Applications

Required Roles Application Administrator and/or Repository Manager
Required Rights
(by category)		 Applications
Perspective  Configuration Management
Access  DROPS Server →  Artifacts →  Applications

Applications are the entities that contain the imported artifacts you intend to deploy. They are the highest level container in the artifact repository and house components, which contain individual artifacts. Each version of an artifact is contained in a release.

The ideal way to manage an application is to insure it contains all of the pieces necessary to complete the set of content you will deploy, no matter what their type, source location or target destination is.

Example

You are deploying a software product that uses a web-based interface to connect to a server. In order to function correctly, your application might contain HTML files, the .css style sheet and all of the files required to install and launch the server. Even if these elements were created on different machines or if they must be deployed to different machines, they should be contained in the same application.

All of the applications defined for the current server are nested under the parent  Applications node in the  Configuration Explorer. They are listed, from top to bottom, in the order in which they were created.

Follow the subsequent steps to create a new application.

Step 1   Right-click the  Applications node in the  Configuration Explorer, then select  Create a new application.

Step 2    Define the two mandatory properties: the App. Code and App. Name. These values can be edited later.

Important!

Two applications cannot have the same ID. Every application’s code must be unique.

Step 3   [Optional] Select an application template to apply to the new application.

Reference

For more information about application templates, refer to Application templates

Step 4    Click Finish.

Result   New applications are nested under the  Applications node.

To edit an application’s details, either right-click on it then select Edit, or double-click on it. Save the changes (, Ctrl+S or File > Save). The  application editor is opened where all of the entity's details are managed.

The Application editor

The information that defines applications can be edited at any time by users with the rights to do so.

Reference

For more information about the different actions managed from the tabs in the  application editor that are not described in this chapter, refer to:

App. Code
A unique string that identifies applications. This label is used throughout DROPS to select the entity.
App. Name
A string used to give additional information about the application. This label is used throughout DROPS to select the entity.
Packaging Type

This value is used by the deployment processes when the Package Type field is set to From application.

Set the default packaging type at the application-level to assure that every time the application is delivered by a deployment process, the packaging will be consistent. However, this default value can be overridden by choosing another value in the Package Type field when defining the deployment process (see Edit global deployment process properties).

[default] Unitary packaging deploys only the release selected.

Cumulative packaging deploys the selected release and all of the preceding releases that have been imported into DROPS but have not yet been deployed to the target environment. A ‘cumulative packaging type’ deploys only the most recent artifacts in each release. This ensures that all of the most up-to-date artifacts are deployed and that the deployed application is accurately updated.

Example

You have imported 4 versions of your release but only deployed the first version to the target environment. The 4th release contains the same version of all the artifacts that the 3rd release contains, except for one file. Now, you select the 4th release to deploy and choose a ‘cumulative packaging type’. Result: The 2nd, 3rd and 4th releases will all be deployed in order, finishing with the most current version of every artifact and release. The artifacts from the 3rd release are all current except the one, which is deployed with the 4th release.

Current Release

Select the release that should be considered current for the application. If Current Release is selected during the import process, the release defined in this field will be updated with refreshed artifacts. Instead of creating a new release with the new versions of the artifacts, DROPS replaces the old versions in the current release with the new versions.

The current release will also be used automatically if an external file management system calls DROPS and uses the current release to import its deliverable(s).

Important!

The Current Release field is not automatically populated with the most recently imported release.

Click the  browse button to open the Release Selection dialog, which is prepopulated with the releases that have already been imported for the current application.

You may use the Automatic Release Resolver to use a script to resolve release number when importing artifacts.

Reference

For more information about the import process, refer to About importing artifacts.

For more information about managing releases, refer to Releases.

Default Imported Version file name

Predefine which version of an artifact to import. This option can also be defined in the artifact Import wizard's Component Filter page by listing all of the versions from the potentially many external applications.

Alternatively, you can create a properties file that connects the desired version from the external system to the appropriate component and strategy in DROPS. This properties file must be stored on the same system that the DROPS Server is installed on.

Important!

You can use variables, however the syntax in this properties file must follow this standard: component code.strategy code=external version.

