wxrks splits every uploaded document into segments, usually one sentence each, before translation. Segmentation drives Translation Memory matching, word counts, and how content appears in the Editor. This article explains the default segmentation behavior, what an SRX rule file is, and how to upload one for a specific source language and, optionally, specific file types, at the Account or Organizational Unit level.

An Organizational Unit is the workspace that groups a client's projects, users, and settings. See All about Organizational Units.

Segmentation happens automatically when a file is uploaded. A set of rules decides where one segment ends and the next begins.

The built-in rules handle most content correctly. You'd only need custom rules when your content has a pattern the defaults don't expect. For example, a product name that ends in a period gets mistaken for the end of a sentence, or an industry abbreviation isn't in the default list. A rule set built for one format can also misbehave on another: rules tuned for DITA topics can produce parsing errors when they're applied to IDML or XLIFF files. That's why you can now limit a rule file to specific file types.

Custom segmentation is a specialized, technical adjustment. Most accounts never need it.

wxrks ships with a built-in rule set for each source language, so standard use needs no setup. You can't view or edit these defaults in the UI. To change how a language is segmented, upload a custom SRX file as described below, or contact [email protected] for guidance.

For English (United States) source content, the defaults include rules such as:

Each source language has its own defaults, tuned to that language's punctuation and abbreviations.

SRX (Segmentation Rules eXchange) is an XML-based industry standard for sentence-segmentation rules. wxrks reads standard SRX 2.0 files, so a rule file exported from another CAT (computer-assisted translation) tool will generally work in wxrks, and the other way around.

Each rule in an SRX file has a regular-expression pattern in two parts: a beforebreak part (what must appear just before a potential break) and an afterbreak part (what must appear just after it). The break attribute says whether the rule creates a break there or prevents one. This minimal rule stops wxrks from splitting after "Acme Corp.":

You don't need to write SRX by hand. Most teams export a rule set from another CAT tool, build one in an SRX editor, or ask wxrks support for help with a specific case. wxrks only accepts files with the .srx extension.

Every rule file you upload has three settings that decide when it's used:

A file scoped to specific file types takes priority over an All file types file for those types only. Every other file type keeps using the All file types file.

ℹ️ Note: Rule files uploaded before file-type scoping was available show All file types and keep working exactly as they did.

An Account-level rule file applies to every Organizational Unit in the Account that doesn't have its own matching rule file (see Which rule file applies to a file).

The Segmentation page lists every Account rule file in the Segmentation Rules table, with its File, Language, File Types, and Active status.

ℹ️ Note: When Set as active is on, the Select file types list hides extensions already covered by another active file for the same language. Apply to all file types is also unavailable if another active All file types file exists for that language. This keeps two active files from claiming the same file type.

Use an Organizational Unit-level file when one client's content needs different segmentation from the rest of the Account, or when that client needs a different default rule set.

ℹ️ Note: The Organizational Unit's Segmentation tab lists only that Organizational Unit's own rule files. Account-level files aren't shown there, but they still apply to any file type the Organizational Unit doesn't cover. Check Settings > Translation Settings > Segmentation to see what the Organizational Unit inherits.

The new scope applies to files uploaded from then on.

Use the Active switch on the rule's row. Turning a file off keeps it in the list so you can turn it back on later.

Within one level (the Account, or one Organizational Unit), each source language can have:

If activating a file would break these limits, its Active switch is disabled. Hover over it to see: Another active rule already covers this language and file type. Deactivate it first. Turn off the conflicting file, or change one file's File Types so they no longer overlap.

An All file types file and a file scoped to specific types never conflict. They're meant to be active together.

wxrks picks one rule set for each file, based on the project's source language and the file's extension. It checks in this order and uses the first match:

The Organizational Unit is always checked completely before the Account. An Organizational Unit All file types file therefore takes priority over an Account file scoped to a specific type.

Your Account has one active English (United States) rule file, account-default.srx, set to All file types. One Organizational Unit translates DITA documentation, so you upload dita-rules.srx to that Organizational Unit for English (United States), scoped to dita and ditamap.

A new English (United States) project in that Organizational Unit contains user-guide.dita, brochure.idml, and strings.xliff:

Before file-type scoping, dita-rules.srx would have been used for all three files, which is exactly the kind of mismatch that causes parsing errors in IDML and XLIFF files.

Now suppose you also upload ou-default.srx to the same Organizational Unit for English (United States), set to All file types. user-guide.dita still uses dita-rules.srx, but brochure.idml and strings.xliff now use ou-default.srx. The Account file is no longer used for this Organizational Unit's English (United States) projects. This is how you give an Organizational Unit a different default rule set from the Account.

Click the trash icon on the rule's row, then confirm. The file is deleted permanently. Files of the affected language and types then fall back to the next rule set in the order above.

⚠️ Warning: Deleting can't be undone. To stop using a file temporarily, turn off its Active switch instead.

Click the file name in the File column to download a copy of the uploaded .srx file. This is useful to check which rules a file contains before you replace or delete it.

My upload was rejected. wxrks only accepts files with the .srx extension. Make sure you're uploading the SRX rule file, not the document you want segmented differently.

I can't turn on the Active switch. Another active file at the same level already covers that language and file type. Hover over the switch to confirm, then turn off the other file or change the File Types of one of them.

I see "Warning! Multiple active items were found for the same language and file type." Two active files at this level overlap, which can happen with files set up before the current limits existed. Only one of them will be used. Turn off one of the files, or change their File Types so they don't overlap.

My custom rules don't seem to apply. Segmentation runs when a file is uploaded. Files segmented before you changed the rules aren't re-split, so upload the file again to apply the new rules. Then check, in this order: the project's source language matches the rule file's Source Language exactly; the file's extension is listed in File Types (or the file is set to All file types); the rule file is Active; and no Organizational Unit file is taking priority over the Account file you expect (see Which rule file applies to a file).