System options

Use the options in the System tab to control how memory is used for sorting and indexing, and to configure Python and AI service settings. From the Analytics main menu, select Tools > Options > System.

Use Additional System Resources for Sorting and Indexing

When this option is selected, sorting and indexing operations can be faster, depending on the size of the file being sorted or indexed, and the available memory on your computer.

Selecting the option allows Analytics to use a memory mapped file for sorting and indexing operations. Using a memory mapped file can speed up the sorting or indexing of files that exceed the available RAM on your computer. For example, a 500-MB file might take the same length of time to sort regardless of how the option is set, but a 3-GB file might sort significantly faster if you enable the option.

Similar to sorting smaller files, sorting very large files of multiple gigabytes may not show any improvement in speed when the option is enabled. If you routinely sort very large files and performance is an issue, you should consider increasing your computer’s RAM, increasing the Windows paging file size, or both.

Additional information

• If Analytics is unable to determine the number of records in a file being sorted or indexed, a memory mapped file is not used for the operation, even if Use Additional System Resources for Sorting and Indexing is selected.
• Using additional system resources for sorting and indexing may slow down other tasks while sorting or indexing is in progress.
• Unlike all other options in the Options dialog box, the setting for this option is not stored in the Analytics preferences file. The option applies only to the computer on which it is set.

  For more information about options stored in the preferences file, see How Analytics preferences files work.

Python Path

Use the Python Path field to specify the full path and file name of the Python executable (python.exe) to use in Analytics-Python scripting integration. You can click Browse and navigate to the Python executable on your computer.

Connection settings for an external AI service

If you intend to use the Analytics AI Command, specify values for the settings required to connect Analytics with an external AI Service:

• AI API Key – The password or API key required for authentication with the AI service.

• AI Host – The full URL for the AI service API.

  For example:

  https://api.anthropic.com/v1

• AI Model – Identifying information for the specific AI model that you want to use.

  For example:

  anthropic.claude-3-5-sonnet-20241022-v2:0

  An AI service may offer different models that you can use.

  You can use any OpenAI-compatible large language model (LLM) – that is, an OpenAI model, or a model that uses the same API schema as OpenAI's models.

How the host and model values work

The specified AI Host and AI Model values are permanently saved in your computer's registry. The saved values are prefilled in the AI Command dialog box. If required, you can specify different host or model values in the dialog box and override the default values.

If you use AICOMMAND in a script, you must explicitly specify the host and model connection values using the appropriate command parameters. The host and model values specified in the Options dialog box are used in the Analytics user interface only. For more information, see AICOMMAND command.

How the API key value works

The specified API key value is permanently saved in your computer's registry. The saved value is used for silent authentication with the AI service and cannot be modified through the AI Command dialog box.

If you use AICOMMAND in a script, it silently uses the API key value saved in the local registry, assuming a key has been saved. If no key is saved, or if you want to use a different key, you can specify the key using the PASSWORD command parameter. For more information, see AICOMMAND command.