Nodes that format and parse text data.

Node	Description
Template	Render a template string with expressions
JSON Parse	Parse a JSON string field into an object
JSON Stringify	Convert the entire input to a JSON string
Date Format	Format a date field using PHP date format

Integration

Nodes that communicate with external systems.

Node	Description
HTTP Request	Make HTTP requests with full method/auth support
Send Email	Send email via wp_mail
Emit Event	Emit a named event to the parent component

Data Write

Nodes that persist data changes to the database.

Node	Description
Save Row	Insert new rows into a table
Update Row	Update existing rows by ID
Delete Row	Delete rows by ID
Update User Profile	Update the current user's profile and meta
Add to Store	Add an item to a user data store
Remove from Store	Remove an item from a user data store

Actions

Nodes that compose and invoke saved pipelines.

Node	Description
Run Action	Execute a saved action pipeline

Utility

Development and debugging helpers.

Node	Description
Debug	Log data to the PHP error log

Output

Terminal nodes that mark the pipeline result.

Node	Description
Set Context	Set the component's data context (form values, row data)
Result	Pass-through terminal for data source pipelines
Output	Generic pass-through terminal node

Pipeline Limits

• Maximum 50 nodes per pipeline
• Maximum 1,000 rows per query result
• Write nodes (Save, Update, Delete, Store, Email, HTTP) are never cached
• Read-only nodes with identical config and input are deduplicated within a request

Expression Resolution in Config

All node config values that contain { { }} expressions are resolved before the node executes. The input variable refers to the data flowing into the node from its connected upstream node.

tableId: "`{ {input.table_id}}`"
whereValue: "`{ {input.user_id}}`"

See the Expression Language reference for the full syntax.