Creating modules

You can create a module either by creating a model, saving it, and then importing it into a module; or by creating and building a module directly within a model. Both procedures are described below.

To create a module by importing a model

1. Create a model that you want to import as a module.
2. Define the model as you would any other model, but also define its module inputs and outputs.
3. Save the model.
4. Import the saved model into the module.

To create a module from within a model

1. Open or create the model in which you want to create a module.
2. On the Map or Model tool bar, click the tool.
3. Click the diagram surface to place the module entity on the layer.
4. Name the module entity as you would any other entity.

5. On the Model layer, double-click the new module entity.

   The Map or Model layer appears for the module.

6. Build the module as you would any model.

7. Save your changes as you work by choosing Save from the File menu. This saves all changes you made to the top-level model and any modules in the model.

   Note: By default, modules are saved in the model file. To save a module in a separate file, select the Save in separate file check box on the Module Properties panel. For more information, see Setting module properties.

8. Repeat this procedure to add as many modules as you need to the model.

   You can add modules to the top-level model, or to any other modules within the model by navigating to the module into which you want to add another module.

   Tip: To navigate from the module to another level in the hierarchy, click to navigate up one level, or click to go to the top level.

When you having finished creating a module, define the module inputs and outputs for the module, and then assign the module inputs. The model, as a whole, cannot run until all module inputs have been assigned (each module, though, can run in isolation). For more information, see Running modules.

Note: After you've created a module, you can also add a picture to appear on a module's icon, select to password-protect the module, and select whether you want to save the module in a separate file from the model. For more information, see Setting module properties.

See Also