Configuration Packs

Concept

In short, the VCS configuration pack provides version control in SimpleOne. Version control system allows:

• monitoring changes, tracking who updated the record and when 
• restoring record versions
• transferring record versions created when updating or developing applications between unrelated instances.

VCS records provide a way to transfer data from one instance to another in an automatic or semi-automatic way. You can just import a configuration pack in order to avoid recreation of changes on every instance. This technology ensures easy update migration between instances.

For example, your team has created a new application on the development instance. Instead of copying scripts and recreating all elements one by one manually, they assemble a configuration pack and import it to the production instance. While importing this pack into the target instance, the system checks changes for possible collisions. This way, you can make sure that these changes work fine.

Configuration pack flow

Good practice is to develop new applications and implement changes into existing ones on a separate instance. This will lessen mistakes and risks for everyday processes on the production instance. Therefore, VCS records should be collected into one local pack within the relevant application.

The configuration management involves two main processes:

• Export – collecting VCS records into a local pack on Instance #1, the result of which is a Local Pack in the Completed state and a .SOP file.
• Import – uploading and deployment of the previously prepared configuration pack on Instance #2.

To learn more about version control in SimpleOne and more, see the following articles:

• Assembling and exporting local packs
• Importing configuration packs

Local packs 

Local packs allow the development of application configurations on a separate instance, exporting it as a .SOP file, and implementing changes to the production instance. This approach minimizes the risks of mistakes, errors, and conflicts, which may affect the production instance during application development.

Local pack is a record in the VCS Local Pack (sys_vcs_local_pack) table compiling relevant records from the VCS Record (sys_vcs_record) table. This allows associating VCS records with a particular pack and exporting them as a complete set.

Every single version is an atomic state of versioned tables (those ones which have the Is VCS Enabled checkbox selected). All records in this table contain JSON formatted changes and other attributes described below.

{"value": "Report Item", "policy": "Open", "sys_id": 159653803414986194, "column_id": 156941403909472422, "record_id": 159653803414985080, "language_id": 156628684306541141, "application_id": 155931135900000002, "sys_created_at": "2020-08-04 10:47:14", "sys_created_by": 155931135900000001, "sys_updated_at": "2020-08-04 10:47:14", "sys_updated_by": 155931135900000001}

Application configurations are stored in configuration packs represented as a .SOP file. Administrators can create their own applications if needed.

All record versions in a local pack are displayed in the VCS Record related list.

VCS Local Pack form fields

VCS Records

Configuration packs are also used to monitor changes in particular records.

After any transaction (create/update/delete) for the versioned table object, the record is created in the VCS Records (sys_vcs_record) table corresponding to the object state after the transaction. The record version contains the information described below.

VCS Record form fields

{"value": "Report Item", "policy": "Open", "sys_id": 159653803414986194, "column_id": 156941403909472422, "record_id": 159653803414985080, "language_id": 156628684306541141, "application_id": 155931135900000002, "sys_created_at": "2020-08-04 10:47:14", "sys_created_by": 155931135900000001, "sys_updated_at": "2020-08-04 10:47:14", "sys_updated_by": 155931135900000001}

Restoring VCS Records

All the record versions – both previous and current – are stored in the VCS Record table. Current versions have the Is Current checkbox selected.

If you need to restore one of the record previous versions, complete the steps below:

1. Open the record which version you need to restore.
2. Scroll down to the Related Lists area and open the VCS Records tab.
3. Open the record version you need to restore.
4. Click Restore Version.

After that, a new VCS record is associated with the current local pack. It will be displayed in the VCS Records related list.

Protection Policy

The Protection Policy attribute is responsible for data protection purposes. After creating a record in the versioned table, the Protection Policy for this record is Open. Once the record is updated, the Protection Policy becomes Changed. These values are transferred to the Record Policy field in the related VCS record, that is, the record version has the same Policy as the record itself.

Admin can update only the Local Pack and Is Strong Overwrite fields of records with any protection policy.

During the importing process, the records possible to overwrite can be updated. Both record policy values set in the system and in the configuration pack are taken into account. All possible policy combinations are described in the table below.

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