How aliases work

The Normalization Engine validates CIs according to several different scenarios, as shown in the following steps. The Normalization Engine performs validation sequentially.

1. The Normalization Engine checks whether the CI class is configured for normalization.
   • If the class is configured, the Normalization Engine continues the process.
   • If the class is not configured, the Normalization Engine updates the NormalizationStatus attribute to Normalization Not Applicable and ends the normalization process for the CI.
2. The Normalization Engine checks the NE:ProductNameAlias form for aliases for the ManufacturerName and Model attributes.
   If it finds a ManufacturerName or Model alias, the Normalization Engine substitutes it in the corresponding CI attribute.
3. The Normalization Engine searches the Product Catalog for a product that matches the CI.
4. If the Normalization Engine finds a Product Catalog entry, it normalizes the CI.
   Normalization of unapproved products depends on whether the Allow Unapproved CI option is enabled. It is enabled by default.
   1. The Normalization Engine updates the CI with the Category, Type, and Item attribute values from the Product Catalog entry.
   2. The Normalization Engine updates the NormalizationStatus attribute to Normalized and Approved, or Normalized and Unapproved, and then ends the normalization process for the CI.
5. If the Normalization Engine finds no Product Catalog entry, it checks the Product Catalog Alias Mapping form for aliases.
6. If it finds aliases, the Normalization Engine applies them to the CI.
   1. Using the alias values for product and manufacturer, the Normalization Engine searches the Product Catalog for a matching product.
   2. If the Normalization Engine finds no Product Catalog entry, it updates the NormalizationStatus attribute of the CI as Normalization Failed and ends the normalization process for the CI.
   3. If the Normalization Engine finds a Product Catalog entry, it normalizes the CI.
7. The Normalization Engine updates the CI with the Category, Type, and Item attribute values from the Product Catalog entry.
8. The Normalization Engine updates the NormalizationStatus attribute to Normalized and Approved, or Normalized and Unapproved, and then ends the normalization process for the CI.
9. If the Normalization Engine finds no aliases in the Product Catalog Alias Mapping form, it checks if the Allow New Product Catalog Entry option is enabled.
   1. If enabled, the Normalization Engine allows the Product Catalog to create a product entry based on the CI data and updates the NormalizationStatus attribute.
   2. If disabled, the Normalization Engine updates the NormalizationStatus attribute to Normalization Failed and ends the normalization process for the CI.

      Tip

      You can use the Product Catalog Mapping Alias with datasets configured for normalization to provide control over automatic expansion of the Product Catalog. For example, a Product Catalog Mapping Alias might map all of the data provider's default categorization Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 to preferred categorization in the Product Catalog. The Allow New Product Catalog Entry option is selected for the data provider's dataset in the Normalization console. So, every time a new product name and manufacturer combination is discovered, a new Product Catalog entry is created using the preferred three categorization tiers and the discovered product name and manufacturer.

You can search for the product and manufacturer aliases that you defined in the NE:ProductNameAlias form from the Product Catalog Console. After you search for the entries, you can also edit the product name aliases in the NE:ProductNameAlias form.

Examples of how aliases work are provided in the following section:

• Examples of aliases