Performing the optional tasks for knowledge base import

As an administrator, you can change the default settings for the import process to meet the unique requirements of your organization. To make these customizations, you can perform any or all of the following optional tasks based on your company's needs: 

 

Related topics

Importing articles to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround

Before you begin

Make sure you have completed the following steps:

Product

Action

BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management

BMC Helix Business Workflows Knowledge Management

In Mid Tier, you have assigned the following IS Personas in the CTM:People form to the user who will run the import utility:

  • Application Name: com.bmc.dsm.case-lib
  • IS Persona: Case Business Analyst

 

To map the custom fields in a knowledge template with BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround

The out-of-the-box knowledge templates and fields in your BMC application are automatically mapped with BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. If you have custom fields in the out-of-the-box knowledge templates, you must map them manually.

Learn how to map the custom fields.

 

To modify the query to import knowledge articles

You can modify the default import configurations to specify the articles that you want to import. For example, you can include previously failed articles in import. Also, you can specify the status of the knowledge articles that you want to include or exclude from import. For instance, cancelled and retired knowledge articles from your BMC application are not imported toBMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround by default. However, you can modify the default import configurations to include these articles in import. 

Important

If you modify the query to include retired or cancelled knowledge articles in the import process, you must map these article statuses with article states of your choice in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. For more information about mapping article states, see To map an article status from your BMC application with an article state in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.

 

To modify configurations for BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Processes > Get RKM Articles. 
  3. Modify the type of knowledge articles and previously failed articles that are imported by default. 
    1. On the canvas, click one of the following Get Records By Query elements that you want to modify:
      • Get Failed Records By Query
      • Get Problem Solution Records By Query
      • Get How To Records By Query
      • Get KCS records By Query
      • Get Known Error records By Query

      • Get Reference Records By Query

        For example, if you want to modify the query to get the How To type of articles, click the Get How To Records By Query element.

    2. On the Settings icon1.PNGGENERAL tab, in the INPUT MAP section, edit the Query Expression field. 

    3. On the Edit Expression dialog box, modify the conditions to import the knowledge articles. 

      View the Get RKM Articles process

      Get RKM articles process1.png

    4. For example, if you want to import the Retired, How To knowledge articles, add ArticleStatusEnglish = "Retired" to the query, as shown in the following image:

      Ka status sync_remove status value1.jpg

    5. Click OK and click Save.
  4. Repeat the procedure to update the required Get Records By Query elements in the process.

 

To modify configurations for BMC Helix Business Workflows Knowledge Management

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Processes > Get BWF Articles. 
  3. Modify the type of knowledge articles and previously failed articles that are imported by default. 
    1. On the canvas, click one of the following Get Records By Query elements that you want to modify:
      • Get Failed Records By Query
      • Get BWF HowTo Records By Query
      • Get BWF KCS Records By Query
      • Get BWF Reference Records By Query
        For example, if you want to modify the query to get the How To type of articles, click the Get BWF HowTo Records By Query element.
    2. On the Settings icon.pngGENERAL tab, in the INPUT MAP section, edit the Query Expression field. 

    3. On the Edit Expression dialog box, modify the conditions to import the knowledge articles. 

      View the Get BWF Articles process

      Modify_query_Get_BWF_articles.jpg

    4. For example, if you want to import the Retired, How To knowledge articles, add ArticleStatus = "6000" to the query, as shown in the following image:
      Query_variables.png

      View the supported article states and their codes

      Article status

      Code

      In progress

      1000

      Draft

      2000

      SME review

      3000

      Content review

      3100

      Proof reading

      3200

      Published

      5000

      Closed

      9000

      Retired

      6000

      Cancelled

      7000

      Publish approval

      4000

      Retire approval

      5500

      Request cancellation

      6500

       

    5. Click OK and click Save.
  4. Repeat the procedure to update the required Get Records By Query elements in the process.

 

To map an article status from your BMC application with an article state in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround

You can map an article status in your BMC application with any existing article state in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. By default, only the Retired and Cancelled article statuses are not mapped to any article states in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround because these articles are excluded from import. If you modify the import query to include retired or cancelled knowledge articles in import, you must map these article statuses with article states of your choice in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. Otherwise, the import of these knowledge articles fails. For more information about modifying import configurations, see To modify the query to import knowledge articles.

