hints

The hints directive specifies executor-specific hints as key-value pairs. Each executor uses the hints it recognizes and ignores the rest. Hint values can be any raw value (i.e., numbers, strings, booleans, lists, and maps).

Unprefixed keys are available to every executor. Any executor that recognizes the key consumes it. Prefixing a key with an executor name (e.g., awsbatch/...) restricts the hint to that executor only. For example:

process hello {
    hints consumableResources: ['my-license': 1]

    script:
    """
    your_command --here
    """
}

To restrict a hint to a single executor, prefix the key with the executor name:

hints 'awsbatch/consumableResources': ['my-license': 1]

When the same hint is provided both unprefixed and with a matching executor prefix, the prefixed form takes precedence for that executor.

Calling hints multiple times in a process definition accumulates entries, with later calls overwriting entries for the same key. Setting hints via configuration (e.g., in nextflow.config) replaces the entire map.

See Executors to see which hints are recognized by each executor.