AX1445

Updating plan file processes for changes to the plan code table

Plan file processes look to the plan code table The table that contains the list of plan codes for a file group. Generally, each code in the table will have a plan file for developing plan data. of the file group to determine the list of plan files to include in the process, and to obtain the description for each plan file.

While a plan file process is active, changes may be made to the plan code table. The process responds to some of these changes automatically, while other changes require manual intervention. These types of changes include:

• Adding new codes to the plan code table, resulting in new plan files to be started in the process
• Deleting existing codes from the plan code table, requiring existing process tasks to be stopped and deleted
• Changing the ShowOnList status for an existing code
• Changing plan code descriptions or the designated description columns for the plan code table

This topic does not discuss changes made to assignment column values within the plan code table. For more information on how these changes are handled, see Regenerating tasks for plan file processes.

Starting new plan files in a plan file process

For standard file groups, if a new code is added to the plan code table, the corresponding plan file is not automatically started in an active plan file process. You must manually activate the new plan file in the process.

NOTE: This requirement does not apply to on-demand file groups. On-demand file groups are explicitly designed to handle the constant creation of new codes and new plan files. If the process is designated as the Plan File Process for the file group, then newly created plan files are automatically started in the process.

To activate a new plan file in an already-started process:

1. From the Process task pane, click View status for the applicable process.

2. In the Process Status dialog, go to the Plan File View tab.

3. In the list of plan files, select the plan file and then click Activate plan files.

   To locate the inactive plan file, the grid must be showing all plan files, not just active plan files. For newly added plan files, the status is Never started. You can use the filter box at the top of the grid to find the plan file, or you can sort and filter the grid using standard Axiom grid functionality.

   If needed, you can select multiple plan files to activate by using the SHIFT or CTRL key. If the selection includes any already-active plan files, those plan files will be ignored.

4. At the confirmation prompt, click OK.

The plan file is started in the process.

Stopping existing plan files in a plan file process

In some cases, you may need to stop an existing plan file in the process because the plan file and its corresponding code were created in error and need to be deleted.

This scenario is most likely to occur for on-demand file groups. Because new plan files are being created constantly by many users, there is a greater likelihood of plan files being created in error. The best way to handle this is to use the Delete Plan Files command to automatically delete the plan file and all related data and system artifacts, including any existing process tasks. For more information on this command, see Deleting plan files from an on-demand file group.

For standard file groups, the plan file must be manually stopped in the process if you intend to delete the plan file and the corresponding code. The plan file must be stopped in the process before the code is deleted, or else it is possible for the plan file to become stalled in the process with no way to fix it (other than stopping and restarting the entire process).

Generally speaking, there is no need to stop a plan file in an active process unless the plan file is no longer needed. If you need to "restart" an existing plan file in a process, you can simply move that plan file back to the first step rather than stopping it and re-starting it. The process activity is retained regardless of whether the plan file is stopped or moved.

To stop a plan file in an already-started process:

1. From the Process task pane, click View status for the applicable process.

2. In the Process Status dialog, go to the Plan File View tab.

3. In the list of plan files, select the plan file and then click Abort plan files.

   You can use the filter box at the top of the grid to find the plan file, or you can sort and filter the grid using standard Axiom grid functionality.

   If needed, you can select multiple plan files to abort by using the SHIFT or CTRL key. If the selection includes any already-aborted plan files, those plan files will be ignored.

4. At the confirmation prompt, click OK.

All existing process tasks for the plan file are deleted, and the plan file is stopped in the process.

NOTE: The On Demand Process Aborted notification (if enabled for the process) is not sent when a plan file is aborted using the Abort plan files action. This is to reflect the difference between an administrator aborting a process that was started in error, versus the owner of an approval step choosing to "deny" the request and stop the plan file in the process.

Changing the ShowOnList status for existing plan files

If a ShowOnList column has been defined for a file group, then when a plan file process is started, only those codes where ShowOnList is True will be started in the process. If ShowOnList is False for a code, then that code will be hidden from the process and not started.

If the ShowOnList status is changed for a particular code while the process is still active, the code is treated as follows:

• If ShowOnList is changed from False to True, then the code is no longer hidden from the process but its plan file is not automatically started. If you want to start the plan file in the process, you must manually activate it as discussed previously in this section.
• If ShowOnList is changed from True to False, then the code is hidden from the process but its plan file is not automatically stopped. The process task for the plan file will remain active in the background. Generally speaking, this does not cause any issues because no users can interact with the process task, but it is not the most efficient way to handle the situation. Instead, the plan file should be stopped in the process first (as discussed previously in this section) and then the ShowOnList status can be changed.

Determining the description values for plan file process tasks

When plan file process tasks are displayed in the Process task pane, each task is identified as follows:

For example, if the key column of the plan code table is Dept, and the current process task is for department 500, and a single column has been designated as a description column, then the task would display as follows:

If the description values change or if the columns designated as description columns change, these changes will be reflected in the tasks for the current process. However, users may need to refresh the Process task pane or log out and log back in before they see a change that was made during the current session.