Configuring release and activity rules

You use the Release Configuration Rules form to configure the method of assignment used to automatically select a release coordinator to assign to a release request. Each company defined in the Company form can have its own assignment rules.

You can configure an assignment for one company, or you can define it for all companies by using the Global option. When Release Management uses an assignment (for example, when a release is assigned to a release coordinator), the Assignment Engine first checks the assignment rules for the requester's company. If no rules are found, it then uses the rules defined for Global.

By default, the Global assignment method follows the round-robin assignment process.

To configure release rules

1. In the Application Administration Console, click the Custom Configuration tab.
2. From the Application Settings list, select Release Management > Advanced Options > Rules, and then click Open.
3. From the Company list, select the company for which you want to configure assignment, or select the Global option.
   Selecting Global configures the same assignment for all companies.
4. For RMS Rule Status, select Enabled.

5. Complete the following optional fields as required:

   Field	Description
   Assignment Engine Integration	To enable assignment, select Yes (default).
   Assignment Process Name	Select the default process for the release coordinator assignment. The options for assigning releases to release coordinators are as follows: Capacity—Assigns releases based on a ratio assignment method. Number—Tracks the number of tickets assigned to the person. The number assignment process selects the release coordinator with the least number of tickets already assigned. Round Robin—Tracks the last time the release coordinator received an assignment. The round-robin assignment process selects the person who was least recently assigned an incident.
   Require Service CI Related	Select whether users must specify a Service CI (from the Service field) when creating a release request. The default is No. If you select Yes from the Require Service CI Related field, select the milestone by which the Service CI must be related.
   Require Scheduled Dates	Select whether users must specify the scheduled start dates (in the Dates tab) when creating a release request. The options are No (the default setting) and Yes. If you select Yes from  the Require Scheduled Dates field, select the milestone by which the scheduled start date must be defined. For example, you could configure the release rules so that users must enter the scheduled start date during the Initiate milestone.
   Auto-close	Specify whether release requests are automatically closed. The options are No and Yes (the default setting). If you specify that release requests are automatically closed, enter the number of days a release request remains in the Close Down milestone before its status is automatically set to Closed. The default setting is 10.
   Action On Deployment Dates Change	Specify the action to be taken if users modify the deployment start date while the release request is in the In Progress status during the Deployment milestone. The options are Error Message, Warning Message, or No Action. No out-of-the-box settings are provided with this field.
   Business Hours Selection	Specify whether to use company hours or assignee hours to calculate times associated with release requests. Important: You must perform the Business Hours Workdays and Business Hours Holidays configuration tasks to set the company's daily hours and holidays.

6. Click Save.

To configure notifications for release rules

You can configure the rules in which the release coordinator is notified. For example, you can configure that the release coordinator is notified when the milestone of a release is set to Planning and the Status is set to Planning Approval.

1. In the Application Administration Console, click the Custom Configuration tab.
2. From the Application Settings list, select Release Management > Advanced Options > Rules, and then click Open.
3. Search for a release rules record.
4. Click the Notification tab. 
   Some notification rules are defined automatically during installation.
   • You can select a rule and then click View to display it or modify it, if needed.
   • You can select a rule and then click Delete to remove it.
5. Click Add.
6. Define the status of your new rule (for example, Proposed or Enabled).
7. Select the milestone that this notification applies to (for example, Deployment).
8. Select the release state for which you want the notification sent (for example, Deployment Approval). 
   Notifications to the release coordinator are configured out of the box only.
9. (Optional) Select a status reason. 
   If you select the Planning Approval status, you can include a status reason, but not all release states include status reasons.

10. Specify Yes for the roles that you want to notify (for example, Release Coordinator). 
    The release coordinator, the assignee group (as a fallback if there is no release coordinator), or the requester will be notified with message tags from the SYS:Notification Messages form.

    Important

    The release coordinator and requester are not notified if the release request is their own.

11. Click Save.

To configure activity rules

Use the Activity Configuration Rules form to configure the method of assignment used to automatically assign an activity. Each company defined in the Company form can have its own assignment rules.

You can configure an assignment for one company, or you can define it for all companies by using the Global option. When the Activity System uses assignment (for example, when an activity is assigned), the Assignment Engine first checks the assignment rules for the requester's company. If no rules are found, it then uses the rules defined for Global.

By default, the Global assignment method follows the round-robin assignment process.

1. In the Application Administration Console, click the Custom Configuration tab.
2. From the Application Settings list, select Activity System > Configuration > Rules, and then click Open.
3. From the Company list, select the company for which you want to configure an assignment, or select the Global option. 
   Selecting Global configures an assignment for all companies.
4. To enable an assignment, select Yes for Assignment Engine Integration.
5. Select the default process for the assignment from Assignment Process Name. The options for assigning activities are as follows:
   • Capacity—Assigns releases based on a ratio assignment method.
   • Number—Tracks the number of tickets assigned to the activity user. The number assignment process selects the person with the least number of tickets already assigned.
   • Round Robin—Tracks the last time the activity user received an assignment. The round robin assignment process selects the person who was least recently assigned an incident.
6. For Activity Rule Status, select Enabled.
7. For Activity Status for Task Activation, define at which status of the activity request, the task associated with it should become active.
   For example, if you select the In Progress status in this field, the task associated with the activity request is activated when the request moves to the In Progress status.
8. Click Save.