8 Configuring Physical Content Management

This chapter is for content administrators who are responsible for configuring Physical Content Management (generally those with the PCM Administrator ('pcmadmin') role). This functionality is only available if PCM has been enabled. It is enabled by default for all levels except the Minimal level.

This chapter covers the following topics:

8.1 Physical Content Management

PCM is used to manage physical records and content that are not stored in the repository in electronic form (for example, physical media such as compact disks). All items, both internal and external, regardless of their source or format are managed using a single user interface. The same retention schedule can be used for both electronic (internal) and physical (external) content.

Storage location and retention schedules of the physical items can be tracked. This is done by using several key features:

  • Space management: Defines how items are stored, from the largest storage area (warehouse layouts) to fine details (cases, shelves, bins).

  • Circulation services: Sets up reservations for handling requests for items, checking them out to users and tracking the space used and available space.

  • Chargeback services: Defines costs for storage services or other actions performed on physical items. These costs can then be invoiced to defined customers.

  • Barcode processing: Defines barcodes for customers and for storage locations, enabling quick processing of reservations, storage, and invoicing information. Barcode data can be uploaded automatically into PCM or can be entered manually.

  • Label creation and printing: In conjunction with barcodes, this is used to create barcode labels for items, storage, and customers.

  • Retention management: Sets up retention schedules for external items and freezes them, sends e-mail for pending events, or performs periodic reviews of storage and items.

In addition to storing items locally, offsite storage capabilities can be set up to move archive content to a different location. See the Oracle WebCenter Content Administrator's Guide for Records for details about setting up offsite storage.

The following list describes the tasks needed to set up a PCM environment.

8.2 Configuring Chargeback Processing

Chargebacks are fees charged to people or businesses for the use of storage facilities or actions performed on physical items in the storage facilities. Physical Content Management can be used to generate invoices for the storage, use, reservation, and destruction of the managed content. These invoices can then be sent to the internal or external customers in accordance with the applicable business procedures.

Depending on rights and roles assigned, users or administrators can set up chargebacks and customers. See the Oracle WebCenter Content User's Guide for Records for details about configuring chargebacks and customers.

8.3 Configuring Location Types

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is required to set up location types. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Location types are used in the definition of the storage space holding the physical content. They represent the hierarchy of storage units where items can be stored. The Physical Content Management functionality uses the location types and their defined hierarchy to keep track of the locations of the managed external physical content. Reordering location types does not affect any existing storage locations. The following topics are discussed in this section:

8.3.1 Predefined Location Types

The default Physical Content Management functionality comes with the following six predefined location types (in hierarchical order), with their standard icons for the default Trays layout:

Predefined Location Types Icon (large) Allows Storage of Content (Default)
Warehouse Icons described in the surrounding text. No
Room Icons described in the surrounding text. No
Row Icons described in the surrounding text. No
Bay Icons described in the surrounding text. No
Shelf Icons described in the surrounding text. No
Position Icons described in the surrounding text. Yes

These are the default settings, which can be modified. Storage of content applies to a particular level only, not to any lower levels. For example, in the default hierarchy shelves have several positions, each of which can hold content items, but no content items can be directly assigned to the shelf level (only to the positions on a shelf). The location type 'Shelf' cannot store content, whereas the type 'Position' can.

These predefined location types are hierarchical. A warehouse consists of one or more rooms, a room consists of one or more rows, a row consists of one or more bays, and so on.

8.3.2 Location Type Icons

Each defined location type can be assigned an icon used to indicate the location type of storage locations. The icons are located in /weblayout/ resources/layouts/Layout_Name/Skin_Name/Pcm_Icons, and come in three varieties:

  • Name_lg.gif: This is the large variety of the icon (32x32 pixels), used in the thumbnail view of the exploring pages.

  • Name_sm_closed.gif: This is the small variety of the icon (16x16 pixels) used to indicate the location types of storage locations in the storage space tree view. This appears in the Trays layout when the child tree below the storage location is collapsed or when there are no child storage locations.

