Configuring forms to use DSO unique prefixes

When you are using a distributed environment that has more than one AR System server that can create records, the servers might create records with the same ID. It is important, therefore, to make sure that the servers create records with unique IDs. To do this, you create a record ID prefix that is unique to the AR System server that created it. For example, in a two-server environment where the servers are named Server 1 and Server 2, change the prefix for incident request records on Server 1 from the default INC to S1INC and on Server 2 to S2INC. These designations let your system distinguish between incident records that were created on Server 1 and Server 2.

You can use different prefixes to identify tickets for different companies. For example, an AHD prefix identifies incident tickets for ABC Corp, and an XHD prefix identifies incident tickets for XYZ Company.

To assign unique prefixes to records, you must first configure the AR System server to use custom prefixes. How to do this is described in the following procedure. After you configure the AR System server, you then create the custom ID prefix for the forms to use.

To configure forms to allow unique prefixes

1. From your browser, log in to the AR System server through Mid Tier by using an ID with application administrator privileges.
2. From the Application Administration Console, click the Custom Configuration tab.
3. From the Application Settings list, select Foundation > Advanced Options > System Configuration Settings - System Settings, and then click Open.
4. To enable the capability to define unique prefixes for records, select Enable User Defined Prefix.
5. Click Save.
   All configurations and settings are now available for use.

To create a custom form ID prefix

1. From your browser, log int o the AR System server through Mid Tier by using an ID with application administrator privileges.
2. In the browser's address bar, type the following URL and then press Enter:
   http://<mid-tierServer>/arsys/forms/<ARserverName>/SHR:SchemaNames
   The SHR:SchemaNames form opens in the Object list.
3. Search for the schema that requires a custom prefix by typing the form name in the Schema Name field on the search form.
4. Select the Form Lookup tab.
5. In the User Defined Prefix field enter up to five characters.
6. Save the record and close the form.
7. Repeat step 3 to step 6 for all forms that require a custom prefix.
8. Log in to either AR System Administrator tool or Developer Studio, depending on the version of BMC Helix ITSM you are using.
9. Open one of the forms that you modified in the previous procedure.

10. Do one of the following actions, depending on whether you are using AR System Administrator Tool, or Developer Studio.
    
    

    AR System Administrator Tool	Developer Studio
    Open the Field Properties dialog box by selecting field ID 1 from the ID Field list on the toolbar, and then clicking the Field Properties button. Select the Attributes tab, and change the default field values to specify the new custom prefix that you specified on the SHR:SchemaNames form.	In the Outline tab, select field ID 1. In the Properties tab, select the Default Value property, click its ellipsis button, enter the custom prefix, and then click OK.

    Important

    If field ID 1 is not in the view, you must bring the field into the view. Be sure to remove it from the view when you finish. The field ID 1 names are listed in Forms that require a prefix.

11. Close the Field Properties tab or the Properties window.
12. Save the form and close it.

13. Repeat steps step 9 to step 12 for all forms that are listed in Forms that require a prefix.

    Important

    You must add a custom prefix to the files listed in the Forms that require a prefix section. We recommend, however, that you apply a custom prefix to all forms used in your DSO implementation.

14. After each form has custom prefix settings, you must recache the form data and then the distributed environment is ready to use.

Forms that require a prefix

Where to go from here

Configuring-your-DSO-environment-for-data-transfer-and-deletion