In a project, you can define attribute types which can be used for issues. The attribute types are then available for use with all issue types in the project, but you select which issue types will use them. This article describes how to define attribute types for use with issues.
Prerequisites
- You must have "Change" access rights to the CMS project OR the Administrator role in the server.
Attribute Types Setup
Attribute types are created under the Setup menu. In the project, click Setup and then select Attribute Types. The page will display a list of all existing attribute types in the project. All of the options for working with attribute types can be found in the right-click context menu.
Creating an Attribute Type
To create a new attribute type, right-click in the Attribute Types pane and select Create Attribute Type.
The Create Attribute Type dialog provides a number of settings for defining the attribute. They are described below. Define the attribute and click OK to save. The new attribute type is now available for use with any issue type in the project.
SID: The attribute's unique identifier. Can include letters, numbers and special characters (maximum length: 8 characters) although it is recommended that only letters (A-Z) and/or numbers (0-9) are used. (required)
Name: Name of the attribute as seen by the users. (required)
Data type: The number of occurrences allowed. The Data type is required and the options are:
| Single | The attribute can have one value. |
| Array | The attribute can have several values. Allows duplicates. |
| Set | The attribute can have several values from a validated list called a "Range". |
Attribute type: The type of attribute. A drop-down list of available types is provided. A selection is required and the following types are available:
| Attribute Type | Valid Data Types | Description | Support for Default Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boolean | Single | Supports the values "True" and "False". | Yes |
| Computed | Single | Supports any type that can be defined according to the Path expressions in SystemWeaver. This type of attribute can be used as a Default attribute and not an Additional attribute. | No |
| Custom | Single | Reserved for attribute types with custom support in the swExplorer client. | No |
| Date | Single | Supports date values, presented the format yyyy-mm-dd. | Yes |
| Enumeration | Single, set | Provides users with a validated list of values to select from. | Yes |
| External reference | Single, array | Supports named file and URL references. | Yes |
| Float | Single | Supports decimal values. Does not support numeric range. | Yes |
| Identity | Single | Supports automatic generation of integer values according to a Sequence ID. Such values are unique within the specified Sequence ID. Also, once set, Identity attribute values cannot be changed. | No |
| Integer | Single | Supports natural values. Does not support numeric range. | Yes |
| RVF (RichView Format text) | Single | Supports fully formatted text, including pictures. This is the format generally used in Descriptions in SystemWeaver. Whenever needed this format is automatically translated into the RTF format used in MS Office applications. | Yes |
| String | Single, array | Supports non-formatted strings, up to 100 characters long. | Yes |
| Text | Single | Supports non-formatted strings, including new lines. | Yes |
| User | Single, set | Supports the value domain of all users defined in the SystemWeaver server. | Yes |
| XML | Single | Supports XML formatted text. | Yes |
The following standard options are optional:
Info: A text box used for administrative information, e.g., the purpose of the attribute, who created it and when.
Default value: Set a default setting.
Allow empty value: Indicates if empty attribute values should be acceptable or not. Check the box to allow an empty value.
Editor width: Sets the default width for displaying the attribute values. 200 is a good starting point.
Editor min height: Sets the min height for displaying the attribute values. Mostly applicable to Text type attributes where there may be multiple rows of text.
Editor max height: Sets the max height for displaying the attribute values. Mostly applicable to Text type attributes where there may be multiple rows of text.
Restricted: Check this box to hide the attribute from users in the standard views. Such information would typically be visible in some other form.
Fixed font: Used in special cases to indicate that a fixed size font like Arial should be used for presenting the value. An example can be attributes used for code snippets.
There may be additional settings available for specific attribute types. They are described in separate articles.
Modifying Attributes
You can modify many of the settings for existing attributes at any time by selecting Edit Attribute Type in the right-click context menu.
What's Next?
To find out how to associate an attribute type with a specific issue type so that users can see them in the issue editor, see Setting Attribute Types in Creating Issue Types.