Certain predefined types installed with CentraSite are classified as virtual types. A virtual type is a variant of a specified object type, which is referred to as its base type. A virtual type has the same set of attributes as its base type, but has its own set of profiles and properties and adds its own behavior. A virtual type can also have its own lifecycle model and policies.
Virtual types do not have a separate storage structure or a schema, so the instances of a virtual type are stored as regular objects. For example, a Virtual Service inherits the service and adds its own behavior, yet it is stored as Service Object.
Virtualized services are used for entities that are very similar, but generally need to be governed separately. For example, the REST Service type and the XML Service type are both virtual types of the Service type. As services, they have basically the same set of metadata as a Service type, however, you might want to apply different policies to these types of services or manage them using different lifecycle models than a regular Web Service asset.
Several predefined virtual types are installed with CentraSite. For a list of the virtual types that CentraSite provides, see The Predefined Asset Types Installed with CentraSite.
Note:
Support for virtual types is limited to those predefined virtual
types that are installed with CentraSite. You cannot create custom virtual
types of your own.
Virtual types are described in detail in the following sections.
Virtual types have properties that differ from regular types. The following list describes the ways in which a virtual type differs from a regular object type.
A virtual type inherits all of its attributes from its base type. Therefore, you cannot add attributes directly to a virtual type. To add new attributes to a virtual type, you add the attributes to the base type. You can selectively display these attributes on the profiles that you have defined in the type. Similarly, you cannot delete attributes from or edit the properties of attributes in the virtual type. All attribute creation, deletion, and definition is performed on the base type, and those changes are applied to all of its virtual types.
A virtual type has its own set of Advanced Settings, which enables you to configure the following properties specifically for a virtual type:
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Visible in Asset Browse
Enable Reports
Policies can be applied
Require Consumer Registration
Enable Versioning
Top Level Type
Enable Lifecycle Management
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Inherit Base Type Profiles
Inherit Base Type Policies
Inherit Base Type LCM
A virtual type has an Inherit Base Type Policies option, which determines whether the policies of the base type also apply to the virtual type. You can enable or disable this option for each virtual type. For more information about using the Inherit Base Type Policies option, see the document Working with Design/Change-Time Policies.
A virtual type has an Inherit Base Type LCM option, which determines whether the virtual type follows the same lifecycle model as its base type by default. You can enable or disable this option for each virtual type. For more information about using the Inherit Base Type LCM option, see Customizing Lifecycle Management.
A virtual type can have its own set of profiles:
A virtual type has an Inherit Base Type Profiles option, which determines whether the profiles of the base type also apply to the virtual type. You can enable or disable this option for each virtual type. For more information about using the Inherit Base Type Profiles option, see Applying Profiles to Virtual Types
Like many other predefined types, you cannot delete the virtual predefined types that are installed with CentraSite.
The Inherit options for a virtual type determines whether the profiles, lifecycle models and policies associated with the base type are also applied to the virtual type.
For more information about how each of these options affect a virtual type, see the following sections:
Applying Lifecycle Models to Virtual Types in the document Customizing Lifecycle Management
Applying Policies to Virtual Types in the section Functional Scope in the document Working with Design/Change-Time Policies
By default, the Inherit options are enabled for each of the predefined virtual types installed with CentraSite.
