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Automating Methods Using the Aras Scheduler Service

Sam Poe — Thu, 09 May 2019 13:45:00 GMT

Do you need to run a method at a specific time? How about a database intensive task you want to run after hours? Or a notification service? With the subscriber feature Aras Scheduling Service, you can do all of those things. It's as simple as installing the service (included in your CD Image), setting up a config file, and selecting the methods you wish to run.

What is the Scheduling Service?

The Aras Scheduling Service is a Windows Service that runs in the background of your computer. It can automatically run Innovator Methods on a set schedule, which you set up using the attached config file via XML. The service is extremely flexible and can even run methods on multiple servers from a single instance. The Windows Event Viewer is where you can find logging, status, and error messages for the service once you get it running.

Installing the Service

The service can be installed from your Innovator CD image in the Scheduler folder using the below instructions:

Copy the files listed below (or see the above image) into a separate folder on your hard drive (Ex: C:\Aras_Scheduler) to access them outside of the CD image.
1. InnovatorService.exe
2. InstallService BAT
3. rserv BAT
4. InnovatorServiceConfig.xml
Update the config file to match your Innovator instance. If you have multiple servers, set up each you wish to access using a separate <innovator> tag. (See the next section for further details on how to set up the file.)
1. Unless you have an existing method you wish to test, it is suggested you leave the test method included in the file in place until you complete setup. It will give you a point of reference to trace any issues.
Run the file InstallService.bat using a command window opened with administrator privileges (R-click on cmd.exe, Run as Administrator...). You will need to change the operating directory to where the file is stored using a cd command. (Ex. cd C:\Aras_Scheduler)
1. You will be prompted for a user name and password. This is the user that will need to have clearance to run Windows Services. Use a full domain user name (domain_name\user_name).
2. If the installation fails, the user name and password might be incorrect or do not have the right privileges to run the program. Check your credentials or contact your system administrator.
When the installation runs successfully, you can access the Services Management Console (Search for Services in the Start menu) to make sure the service named “Innovator Service” has been added to system.
1. You can then configure when to start the service, set to Automatic, etc. You can also edit the user name and password that will execute this service or use the Local System Account.

Configuring the Service

gist.github.com/.../0a6a5e574c75b192ae7a17972f7b8feb

To configure your scheduling service just the way you want it, you will need to edit the InnovatorServiceConfig.xml file. Below is a list of the available settings while an outline of the file is in the gist above.

Tag	Purpose	Notes
<innovator>	Defines an Innovator Server instance	There can be multiple instances available to a single service instance
<server>	The URL of your innovator server	Ex: http://localhost/myserver
<database>	The database your server uses	Ex: InnovatorSolutions
<username>	The username allowed to run the methods	Ex: admin
<password>	Password for associated user	Ex: innovator
<method>	a method to run according to the below schedule	Ex: My Method
<months>	The months (1-12) where a method should run, comma delimited list. Note: for all the date values (months, days, hours, minutes) a * can be used as a wildcard to indicate that level should be ignored.	Eg. 3,6,9,12 with a <days>last</days> would run at the end of the standard quarter.
<days>	The days of the week a method should run (0-6, Sunday-Saturday), comma delimited list. Special value: "last" for the last day of the current month
<hours>	Hours of the day a method should run (0-23), comma delimited list	Eg. Hour 0, minute 02 would be an example for a midnight batch run to update from a federated source
<minutes>	Minutes of the hour a method should run (0-59), comma delimited list. Special value: "once", will be run once within the hour, but exactly when is not important	Eg. 0,15,30,45 would fire every quarter hour
<eventLoggingLevel>	Sets level of detail for event logging: 0 = Service startup announcement and error messages from Innovator only 1 = Announces the start of every Method run 2 = Detailed reporting of every run cycle.
<intervalMinutes>	Indicates how often, in minutes, the Windows Scheduler should test the timing logic (1-60)

Note: For more information, please see Scheduler file in the documentation folder in your CD image folder. Information about event logging and the Windows Event Monitor can be found here as well.

Example: Email Notification

In this example, we are sending out an email for incomplete work at midnight every night. This could easily be changed to a more database intensive task that you do not want to run during normal operational hours.

Scheduler Code

gist.github.com/.../b677b98979afbd991842c1434dadcb9f

To explain the above: the method listed is executed at midnight plus 2 minutes to account for any timing errors. The Service Interval check is set for 1 minute to ensure the method will run on time, and detailed reporting (service level 2) is set in case anything goes wrong. [Midnight runs are typically used for important server or database heavy events that would bog down service during normal business hours. And if anything goes wrong, someone will need to be notified.]

Email Send Method Code

gist.github.com/.../091f002d2fbfecd79b98d48f5b7455b2

The Method uses an existing method of the Email Item class to send an email message to a user (in this case, it’s the admin). It takes an existing email Item in Innovator (which already contains a Subject, Sender, and Body) and sends it from that stored User to the User specified. There is a catch in case there is an error in the process, such as one of the Users not having an email listed.

Let us know how you use the Aras Scheduler Service, or what types of jobs you need to automate.

Looking for more Aras information?

Subscribe to our blog and follow @ArasLabs on Twitter for more helpful content! You can also find our latest open-source projects and sample code on the Aras Labs GitHub page.

how to create identity?