  • Name_sm_open.gif: This is the small variety of the icon (16x16 pixels) used to indicate the location types of storage locations in the storage space hierarchy when the child tree below the storage location is opened.

The open and closed icons for the predefined location types are identical, but they do not need to be.

8.3.2.1 Adding Customized Icons

Customized icon files can be added to the image selection list for location types by copying three gif files with the above naming pattern) for each icon to the appropriate Pcm_Icons directories. For example, you could create icon files called Storage_archive_lg.gif (32x32 pixels), Storage_archive_sm_open.gif (16x16 pixels), and Storage_archive_sm_closed.gif (16x16 pixels), and copy these to the previously mentioned directory to make them available in the default Trays layout.

If icons were created in a previous version of this software they are not automatically transferred during an upgrade. They must be copied after upgrading.

8.3.3 Creating or Editing a Location Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right and the PCM.Admin.LocationTypes right are needed to perform this action. These rights are assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to create a new location type to be used in the definition of the storage space environment. The following information is a general navigational procedure. To view a specific example of creating a custom metadata field, see Section 8.3.7, "Example: Creating a Location Type."

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Location Types.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens

  2. Click Add.

    The Create or Edit Location Type Page opens.

  3. Specify the properties of the location type:

    • Location Type ID: An identifier for the location type displayed in the location type hierarchy. Maximum characters: 30.

    • Location Name: Name for the type. Maximum characters allowed: 30.

    • Description: A brief description of the type.

    • Tooltip: Text that appears if the mouse cursor is held over the option in the location type selection list. Maximum characters: 30

    • Allow storage of content (default): Select to allow the location type to hold content items by default. This can be overridden when defining storage locations. Overriding the default setting may be useful to accommodate abnormal storage locations, or to create a dummy storage location that enables a user to maintain consistent numbering across parallel objects.

      This setting applies to this specific location type level only, not to any location types lower in the hierarchy. Therefore, the box for a location can be disabled if its child location types will contain content. For example, in the default hierarchy shelves have several positions, each of which can hold content items. But no content items can be directly assigned to the shelf level (only to the positions on a shelf). Therefore, the Shelf location type does not allow storage of content, whereas the Position location type does.

    • Maximum Items Allowed: available only if Allow storage of content (default) is selected. This specifies the default maximum number of content items a location type can hold. This can be overridden when defining storage locations in the storage space hierarchy. This number applies to storage of content on this specific location type level only, not to any location types lower in the storage space hierarchy.

    • Image: Specifies the icon to use for the location type.

  4. Click OK when done. The new location type is now added to the bottom of the list on the Configure Location Types Page. If required, click the Up and Down arrows to move the new location type to its new position in the location type hierarchy.

To modify a location type, select the type to edit in the list and choose Edit from the Actions menu. Modify the properties as required and click OK when finished.

8.3.4 Viewing Location Type Information

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right and the PCM.Admin.LocationTypes right are needed to perform this action. These rights are assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to view information about an existing location type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Location Types.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens.

  2. Select the location type and click the Info icon.

    The information page opens. When done viewing information, click OK.

8.3.5 Deleting a Location Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right and the PCM.Admin.LocationTypes right are needed to perform this action. These rights are assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to delete an existing location type. Note that this does not delete the location. It deletes the location type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Location Types.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens.

  2. Select the location type to delete and click Info.

    The information page opens. Choose Delete from the Page menu.

8.3.6 Reordering Location Types

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right and the PCM.Admin.LocationTypes right are needed to perform this action. These rights are assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to change the hierarchical order of the defined location types.

Important:

Reordering location types does not affect existing storage locations. You must remove the existing storage locations and rebuild the storage environment if you want it to match the reordered location types.
  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Location Types.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens.

  2. Use the Up and Down arrows to move location types to the new level in the hierarchy.

  3. Repeat this step for every location type to move until the new storage hierarchy is achieved.

  4. When finished, click Submit Update.

    A message is displayed saying the location types were configured successfully.

