Using Workspaces

Go Up to Workspaces and Projects

In the Model View tree, your workspace occupies the root node under which all projects and their associated elements appear in a hierarchical format. On creation, you can specify the name and location of your workspace and save it as an *.exw file.

It is easy to create a workspace from the Welcome page that opens when you first start the application. Once you create a workspace you can insert a project or a model. You can then save, open, close, rename, and delete it. You can also open a workspace in read-only mode. You can open the Property View for the workspace.

Using the Workspace Dialog

When you first start ER/Studio BA the splash screen opens followed by the Welcome to ER/Studio Business Architect dialog. You have four options available:

Option	Description
Create a new workspace (with optional project, model, and diagram)	Opens the New Workspace dialog where you create a new workspace, project, model, and diagram. For more information, see Creating a New Workspace.
Express create	You can quickly create a workspace, project, model, and diagram. Select the type of model and enter a name, which is used for the workspace, project, model and diagram that are created. For more information, see Using Express Create.
Import a compressed workspace	You can import and open an existing workspace that you have exported and stored as a compressed file. For more information, see Importing a Compressed Workspace.
Open my last used workspace	Opens the last workspace you worked on. This is the default setting if a previous workspace exists.
Open an existing workspace	Click Browse to open the Browse for a workspace file dialog. The default path is x:/My Documents/EStudioBusinessArchitect/
Get a workspace from the Repository	When selected and OK has been clicked, the ER/Studio Repository log in dialog appears where you can log in and then copy a workspace from the ER/Studio Repository to you local desktop.
Always use last workspace on startup	If you select this option, each time you open ER/Studio BA, the last workspace you worked on automatically opens.

Creating a New Workspace

You can create a Workspace, and if desired, a Project, a Model, and a Diagram as well using the Create a New Workspace dialog. The file extension of a workspace is .exw.

1 On the File menu, select New > Workspace. The New Workspace dialog opens.

Note: When creating a new workspace, if an existing workspace is open, you get a Save Workspace dialog asking if you want to save the current workspace. Click Yes and it is closed. When the previous workspace is closed, all projects, models, and diagrams associated with the workspace are also saved and closed.

2 Enter the workspace name in the first text box.

The default path for workspaces is ...\My Documents\IDERA\ERStudioDataArchitect. You can click the drop-down arrow in this text box to display a list of last used locations.

3 If you want to change the path, click Browse to open the Browse For Folder dialog and select another folder.

Note: You can also create a new folder by clicking Make New Folder.

4 If you want to create an associated project at this time, click Create a project within this workspace. You can now enter the name of that project in the Project Name text box.

Next, you can create a model and associate it with either the project or the workspace. A model is a specific collection of elements related to a modeling notation such as Business Process Modeling Notation or Conceptual Modeling.

5 Click Create a model within this... and then select either Project or Workspace from the drop-down list.

6 Enter the name of your model in the Model Name text box.

7 Select either Business Process or Conceptual from the Model type drop-down list.

8 If you are creating a Business Process model, you can select On in the Validate against BPMN specification box, to enable the validation option.

The validation checks compliance to the Business Process Modeling Notation specifications. For example, if validation is enabled and you draw a message flow from a start event to a task, you get a dialog stating that this is an invalid relationship. If validation is set to Off, it is drawn without notification.

Note: When you select On the following icon is displayed next to the model node in the tree. If you select Off, a different icon is displayed.

9 To create a diagram associated with the model click Create a diagram within this model and enter the name of your diagram in the Diagram Name text box.

Note: If you are creating a Business Process model, notice that the diagram name, the Name of pool with invisible boundary and First lane name text boxes are populated with the same name as the Model name. You can then rename the diagram, the pool, and the lane if desired. If you are creating a Conceptual model, these fields are not available.

In the Business Process Modeling Notation Specification, all business process diagrams must contain at least one pool and each pool is a container for one process. In ER/Studio BA, when you create a diagram, a pool and lane with an invisible boundary are automatically created.

10 Click OK. ER/Studio BA creates the workspace (with the file extension of .exw), project, model, and diagram and adds them to the Model View tree.

Related Topics:

• Creating a Project
• Creating and Working with Diagrams
• Upgrading Workspaces

Upgrading Workspaces

If you have upgraded ER/Studio BA to a newer version your workspace must be upgraded before it can be used. The first time you open an existing workspace, or if you are importing a compressed workspace, the Workspace Upgrade dialog opens. This process updates the version number in the workspace, project(s), model(s), and data source files. It also updates business attribute optionality and connection label justification.