Former Member — Wed, 25 Sep 2019 10:28:20 GMT

how to create a project group and how to add users to the project group and also how to give permissions for the users??

Display Workflow Signoffs in Email Notification

Premal — Fri, 14 Jun 2019 11:29:02 GMT

Hello,

I want to display workflow signoffs of the item into the email body, when email notification is triggered on workflow activity. How do I achieve it?

Aras Innovator 12 UI Updates

Sam Poe — Thu, 29 Aug 2019 21:00:00 GMT

At the end of this Spring, Aras released Aras Innovator 12, which included a massive user interface (UI) overhaul. We also recently released the first service pack for this new version, for subscribers. We’re going to quickly run through some of the major changes in this post. Oh, and if you haven’t already, go try out the current open release here!

Navigation Changes

A. Table of Contents (TOC)

When opening Aras Innovator 12 for the first time, you will need to click on the large red button in the upper left to open the table of contents (TOC). You can now pin the TOC open or hide it to save screen space.

The other major change to the TOC is that each option is now a series of pages or leaves. If you want to go straight to your selection’s search page, click the icon to the right of the name. If you want to see what options are available for the item (including creating a new item), click on the item name itself. Direct dashboard entries that have no leaves have an open icon next to them to show they directly open a page in a new tab. This replaces the ability to have category forms in v11 and will be expanded upon in future releases to make the TOC more customizable.

B. User Menu

The main menu bar from v11 has been reorganized into a new user menu that can be accessed by clicking on the in the upper-right. This icon will either be the user's initials or their picture if one has been entered. The categories are as follows:

Preferences: This covers certain optional settings such as wildcards, updating your password and e-signature, and toggling the visual collaboration panel.
Actions: Global actions, such as resetting timezone data, reside here.
Reports: Reports that have a global scope reside here.
Admin: The API references have been moved here, as well as some admin actions, like rebuilding keyed names, that were under the v11 tools menu.
Licenses: The licensing menus have been moved out of admin and to their own menu in v12.
Activate Feature: This is a direct link to the input license key dialog.
Help: This link will now take you straight to Just Ask Innovator.
Session: This will pop up a window with your login name, database name, and server address.
About: The about page with copyright, software version, and build number info.

C. Tab Updates

The other two major navigational changes are regarding tabs. First, the entire Aras Innovator instance now runs in its own browser tab! No more opening a pop-up window. Second, you can now have multiple searches, instances of an item, or even inbaskets open at the same time.

Editing and Toolbars

Claiming and Editing

When interacting with an item in v12 there are now visually distinct view and edit modes. There is also the claim/unclaim flag, we'll explain all this below:

View Mode

The claim/unclaim flag shows if an item has been claimed for editing. This does not activate edit mode, just stakes a claim until removed.
- If you are coming from a previous version of Aras Innovator, claiming replaces the concept of locking and unlocking an item.
The edit button toggles between view mode and edit mode. If an item is unclaimed, pressing edit will also claim it, if available. The edit mode buttons are discussed below.

Edit Mode

Once in editing mode, the user can do one of three things:

save the item, with the claim remaining open.
save and unclaim the item by pressing Done (This is the Save/Unlock portion of the old Save/Unlock/Close option in v11.)
or, discard their changes to the item, unclaiming it. (This option was available in v11 on unlocking, but has been brought forward to the menu to be more visible.)

Common Items

The rest of the items on the toolbar have been reorganized from their places in v11 to fall under a new cohesive unit that is related to their function or have remained unchanged. We've noted where they came from in v11 for reference.

The refresh button will refresh the client view of the item, but will not write to the database. (Unchanged from v11.)
The promote button will manually promote the item, opening a dialog box of available options, or a warning if no options are available. (Unchanged from v11.)
Navigate
- This is the new menu for entries like Versioning, Where Used, and Lifecycle/Workflow that navigate to other places. In v11 these were part of the Views main menu.
Reports
- This is a list of all item-level reports for the itemtype, similar to the v11 Reports pulldown.
Sharing
- Any export functions, as well as copying the ID or a link to the item are in here. In v11 these were part of the File main menu or the item's properties page.
More
- This menu contains the Item Properties link and submenus for Permissions and permanent Deletion/Purge. Also, below the divider, are any Actions for the selected item.

Pick/Create Item & Relationships Grid

The toolbar for editing the relationship grid has been altered with more dedicated icons and fewer menus. Also, the tabs on/off settings have been replaced with an accordion option to show/hide the two main sections of the screen. The new buttons are as follows:

The icon is Pick [Existing Item], this is the same as the Pick option in the old v11 dropdown menu. This option is used to create a relationship to an existing item.
- If you need to Replace a related item of an existing relationship, right-click on the row and select the Replace option.
- An example of this usage would be adding a component part to an assembly part's BOM. The part you are adding to the relationship should already be pre-existing.
The icon is Create [New Item], this is, again, the same as the Create option in v11. This option is used to create an entirely new related item on the fly. After pressing the button the user will fill in the properties of the new item in the grid. Saving the current parent item will then save the new related item.
- A usage example here would be adding a line to a purchase order. You've never needed to buy staplers before and now need to add an entry to the system for the current request.
The icon is to Delete a relationship. This does not affect the related item.
Also, for those familiar with xProperties and Redline View, those options are now available directly on the relationship toolbar with the and respectively.
The Share icon is where the export functions live, as in the main item toolbar.

