Using Change Control
This section discusses how to:
Lock and unlock definitions.
View locked definitions.
Insert comments.
Delete page definitions.
View Change Control history.
You can lock and unlock definitions manually. You can also have PeopleSoft Application Designer lock unlocked definitions for you each time that you open them.
You must have developer or supervisor access to Change Control to lock and unlock definitions. If you have supervisor access, you can also lock all definitions at once, which can be helpful when performing upgrades to ensure that definitions are not modified in the middle of the process.
This section discusses how to:
Lock or unlock an unopened definition in the current project.
Unlock an unopened definition that is not in the current project.
Lock or unlock an open definition.
Lock definitions automatically when you open them.
Lock or unlock all definitions at once.
Locking or Unlocking an Unopened Definition in the Current Project
To lock or unlock an unopened definition in the current project:
In the project workspace, select the Development tab at the base of the workspace window to activate the development view.
Select the definitions that you want to lock or unlock.
Right-click any of the selected definitions and select Lock Definition or Unlock Definition.
Unlocking an Unopened Definition Not in the Current Project
To unlock an unopened definition that is not in the current project:
Select
The Locked Definitions dialog box appears.
Note: The View Locked Definitions menu item is not available if you have restricted access to Change Control.
Select the definition type and user.
You can view all locked definitions of the specified type by selecting all from the User drop-down list box.
Select the definitions to unlock.
Right-click any selected definition and select Unlock Definition.
If Change Control history is enabled, the system will prompt you for comments.
Locking or Unlocking an Open Definition
To lock or unlock an open definition:
Activate the definition.
Select and then select either Lock Definition or Unlock Definition.
Locking Definitions Automatically When You Open Them
To lock definitions automatically when you open them:
Select
Select Lock definition when it is opened.
Now, whenever you open a definition it is locked automatically, unless you have only restricted access to Change Control. In this case, the system will notify you that you have restricted access and will ask whether you want to open the definition in read-only mode.
Note: Like all settings in the Application Designer Options dialog box, this setting controls the behavior on your workstation only. Also, definitions cannot be unlocked automatically; you must always unlock them manually.
Locking or Unlocking All Definitions at Once
To lock or unlock all definitions at once:
Select
The Change Control Administrator dialog box appears.
Select Lock all definitions to lock all definitions or deselect it to unlock all definitions.
Locking all definitions applies a database-wide lock that is tagged with your user ID.
Warning! Selecting this check box removes individual locks from all database definitions. You should proceed with this step only if you have informed all of your developers and given them an opportunity to save any unsaved work.
Click OK.
If you are locking all definitions, the system warns you that this action permanently cancels existing locks. Click Yes.
At times you may want to see a definition even if it is locked.
To view locked definitions:
Select
The Locked Definitions dialog box appears.
Select the user whose locked definitions you want to view.
Select the type to display.
You can view only one definition type at a time. You can also unlock definitions in this dialog box.
When Change Control history is enabled, you can insert comments about an open definition at any time. To help ensure that you insert new comments with each modification, you can instruct PeopleSoft Application Designer to prompt you for a comment every time you save a definition, every time you lock or unlock a definition, or both.
This section discusses how to:
Insert a comment for an unopened definition in the current project.
Insert a comment for an open definition.
Enable a prompt for comments when saving a definition.
Inserting a Comment for an Unopened Definition in the Current Project
To insert a comment for an unopened definition in the current project:
In the project workspace, select the Development tab at the base of the workspace window to activate the development view.
Select the definition for which you want to insert comments.
You cannot insert comments for more than one definition at a time.
Right-click the selected definition and select Insert Comment.
The Insert Comment dialog box appears.
Enter the necessary information:
Field or Control
Definition
Project Displays the name of the current project by default, but you can delete or replace this value.
Incident ID Enter the incident identification to which your development corresponds.
Comments Enter information about why and how you are modifying the definition.
If you click OK, the information is inserted into the definition history and the dialog box closes. If you click Apply, your comments are inserted, but the dialog box remains open. You can then enter comments for another history entry. When you click OK or Apply, the new comments are inserted as a new history entry; they do not replace the previous entry.
Inserting a Comment for an Open Definition
To insert a comment for an open definition:
Use the list in the Window menu to navigate to the definition.
Select
Enter the name of the project and incident ID.
Enter your comments.
Click OK or Apply.
Enabling a Prompt for Comments When Saving a Definition
To be prompted for comments when saving a definition:
Select
The Change Control page appears.
Select Prompt for comments when definition is saved.
Whenever you save a definition, the system prompts you to insert history comments.
Note: This setting affects the behavior on your workstation only. One possible drawback to using this setting is that a definition might be saved many times as part of a single change, and you will be prompted for comments at every save.
When deleting page definitions with Change Control enabled, the system presents this message:
Are you sure you want to delete <definition name> definition? You are presented with Yes and No options. If you click the Yes button and the page is locked, then the system will delete the page. If you click the Yes button and the page is not locked, then this message box appears:
You must lock <definition name> before you may rename or delete it.
You must lock the page before you are allowed to delete it.
If you click the No button, then the system does not delete the definition.
Note: If the definition is a base language page, then the system also deletes all non-base language pages. If the definition is a non-base language page, then the system deletes only the selected non-base language page.
If you select multiple pages to delete but the base language page is not included in the selection, then the system prompts you for lock comments for each selected non-base language page. If you select multiple pages to delete and the base language page is included in the selection, then the system prompts you for lock comments for only the base language page.
For every PeopleSoft Application Designer development definition in the database, you can view its Change Control history.
To view Change Control history:
Select
The History dialog box appears.
Select a definition type and name.
The Definition Name list box contains only the names of PeopleSoft Application Designer definitions that have at least one history entry. Click the Refresh button to ensure that you are viewing the most recent listing of locked definitions.
The history table contains these columns:
Field or Control
Definition
Date Displays when each entry was added.
User Displays who added an entry.
Action Displays why a comment was entered. Five of these Action types—Lock, Informational, Unlock, Rename, and Delete—represent actions that you perform in PeopleSoft Application Designer and for which the system prompts for comments.
Add Denotes an automatic history entry that PeopleTools inserts when a new definition is created. In this case, and whenever the system performs a background lock or unlock, the system does not prompt you for comments. The Comment column contains the text System Generated.
Note: PeopleSoft Application Designer performs automatic locks and unlocks under certain situations. For example, when you rename a locked definition, that definition must be unlocked before it is renamed and then relocked afterward. Likewise, when you delete a locked definition, the definition is automatically unlocked following the deletion. The system does not prompt you for comments during any of these unlock or relock actions, but it adds corresponding history entries automatically.
Copy The system adds this type of history entry automatically when a definition is copied into the current database. In this case, the Project value is the name of the copied project in the source database, and no comments are added.
Project, Incident ID, and Comment Displays the project name, incident ID, and relevant comments.
Double-click a row in the grid to open a history entry, if necessary.
The History Details dialog box appears. This dialog box is a read-only version of the Insert Comments dialog box. You cannot update the information that appears in this dialog box.