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Records.
  3. On the Records tab, select Migration State Mapping and click Edit data.
  4. On the Data Editor (Migration State Mapping) page, click New.
  5. On the New Record page, specify the following required fields:
    • ComAroundStateValue—Enter the state of knowledge articles after the import from your BMC application to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.
    • Created By—Enter the name of the user who created this mapping. The default value is the BMC Helix Innovation Studio user name.
    • Description—Enter the mapping description.
    • SourceKBArticle—Select a source BMC application from which knowledge articles with the selected source status must be imported to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.
    • SourceStateValue—Enter the status of knowledge articles in your BMC application before the import. During the import process, this status will be mapped to the selected BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround state. 
    • Status—Select Enabled.
  6. Click Save.
View the New Record fields

State_mapping_record.jpg

You can also modify the default state mappings. Instead of creating a new record, open an existing record that defines the state mapping you want to modify, and then make the required changes. For more information about the default state mappings, see How article states are mapped.

 

To create a custom locale mapping

You can create a custom mapping between a locale in your BMC application and any existing language in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.

Best practice
You can use this mapping to enable the import of articles if their locale is set to a language that either doesn't exist in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround or isn't supported by a BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround portal.

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Records.
  3. On the Records tab, select Migration Locale Mapping and click Edit data.
  4. On the Data Editor (Migration Locale Mapping) page, click New.
  5. On the New Record page, specify the following required fields:

    • ComAroundLocaleValue—Enter a language code for a BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround translation language into which articles must be imported from your BMC application (for example, en-US).

      Important

      This language must be configured for your BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround portal. If BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround supports the selected translation language, but this language isn't configured for the BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround portal, the import tool will return the error during the import process. 

      View the supported translation languages and their language codes

      Translation language in  BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround

      Language code

      Čeština

      cs-CZ

      Dansk

      da-DK

      Deutsch (Deutschland)

      de-DE

      Deutsch (Österreich)

      de-AT

      Deutsch (Schweiz)

      de-CH

      Eesti

      et-EE

      English (Ireland)

      en-IE

      English (United States)

      en-US

      Español

      es-ES

      Français (Belgique)

      fr-BE

      Français (France)

      fr-FR

      Français (Luxembourg)

      fr-LU

      Français (Switzerland)

      fr-CH

      Hrvatski

      hr-HR

      Italiano (Italia)

      it-IT

      Italiano (Swiss)

      it-CH

      Latviešu

      lv-LV

      Lietuvių

      lt-LT

      Magyar

      hu-HU

      Dutch (Belgium)

      nl-BE

      Dutch (Nederland)

      nl-NL

      Polski

      pl-PL

      Português

      pt-PT

      Română

      ro-RO

      Slovenčina

      sk-SK

      Slovenščina

      sl-SI

      Srpski

      sr-Latn-RS

      Suomi

      fi-FI

      Svenska

      sv-SE

      Türkçe

      tr-TR

      Ελληνικά

      el-GR

      Български

      bg-BG

      Русский (Russia)

      ru-RU

      Русский (Ukraine)

      ru-UA

      Українська

      uk-UA

      中文(简体)

      zh-CN

    • Description—Enter the mapping description.
    • Created By—Enter the name of the user who created this mapping. The default value is the BMC Helix Innovation Studio user name.
    • SourceLocaleValue—Enter the language name for a locale in your BMC application from which articles must be imported into the selected BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround translation language.
    • SourceKBAArticle—Select a source BMC application from which localized articles must be imported to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.
    • Status—Select Enabled.
  6. Click Save.
View the New Record fields

custom_locale_mapping.png

Example

The Japanese language doesn't exist in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. However, you can import localized articles in Japanese from BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management to any language supported by BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. For example, you can set English as a ComAroundLocaleValue to get articles in Japanese imported from BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management to the English translation language. 

 

To modify the multithreading configurations for the knowledge base import

The import tool uses the multithreading approach to deliver a top-level performance when it imports knowledge bases from BMC applications to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. The tool imports multiple knowledge articles in parallel by using a separate thread for each article instead of copying articles in a consecutive order.

Warning

To keep the performance of the import tool optimal, we recommend that you don't change the default multithreading configurations. 

Performance testing shows that the defined default values enable the import tool to maximize its effectiveness. Changing the values might result in performance issues both in BMC Helix Innovation Studio and BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.