Caution: When upgrading workspaces that have elements created by importing an ER/Studio model, if the ER/Studio model is imported again in version 1.6, new elements are added instead of updating the existing ones.

1 Click Details to view a list of what the upgrade process includes. The upgrades include the following:

• Business Process Modeling process information
• Shape transparency
• Mandatory Property of conceptual modeling relationships
• Unique identifier options for conceptual model business attributes
• Bound element properties for conceptual model business attributes
• Enforcement options for business elements.

2 The hierarchy that appears in the list box includes the workspace and all projects and models. It also includes any reference and external data objects. Clear the check box of any items you want excluded from the upgrade.

Note: Excluded items are removed from the workspace and are automatically upgraded if they are inserted back into the workspace.

3 You have the option to backup your workspace before performing the upgrade. Browse to the location where you want to store your backup. The workspace name is appended with “backup” and has a file extension of .exz.

Note: If the upgrade fails you can import the backup file.

4 Click OK and a progress dialog opens telling you the workspace is being upgraded. A dialog opens telling you that the upgrade was successful.

5 Click Details and a list of all upgraded files open. You can print or save these details.

6 Click OK to close this dialog and the upgraded workspace opens in ER/Studio BA.

Caution: Workspaces created in ER/Studio BA’s beta versions are not upgraded.

Updating Business Elements and Business Attributes

The upgrade processes business attributes first and then business elements, based on rules below.

• For business elements, if the enforce/propagate properties are cleared in the 1.0/1.1 version, the enforcement options should be cleared after upgrade. If the enforce/propagate properties are selected in the 1.0/1.1 version, the enforcement options should be selected after upgrade.
• For business attributes:

• If the “enforce name” property is selected on the original business element, a comparison will be done on each business attribute bound to the business element. If the attribute name matches the business element name, the override property is not set. If the names don’t match, the override property is set.
• If the “propagate data type” property is selected on the original business element, a comparison will be done on each business attribute bound to the business element. If the data type matches the business element data type, the override property is not set. If the data types don’t match, the override property is set.
• If the “propagate description” property is selected on the original business element, a comparison will be done on each business attribute bound to the business element. If the attribute description matches the business element description, the override property is not set. If the descriptions don’t match, the override property is set.
• If the “propagate notes” property is selected on the original business element, a comparison will be done on each business attribute bound to the business element. If the attribute’s notes match the business element’s notes, the override property is not set. If the notes don’t match, the override property is set.

Exporting a Workspace

You can export your workspaces in a compressed format. You can then import that compressed workspace into another ER/Studio BA application on another computer. The file extension for this compressed file is .exz.

1 Open the workspace you want to export in the Model View tree.

2 Select File > Export > Workspace from the main menu and the Export dialog opens.

OR

Right-click the workspace node in the Model View tree and select Export....

Note: If your workspace has been modified and has not been saved, you will get a warning dialog asking you to save it.

3 Select the location where you want to save the compressed file and enter a new file name if desired.

Note: You will get a warning if the compressed files already exist in that location.

4 Click Save and the file is saved to your chosen location. The workspace name is appended with “_backup” and has a file extension of .exz.

Importing a Compressed Workspace

You can import and open a compressed workspace in ER/Studio BA.

1 In the Welcome to ER/Studio BA dialog (which is available when you first start the application), select Import a Compressed Workspace.

OR

From the main menu select File > Import > Workspace.... The Import a Compressed Workspace dialog opens.

2 Enter or browse to the location where you stored your compressed workspace.

Note: The file extension for the compressed workspace is .exz.

3 Enter or browse to the location where you want to extract the selected workspace.

Caution: You will get a warning in the dialog if you attempt to extract a compressed workspace file to a folder that already contains one or more files included in the compressed file.

4 Click OK and compressed workspace is opened in the Model View tree.

Note: If you are importing a workspace into a newer version of ER/Studio BA, a Workspace Upgrade dialog opens.

Using Express Create

When you first open ER/Studio BA a Welcome to ER/Studio Business Architect dialog opens. Instead of using the Create a New Workspace option, you can use the Express Create which streamlines the creation process by creating a workspace, project, model, and diagram all named the same.

Note: The Express Create option is only available in the Welcome to ER/Studio Business Architect dialog.