One further thing to note concerning the relationship grid: the ability to edit entries is tied to the edit status of the parent item. If the parent item is in view mode, related items can only be claimed for future editing. If the parent item is in edit mode, the related items may be edited via the context (r-click) menu. There are options to edit, done editing, and discard changes, similar to the main item toolbar.

Favorites

You may have noticed in the above picture that there was a new star icon next to the itemtype name. This is for the new Favorites functionality: Saved Searches are now Favorites. While Aras is planning to expand this functionality in future service packs, to act more like your browser’s bookmarks, the current implementation works as follows:

Select your itemtype and run your search.
Press the star icon to save the search.
A dialog will come up asking you to name your search and the view permissions.
The star will light up, and the favorite search will be available from the carat menu next to the itemtype name next time you need to use it.

Looking for more Aras inspiration?

Subscribe to our blog and follow @ArasLabs on Twitter for more helpful content! You can also find our latest open-source projects and sample code on the Aras Labs GitHub page.

Life Cycle Basics

Sam Poe — Wed, 07 Aug 2019 19:00:00 GMT

What is a Life Cycle?

A life cycle is a map of the possible states an item can be in and the ways it can transition between them. Here in Aras, that is a State and a Transition, respectively. A life cycle map can be as simple as switching between Inactive and Active (and back again), or even more complex than the Engineering Change Request (ECR) life cycle pictured below:

Aras Standard ECR Life Cycle

States

Item State Settings

A life cycle will need a start state, although it does not require an end or released state. Opening a new life cycle map will set the start state to the existing default state. To move the start state flag, right-click on the state you wish to flag and select “Set as Start State” from the menu. Beyond that requirement the following settings are available at the state level:

Released
- When an item is “Released,” the item will no longer be editable unless it is bumped to a new version. This will also reset the life cycle.
- Example: An item could be "released" when a change request is completed on the item, resetting the life cycle for the next generation of the item.
Not Lockable
- States in Aras can also be set to “not lockable” so that no edits can be made while in that state, however this is different from released as the item is not versioned for this lockout.
- For example, if set for an “In Review” state on a Part item, it would not allow edits in the traditional sense, requiring users to make changes via the change management system.
State-level Permissions
- Setting a permission at the state level will override the default permissions set on the item.
- In the above example with the CM lockout, a state-level permission could be applied to only let members of the change management group edit the item in question.
Workflow
- A state can be set to start a workflow, as opposed to the workflow starting automatically at item creation.
- The setting could be used to start the item's workflow after it is manually promoted out of an idea holding state and into active engineering.
History Template
- An item’s history template can also be overridden here. Note: the original item must have a template set for this to occur.
Email
- A state can be set to send an email, similar to other places in the system; however the syntax is somewhat different as noted in the referenced blog post.
Item Behavior
- The Item Behavior setting is special. This toggle controls item versioning, if it has been set on the ItemType. It will also need to be set on the relationship, in addition to on the life cycle. There are 4 possible settings:
  - Fixed- The source item (in the current state) points to a specified generation of the related item.
  - Float- The source item (in the current state) points to the latest generation of the related item.
  - Hard Fixed- The behavior is Fixed, as described above, and cannot be changed by any subsequent states in this life cycle.
  - Hard Float - The behavior is Float, as described above, and cannot be changed by any subsequent states in this life cycle.

Transitions

Transition Settings

Regarding transitions, these are used to show the available paths an item can take and set the roles that can promote them. The following options are available:

Role
- Set the role allowed to perform promotions. The role will be shown as the transition “name” on the map.
- The Aras PLM role is a special identity that is used when a life cycle is completely automated and tied to a workflow. Items cannot be promoted manually using this role and any state promotions must happen via the workflow.
Server Methods (Pre/Post)
- You can use transitions to activate server methods (pre- or post-transition).
- Server methods can be used on transitions for validation purposes, not allowing the item to be promoted until required information is in place.
Get Comment
- Present an option for the user to comment on the promotion. These comments can be found in the item history report by going to Navigate (or View v11) > History on the item. (This report is only available if item history is set to at least default on the item.)
Email
- Once again, emails can be sent from a transition as well as a state. Email will be sent on entering the next state.

Applying a Life Cycle

One more thing to cover: how do you add your life cycles to your item? It only takes a few steps:

Open your ItemType and select the Life Cycles tab.
Select (or pick) your existing life cycle map.
Save the ItemType.

The first life cycle listed without a classification is automatically the default. But what if you are using item classification? Well you can add a life cycle for each classification,using the previous three steps, just choose the classification after you have added the life cycle and that will override the default.

Conclusion

So, with what a life cycle is explained, how should you use it? In general practice, the life cycle of an item, or item sub-class, should cover all possible states the item could be in, from New Idea to Obsolescence. Any outliers like where an item can be cancelled or placed on hold should be covered as well. Furthermore, when designing a life cycle every effort should be made to get feedback from those who will be using the system.

Have more questions? Comment on the blog below or reach out on the forums.

What's in a Workflow?

