Definitions in Documentum

ACLs
An ACL (Access Control List) is a list that contains the names of individual users and/or groups and the object-level permission assigned to each. If the docbase is running with ACL security, then every SysObject has one associated ACL that defines who can access the object and at what level. Additionally, users and type definitions have ACLs. These exist as potential default ACLs for objects created by users.

 

Attribute
The descriptive characteristics that are part of object type definitions and are automatically assigned to every object of that type. Each object type has its own set of attributes. Attributes are divided into two categories: base attributes and custom attributes. When a new object type is based on an existing type, the new object type (called a subtype) automatically inherits all of the attributes, both base and custom, defined for the object type on which it is based. To review the attributes that are part of an object type, use the Object Types dialog box. To review the values assigned to an object's base attributes, use the Attributes dialog box.

 

Branch Version
A variation of a document in the docbase that results when you revise an immutable (unchangeable) iteration of the document.

 

Cabinet
The highest level at which objects in a docbase are organized. Documents, folders, routers, and other objects you create must be stored in a cabinet. Like the file cabinets in an office, cabinets can contain a mixture of objects. A cabinet can be marked private in the Attributes dialog box. A private cabinet is visible in the docbase window only to the owner of the cabinet. But any user with BROWSE permission for a private cabinet can see it in the results area of the Find window.

 

Check In
To store the content of an object in the docbase. Check in also unlocks the object in the docbase. If the object is one you just created, checking it in stores the working file in the docbase as the new object's content. If the object is one that already existed, checking it in can overwrite what is in the docbase or create a new version. Usually the person who checked the object out is the only person who can check it in.

 

Create
The ability to spawn any object in the Docase.

Check Out
To lock an object in the docbase. Only one person at a time can check an object out. When you complete the check out process, the system displays the object in your Work Area window.

 

Copy
To duplicate an object. Copying a folder does not copy any documents in the folder.

 

Delete
Use Delete to remove an object from the docbase or unlink it from the cabinet or folder to which it is linked. Selecting Delete displays the Delete dialog box.

 

Docbase
The repository for all objects created and managed using Documentum. One system can include multiple docbases.

 

Docbase Window
The window that represents the docbase to which you are connected. The cabinets that appear in the Docbase window are the cabinets in the docbase that are accessible to you. The Docbase window opens automatically the first time you connect to a docbase. The next time you connect to the docbase, the window opens if it was open when you disconnected. If it was closed when you disconnected, it does not open automatically when you reconnect to the docbase. You can open the Docbase window after you connect to a docbase using the Docbase command on the Window menu. The name of the docbase displays in the title bar.

 

Document
A single unit of information. What constitutes a unit is up to you--it can be one chapter in a book, one page in an article, or an entire book. A document does not have to contain text. It can also be a graphic, an image, or a spreadsheet, for example. Documents are simple or virtual. A simple document can only include information in one file format. A virtual document can contain information in multiple formats. The same document can go into more than one folder through linking.

 

Edit
Use Edit to edit the content of a selected object. Selecting Edit automatically checks out the object and opens its content for editing.

 

Event
A specific action performed on a specific object. The action can be performed by a user or by the system. For example, when someone checks an object out or checks it back in, that is an event. When the system locks or unlocks an object, that is also an event.

 

Export
To copy a content file in the docbase to an external file. Exporting a file does not destroy the file in the docbase.

 

Find
Use Find to define a single- or multiple-condition query to run against the docbase. Selecting Find displays the Find dialog box.

 

Format
Use the Format command to set the file formats that you will use for viewing and editing content files.

 

Folder
The lowest level at which objects in a docbase are organized. Folders organize the objects assigned to a cabinet. Folders can contain other folders, routers, documents, and virtual documents. The same folder can be stored in more than one cabinet or folder through linking.

 

Inbox
The window that displays any objects requiring your action or attention. These objects are tasks, notifications of events, or items that another user sent you through a custom application.

