About the Rename a Class wizard

Purpose

You can use the Rename a Class wizard to rename a class and all of its pattern inheritance dependent classes. In addition you can choose to rename associated objects such as work- instances, properties, activities, and flows.

The wizard reports any locked RuleSets or rules that are checked out before performing the rename.

In addition to exact matches to the specified class name to be changed, references to the name in embedded strings, for example in property names or in embedded Java modules containing references to the old property will be identified. The wizard displays a listing of these "inexact" matches, and you can select which to include to be renamed and which to preserve unchanged.

Starting the wizard

Select Tools > Rule Management > Rename a Class to start the wizard. You can return to a previous step using the <<Back button.

Alternatively, select a class in the Application Explorer, right-click, and select Rename a Class from the context menu.

No rules are altered by the wizard until you click Next>> after reviewing additional rules to be changed on the next-to-last page. For instructions on the forms, see:

• Help: Select Class to Rename and RuleSets
• Help: Verify Classes
• Help: Are there Work objects?
• Help: Are RuleSet Versions locked?
• Help: Are any rules checked out?
• Help: Rules that will be changed
• Help: Select additional rules to be changed
• Help: Results

Resuming the wizard

This wizard creates a work object with prefix pxW-. To find open wizard work objects, select the menu option File > Open > Wizards in Progress > All Wizards.

Prerequisites

You can rename a class if it meets these prerequisites:

1. The class must be visible in your Access Group.
2. The class may not be one of the standard classes, those in the Pega- RuleSets.
3. The original class cannot have Final availability.
4. All rules to be modified must be checked in. (If rules are checked out, check them in and restart the wizard.)
5. All rules to be modified must belong to unlocked RuleSet Versions. You must supply the appropriate password to unlock the locked rules, or you can opt to skip them for this operation.
6. The new name of the class must not exist in the system. Class names are global system-wide, rather than local to a specific RuleSet.
7. You cannot change an abstract class to a concrete class or vice versa. For example, class A- cannot be renamed to B, and B cannot be renamed to A-.

Results

When complete, the renaming wizard changes your system in the following ways:

1. The class is renamed.
2. Direct and pattern inheritance references the new class name. As a result, there will be no effect on rule resolution.
3. If the option has been selected, Work- instances associated with the class are renamed.
4. All properties, activities, flows, and other rules that referenced the original class now reference the class by the new name.
5. If the class is a work pool or defines an external data table, the Data-Admin-DB-Table instance is updated to reflect the new class name.
6. The wizard creates a new History- class for the new class, and it will identify that the class has been renamed. The History- class for the old class name is deleted.

The old class name is retained until all changes to dependent classes and Work- instances are completed. Then the original class is deleted. If the system is stopped while the renaming is in progress, you can restart the process by executing the utility from the beginning.

Class hierarchy and inheritance - Concepts and terms

Tools, accelerators, and wizards