### Validate Action Properties

In a message flow, use a validate action to validate elements selected by an XPath expression against an XML schema element or a WSDL resource. You can validate global elements only; ALSB does not support validation against local elements.

In the Message Flow Editor, click a validate action to display its properties in the Properties view. Use these properties pages to configure the selected validate action. The pages are:

- Validate
- Comment
- Namespaces
- Variables

The Validate page has the following options:

Option | Description
--- | ---
XPath | An XPath expression that specifies the elements to be validated. To create or edit the XPath expression, click <XPath> (or the XPath_fragment, if one is already defined) to display the XPath Expression Editor.
In Variable | The name of the variable to hold the element to be validated. Enter the name of the variable, or, if Content Assist is on, press Ctrl-Space to display a list of declared variables.
Against Resource | An XML schema element or a WSDL resource against which the elements selected by the XPath expression (in the XPath field described above) are validated.
Save Variable or Raise Error | To save the result of this validation (a boolean result), select Save Variable and enter the name of the variable in which you want to save the result. Alternatively, to raise an error if the element fails validation against the WSDL or XML schema element, select Raise Error.

Use the Comment page to add a comment, if desired:

Use the Namespaces page to see a list of defined namespaces or to create a new one.

Use the Variables page to see a list of defined context variables or to create a new one. For more information about context variables, see Message Context in the AquaLogic Service Bus User Guide.