 

Import
To create a new document and incorporate a file external to the docbase as the content of the document. Importing does not destroy the external file. The file still exists independent of Documentum.

 

Link
To associate objects logically. An object is automatically linked to the cabinet in which it is stored when it is first created. (This cabinet is called the objects primary storage cabinet). You can link folders, documents, compound documents, or routers to additional folders and cabinets. When a cabinet or folder is opened, the contents include the linked object.

 

Lock
To write-protect an object in the docbase. The system locks an object when it is checked out to protect the data in the docbase. A locked object can only be overwritten and unlocked by the person who checked the object out or a superuser.

 

Locator
An object in a docbase that you can use to find documents or other objects. Each locator has a Docobject Resource Locator (DRL) as one of its attributes. A DRL is the address of an object in a docbase.

 

Locator File
A file on your personal computer (local file system) that you can use to find objects in a docbase. Each locator file contains a Docobject Resource Locator (DRL). A DRL is the address of an object in a docbase.

 

Move
To relocate an object. Moving an object unlinks it from the initial location and links it to the new location.

 

Object
A single entity in the docbase. Every object is categorized by object type. How the Documentum system displays and processes the object depends on the object's type.

 

Operation
A procedure created by a system administrator to customize workflows. For example, an operation called Purchase might automatically send a purchase request to user1 if the expense is less than $1,000 and to user2 if the expense is more than $1,000.

 

Permissions
The permits associated with an object that control which users and groups can access an object and the level of access given to them. In a docbase using ACL security, object-level permissions are applied using ACLs, which define permissions for individual users or groups. In a docbase using Unix-based security, the permissions are applied to three categories of users: owner (the person who created the object), group (the members of a user group defined for the object), and world (everyone who uses the docbase). The permissions are not mutually exclusive. To review or change the permissions for an object, use the Permissions dialog box.

 

Preferences
Selections that determine default system behavior for a user in certain very specific situations. Preferences control system behavior in four categories. General preferences determine such behavior as the directory in which working files are stored by default. Format preferences determine what application the system runs when the user opens an object to view or edit it. They also determine the format in which the object is displayed. Font preferences determine the font the system uses to display the contents of a window. View preferences let you choose which attributes are shown in a list view and the order in which they are listed. To see how your General, Format, and Font preferences are set, use the Preferences command on the Edit menu. This displays a submenu of Preferences categories. Select the category in which you interested to display your current choices. To see how your View preferences are set, use the Window Settings command on the View menu.

 

Primary Storage Cabinet
The cabinet in which an object is stored when it is created. Unless you specify an alternate cabinet before you save a newly created object, the object is stored by default in your home cabinet. To find out which cabinet is your home cabinet, select the Users command from the Docbase Info submenu on the Window menu. This displays the Users dialog box.

 

Query
If you want to find all the objects in a docbase or cabinet that have certain attributes or contain certain words, you can use the Documentum query facility. The query facility has two commands:Find and DQL Query. Find lets you specify a single condition query or a multiple condition query by entering values in fields. You don't have to know how to write a DQL query. Find does it for you, to make it easy. Find searches for all objects that meet certain conditions. DQL Query lets you write a query that is as simple or complex as you like. You must know the syntax of DQL commands, such as the Select command, to use the DQL Query command.

 

Route
Use Route to display a submenu that contains two commands: Distribution and Workflow. These two commands let you define a workflow by creating a router. Distribution lets you create a simple distribution router and Workflow lets you create a complex workflow router using a graphical workflow mapper.

 

Router
A description of a work process involving multiple participants who must share information. Generally, a router has at least one document or folder is attached to it, but this is not required. A router describes what must be done to the attached object, when, by whom, and in what order. The individual work items in the process defined by a router are called tasks. Taken together, the task descriptions define a workflow. A router can include multiple tasks or a single task.

 

Session
The period of time during which you are connected to the Documentum system. A session begins when you log on to Documentum. It ends when you quit. Every time you log on, you start a new session.