  5. Click OK to return to the Configure Location Types Page.

8.3.7 Example: Creating a Location Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right and the PCM.Admin.LocationTypes right are needed to perform this example. These rights are assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

This example creates a location type called Box, located at the bottom level of the storage level hierarchy (below Position). Therefore, each position contains one or more boxes, each of which can contain a maximum of five physical content items.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Location Types.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens.

  2. Click Add.

    The Create or Edit Location Type Page opens.

  3. In the Location Type ID field, type Archive.

  4. In the Name field, type Box.

  5. In the Description field, type a description of the location type (optional).

  6. In the Tooltip field, type a tooltip for the location type (optional).

  7. Make sure Allow storage of content (default) is selected, and enter 5 in the Content Items Allowed field.

  8. In the Images list, choose the storage_box_lg.gif icon image. This image is used to indicate the location type of storage locations in the Browse Storage tree in the Trays layout.

  9. Click OK.

    A message is displayed saying the location type was created successfully, along with the properties of the newly created location type.

  10. Click OK.

    The Configure Location Types Page opens with the new location type Box added to the bottom of the list of location types.

8.4 Configuring Object Types

Object types define the types of items storage locations can hold. When creating a physical item, specify its object type. If you select an object type that is not allowed for the assigned storage location, an error message is displayed and you cannot check in the physical item.

Object types can hold other object types. For example, the predefined Box object type can hold the following predefined object types: Folder, Optical, Micro, Document, and Tape. Relationships between object types are defined on the Edit Object Type Relationships Page.

The following topics are discussed regarding object types:

8.4.1 Predefined Object Types

Physical Content Management comes with the following predefined object types:

  • All (any of the predefined object types, including custom types). Note that an All object type cannot be assigned to a physical item in this version of the software.

  • Box

  • Document

  • Folder

  • Micro

  • Optical

  • Tape

You can further specify what a storage location can hold using media types. For details, see Section 8.5, "Configuring Media Types."

You do not need to specify an object type when creating a storage location. The storage location can then hold any type of content. If you do select an object type, and you attempt to assign a physical item of a different object type to the storage location, an error message is displayed and you cannot check in the physical item.

8.4.2 Creating or Editing an Object Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to create a new object type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Object Types.

    The Configure Object Types Page opens.

  2. Click Add in the Object Types Table area.

    The Create or Edit Object Type Page opens.

  3. Specify the properties of the object type and click Create.

    A message is displayed confirming the object type was created successfully.

  4. Click OK.

The new object type is now added to the list of object types on the Configure Object Types Page and can be selected on the Create or Edit Physical Item page.

To edit an object type, choose Edit Object Type from the item's Actions menu.

8.4.3 Viewing Object Type Information

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to view information about an existing object type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Object Types.

    The Configure Object Types Page opens.

  2. In the list of existing object types, select the object type and click the Info icon.

  3. When finished, click OK to return to the Configure Object Types Page.

8.4.4 Deleting an Object Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to delete an existing object type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Object Types.

    The Configure Object Types Page opens.

  2. In the list of existing object types, choose Delete Object Type from the Actions menu for the object. To delete multiple types, select the checkbox for the type then choose Delete from the Table menu.

    The object type is deleted, and a message to that effect is displayed.

  3. Click OK to return to the Configure Object Types Page.

8.4.5 Editing Object Type Relationships

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to edit the relationship between an object type and the other defined object types.

To edit object type relationships, complete the following steps:

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Object Types.

    The Configure Object Types Page opens.

  2. In the list of existing object types, select the item to edit and choose Edit Object Type Relationships from the Actions menu.

    The Edit Object Type Relationships Page opens.

  3. Make sure the Assigned Object Types box contains all object types that can be contained within the current object type. If not, select the appropriate item in the Unassigned Object Types box and click Add to move it to the Assigned Object Types box.

  4. Click Submit Update when finished.

    The object type relationships are updated, and the information page opens again with updated values for the Object Type Hold field.

8.5 Configuring Media Types

Media types are an extension to object types and provide a further specification about the type of content that can be contained in a storage location.

