Distributed fields
The information in this topic is applicable only for on-premises deployments.
To manage ownership-based transfers, you must add distributed fields to the forms involved in the transfers.
You can also override much of a mapping definition by assigning values to the distributed fields. At runtime, DSO uses any such values in the source form's distributed fields to overwrite corresponding values in the mapping definition
The following groups of distributed fields provide different levels of control over distributed mappings:
- Full distributed fields
- Advanced distributed fields
If you archive a form that contains distributed fields, the distributed fields are copied to the archived form, but they are not updated after being archived.
You cannot add distributed fields to an archived form.
Basic distributed fields
Basic distributed fields are required for transfers with ownership (see Distributed-transfers). They hold information used by operations that transfer, return, and update requests. For example, if you want to know where a request came from, you can review the information in the From Form and From Server fields.
The data in all basic distributed fields is system-generated (DSO sets the values). Several are protected and can be overwritten only by using the ardist program (see Overwriting-the-values-in-distributed-fields).
Basic distributed fields
Field name | Description |
Transfer Status | Displays one of these values after a transfer is attempted:
You can use this field to examine the results of distributed operations, set up filters to detect failures, and set up escalations to detect distribution problems. |
Update Status | Displays one of these values after an update or a return is attempted:
You can use this field to examine the results of distributed operations, set up filters to detect failures, and set up escalations to detect distribution problems. |
Master Flag | Indicates whether a request holds ownership. (The copy of a request that has ownership is called the master copy.) |
From Request ID | Specifies the ID of the request in the source (From) form. |
From Form | Specifies the form from which a request was transferred. Also called the source form. |
From Server | Specifies the server from which a request was transferred. Also called the source server. |
From Pool | Specifies the distributed pool on the source (From) server that processed the distributed operation. |
Full distributed fields
The full distributed fields group includes the basic fields. It also includes fields that provide greater control over mapping selection when a possible conflict between mappings exists (see Creating-distributed-mappings).
In addition, this group of fields stores mapping history information. For example, if you want to know where a request was transferred, you can review the To Mapping, To Form, and To Server fields.
Developers set some of these fields, and DSO sets others.
Full distributed fields
Field name | Description |
To Mapping | Tells DSO which mapping to use when transferring the request. If the mapping specified in this field does not exist or is disabled, the distributed operation fails. |
From Mapping | Specifies the mapping that was used during a transfer to create this request. Only DSO can set the value of this field. |
To Request ID | Specifies the ID of the request to which the data was transferred. Only DSO can set the value of this field. |
To Form | Specifies the form to which the request should be transferred. If this field and the To Server field are set, DSO looks for a mapping based on their values. If no mapping to the specified form exists, the distributed operation fails. Also called the target form. |
To Server | Specifies the server to which the request should be transferred. If this field and the To Form field are set, DSO looks for a mapping based on their values. If no mapping to the specified server exists, the distributed operation fails. Also called the target server. |
Mapping History | Contains a history-tracking record created at the time of transfer. The record includes the date and time of transfer, the source request ID, the source form, the source server, and the name of the specific mapping used. The result is a record of all transfers to this request. Only DSO can set the value of this field. Note: By default, this is an unlimited-length character field. If you set a maximum length for this field, records might be truncated. |
Current Form | Specifies the form in which the master copy of the request resides. Only DSO can set the value of this field. |
Current Server | Specifies the server on which the form with the master copy of the request resides. Only DSO can set the value of this field. |
Advanced distributed fields
The advanced distributed fields group includes the basic and full fields. Values entered in an advanced distributed field override the corresponding setting in the mapping used in a distributed operation.
For example, to change the method of distributed transfers from Data Only to Data + Ownership for a particular distributed operation, you can use workflow to modify the Transfer Mode distributed field. See Creating-workflow-to-perform-DSO-operations.
Advanced distributed fields
Field name | Description |
When to Update | Specifies the frequency with which to update the original request if a transferred copy is updated. See When to Update. |
Transfer Mode | Specifies the type of transfer to perform. Valid transfer types are Data Only, Data + Ownership, Independent Copy, and Copy + Delete. See Distributed-transfers. |
Duplicate Request ID Action | Specifies the action that occurs if you transfer a request and the To form already contains a request with the same request ID. See . |
Max Time to Retry | Specifies the maximum times a distributed operation is retried before the system cancels the operation. See "Retries" in Creating-distributed-mappings. |
Enforce Pattern Matching | Specifies whether to enforce patterns defined in fields on the target form during distributed operations. See "Enforce Pattern Matching" in Creating-distributed-mappings. |
Require Required Fields | Specifies whether to require values in fields defined as required fields on the target form. Use this field to enable transfer of an entry with a NULL value in a required field. See "Require Required Fields" in Creating-distributed-mappings. |
Matching Qualification | Specifies the qualification to use to match a source request with a request in the target form. See Distributed-pools. |
Overriding mapping settings on a per-request basis
Sometimes you must change a setting in a distributed mapping to satisfy the requirements of a particular distributed operation. To enable this, perform these tasks:
- Add the advanced distributed fields to the form that will be the source form in the distributed operation.
The names of the advanced distributed fields match the names of the fields in the Options panel of the Distributed Mapping editor with the exception of Max Time to Retry, which is called Retries in the editor (see Distributed-mapping). On the source form, these fields accept the same values as their counterparts in the editor. - Create workflow to update the appropriate advanced distributed fields on the source form when you submit or modify a request in that form.
The values that the workflow adds to the fields on the source form override the values set in the editor when the mapping was created.
For example, you might have a mapping whose transfer mode is Data Only, but for one transfer performed by that mapping, you need to send data and ownership. To do this, you would add advanced distributed fields to the transfer's source form and then use workflow to set the Transfer Mode field in the appropriate request to Data + Ownership.