Siebel Database Upgrade Guide > Application Planning for a Siebel Upgrade >

Upgrade Planning for Siebel Web Template Files and Style Sheet

Environments: Development, production test, production.

Web template files help define the layout and formatting of the user interface, such as views, applets, and controls. The Siebel Web Engine in the Siebel Server uses the Web template files to build Web pages, which it then forwards to the Web Server.

A Web template file contains regular HTML, WML, or XML tags interspersed with Siebel tags. Siebel tags are prefixed by "swe" and contain placeholders for UI objects such as controls and data. HTML formatting tags are defined in a cascading style sheet (main.css).

When you install a new release of the Siebel Server or Siebel Tools, you receive a new set of Web template files and a new style sheet file. The upgrade process does not use your existing files. If you have manually customized your Web template files or style sheet file, then you must evaluate whether to reimplement these customizations in the new Web template files and style sheet file.

Observe the following planning guidelines for reimplementing customizations:

• Resolve any UI problems related to object definitions in the Siebel Tools repository first. While doing so, review the areas of the new UI where you plan to implement Web template file customizations.
• Evaluate existing customizations to Web template files, and decide which ones to reimplement. Changes to the UI in the new release might make some customizations obsolete.
• Document why each customization was reimplemented. This reference will help you evaluate customization issues later.
• Use formal change control for managing versions of the Web template files and style sheet file. This allows you to maintain orderly distribution of the files to developers.
• Applets typically have a separate Web template file for each applet mode. Customize all the mode Web template files for an applet at the same time. This allows you to verify applet functionality in a single test pass in the UI.
• Individual Web template files are typically used by multiple screens, views, or applets. Set up formal test plans that verify customizations are correct across all UI objects that use each Web template file. This reduces the amount of time required to verify customizations and prevents unintended changes to the UI.
• Reimplement style sheet customizations in two passes. On the first pass implement only those changes required to UI usability issues. On the second pass, implement the remaining style sheet customizations after Web template customizations are complete. This shortens the time required to resolve functional problems in the UI.

After customizations have been completed, the Web template files and style sheet file must be copied to the Siebel Servers in the environment. The files must also be included in upgrade kits sent to remote sites.

Web template files have an .swt file extension and are located in the webtempl directory in both the Siebel Tools and Siebel Server installation.

The style sheet file is located as follows in the installation directory of Siebel Tools and the Siebel Server (Windows path syntax):

Siebel Tools: \public\lang\files\main.css

Siebel Server: SIEBEL_ROOT\webmaster\files\lang\main.css

where lang is the installation language, for example, enu.

The steps for reimplementing customizations to these files and copying them to new environments are included in the upgrade process topics in Overview of Performing a Siebel Database Upgrade.

For information on how Web template files and style sheet file work, see Configuring Siebel Business Applications.