Sam Poe — Tue, 30 Jul 2019 14:00:00 GMT

If you’ve been doing research into PLM Software, one word will come up a lot: workflow. Automated workflow, manual workflow, subflow…etc. All business have workflows, from a mom-and-pop store to an aerospace R&D company. If you have a complex, or even simple process, you have a workflow. Well what is a workflow, then?

What is a workflow?

Standard Aras ECR Workflow

Workflows are how work gets done in the Aras system, with activities being assigned to Identities or Team roles for work. Then by having those assignments voted on, delegated, escalated, or otherwise re-assigned to move along the request path, once the work is complete. Workflows should mirror the real life process as much as possible, both for readability, and for completeness. Once a workflow has been started, and items have been created, overriding an active workflow with an updated one would need to be done with care.

When trying to frame out the workflow for your item, there are several best practices to keep in mind:

Use a cross-functional team to plan your process. Get people from every level of the process to give input. What the managerial team sees is not necessarily what the end user will need.
Diagram the process, maybe even using the Aras workflow interface; a picture is worth a thousand lists. Lists miss activity interactions and even simple things like the ability for a state to have an option to cancel the process.
Do you need a workflow? Workflows are great when your process has a list of tasks, reviews and/or signoffs, but not all processes require a workflow. If you have a very fluid process or one that does not require much user input, it may be best to skip the workflow.

With that said, a workflow is really just a chain of 2 things, along with a lot of additional options: Activities and Paths.

Activities

Workflow Activities are the units of work to be done in a process. Your activities need to encompass all possible steps in the process, even the low probability ones. A workflow will also need at least one start and one end activity. Activities can also be flagged as automatic if they do not need any human intervention. With this option set, the voting path set as default will then be followed.

An Activity will also need an Assignment, whether that is set here on the workflow to an identity or team, or left up to the Managed By role to assign ad hoc, somebody needs to be told they have something to do. Automatic activities do not need assignments. You can also distribute the voting weight per assignment. An in-depth discussion of voting weight will occur in a later blog post.

Paths

Paths are just that, the lines between activities. These represent the possible voting paths to the next (or previous) step in the process. Paths in Aras can have methods attached to them, and can also be set with an authentication lockout; either to verify the work is complete so users don’t just click through, or to protect an override path like the fast track approve in the example above. Another reason for authentication is an override path: these paths override the voting structure and force the workflow down a specific path, such as cancelling the workflow.

Configuring Your Workflow

Workflow Settings

As you can see in the above picture there is much more to an activity that just a name and an assignment. A couple of these are not really optional, but they are outside the original discussion of activities and paths so they end up here.

Activity Settings

Start and End Activity
- At least one of each is required for a working workflow. Aras supports multiple start and end activities.
Automatic Activity
- When activity activates, it is automatically voted down the default path, unless directed by an outside method.
Remaining Items
- The delegation, refusal, and wait for all items will be covered further in a future blog post.

Path Settings

Default Path
- This path is the default chosen for an automatic activity. Even if you do not have a default activity, it is best practice to designate a default path.
Override Path
- This path overrides all other voting weights. Usually used with an authentication option.
Pre & Post Methods
- Methods can be attached to the path to execute before or after voting is complete.

Regarding what must be filled out for a workflow to execute are the following: the paths and activities (and 1 start and 1 end flag), the assignments, and the lifecycle promotions (if the workflow is attached to a life cycle). Tasks are a place to list out tasks for the user to perform, but they have no bearing on system function unless they are set to required (and this will force the user to check them off before the assignment can be voted forward).

Conclusion

Workflows are a key component of the process modeling engine that makes Aras Innovator, well, innovative! Workflows can be customized to fit nearly any business process you could need. Stay tuned for our upcoming blog post on making your Aras workflows even more useful with features like notifications, custom logic, and subflows. If you’d like to learn more about Aras Innovator and workflows in particular, check out these resources:

The Forums
ArasLabs Github Examples:
- Automatic Workflow Assignment
- Automatic Workflow Branching
- Automatic Workflow Launch (from event or action)
- Automatic Workflow Email Notification
- Start Specific Workflow (based on user selection)
- Workflow Timeline View
- CUI Workflow Vote
Just Ask Innovator: Open Help > Just Ask Innovator (just Help in v12) and browse or search for “workflow”

What's in a Workflow?

Sam Poe — Tue, 30 Jul 2019 14:00:00 GMT

What is a workflow?

Standard Aras ECR Workflow

When trying to frame out the workflow for your item, there are several best practices to keep in mind:

Use a cross-functional team to plan your process. Get people from every level of the process to give input. What the managerial team sees is not necessarily what the end user will need.
Diagram the process, maybe even using the Aras workflow interface; a picture is worth a thousand lists. Lists miss activity interactions and even simple things like the ability for a state to have an option to cancel the process.
Do you need a workflow? Workflows are great when your process has a list of tasks, reviews and/or signoffs, but not all processes require a workflow. If you have a very fluid process or one that does not require much user input, it may be best to skip the workflow.

With that said, a workflow is really just a chain of 2 things, along with a lot of additional options: Activities and Paths.

Activities

Paths

Configuring Your Workflow

Workflow Settings

Activity Settings

Start and End Activity
- At least one of each is required for a working workflow. Aras supports multiple start and end activities.
Automatic Activity
- When activity activates, it is automatically voted down the default path, unless directed by an outside method.
Remaining Items
- The delegation, refusal, and wait for all items will be covered further in a future blog post.

