Overview of the PDM working.

 

 

 

Summary

 

  1. General Information.

  2. Installation.

  3. Listening port.

  4. Operation.

  5. Projects.

  6. Libraries.

  7. Documents.

  8. Cache.

  9. Workspace.

  10. Transfer.

  11. Back-up.

 

  1. General Information.

 

TopSolid'Pdm Explorer can only works in client/server mode, only this mode will be developed in this overview.

 

The PDM definition, its installation and its description are explained in the TopSolid or the TopSolid'Pdm Server online help and also in the installation guide. Thank you to check these online helps for more informations.

 

  1. Installation:

 

In the case of the SQL server, the file server and the data server have to be one.

 

Some PDM users are not TopSolid users, but they need to visualize documents. TopSolid'Pdm Explorer has been developed for this need.

 

  1. Listening ports.

 

When using the PDM in client/server mode, communication between clients and servers are done through the network via the listening ports.

 

 

It is essential that this port for proper operation of the PDM is opened in the clients' and servers' firewalls.

 

 

  1. Operation.

 

When first logging in to a remote server, the user will be asked several questions, specifically to define specific directories required to work with this particular server.

• The directory containing the cache related to the data from server X's vault and the Workspace for the documents checked out of server X's vault for editing (e.g. C:\TopSolidPdm\login\Workspace Explorer).

The exact role of this directory is described later.

 

  1. Projects.

 

The data managed by the PDM is arranged in projects.

A project can contain folders.

Projects and folders can contain documents.

This organization allows the user to perform a hierarchical division of the work based on a simple Windows file system-type method.

This allows displaying the structure as a project tree similar to Windows Explorer, where everyone can immediately be comfortable using.

You can simultaneously open several projects which leads to having several project trees displayed at the same time in the application window.

A document can belong to only one project.

Each project has certain properties that can be modified: Access Rights, ...

A project can reference other projects, in which case the documents it contains can reference documents from other projects.

 

  1. Libraries.

 

Data having a similar nature, corresponding to frequently used items within projects, can be grouped in libraries.

A library is a project.

 

  1. Documents.

 

The PDM allows you to generate different types of documents.

The primary goal is to manage documents from applications based on TopSolid, such as the bill of material, back references, the impact of changes, automatic update, etc.

However, it also allows you to manage other types of companion documents (Word, Excel, etc.) but with fewer functions, yet retaining the management of revisions.

It is possible to directly open a non TopSolid document by double-clicking it in the projects tree, which start the associated application. This application must be installed.

 

  1. Cache.

 

When the PDM server is on a remote terminal, loading the files directly over the network can be taxing.

It can be useful to manage a cache on the local terminal where a copy of certain documents from the vault will be temporarily stored.

When a user asks to consult a document, the PDM searches first in the cache if the file is available , if not it will copy it from the vault to the cache to open it. The contents of this directory can be deleted without any problems, its contents does not need to be saved.

 

  1. Workspace.

 

When a user checks out for modification a document (only a non TopSolid document like texts, images, videos and others), it is transfered in a working folder called workspace.. The document will remain there until the document is checked in. Saving a document checked out overwrites the document in the workspace and replaces it with the saved document.

 

 

The cache and the workspace are merged in the same folder. They don't need to be daily backed-up, the workspace is centralized on the server. If this folder has been deleted, the needed files will be automatically restored from the server.

 

 

  1. Transfer.

 

You can transfer a project (in whole or in part) from one server to another, even if only to allow to companies using TopSolid to communicate with native files.

The Export package command allows you to export a project in whole or in part. If you perform the export on the project, the whole project is exported; if you perform the export on an assembly, all the necessary files (even if they depend on multiple projects) are exported in a TopPkg file.

It is not possible to import a package from TopSolid'Pdm Explorer application.

 

  1. Back-up.

 

 

It is critical to set up a daily back-up system so you will not lose any of your data in case of a computer problem (virus, hard disk failure, etc.). Please read the installation guide  > Automatic backup).