Using the Repository

Overview

When you are working in  Design Mode, for any task PhixFlow provides options to list of the relevant items that you can use. 

If you want to find items at other times, you will find them listed in the repository. The repository is shown by default as a tab in the right panel.

  • To show/hide all tabs in the right panel, click the Show/Hide Right Panel.
  • To show/hide the context help panel only, click the   Help tab.
  • To close the repository, click X in the tab.
  • To reopen the repository, in the PhixFlow toolbar at in top right, click   Repository

Items in the Repository

Items are grouped into branches which you can  expand and collapse.

  • Applications: This branch lists PhixFlow applications. Expand an application to see the items contained in it. 
  • Packages: Items in a package can be shared by different applications.
  • Full Repository: This branch lists all items, grouped by type, from any application or package.
  • Unallocated: This branch lists the items that are not included in any application or package.
  • System Configuration: Opens a properties pane in which administrators can set defaults for the whole PhixFlow system.
  • System Logging: Opens a properties pane where administrators can set defaults for logging system data.

When you are looking for items in the repository, it is important to check whether you are looking in an Application branch or in the Full Repository. In both branches, items are grouped by type under a collection header, in alphanumeric order. By default, items in packages are not grouped by type. To group items in a package, right-click on the package name and select Show the Collection Headers.

When any branches of the repository are open, you can quickly collapse them all. In the repository toolbar, click  Collapse All.

When you are editing the properties for some items, you can open a repository tab containing a filtered list of items. You can then drag selected items from the repository into the properties. For example, this makes it easy to add a task plan to an action.

Tooltips

If you hover your mouse pointer over an item in the repository, PhixFlow displays a tooltip for it, if one is available. The tooltip comes from the item's Description property. We recommend you add a description for any item you create; see Common Properties.

Selecting Items and Opening Properties

To select a group of items, use Shift+click. To select several items individually, use Ctrl+click. 

Double-click on an item in the repository to open its properties pane where you can configure options for it.

In addition to having properties, you can open some items in the workspace on the left. These are:

  • Entity relationship diagrams, where you create tables and relationships; see Understanding ERDs.
  • Workflows, where you define tasks and processes for applications and their users; see Creating Workflows.
  • Screens, which are made up of different components, including data, form fields, cards, and menus; see Designing Screens.
  • Actionflows, where you wire up functionality so that application users can interact with screens and data; see Understanding Actionflows.
  •  Analysis models, where you configure the flow and transformation of data; see Analysis Models for Batch Processing Data.
  •  Screens, which made up of different components, including data, form fields, cards, and menus; see Designing Screens.

There are many windows that pop up in the workspace. For example when you are creating views of data to display on a screen, PhixFlow opens the Available Attributes Window; see Displaying Data (Views).

To display these items in the workspace on the left, select Display:

  • Either from the repository
  • right-click an item's name to show the popup menu and select Display:
  • Or from the toolbar on the properties pane, click the Display option.
    You may need to click  More Options to see this option. 

Finding Repository Items

In the repository, most items are grouped by type under a collection header. For example all the analysis models are stored together. To find an item of a specific type, expand the collection header. You can then either scroll down the list or, to help you find items in long lists, use the search box. When you type into the search box, PhixFlow filters the list to show only the names that contain the string you have typed so far.

To clear the search, click the x on the right of the search box.

Some types of item "belong" to another item. For example you can expand any table to see that it can potentially have actions, record-actions, attributes, views, filters, sort orders and inputs. You can also search within these sub-collections.

Searching for an Item

Applications and Packages

Each item can only be part of one application or package. To move an item to another application or package, drag it onto the new application or package in the repository. When objects are moved into a package they are no longer included in the original application; see Package.

To remove an item from an application or package, right-click on it in the repository and select Remove from Container. This removes the item from the application or package, but it remains in the repository.



OptionDescription

 Create New

Creates a new item of the selected type.

When you create a new application, PhixFlow automatically shows only this application in the repository list and asks if you want to load the application into  Application Mode.

To see the full list of applications again, clear the application's name from the Applications search field.

 Show a Detailed List
Opens a new window listing all the items with the selected. The window includes information about the key properties for each item.
Display
icon depends on item type
Opens a model, screen, ERD, workflow or actionflow diagram in the workspace. 
A palette opens in a popup window.
 Show Models
Opens a new window listing all the models that contain the item.
EnableThe icon depends on the item. Enables the item without having to open its properties. 

 Disable

The icon depends on the item and is overlaid with the stop icon. This disables the item without having to open its properties.
Copy as template
For components, copies an existing component and saves it as a template.

 Edit


Opens the properties tab for the item, where you can change its settings.
 Delete

Deletes the item from the repository and from all the items that contain it.

This option:

  • cannot be undone
  • deletes the item from the repository and from any application, package, model or component that uses it.
 Remove   from container  
Removes an item from the current container, but keeps it in the  repository.

Set Audit Required

Sets whether or not PhixFlow records actions on this item in the audit log.
Set Audit Not Required
 Show Recordsets
Opens a list of the recordsets.
 Show view
Opens the default view of a table's data.
 Run Analysis
Runs analysis on a table.
Load Application

In  Design Mode, shows only the selected application in the repository and automatically loads it into  Application Mode.

Filter by Name

Shows only the selected application in the repository.

To see the full list of applications again, clear the application's name from the Applications search field.

For details of some other menus and toolbars, see Menu Options and Toolbar Buttons.