Creating a release manifest

When you are in the Initiate milestone, you must create required release manifests. A manifest functions like a packing list or an invoice. It describes the schedule and provides an overview of the contents of a particular release. Here you split the requirements of the release into logical groups of change requests and activities that can be handled efficiently by change coordinators and activity assignees.

You can relate a change request to the release or you can create an ad hoc change request and activity to add to the release. The manifest items are grouped in the Order column, for example, 0, 1, and 2. However, the order does not enforce a sequence for execution.

Manifests support and provide visibility to the milestones of the release. You can configure the application to enforce that the manifest changes or activities included in the release must be completed during that milestone for the release to move to the next stage. For more information about configuring milestones and exit criteria, see Configuring phase and exit criteria milestones.

In a release, the Manifest tab defines the contents of a release for each milestone. You create the associations between a release and the various release activities or change requests that are necessary to implement and close it.

Finally, collision detection is automatically run when you save the release. It runs only on new change requests that you have added to the release. For more information, see Detecting collisions between change requests.

Working with release manifests

In the Manifest tab, you can perform the additional functions listed in the following table related to release requests.

To create a manifest

1. Click the Manifest tab in the Release form.
   The Manifest tab displays the release activities and changes related to the release.

   

2. From the Request Type list at the bottom of the Manifest tab, select Infrastructure Change or Activity.

   Important

   The contents of the search form depend on the type of application object that you selected in the Request Type list.

   Request type	Action	Reference topic
   Infrastructure Change	Search—Opens the Change Relationship Search form. Use this form to search for change requests, and then establish a Consists of relationship change to the release. Create—Opens the Change form in a New mode. View—Opens the change that is related to the release. Remove—Removes the change from the relationship with the release. It does not delete the change.	Creating a change request at the Initiate stage
   Activity	Create—Opens the Activity form in a New mode View—Opens the activity that is related to the release. Remove—Removes the activity from the relationship with the release. It does not delete the activity.	Creating and closing release activities

3. Add the activity or change to the release manifest.
   The Manifest Attributes dialog box is displayed. You can specify the milestone in which the change or activity should be grouped.

   

   Important

   You can add multiple change requests to the release and assign them to different milestones.

   
   

4. Specify the milestone for the activity or change, for example, Deployment.
5. Click Apply, and then close the Manifest Attributes dialog box.
   The original release request is displayed. 
6. Click Refresh to view the related request types appear in the Changes and Activities table.
7. Click the up or down arrows next to Refresh, to change the order of items that have been added to the release manifest.
   The manifest items are grouped in the Order column, for example, 0, 1, and 2. However, the order does not enforce a sequence for execution.

8. Click Rollup next to the Risk Level field to accumulate the risk level, cost, and time from the related change requests and activities (displayed on the Manifest tab).
   The highest Risk Level of all the related change requests is used when rolling up the Risk Level. The risk rollup is not performed automatically. The release user can override the risk rollup with a different value. If you need to add change requests or activities at other milestone, you can click Rollup as required on demand. The following information is rolled up from the changes in the release manifest.

   • Budget Cost and Actual Cost—Rolls up financial data from change requests and activities into the release. You can view costs under Links > Financials.
   • Time—Rolls up the time spent (in minutes) from change requests and activities to the Release form. You can view the time spent on the Date/System tab and the Assignment tab of the Release form.
9. Click Save.