Property
form
|
Optional. Complete this tab to:
Page
and Page List
properties, define auto-population mechanisms.The format and contents of this tab depend on the Property Mode value (on the General tab).
Field |
Description |
Max Length |
Optional. If the type is Enter the number here. If a user or activity attempts to assign a longer value to the property, the clipboard does contain the longer value, but also has an associated message. When updating or overriding a property rule that has a Maximum Length defined, you can enter a smaller value, but not a larger value. If you leave this blank, Process Commander does not limit the length of values of the property. However, operational considerations and system performance considerations may apply. For example, database software supporting the PegaRULES database may limit the size of the column to no more than 255 characters, or 1023 characters, or another value; this applies if the property is to be exposed. Even when the property is not exposed as a database column, sizes larger than 1,000 bytes may adversely add to the memory demands on the server and JVMs, depending on how many instances contain the large property and how often they are accessed on requestor clipboards. When updating or overriding a property rule that has a Maximum Length defined, you can enter a smaller value, but not a larger value. This field is visible only for |
Expected Length |
Optional. Enter the typical length in characters expected for the property being defined, as entered into a form. This does not affect the number of characters that can be stored internally in the property value. If you associate the standard HTML Property rule FixedSizeForInput with this property, the system uses this value to define the size of HTML input textboxes. Use the similar FixedSize HTML Property rule to apply this limit to both input and display presentations of the property. This field is visible only for |
Override Sort Function |
Optional. Use to this field in special situations, to compare and sort values of this property in ways other than the natural sort sequence for the Type. If you leave this blank, the system uses a built-in sort order based on the Type. Identify here a function rule in the Pega-RULES:Sort library or a custom function in a custom Sort library. For a custom function, enter the RuleSet name, a colon and the sort function name. This field is visible only for |
Access When |
This field is meaningful only when the Type is Identify the second key part of an access when rule (Rule-Access-When rule type) that controls whether or not the clear-text or encrypted value appears in reports and forms. Design the access when rule to be true for those operators, situations, and times when the clear text of the property value is to appear, and false otherwise. |
Edit Input |
Optional. To convert data entered by a user
into another format, identify an edit input rule to
perform the conversion. This field is visible only for |
Validate |
Optional. Validation of a Value mode property always includes testing its value against the formats allowed by the Type and its maximum length. To provide stronger validation for this property, identify an edit validate rule. When users complete and submit a form containing a value for this property, the system first applies the edit input rule. This rule may transform the input text. Next, it applies the edit validate rule, which may cause a message to be added to the property indicating that the property value has failed validation. Many standard edit validate rules are emulated by an equivalent JavaScript function that can be run on the client workstation before users submit a work object form or flow action form. See client-side validation. This field is visible only for |
Column Inclusion |
Optional. If this
The other choice Your choice in this field only conveys advice to a database administrator; it does not cause the schema to change. You can update a property rule to revise this selection at any time. (Changes to this field are reflected in the Modify Database Schema wizard only after you next log in.) See How to expose a property as a database column.
If the property
is not a |
Cannot Be Declarative Target |
Select to prevent this property from being the target of a Declare Expression rule. This restriction applies to Declare Expression rules created after you save the Property form; it is not applied retroactively. This restriction is meaningful only for |
Cannot be included as an input field |
Select to turn on the pySpecial restriction for this rule. If selected, users cannot directly enter a value for this property on an HTML form. This restriction improves system security and reduces the chance of errors that can occur when one property is in some cases computed and in other cases directly input. Such properties are sometimes called special properties. Choose a naming convention for special properties, to help everyone on your team remember them. (Standard special properties have a property name starting with the letters px.) |
Reference Property |
Select to make this property a reference property, a property that can link to a source property. Reference properties can reduce the need for duplicating data values on multiple pages or objects, and can simplify lengthy property references. Use the Property-Ref method in an activity to establish the contents of a reference property.
If this property is of mode |
Optional. If the mode of this property is Page
or Page List
and the Page Class identifies a concrete class, your application can automatically retrieve, compute, or references values for the property by defining a source of page data. If configured, then Process Commander at runtime, when the page or page is accessed, retrieves data for the page or pages based on the value of specified properties.
Use of auto-populated Page
or Page List
properties can simplify your application by eliminating the need to write an activity to populate the properties, or by eliminating a routine step in an activity. The content of the page or pages can be copied from:
If the Reference Property option is selected, the data is retrieved and copied to a temporary page (or a Code Pega-List page, for Page List properties), rather than copied to the property.
Auto-populated pages are analogous to backwards-chaining Declare Expression rules, in that the value of a property is computed only when the value is needed. However, Declare Expression rules compute only scalar properties; this feature computes entire pages or lists of pages.
Auto-population occurs only when at least one embedded property on the page or pages is accessed, for example displayed on a work object form or used in an activity.
To debug auto-populated properties, start the Tracer tool, open the Tracer Options form, and select the Auto Populate Properties event type.
Field |
Description |
Auto-populate Property |
Select to indicate that values of this This field is visible only for properties of type |
Use Declare Page to Perform Load |
Select to indicate that values for this property are to be populated by a declare pages rule. |
(no label) |
Select the Page Name (key) of a declare pages rule that starts with the prefix Declare_Ref_. At runtime, the value of the If this property has mode |
Advanced Auto-population Options |
Typically, you can cause auto-population of this property by
For example, to populate a page of class Data-Admin-Operator-ID, set a value to the property Data-Admin-Operator-ID.pyUserIdentifier. On the Basic tab of the Class form, pyUserIdentifier is listed as the key to these objects. In less typical situations, the key value is as the value of a separate property in the current object, or is computed from multiple separate properties each providing one key part. Select this option to record how Process Commander obtains the key to an object (or keys to a list of objects). You can load a Page mode property, with an object from the PegaRULES database. Select:
|
Autopopulate using instance handle from parent page | |
Get handle of associated instance from |
Identify the property that, when not blank, holds the pzInsKey value of an object of the appropriate class. This field appears when you select At runtime, when this |
Autopopulate using class keys from parent page | Indicate the source of values for each key part that makes up the class key. |
Key of associated Instance |
Read-only. Identifies a property that forms the key, or part of the key, of instances of the Page Class class. |
Value from Property |
Select a property on the parent page that, when not blank, holds a value for this key part. At runtime, when this |
Auto-Populate List using Conditions | For each row of this array, identify match conditions for a key or part of a key. |
List Condition for Associated Instance |
Read-only. Identifies a property that forms the key, or part of the key, of instances of the Page Class class. |
Value from Property |
Select property on the parent page that, when not blank, holds a value for this key part Enter at least one nonblank value. When the |
Optional. Complete this array to associate one or more property qualifier rules (Rule-Obj-Property-Qualifier rule type) with this property.
Each property qualifier you list here provides additional information at runtime about the property, and may alter the behavior in computations or presentation of the property.
You can provide a value for the qualifier on this tab, thereby defining a permanent value. Or when desired, you can leave the value blank and use Java methods in the PublicAPI to set or test values dynamically. For details, see More about Property Qualifier rules.
Field |
Description |
Qualifier |
Optional. For a permanent qualifier, enter the value in a pop-up dialog box:
To allow the value of a qualifier to be set dynamically and temporarily at runtime, leave this field blank. |
Click Explore after you save the form if you completed the Table Type field on the General tab and want to preview the presentation of choices for this property when presented in input mode. This display also identifies any Declare Expression rules that reference the property, and dependencies among expressions. See Properties — Working with the Explore Window.