Document Connections — Extended Exercises

Required Data

This exercise requires that you have IFS Document Management installed with another IFS Application module with objects that are document aware (e.g. IFS Project, IFS Plant Design, IFS PDM).

This exercise also requires that you have completed the following exercises:

1. Create Document Title and Revision
2. Create Document File
3. Create Project (named PR001)
4. Create Design Object

Main Exercises

Purpose: The purpose of this lesson is to show how a business object anywhere in IFS Applications can be connected to the document(s) that describes it.

Windows:
Document Revision/Object

Connecting Object to an Existing Document

A document connection can be created either from the document or from the object. Since the document-object connection is a two-way connection, it will be visible from both sides. In this exercise, we are going to create the connection from the object's point of view. The document that we are going to connect is already registered and checked in to IFS Document Management.

1. Select the object (e.g. a project activity in IFS Project, an engineering part in IFS PDM, or a plant object in IFS Plant Design).

2. Click the Attachments tab on the context pane below the window (Attachment Panel).

3. Click the Documents link.

4. Right-click and then click Attach.

5. In the Attach Documents dialog box, query for the Assembly Instruction (Document Class of XXINSTR, where XX is your initials, and Title of Assembly%), and click OK.

6. Select the first revision of the Assembly Instruction in the Attach Documents dialog box and click OK.

Note: The document revision was inserted in the Attachments/Documents window.

Viewing a Connected Document

You can perform several commands on the connected documents in the Attachments/Documents window. In this exercise, you are going to view the document. Note that you can also check the document in and out or print it.

1. Query for the object to which you connected the document in the previous exercise.

2. Click the Attachments tab on the context pane below the window (Attachment Panel).

3. Click the Documents link.

4. Right-click, point to File Operations, and then click View Document.

5. Select to view the document in its original application, and click OK.

6. If the Choose Macro dialog box opens, click Skip Macro.

Result: The document is displayed in its original application.

Connecting an Object to a New Document

You can create and connect new documents that are not registered in IFS Document Management in the Attachments/Documents window.

1. Select the object to which you wish to connect the document (e.g., a project activity, a plant object, or an Engineering part).

2. Click the Attachments tab on the context pane below the window (Attachment Panel).

3. Click the Documents link.

4. Click New.
5. In the window that opens, select the following document class from the List of Values and enter the title, as shown in the following table:

6. Click Creates.

Note: The new document data is inserted in the Attachments/Documents window.

7. Select the new document record, right-click and point to File Operations, and then click Edit Document.
8. In the Choose Document Application dialog box, select the Word application. An empty Word document is opened. 
9. Insert the following text into the new document: Technical Specification of XXXXXX. (where XXXXXX is the object name)
10. Save the Word document by selecting Save As in the File menu.

Note that it is important to save the word document as a .doc file.

11. Close Microsoft Word and return to IFS Applications.
12. Select the row with the Technical Specification in the Documents tab, and right-click, point to File Operations, and then click Check In Document.

Result: The document file is checked in, and connected to the selected document record and the selected business object.

Connecting an Object to a New Document

An easy way to connect new documents to a business object is to simply drag them from the Windows Explorer into the Attachments/Documents window in IFS Applications. Note: This does not work on a Citrix or Terminal Server solution.

1. Open Microsoft Word and enter the following text in a blank document: Project Specification.
2. Save the document by pointing to Save As on the File menu. Save the file to the C:/Temp directory with a name of Project Specification XX.doc (where XX is your initials).
3. Close Microsoft Word and return to IFS Applications.
4. Select the business object that you want to connect to the document.

5. Click the Attachments tab on the context pane below the window (Attachment Panel).

6. Click the Documents link (if it is not already open).

7. Open the Windows Explorer and browse to the location of the document file (C:/Temp).
8. Select the document file (Project Specification XX.doc) and drag it from Windows Explorer to the Documents window. The Create New Document window is displayed. 
9. In the Document Class field, select 500 (Specification) from the List of Values.

Note: The system has suggested the filename as the document title.

10. Click OK.

Result: A new document record is created, the document file is checked in, and the document is connected to the business object.

Navigating Between an Object and a Document

Now you are going to verify that the connection you created in the exercise above is  visible from the document, and navigate between the document and the object information.

1. Open the Document Revision window from the Navigator.
2. Perform a query (F3) to find the Assembly Instruction (e.g., Document Class = XXINSTR, where XX is your initials, and Title = Assembly%).
3. Click the Objects tab.
4. Review the object connection(s). The business object that you connected in one of the exercises above should be visible.
5. Select the object connection, and right-click and then click Object Details.

Note: A window displaying information about the selected connected object is opened.

6. Select the business object.

7. Click the Attachments tab on the context pane below the window (Attachment Panel).

8. Click the Documents link and select the Assembly Instruction document connection.

9. Right-click and then click Document Revision.

Note: You are now in the document revision.

Connecting a Document to a Business Object

In the same way as we connected the business object to documents, a document can be connected to one or several business objects. 

1. Open the Document Revision window from the Navigator.
2. Perform a query (F3) to find the Assembly Instruction (e.g., Document Class = XXINSTR, where XX is your initials, and Title = Assembly%).
3. Click the Objects tab.
4. Create a new row (F5).
5. In the Object field, query for the object to which you wish to connect to the document and click OK.
6. For the new object connection, select Latest Revision in the Update Revision field.

Note: The Update Revision field determines whether the object connection is updated when a new revision of the document is created. The value set in the Update Revision field will be considered as the default but the user can override its effect by using the Create New Revision Wizard and Release Wizard. There are three different values for the Update Revision field:

Note: A business object can only be connected to one revision of the same document.

Quick Object Connect

Business objects can be connected faster using the Connect Object tab in the Document Revision window.

1. Open the Document Revision window from the Navigator.
2. Perform a query (F3) to find the Assembly Instruction (e.g., Document Class = XXINSTR, where XX are your initials, and Title = Assembly%).
3. Click the Connect Object tab.
4. Enter these values in the Object ID fields corresponding to the following object types.

   Object Type	Object ID
   PlantObject	The Object ID of the object that you created for this exercise
   Project	PR001

5. Save the record (F12).
6. Click the Objects tab and note that the objects have been connected.