Path Settings

Default Path
- This path is the default chosen for an automatic activity. Even if you do not have a default activity, it is best practice to designate a default path.
Override Path
- This path overrides all other voting weights. Usually used with an authentication option.
Pre & Post Methods
- Methods can be attached to the path to execute before or after voting is complete.

Conclusion

The Forums
ArasLabs Github Examples:
- Automatic Workflow Assignment
- Automatic Workflow Branching
- Automatic Workflow Launch (from event or action)
- Automatic Workflow Email Notification
- Start Specific Workflow (based on user selection)
- Workflow Timeline View
- CUI Workflow Vote
Just Ask Innovator: Open Help > Just Ask Innovator (just Help in v12) and browse or search for “workflow”

Scheduler Service Issues

dortego — Thu, 20 Jun 2019 17:46:19 GMT

I'm trying to automate the execution of a server method, but after installing the Aras Scheduler Service and filling out the InnovatorServiceConfig file, the scheduled method does not execute. I can see InnovatorService trying to execute the method in Windows Event Viewer. It says "Method finished" in Event Viewer, but then shows the error "The last run was less than an Interval ago" and the method does not execute. I can execute the method fine and see changes in the database if I go to Actions>Run Server Method in Aras, but the attempts by the Scheduler Service make no difference to the specified database.

An Overview of Server-Side Method Events

Sam Poe — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 20:00:00 GMT

So you’re a programmer with an installation of Aras Innovator and you’ve built this amazing server-side method. You want to replace some AML calls to do that one thing, just the way your company needs… how do you go about attaching it to the process? You set an Event.

So, what’s this Event thing?

Server (or Client, but that’s a different blog post) Events are methods that are triggered by a particular system action, whether that is a Get, Edit, Save, et cetera. Setting another method on these events will extend or override the existing system functions. Events can be set at the Itemtype, Lifecycle, Workflow, and other levels. For the purposes of this blog post, we are going to work with Itemtype Events. You can add a Server Event from the tab of that name from the Itemtype’s definition.

There are 3 main types of Events in this category: Before, After and On. Before Events are typically used for validation. After Events are used to extend the processing of a returned AML statement after the response has been sent to the client. On Events override standard system behavior and are very complex to create as you must completely replace the behavior you are overriding as the system will no longer employ the out of the box methods for those events.

Generally, the Events fire in the following order:

You make open or otherwise interact with an item.
You click the button for the event in the UI. (New Item, Save, etc.)
The OnBefore event is called.
The OnX system function is called and the item is saved to or requested from the DB.
The OnAfter event is called.
A server response occurs, usually in the form of a SOAP message.

Lets cover the possibilities by group next, after a note about event versions:

Concerning Event Versions

The Event versions are something that was added to Aras version 11. Version 1 causes all events to execute normally, however Version 2 makes some specific changes:

OnAfterAdd, OnAfterUpdate, and OnAfterVersion are amended so that they will only run once per modification action, instead of once per item listed.
OnBefore and OnAfterCopy events will clone or version both the item, and the relationships attached to it, as compared to the normal usage that only replicated the item selected.

OK, back to the Events, I’ve provided some examples below to help make sense of them:

Add

OnBeforeAdd:
- This is going to be for validation, essentially, does this new Item contain all the requested data in the proper format before it can be saved? If not, warn the user and do not complete the add statement.
OnAfterAdd:
- A quick example here would be throwing in an email notification that the item was created successfully.
OnAdd:
- The probable case for overriding the Add method would be federation, and telling the system to add by pulling the relevant data from another system.

Update and Version

Note: Update actions will also trigger versioning if enabled.

OnBeforeUpdate:
- Reason: validation. Is all the right stuff there? If No, cancel and inform the user.
OnAfterUpdate:
- Formatting the data the user sees that needs to be different than what was returned from the AML.
OnUpdate:
- This is used in federation to pull info from an outside source into the Aras system.
OnBeforeVersion:
- Validate that there are still numerals left in the versioning schema to use, otherwise cancel action and warn user.
OnAfterVersion:
- Write to a log file that the current user created a new version at the current timestamp.

Delete

OnBeforeDelete:
- This can be used to cache a deleted item either to another system or for output in an email notification after the delete happens (you can send an email using an OnAfterDelete method).
OnAfterDelete:
- This would be used for any cleanup the system may miss, perhaps deleting related items or comments that are bound indirectly to the item but need to be removed when it is.
OnDelete:
- Federation usage: remove item from both systems.

Get

OnBeforeGet:
- Use this to verify a get query before running it. Especially if you are using some form of federation, you want to make sure the data exists before querying it.
- Another example here would be validating permissions on some kind of external or even internal access, if you need to go beyond the standard permissions model.
OnAfterGet:
- You can use this to show a response page or a count of returned items outside system parameters.
OnGet:
- Probably the only case in which you want to override the get function is in a federated environment and need to query data in a non-standard manner.

Promote

OnBeforePromote:
- Validate data exists before allowing the status change.
OnAfterPromote:
- After promotion, change form displayed to another that shows different data, per the new state.
OnPromote:
- Federation usage: change the state of the item in both databases.

