Rule check-out facility
PRPC applications can be developed by a small team working side-by-side, or by a large team who may be physically separated.
The optional rule check-out facility supports an application development team by allowing multiple members of the team to evolve one application, in a coordinated way. It offers two levels of coordination:
- Personal RuleSets with the check-out feature.
- Using a flow rule for rule check-in.
With an additional privilege, team members can use the private check-out feature with their personal RuleSets. See check out.
Personal RuleSets and check-out
The ability to check out rules takes effect for rules in a RuleSet if a developer's Operator ID instance and the RuleSet instance have the appropriate checkbox settings:
- Select the Use check out? box on the RuleSet rule form.
- Selected the Allow rule check out? box on the Operator ID data form.
Like many source code control systems, this facility allows only one person to check out, work on, and modify a rule instance at a time.
If check out is in effect, application developers check out a rule before modifying it, and later check it in when finished modifying it. While a rule is checked out, other users and developers continue to see and execute the original version. Checking out a rule causes PRPC to make a copy in the developer's personal RuleSet.
Check-out does not apply to some rule types, even when the Use check out? box is selected:
- Classes (Rule-Obj-Class rule type)
- RuleSets (Rule-RuleSet-Name rule type)
- RuleSet versions (Rule-RuleSet-Version rule type)
- Libraries (Rule-Utility-Library rule type)
- Access of Role to Object rules (Rule-Access-Role-Obj rule type)
- Application rules (Rule-Application rule type)
The Rule Check-in flow
The check-out feature described above lets each developer team member decide when a revised rule is tested enough to check in. No other developer can review or test the revised rule while it is checked out. Additionally, developers check in related rules in one by one; potentially some users could execute some the updated rules before other related rules are checked in.
For greater control over development, your team can create or identify a flow rule that applies to rule check in. This feature may be valuable to ensure that changes to the rules in a production system, in a sensitive development effort, or in any large or distributed team effort are properly controlled.
Bulk check in
Often, developers modify two or more rules to support an application change. From the Show Checked Out report (
), you can check in several rules that are checked out to you in a single operation.
You cannot perform a bulk check in on rules checked out using the private check-out feature.
Rules checked out by others
Use the Checked-Out Rules tab, on the Development landing page, to identify rules checked out anyone. Select
> Application > Development > Checked-Out Rules to access this landing page tab.
Privately checked out rules are not identified in the Checked-Out Rules tab.
Definitions — R