# 🔧 Set Values Block

The Set Values Block allows you to **assign values to specific** [**variables**](https://guide.indigo.ai/getting-started/workspace/variables) during a conversation. It’s an essential tool for **customizing the assistant’s behavior based on conditions, inputs, or internal logic**.

You can use it to:

* Assign values manually based on logic
* Preload or reset variable values at the start of a conversation
* Modify or clear data stored in the assistant’s memory. 

<figure><img src="https://4264750556-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F4dIFGOeVbHW1PRwnG0Z8%2Fuploads%2F5chF3UfnoptelKiFecJt%2FScreenshot%202025-04-02%20alle%2018.49.42.png?alt=media&#x26;token=120e553e-667c-446a-adc0-331b628f9b81" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## How it Works

When using the Set Values Block, you define:

* **The target variable** you want to update
* **The value** to assign to it.&#x20;

Supported operations include:

* **Set to a fixed value**
* **Set to null or empty**&#x20;
* **Set to true or false**.&#x20;

## Best Practices

#### 1. Use it to **initialize variables** at the start of the conversation

We recommend using a Set Values Block in your **Welcome Workflow** to set or reset all the key variables, **ensuring every new session starts fresh**. For more on how to do this, see: [configure-your-ai-agents](https://guide.indigo.ai/build-your-ai-agents/configure-your-ai-agents "mention").&#x20;

You can clear previous values by setting:

* Text variables to **empty**
* Boolean variables to **false**
* Any variable to **null**.&#x20;

#### 2. Advanced Use: Regex Functions

The Set Values Block also supports **regex-based expressions** to transform values dynamically. This is especially useful for:

* **Extracting specific patterns from a user input** (e.g., cleaning a user ID)
* **Validating or transforming data before storing it**

**Example:**

You collect a raw user ID in `user_id_raw`. Using a regex function in the Set Values Block, you can extract the clean ID: `user_id_clean = REGEX(user_id_raw, 'pattern')`

You can also apply regex to check if an email format is valid, extract postal codes, or format date strings.

To insert a regex, simply type it in the “value” field using the supported syntax.