If you are sure that you want to define custom multithreading configurations, you can modify the default settings. 

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Records.
  3. On the Records tab, select Migration Config Common Settings Properties and click Edit data.

  4. On the Data Editor (Migration Config Common Settings Properties) page, open a record that contains the multithreading configurations you want to modify as represented by the property name: 

    PropertyName

    Definition

    threadPoolMin

    Minimum number of threads that the import tool runs in parallel

    threadPoolMax

    Maximum number of threads that the import tool runs in parallel

    keepAliveTime

    Time in seconds to import a single article from your BMC application to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround

    View records on the Migration Config Common Settings Properties page

    multithreading_configs.jpg

  5. Specify the following required fields:
    • Created by—Enter the name of the user who created this mapping. The default value is the BMC Helix Innovation Studio user name.
    • Description—Enter the record description.
    • Status—Select the status of the record.
    • Source—Select a BMC application from which knowledge articles are imported to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround by using the defined multithreading configurations. 
    • PropertyName— Do not change the name of the property defined in the record.

    • PropertyValue—Modify the value of the selected property.

      PropertyName

      ProperyValue

      threadPoolMin

      Enter the minimum number of threads that the import tool will run in parallel. The default value is 100.

      threadPoolMax

      Enter the maximum number of threads that the import tool will run in parallel. The default value is 100.

      Important: The threadPoolMin and threadPoolMax values must be the same. 

      Example: There are 1000 knowledge articles that must be imported from BMC Helix ITSM: Knowledge Management to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. If the threadPoolMax value is set to 100, the import tool will import 100 articles in parallel. After this import is completed, the next set of 100 articles will be pushed from the queue of the thread pool into the threads. The process will remain the same, regardless of the number of articles to be imported. You do not have to increase the threadPoolMax value if the number of articles is larger; for example, 5000. 

      keepAliveTime

      Enter the time in seconds to import a single article from your BMC application to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround. The default value is 600.
      If the article hasn't been fully imported before this time elapses, it will be completed with the Timeout error, and the system will create an error log. For information about working with logs, see Troubleshooting.

      Important: During subsequent imports, the sync tool will detect these articles and try to reimport them. 

      View the ThreadPoolMax record

      threadPoolMax.png

  6. Click Save. 

 

To modify the number of articles to be imported into subfolders

To improve the import performance, the import tool automatically generates subfolders for each folder created in BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround and imports knowledge articles directly into them. The number of articles that can be imported into one subfolder is limited to 100 articles per folder by default.

Warning

To keep the performance of the import tool optimal, we recommend that you don't change the default number of articles to be imported per folder. 

Performance testing shows that the defined default values enable the import tool to maximize its effectiveness. Changing the values might result in performance issues both in BMC Helix Innovation Studio and BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround.

If you are sure that you want to change the number of articles to be imported, you can modify the default settings. 

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Records.
  3. On the Records tab, select Migration Config Common Settings Properties and click Edit data.
  4. On the Data Editor (Migration Config Common Settings Properties) page, open the record that has the PropertyName set to NumberOfChildsFolders. 
  5. On the Edit Record page, specify the following required fields:
    • Created by—Enter the name of the user who created this mapping. The default value is the BMC Helix Innovation Studio user name.
    • Description—Enter the record description.
    • Status—Select the status of the record.
    • Assignee—Enter the assignee name.
    • PropertyName—Do not change the name of the property.
    •  PropertyValue—Enter the number of articles to be imported per folder. The default value is 100.
  6. Click Save.

Important

There is no maximum limit for the PropertyValue setting. However, the larger the value, the longer it takes to import the articles. Therefore, we recommend that you don't set the value larger than 100. 

If you want to start a fresh import process after importing articles to BMC Helix Knowledge Management by ComAround folders, you must clear the application cache.

  1. Log in to BMC Helix Innovation Studio.
  2. On the Workspace tab, select Knowledge Sync > Records.
  3. On the Records tab, select Migration Config Common Settings Properties and click Edit data.
  4. On the Data Editor (Migration Config Common Settings Properties) page, open the record that has the PropertyName set to ClearSubFoldersCache. 
  5. On The Edit Record page, Set the PropertyValue to true.
  6. Click Save.

You can now start the import process again. After the import is done, ClearSubFoldersCache is automatically set to false. 

 

Where to go from here

Setting the default author email address

 

 

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