SSIS Visual Studio 2008 reference variable scope in expression builder

Question

When creating an SSIS package in Visual Studio 2008, in the expression builder, I know I can reference a variable by using @[User::FilePath] for example but this only works if you are evaluating the expression for an object that is within the same scope of the variable that you are referencing.

Is it possible to reference the SCOPE of the variable such as @[User:PackageScope:FilePath] or @[User:SQLTaskScope:FilePath] for example so that I can call a variable that is in a different scope then the object I am building the expression for?

Answer 1

No, not in the way you proposed. There is scope hierarchy only in the parent/child sense, not siblings. The task/component will look for the variable in its current scope, then its parent, then it's grandparent etc until you hit Package level.

It sounds like you have two variables defined with the same name at different scopes. If you use only one variable at the higher level it will be accessible from both.

A more hack of a solution could be to use multiple namespaces for example you could have [Global::FilePath] and [Local::FilePath]

Answer 2

No, the availability of variables is always subject to the scope hierarchy.

If you can't access the variable you want, then you need to refactor the structure or redefine the variable at a higher/different scope so that it's available. Sometimes this issue is indicative of a design problem in the package structure itself.