Example

If version V1.10.00 should be used for a component with the code "Commands" and the strategy with a code "import", the syntax for one line of the properties file must be Commands.import=V1.10.00.

Enter the full path to the defined properties file in this field. The External file name field in the artifact Import wizard will be automatically populated with this path.

Reference

For more information about the Artifact Import wizard, refer to Importing artifacts immediately by application.

Edit applications: Release flat mode

If the application is set to display releases in flat mode, the follow options are available to define how release versions are managed.

Release Number Template

Releases are organized by number. This version number is set by default when the release is created during the import process and is based on a predefined template that can include fixed text and/or variables. When a release is created multiple times, the version number increases corresponding to the variables defined in its application. The user defines which part of the version to increment for each import in order to conform with the increasing release versions according to the Automatic Release Number Generation Algorithm.

The default value for this field is defined in the Preferences menu (refer to Defining the default release number template).

To manually override the global default value and create a new default value for this application, edit the field to include any combination of fixed text and/or the version variables available.

  • ${major}
  • ${minor}
  • ${build}
  • ${revision}
  • ${qualifier}
Important!

The hierarchy of these variables is always in this order: major > minor > build > revision. Be sure to keep this in mind when entering the order of the variables in your template.

The Automatic Release Number Generation Algorithm is an intelligent counter that increases the version number of each release by one automatically according to the element selected to increase. When a new release is imported the algorithm follows these rules:

  1. IF ${major} variable is used and IF the selected element to increment is Major:
    • Increment the value in the Current Major Item field of the related application.
    • Use the new value as the replacement value.
    • Reset all values lower than major to 0.
  2. IF ${minor} variable is used and IF the selected element to increment is MINOR:
    • Increment value in the Current Minor Item field of the related application.
    • Use the new value as the replacement value.
    • Reset all values lower than minor to 0.
  3. IF ${build} variable is used and IF the selected element to increment is BUILD:
    • Increment the value in the Current Build Item field of the related application.
    • Use the new value as the replacement value.
    • Reset all values lower than build to 0.
  4. IF ${revision} variable is used and IF the selected element to increment is REVISION:
    • Increment the value in the Current Revision Item field of the related application.
    • Use the new value as the replacement value.
  5. IF ${qualifier} substitution variable is used:
    • IF the Qualifier field in the related application is empty, assign ${timestamp}.
      • Replace ${timestamp} variable with the current date and time.
      • Use the new value as the replacement value
    • IF the Qualifier field in the related application contains content, use that content.
Qualifier

The value entered here replaces the ${qualifier} variable when a new release is created. You might use it as a suffix or a prefix for your version number.

If the Qualifier field is left blank, the ${qualifier} variable will be automatically replaced by the special tag ${timestamp}. The timestamp variable represents the current date and time.

If you enter a value into the Qualifier field, the timestamp variable will not be included in the release version unless you include it manually in the Qualifier field.

Example

Version-${timestamp}_

Current Major, Minor, Build and Revisions Items

The values entered in these fields replace the ${major}, ${minor}, ${build} and ${revision} variables when a new release is created.

The values are automatically updated when a new release is imported and the version number is increased. However, these fields can be updated manually to control the next generation of your release Package. Only whole numbers can be entered in these fields.

Edit applications: Release branching mode

If the application is set to display releases in branching mode, the follow options are available to define how release versions are managed.

Release Tree Depth

Define the maximum number of sub-levels allowed for releases. In branching mode, minor releases can only be created from major releases and only a defined-number of sub-levels can be created.

Example

If you want to allow the system to create three sub-levels of release versions, the highest you will be able to go is xx.xx.xx. If you add a 4th sub-level to the release branching you will be able to add the level xx.xx.xx.xx.

Release Policy (tab)

If the release branching mode is activated, the Release Policy tab is added to the Application editor. To edit the template for each level, select it and click the Edit button.

Reference

For more information about branching mode, refer to Working in release branching mode.

Warning!

Deleted applications cannot be accessed or recovered. Any associated components are also deleted.

To delete an application, right-click its node in the  Applications menu, then select  Delete. Click OK to confirm or click Cancel to keep the application.