The MapInfo reader first scans the folder it is given for the MapInfo files which have been defined in the mapping file. For each logical MapInfo file that it finds, it checks to see if it that file is requested by looking at the list of IDs specified in the mapping file. If a match is made, or no IDs were specified in the mapping file, the MapInfo file is opened. The MapInfo reader then extracts features from the file one at a time, and passes them on to the rest of the FME for further processing. When the file is exhausted, the MapInfo reader starts on the next file in the folder.
Optionally, a single MapInfo file can be given as the dataset. In this case, only that MapInfo file is read.