Copy (AKA Cloning or Save As…)

Copying an item will also trigger an Add event.

OnBeforeCopy:
- Verify the user is from an expected permissions group, otherwise cancel action and warn user.
OnAfterCopy:
- Append a comment to show the item was branched from original item N.

Lock and Unlock

OnBeforeLock:
- Validate with the user has permissions or the item is in the correct state to be edited.
OnAfterLock:
- Write to a log file that the current user locked the item at the current timestamp.

OnBeforeUnlock:
- Validate the user has saved their changes recently.
OnAfterUnlock:
- Write to a log file that the current user unlocked the item at the current timestamp.

Method

These Events are triggered by an AML statement where the action is a custom method. The other side of this, is that this event will fire on any custom statement without some bypass logic in the code. I will leave this case to expert users who need it.

Special Event: GetKeyedName

There is one last Event that is non-standard: you can override the GetKeyedName event to assign a keyed name of your own devising. This will override the Keyed Name Order, if one was set, in the system as well. This event happens whenever an item is added or updated.

A Note on Event Ordering

The Event Ordering field gets its own section as it can easily break things and I also need to cover how to debug it. Generally speaking, the events you have listed will execute in the order listed. The main usage being if you have multiple instances of the same event and need them to fire in a specific order, such as an OnBeforeUpdate method for a specific Itemtype and then a general OnBeforeUpdate method for all Itemtype in your organization. The odd case is events that trigger multiple actions, such as Update and Copy which can also call Version and Add events alongside themselves. You might need to order these very specifically, and to debug them the best way is to add a line with a WriteDebug or StreamWriter call to log the order that events are actually executing in and then correct the ordering error via the field. As always, it is best to test functionality in another environment before loading new methods onto a production server.

Wrap Up

Well, that should cover almost everything on the list, the dropdown list anyway. If you're using 11.0 SP15+, you may notice some additional events not covered in this blog. These events are specific to the new synchronization actions added with Data Snyc Services (DSS) in 11.0 SP15. You can read more in the blog post here, and find some tips on writing server-side methods here. Oh and one more thing regarding AML and events: calling any of the above actions via AML will also trigger all of the above events, running the statement is the same as clicking the button, so if you are doing a lot of batch running of statements, you need to account for your event triggers.

Any further questions? Let us know in the comments, or on the Forums.

An Overview of Server-Side Method Events

Sam Poe — Tue, 18 Jun 2019 20:00:00 GMT

So, what’s this Event thing?

Generally, the Events fire in the following order:

You make open or otherwise interact with an item.
You click the button for the event in the UI. (New Item, Save, etc.)
The OnBefore event is called.
The OnX system function is called and the item is saved to or requested from the DB.
The OnAfter event is called.
A server response occurs, usually in the form of a SOAP message.

Lets cover the possibilities by group next, after a note about event versions:

Concerning Event Versions

The Event versions are something that was added to Aras version 11. Version 1 causes all events to execute normally, however Version 2 makes some specific changes:

OnAfterAdd, OnAfterUpdate, and OnAfterVersion are amended so that they will only run once per modification action, instead of once per item listed.
OnBefore and OnAfterCopy events will clone or version both the item, and the relationships attached to it, as compared to the normal usage that only replicated the item selected.

OK, back to the Events, I’ve provided some examples below to help make sense of them:

Add

OnBeforeAdd:
- This is going to be for validation, essentially, does this new Item contain all the requested data in the proper format before it can be saved? If not, warn the user and do not complete the add statement.
OnAfterAdd:
- A quick example here would be throwing in an email notification that the item was created successfully.
OnAdd:
- The probable case for overriding the Add method would be federation, and telling the system to add by pulling the relevant data from another system.

Update and Version

Note: Update actions will also trigger versioning if enabled.

OnBeforeUpdate:
- Reason: validation. Is all the right stuff there? If No, cancel and inform the user.
OnAfterUpdate:
- Formatting the data the user sees that needs to be different than what was returned from the AML.
OnUpdate:
- This is used in federation to pull info from an outside source into the Aras system.
OnBeforeVersion:
- Validate that there are still numerals left in the versioning schema to use, otherwise cancel action and warn user.
OnAfterVersion:
- Write to a log file that the current user created a new version at the current timestamp.

Delete

OnBeforeDelete:
- This can be used to cache a deleted item either to another system or for output in an email notification after the delete happens (you can send an email using an OnAfterDelete method).
OnAfterDelete:
- This would be used for any cleanup the system may miss, perhaps deleting related items or comments that are bound indirectly to the item but need to be removed when it is.
OnDelete:
- Federation usage: remove item from both systems.

Get

OnBeforeGet:
- Use this to verify a get query before running it. Especially if you are using some form of federation, you want to make sure the data exists before querying it.
- Another example here would be validating permissions on some kind of external or even internal access, if you need to go beyond the standard permissions model.
OnAfterGet:
- You can use this to show a response page or a count of returned items outside system parameters.
OnGet:
- Probably the only case in which you want to override the get function is in a federated environment and need to query data in a non-standard manner.

Promote

OnBeforePromote:
- Validate data exists before allowing the status change.
OnAfterPromote:
- After promotion, change form displayed to another that shows different data, per the new state.
OnPromote:
- Federation usage: change the state of the item in both databases.