1 Select the Express Create option in the Welcome dialog.

2 Select the Type from the drop-down list box. Your choices are Business Process and Conceptual.

3 Enter the name you want to use for your new workspace, project, model, and diagram.

4 When you click OK the created workspace, project, model and diagram appear in the Model View tree. The diagram is also opened in the Diagram View as a tabbed view. The palette associated with the model (i.e., either Business Process or Conceptual) is available in the Palette view.

Saving a Workspace

A workspace is saved under the following conditions:

• When a workspace is created, it is automatically saved.
• When you close a workspace or exit the application, you are prompted to save your current workspace.
• When you open an existing workspace or create a new workspace, if another workspace is open, you are prompted to save that workspace.

When you make additions or changes in a workspace, you can save your workspace by:

Clicking Save () on the main toolbar.

OR

Right-clicking the workspace name in the Model View tree and selecting Save Workspace.

OR

From the main menu, select File > Save.

Opening a Workspace

Only one workspace can be opened at a time in the Model View tree.

Choose File > Open Workspace.

Press Ctrl +O.

Right-click in the Model View and select Open Workspace. The Open dialog appears listing all available workspaces in the default location.

5 Expand the Workspace folder you want to open and double-click the file with the extension .exw. This is the file extension for all workspaces.

Note: If you have another workspace open, you are prompted to save the current workspace. When you click Yes, that workspace is saved and the newly selected workspace is opened in the Model View tree.

Closing a Workspace

Choose File > Close>Workspace.

Right-click the workspace node in the Model View and select Close.

Note: If you have made additions or changes to your workspace you are prompted to save your current workspace. Click Yes and the workspace and all the project, model, and diagram data is saved and closed.

Renaming a Workspace

1 Right-click the workspace node in the Model View tree and select Rename Workspace.

Note: If your workspace is unsaved a Save Workspace dialog opens telling you that you must save your workspace before it can be renamed.

2 In the Rename Workspace dialog, enter the new name in the text box and click OK.

Deleting a Workspace

When you create a new workspace, a folder with the workspace name is created in your default location, for example ...My Documents\ERStudioBusinessArchitect\workspace name.

To delete a workspace:

1 Right-click the Workspace name in the Model View tree and select Delete.

2 In the Confirm Workspace Delete dialog you have three choices.

No, I do not want to delete the workspace.	The delete action is canceled and no action is taken.
Yes, and also delete the associated files under x:\.Documents and Settings\....	This option lists the entire path where the workspace files are stored. When you choose this option, the workspace is deleted from the Model View tree and the folder containing the workspace information is also deleted.
Yes, but do not delete the associated files.	The reference to the workspace in the Model View tree is removed but the workspace folder still remains in the directory.

3 Select the option you want and click OK.

Note: If you select the third option, you can reopen the workspace by going to the location where you workspace is stored, for example ...My Documents\ERStudioBusinessArchitect\workspace name, and double-click on the workspace name.

Using Read-only Workspaces

A workspace will be opened as read-only under the following conditions

• Open the same workspace on the same computer
• Open the same workspace on a network

When you open a workspace that is already open, you will be informed that the workspace is in use but that it can be opened as read-only. You can then choose to open the workspace as read only or cancel the operation..

When you open workspace as read-only, the workspace name is shown in the title bar with a read-only indicatory. You can view the models in the workspace, generate reports, but can’t make any changes to the workspace data or diagrams. All import mechanisms are also disabled.

Note: A temporary marker file is used to track the open status of a workspace (~MyWorkspace.etwtemp), created in the workspace’s folder on the file system.

The following actions are NOT allowed in a read-only workspace:

• Import of Visio, CSV, or ER/Studio
• Deleting from menus, diagrams, model views, or property views
• Create actions from menus, diagrams, model view, property views
• Cut/copy and paste
• Accessing Property Views
• Diagram creation
• Editing a Diagram (moves, deletes, editing, show/hide)
• Dropping elements from toolbars or palettes
• Drag/drop in model view within metadata or diagram nodes
• No drag/drop from model view to diagram
• Any save actions
• Setting of properties from right-click menus

The following actions are allowed in a read-only workspace:

• Export
• Generation of a new web report
• Rename - Project, Model, Diagram, Independent Sub-process, Invisible Pool.
• Insert Project/Model, Insert Model.
• Creating Impact Analysis Diagram.