You can use the versioning feature in CentraSite to add an updated version of an asset to the catalog. For example, if you make significant changes to a Web service (such as adding operations to the service or modifying the data types that it uses), you can use the versioning feature to add the new version of the service to the catalog.
Versioning can be active or inactive for any given asset type. The method for activating versioning for an asset type is included in the description of the asset type advanced settings in the section Viewing or Editing the Properties of an Asset Type in the document Object Type Management. Note also the restrictions for activating versioning, as described in the section Considerations for Asset Types of the webMethods Suite.
When you generate a new version of an asset, CentraSite adds a new asset of the same type to the catalog. The new asset will have the same name and description as the one from which it was versioned. It will have an updated version number. The new version is related to the old version by a "Supersedes" association from the new version to the old version. In cases where the detail page of an asset has a Summary profile, the association is displayed under the Summary profile.
Note:
Depending on the type of asset you version, some of the attributes are
cloned from the original asset and others are not. For example, when you
version a Web service, the settings on the Classifications
profile are cloned, however, the attribute settings on many of the other
profiles, including the Permissions profile, are not.
After you version an asset, you should always examine the attribute settings
for the new version and set them appropriately.
The metrics and event information that was collected for the old version of the asset will remain unchanged in the registry/repository. The old version's metrics and event information will not be copied to the new version. CentraSite will begin collecting metrics and event information for the new version of the asset.
CentraSite maintains two sets of version numbers for an asset. One set is maintained for CentraSite's own internal use. CentraSite automatically assigns this version number when you create a new version of an asset. You cannot modify it. The version numbers assigned by CentraSite have the format <MajorVersion>.<Revision> and are always sequentially numbered starting from 1.0 (e.g., 1.0, 2.0, 3.0). If the revision feature is enabled, the revision number is incremented automatically each time you modify the current version of the asset; see the section Working with Asset Revisions for details.
Each version of an asset also has a separate user-defined version identifier. This is the "public" version number that CentraSite Control shows to users when it displays the catalog. The user-defined version identifier does not need to be numeric. For example, you might use a value such as "V2.a (beta)" to identify a version.
You can create a new version of an asset or a new version of a selected set of assets. The descriptions in this section give you details on how to do this.
To create a new version of any given asset, you must belong to a role that has the "Manage Assets" permission for the organization in which the asset resides.
When you version an asset, you become the owner of the new version of the asset. Ownership is not carried forward from the previous version.
The new version of the asset will belong to the same organization as its previous version.
Note:
You cannot create a new version of a virtual asset.
The following sections describe how to create new asset versions.
Use the following procedure to create a new version of a single asset.
To generate a new version of an asset
In CentraSite Control, display the asset for which you want to generate a new version. If you need procedures for this step, see Viewing Details for an Asset.
On the asset detail page, open the Versions profile.
Click the Add Version button.
Note:
You can also initiate this step by choosing the
Actions button and then choosing the Add New
Version command.
Complete the fields in the Add Version dialog box as follows:
| In this field... | Specify... |
|---|---|
| Namespace | The namespace associated with this new version. This is of specific relevance for web service assets. The namespace given here reflects the target namespace defined in the associated WSDL file. A change of the namespace can be a differentiating factor between versions. Note that if you supply a new namespace here, you should ensure that the WSDL associated with this asset also reflects the new namespace. |
| System Version | In addition to the user-defined version, CentraSite automatically generates a System Version number. The system version number is independent from the version number you specify. The system version numbers are maintained for CentraSite's own internal use. CentraSite automatically assigns this version number when you create a new version of an asset. You cannot modify it. The version numbers assigned by CentraSite have the format <MajorVersion>.<Revision> and are always sequentially numbered starting from 1.0 (e.g., 1.0, 2.0, 3.0). The revision number is incremented automatically each time you modify the current version of the asset. |
| User Version - New | An identifier for the new version. You can
use any versioning scheme you choose. The version identifier does not need to
be numeric.
Examples:
0.0a 1.0.0 (beta) Pre-release 001 V1-2007.04.30 |
| Organization | Specify the organization to which this new
version will be added.
Note: Important: |
| Change Log | Optional. A comment or other descriptive information about the new version. |
| Propagate versions to dependent objects | (CentraSite only processes this
checkbox for assets of type Service.)
Mark this checkbox if you wish to automatically create new versions of all of the service's dependent schemas. The schemas will only be updated if you have permissions to modify them. |
Click .
You can create a new version for a set of assets, as described in this section.
Note:
The dialog for creating a new version of a set of assets does not
contain the fields Namespace and Change
Log that are available if you are creating a new version for a
single element, as described in the section
Creating a New Version of an
Asset.
Use the following procedure to create a new version of a set of assets.
To generate a new version of a set of assets
In CentraSite Control, use either the Browse or the Search feature in the asset catalog to select a set of assets for which you want to create a new version. If you need information on how to browse or search the asset catalog, refer to the section Browsing the Asset Catalog or Searching the Asset Catalog.
Mark the checkbox of each asset for which a new version will be created.
In the menu, click .
In the dialog, specify a new version number, in the same way as described previously for creating a new version of an individual asset.
Notes:
The Versions profile for an asset displays the list of all the asset's versions. To locate other versions of an asset, simply display the asset and examine its Versions profile as described below.
To locate other versions of an asset
In CentraSite Control, display the asset whose versions you want to examine. If you need procedures for this step, see Viewing Details for an Asset.
Open the Versions profile. This profile will list all versions of the asset.
If you want to display the details for one of the listed versions, choose the name of that version.
If you have created several versions of an asset, you might want to delete some or all of the older versions. You can do this by purging old versions.
To purge old versions of an asset
Open the Details view of the most recent version of the asset. Ensure that there are no open views of versions of the asset that you intend to purge.
Open the Versions profile. The display now shows the available versions for the asset.
Select a version, then from the context menu choose . This causes all versions older than the selected version to be deleted.
If, for example, you have versions 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 of an asset, and you want to keep just versions 4 and 5, you can select version 4 in the display, then click . This will delete all versions older than version 4.
If you are using CentraSite in conjunction with other components of the webMethods Suite, the versioning capability for the asset types defined by these components is by default not activated. Unless the documentation for the webMethods Suite components states otherwise, do not activate the versioning for these asset types.