When creating a physical item, specify its media type. The available media types depend on the selected object type for the physical item. If you select a media type that is not allowed for the assigned storage location, an error message is displayed and you cannot check in the physical item.

The following topics are discussed regarding media types:

8.5.1 Predefined Media Types

Physical Content Management comes with the following predefined media types:

Predefined Media Types Object Type
Box Box

Mixed
Fax
Paper
Photo
Document
Folder Folder

Mixed
Microfiche
Microfilm
Micro

Mixed
CD
Disc
DVD
BluRay
Optical

Mixed
Audio
Data
Visual
Tape

Mixed
Audio
Box
CD
Data
Disc
Dvd
BluRay
Fax
Folder
Microfiche
Microfilm
Paper
Photo
Visual
All

8.5.2 Creating or Editing a Media Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to create a new media type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Media Types.

    The Configure Media Types Page opens.

  2. Click Add in the Media Types area.

    The Create or Edit Media Type Page opens.

  3. Specify the properties of the media type and click Create.

    A page is displayed confirming the media type was created successfully.

  4. Click OK.

The new media type is now added to the list of media types on the Configure Media Types Page and it can be selected on the Create or Edit Physical Item page.

To edit a media type, choose Edit from the media type's Actions menu. Modify the properties as needed and click Submit Update.

8.5.3 Viewing Media Type Information

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to view information about an existing media type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Media Types.

    The Configure Media Types Page opens.

  2. In the list of existing media types, click Info for the type to view.

The Information Page opens. When finished, click OK to return to the Configure Media Types Page.

8.5.4 Deleting a Media Type

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to delete an existing media type.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Types then Media Types.

    The Configure Media Types Page opens.

  2. Choose Delete Media Type from the Actions menu for the item to be deleted. To delete multiple items, select the checkbox for the item and choose Delete from the Table menu.

    The media type is deleted, and a message to that effect is displayed.

  3. Click OK to return to the Configure Object Types Page.

8.6 Configuring Default Metadata Values: Offsite and Reservations

If a user submits a reservation request for one or more items, a new content item is checked into the repository (in the Reservation security group). This content item automatically enters the Reservation Process workflow, if enabled, and the administrator receives a workflow review notification about the request. For details about creating and enabling the reservation workflow, see Section 7.3, "Setting Up Workflows."

After reviewing the reservation request, the administrator can further process the reservation request in accordance with the applicable procedures within the organization.

You can set the default metadata values for the reservation items that are checked into the repository. Default metadata values can be set for items that are allocated for offsite storage. The definition procedure is the same.

Important:

Offsite storage options only appear if Offsite Storage functionality is enabled. To check the status, choose Physical then Configure then Settings from the Top menu. Verify that the Offsite option is checked.

8.6.1 Setting Default Metadata Values for Reservation Items and Offsite Storage

Permissions:

The PCM.Admin.Manager right is needed to perform this action. This right is assigned by default to the PCM Administrator role.

Use this procedure to set the default metadata values for reservation items checked into the repository. A similar process is used to set metadata values for offsite storage.

  1. Choose Physical then Configure from the Top menu. Choose Metadata then Reservation Default Metadata. To configure offsite storage, choose Physical then Configure then Offsite then Offsite Default Metadata.

    The Default Metadata for Checked-in Reservation or Offsite Entries Page opens.

  2. Set the metadata values and click Submit Update.

The following defaults are set:

  • The default content ID is res or offsite. This is a prefix added to the ID to create the full content ID of an item (for example, res1430068 or offsite3921). This setting cannot be modified.

  • The default content type is REQUEST-PCM Request or OFFSITEREQUEST - Offsite Request.

  • The default title is Reservation for reservations and Offsite Transfer Request for offsite storage. This is a prefix added to the name to create the full title of an item (for example, Reservation My Request).

  • The default security group is Reservation or Offsite.

    Important:

    You can change the content type and security group, but if you do, you need to modify your reservation process and workflow to match the new settings.