 

signoff
The Forward Task dialog box lets you confirm that you are forwarding a router. You can also sign off on the task and send a message to the person who is responsible for the next task. Both signing off and sending the message are optional. Regardless of whether you do either one, when you click OK, the system marks your task complete and the router goes to the next person. The Forward Task dialog box displays when you click the Forward button on your inbox and there is another task on the router. If the task you just completed is the last task on the router, you will see the Last Task dialog box instead.
The Last Task dialog box lets you confirm that you have completed the last task defined by a router. You can also sign off on the task and delete the router. Both signing off and deleting the router are optional. Regardless of whether you do either one, when you click Yes or No, the system marks your task complete and the router goes to the next person. The Last Task dialog box displays when you click the Forward button on your inbox and there is no other task on the router.

Smart list
An object created by saving search criteria. It is similar to a saved query object except that you can edit it using the Smart List editor and it displays the objects returned by a search as an expandable hierarchy of cabinets, folders, and documents. Also, unlike a saved query, it cannot be placed on a menu in Workspace.

 

Superuser
The privilege that exempts someone from the restrictions imposed by Documentum security. For example, a user with Superuser privilege has READ permission for every object in the system, regardless of the object-level permissions, and can also change the permissions for any object.

 

Sysadmin
The privilege that entitles someone to perform certain administrative activities and exempts the user from some of the restrictions imposed by Documentum security.

 

Task
A discrete unit of work performed by an individual as part of a business process. Each task description specifies who is responsible for the task, what work is required (for example, "review the attached,") and when the task must be completed. The object on which the work must be performed is attached to the task.

 

Toolbar
A feature that contains buttons that correspond, generally, to commands on the menus. You can turn off the toolbar.

 

Unused Version
A version that is not a component of a virtual document and does not have a symbolic label. (The user defines a symbolic label for a version by making an entry in the Version Label field in the Check In dialog box.)

 

Version
A variation of a document in the docbase resulting from revisions to a previous iteration of the document. When a variation to a document is checked in as a new version of the document, the previous version remains in the docbase. The new version is added. Each version carries a version label. The first edition (the original) is always labeled 1.0.

 

View
Use View to view the content of an object. Selecting View opens the document or object for viewing only; you cannot make any changes to the object's content. The object is not checked out of the docbase.

 

Virtual
A document that contains other documents. The contained documents are ordered within the virtual document and can be simple documents or other virtual documents. The individual documents that make up a virtual document, its components, can have any mixture of file formats.

 

Unlock
To remove write-protection from an object in the docbase. The system unlocks an object when it is checked in (or when the checkout is canceled), making it accessible to anyone with the proper object-level permissions.

 

User privileges
Authorizations associated with an individual user that allow that user to perform additional tasks, such as creating cabinets, that are required to administer and maintain the system. To see your user privileges, use the Users dialog box.

 

Workflow
A process in which a group of people collectively share, manage, and operate on information. Workflow is typically a multiuser, multistage process.

 

Working File (i.e.)Checked Out File
The file on your local file system that contains a copy of the content of a document that you have checked out. When you open the document, the system copies the content to a file external to the docbase. You make changes to the checked out file, rather than the content in the docbase. The content in the docbase can only be changed when the object is checked in. When you create a new document, the system opens an empty working file in which to enter content. The content is not added to the docbase until you check in the new document. Checked out files are usually stored in your checkout directory.

 

Router
A description of a work process involving multiple participants who must share information. Generally, a router has at least one document or folder is attached to it, but this is not required. A router describes what must be done to the attached object, when, by whom, and in what order. The individual work items in the process defined by a router are called tasks. Taken together, the task descriptions define a workflow. A router can include multiple tasks or a single task.

 

Work Area Window
The window that represents your private work area. Objects that appear in the Work Area window are objects that you have checked out and which are locked or new objects that you have created but not yet saved to the docbase. The Work Area window opens automatically when you connect to a docbase. If you wish, you can minimize the Work Area window. To restore the Work Area window, choose Work Area from the Window menu or click the Work Area button.