Copy (AKA Cloning or Save As…)

Copying an item will also trigger an Add event.

OnBeforeCopy:
- Verify the user is from an expected permissions group, otherwise cancel action and warn user.
OnAfterCopy:
- Append a comment to show the item was branched from original item N.

Lock and Unlock

OnBeforeLock:
- Validate with the user has permissions or the item is in the correct state to be edited.
OnAfterLock:
- Write to a log file that the current user locked the item at the current timestamp.

OnBeforeUnlock:
- Validate the user has saved their changes recently.
OnAfterUnlock:
- Write to a log file that the current user unlocked the item at the current timestamp.

Method

Special Event: GetKeyedName

A Note on Event Ordering

Wrap Up

Any further questions? Let us know in the comments, or on the Forums.

Take Warning - No Way Of Properly updating ARAS Packages w/ open 11.9

Former Member — Tue, 19 Dec 2017 19:47:12 GMT

We setup on 11.9 a few months ago, but did not install all of the packages. We did install change management. After getting all setup and operating, we found out that we had somehow ended up with an old version of the change management package. We were unable to add documents to our change order. How we ended up with the older version is mystery to me, because in 2015 these changes were in place. community.aras.com/.../ We figured, okay... lets get our packages updated to make sure everything is correct. As it turns out... there's no reasonable way of installing the current primary packages (change management, project management, quality mgmt...etc) without having a subscription for the most recent version. The installation platform doesn't offer any means or method of grabbing the most recent compatible versions of the packages for the open versions of ARAS 11.9. Worse... when attempting to install an older version, it squawks that version we have is incompatible, while the newer version says the same thing. In one case, it was looking for 7 or 5, the other is looking for 11. It even managed to leave a bunch of files on the server after the failed installation that jacked up my current installation. The impact matrix had an updated html fileand some new JS that refused to allow me to move a ticket from in planning to in work state throwing the following error.

Failed to get the Express ECO EDR Grouping ItemType.

I've been through all of the client events & cannot find the source of that error. To boot... the client event that was restricting items on the ECO is now gone. It's truly gotten sideways on this setup. I'm getting real dang close to an implementation working here and proving that the cost of the licensed PDM/PLM implementation can pay itself off in spades... but I just had to roll my server back a week to fix the fowl ups that the package update system created. Luckily my data loss isn't huge. Can you guys please add some option in the ARAS update tool that allows you to pull down the most recent compatible versions of the standard packages for the current public release of ARAS (11.9)? Seriously... this has put me in an awful position and if it hadn't been for catching it early, it could have been the end of this project.

setting up rev sequence with regular expression

smruti.barik — Thu, 13 Jun 2019 13:27:28 GMT

How to set Regular expression in Revision sequence ? Like to set rev A to Z , do we need to type All the letters or we can do like A B C... Z ?

add colum

eduardo.romero — Wed, 29 May 2019 15:32:07 GMT

Hello,

I have this problem, I need to show a column in my search grid, but this column is in a relationship

I can do this?

Configuring Aras Innovator Email Notifications

Sam Poe — Thu, 06 Jun 2019 22:00:00 GMT

So, you’ve installed Aras Innovator, and you have some great new workflows to try out! Now, how do you get a notification to your users that they have something to do? Aras can email them for you! All you need to get started is a user account with the email address set and a workflow (or lifecycle) to test with.

The Basic Template

First, let’s set up an email item in Aras. Navigate to TOC > Administration > Notification > EMail Message and create a New Item. Let’s go over what’s on this form real quick:

Name: What the Email Item will be named in the database
From User: the User account that will send the email.
- While you can choose any user, if the user does not have an email set, sending will fail and generate a notification in the system log file, if you have logging turned on. General practice is to set this as an Admin account so users know they are receiving a system notification, as opposed to an email from, say, someone in IT.
Subject: the subject line of the email
Body Plain: if you want to create a plain-text email with no HTML or other enhancements
Body HTML: If you want to create an enhanced email
Query String: if you want to use XPath and AML to directly query the current item and pull back variables to use in the above items.

You need to Name the item, give it a Subject, and set some relevant Body Text; then save it. That’s it! You have the minimum information needed to add a notification to a flow. This basic email is enough to use, but let’s cover a more advanced setup as well, in the next section.

Customizing The Template

Email Message Form (edited for visibility)

Left Half of Form

Right Half of Form

OK, so what are all those odd strings in the above pictures? (I borrowed our OOTB Change Management email.) Those are query strings that pull information from the current context item; which allows your email to dynamically populate with relevant information when generated. The body of the email is also a great place to use these references. You can see in the above example that most of the body text isn’t even coming from the template itself, but from calls back into Aras. As long as you format the calls correctly, the above turns into a nice email like this:

A couple of quick examples, since the usage here diverges, depending on if you are writing to interact with a lifecycle or a workflow:

Lifecycle:
- ${property_name}
  - Returns the defined property value from the current item associated with the current lifecycle
  - ex: ${item_number}
Workflow:
- ${Item[@type=“ItemType”]/property_name}
  - Returns the defined property value from the specified ItemType associated with the workflow.
  - ex: ${Item[@type=“ECR”]/item_number}
- XPath
  - You can also use XPath style calls with workflows. There is an explanation from W3C here. Just translate the XML thinking into your current Item-relationship setup.

