Branch types
Branches (called Versions in IXIA CCMS Desktop), have statuses like other objects in IXIA CCMS. The status of a Branch determines the Branch type.
Branches can have any of the following statuses:
- Development
- Maintenance
- Delivery
- Closed
By default, it is possible to change from one status to any other status. There is no workflow progression between the statuses. However, for Delivery and Closed Branch types, all objects must be in the minimum status before you can change the status of the Branch.
Effect of Branch type on actions
Branch types have different requirements and behaviors:
Behavior | Development | Maintenance | Delivery | Closed |
---|---|---|---|---|
Allows Editing | Yes | Yes | No. Read-only | No. Read-only |
Minimum Status for Objects | No minimum. Objects can be at any status. | No minimum. Objects can be at any status. | Objects must be in end status (e.g, Authoring:done). Cannot move objects to a lower status (e.g, Authoring:work). |
Objects must be in end status (e.g, Authoring:done). Cannot move objects to a lower status (e.g, Authoring:work). |
New Objects | Can create new objects in Branch | Can create new objects in Branch | Cannot create new objects | Cannot create new objects |
Deleting Branches | Can delete a Development Branch | Cannot delete a Maintenance Branch | Cannot delete a Delivery Branch | Cannot delete a Closed Branch |
Pushing content in CCMS Web | Content can be pushed to these Branches | Content can be pushed to these Branches | Content can be pushed to these Branches. However, the content in the other Branch must be in the minimum status for the Delivery Branch before you can push it. When content is pushed, a new revision is created for the instance of the object in the Delivery Branch even though it is at an |
Content cannot be pushed to these Branches |
Automatic forking in IXIA CCMS Web
When an object is shared between different Branches, the object might automatically fork in CCMS Web depending on the combination of Branch types and whether there is a clear context you are editing in.
It can automatically fork when you edit the object or when you change its status from Authoring:done back to Authoring:work. There is no automatic forking in IXIA CCMS Desktop.
- If you edit an object while in Map Editor, the map open in Map Editor is the context
- If you edit an object that is assigned to you, any context map for the assignment is the context
An object forks automatically only when:
- You can edit the object in only one of the Branches it is in
- You are editing the object within the context of a Maintenance Branch
- You are editing the object within the context of a Development Branch, and it is not shared with any other Development Branches
end
status (such as Done) and cannot be checked out.Support for information models
You can use different Branch types to help create and enforce an information model. For example, if your documentation uses a software versioning information model, then you could use Development and Maintenance Branches together to establish the rules of that model.