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About the Siebel Configurator Constraints View

The Constraints view has three parts:

• Constraint Listing
• Constraint Template Listing
• Constraint Statement

Constraint Listing

When you go to the Constraints view, all the constraints defined for a product are listed. You can edit, copy, and delete the constraints in the listing.

Constraint Template Listing

When you click New Constraint or New Template in the constraint listing, the constraint template listing appears. This listing contains the pre-defined constraint templates in the Constraints view. It also lists any templates you have created.

The constraint templates provide the basic constraint types you need for creating configuration constraints. For example, there are constraint templates for exclude constraints, others for require constraints, and so on.

Each constraint template contains variables that you replace to create a configuration constraint. You can replace the variables with items from the customizable product, links, resources, expressions, or other templates.

Constraint Statement

When you select a constraint in the constraint template listing and click Continue, the Constraint Statement form displays. It contains the constraint template you selected. You build a configuration constraint by replacing the variables in the statement with items from the customizable product, with resources or links, with operators, or with other constraints. To move to another variable in the constraint statement, click it. The currently selected variable in the constraint statement displays with square brackets around it. Variable that are not current but can be selected, display an underline when the cursor is placed on them. When you select an item for a variable, it displays in red.

The items you can replace a variable with are grouped in the "Insert a" tab, located below the Constraint Statement. When you move between variables in the constraint, the groupings change to reflect your allowable choices.

In some templates when you replace a variable with a value, typically an expression, the Compound button becomes active. The Compound button lets you nest expressions within expressions. For example, you could use the Compound button to add two variables together where the second variable is itself an expression that adds two variables.

Overview of Using the Constraints view

When you create constraints, you use the constraints view in the following way:

1. In the constraint template listing, select the desired constraint template.
2. Select the first variable in the constraint.
3. Click the desired item grouping.
4. Pick the product, operator, or constraint template you want to insert.
5. Move to the next variable and insert the desired item.
6. When you are finished, save the constraint.