There are also some system-wide variables that should work with either type:

$[USER]
- Current Logon Name
- ex: jpublic
$[ALIAS]
- Alias identity of the current user
- ex: John Public
$[DATE]
- Returns a string containing the current date
$[TIME]
- Returns a string returning the current time

Applying Email Templates

Now to put an email template to work, you will need to assign it to a Lifecycle or a Workflow. Since these assignment methods are somewhat different, I’ve separated them out below:

Assigning an email to a Lifecycle:

Open your Lifecyle and lock it for editing
Select a state or transition (icon or line, respectively) when you want to generate an email
Click the Configure Email text
Pick/Create your email message
(Optional) limit the email to instances of a single itemtype, (blank) will apply to all itemtypes
- For instance, if a LC is shared between two items, you want to send separate emails for Type A versus Type B.
Select the destination Name (Identity) to send the email to. You can add multiple identities per email or use group identities.
Save your work.

Assigning an email to a Workflow:

Open your Workflow and lock it for editing
Select an activity (icon)
Select the Notifications tab
Pick/Create an email message
Set the Event you want to fire the email
- On Activate: when the workflow reaches this activity (I consider this the default)
- On Assign: when an assignment is generated for this activity
- On Refuse: when the assignment is refused by the user
- On Delegate: when the user delegates the assignment
- On Vote: when a user votes on an assignment
- On Remind: when an overdue reminder is triggered
- On Due: when an activity reaches its due date based on duration settings
- On Escalate: when an activity is escalated
- On Close: when the workflow exits the activity
Pick the Target of your email:
- All Assignments: Email is sent to everyone assigned to the activity, regardless of status. Will also send to all members of an assigned group
- Open Assignments: All assignees that have not completed the task (typically used with On Due or Remind)
- Closed Assignments: All assignees that have completed the task (typically used with On Close)
- From Identity: for escalation or delegation: user from whom the assignment is being delegated or escalated
- To Identity: for escalation or delegation: the user to whom the assignment is being delegated or escalated
- Alternate: the identity is statically defined in the field nearby
Save your work.

With the above steps complete, you can test your new flow, which should be generating emails.

The Final Setup

You will also need an email queue software such as Papercut if you don’t want to test by sending yourself a flood of emails. The default queue SMTP setting on installing Aras should be enough for testing, but if you encounter any issues please refer to the installation documentation. You will also need to make sure your IIS server has SMTP installed.

You can also set a debug parameter in the server to generate files, if you do not wish to use the above software option. In your InnovatorServerConfig.xml file in your installation location there is a line for <disabled_operating_parameter key="email_debug_option" value="file"/> remove the word disabled and the now-leading underscore from the tag and save the file. The “emails” will show up in your temp folder. (Remember to turn it back off when you are done testing!)

A few more settings: The default setup value of “queue” will send mail from the IIS mail queue which should be enabled by default. If you wish to set up a different mail server you can either enable this during your Aras install, or by altering the Mail tag in your server config file.

As an aside: you can also generate emails on a schedule using our Aras Scheduling Server. You can reference this blog post on how to set one up!

Conclusion

Setting up email notifications from Aras so you can notify your users of work is integral to getting work done in a PLM environment, and, with Aras Innovator, simple to set up. It can also be extended to pull from the system itself to save you work customizing each email type that needs to be sent.

Do you have any improvements on sending emails from Aras Innovator? Let us know in the forums or in the comments below!

Sam Poe さんの グループ アクティビティ

Nice Blog!

Automating Methods Using the Aras Scheduler Service

What is the Scheduling Service?

Installing the Service

Configuring the Service

Example: Email Notification

Scheduler Code

Email Send Method Code

Looking for more Aras information?

how to create identity?

Display Workflow Signoffs in Email Notification

Aras Innovator 12 UI Updates

Navigation Changes

A. Table of Contents (TOC)

B. User Menu

C. Tab Updates

Editing and Toolbars

Claiming and Editing

View Mode

Edit Mode

Common Items

Pick/Create Item & Relationships Grid

Favorites

Looking for more Aras inspiration?

Life Cycle Basics

Aras Standard ECR Life Cycle

States

Item State Settings

Transitions

Transition Settings

Applying a Life Cycle

Conclusion

What's in a Workflow?

What is a workflow?

Standard Aras ECR Workflow

Activities

Paths

Configuring Your Workflow

Workflow Settings

Activity Settings

Path Settings

Conclusion

What's in a Workflow?

What is a workflow?

Standard Aras ECR Workflow

Activities

Paths

Configuring Your Workflow

Workflow Settings

Activity Settings

Path Settings

Conclusion

Scheduler Service Issues

An Overview of Server-Side Method Events

So, what’s this Event thing?

Concerning Event Versions

Add

Update and Version

Delete

Get

Promote

Copy (AKA Cloning or Save As…)

Lock and Unlock

Method

Special Event: GetKeyedName

A Note on Event Ordering

Wrap Up

An Overview of Server-Side Method Events

So, what’s this Event thing?

Concerning Event Versions

Add

Update and Version

Delete

Get

Promote

Copy (AKA Cloning or Save As…)

Lock and Unlock

Method

Special Event: GetKeyedName

Sam Poe さんのグループアクティビティ