Is there a manual or lesson on how Virtual Items are supposed to work in eB?

eric.rajala Priyanka Kale

Here is what we are trying to model.

We have an excel file for a bunch of tests that need to be performed. (Example, ensure pump xxx-xxx can perform yy gpm of flow). It then has some information like max/min/uncertainty values and text fields like "Notes", "Prerequisites". Finally it lists which requirements the tests originate from (Licensing/Design Documents).

My initial thought was to model these tests as Virtual Items. Here is what I'm thinking.

1) Create VI Class called "Test Requirements". Add all rows in the excel sheet as a VI. (Only has Code, Class, Description)

2) Create VIG Class called "Test Requirements" as a VIG Structure. Here is where I would define all of the attributes that are in my excel sheet column headers.

3) Create a VIG Template from the VIG Class. In eB web, create a VIG from this template. (As shown by Priyanka)

4) Add all of the Ungrouped VIs to this VIG as members. This would create Grouped Virtual Items that have the attributes that I defined in step 2.

5) Add the rest of the attributes in the excel sheet to these new Grouped VIs that were created.

6) Approve the VIG and grouped VI once all of the members and attributes have been added.

Does this sound correct? If so, I'd imagine that the provisioning spreadsheet would help somehow with this process?

eric.rajala Priyanka Kale

Here is what we are trying to model.

We have an excel file for a bunch of tests that need to be performed. (Example, ensure pump xxx-xxx can perform yy gpm of flow). It then has some information like max/min/uncertainty values and text fields like "Notes", "Prerequisites". Finally it lists which requirements the tests originate from (Licensing/Design Documents).

My initial thought was to model these tests as Virtual Items. Here is what I'm thinking.

1) Create VI Class called "Test Requirements". Add all rows in the excel sheet as a VI. (Only has Code, Class, Description)

2) Create VIG Class called "Test Requirements" as a VIG Structure. Here is where I would define all of the attributes that are in my excel sheet column headers.

3) Create a VIG Template from the VIG Class. In eB web, create a VIG from this template. (As shown by Priyanka)

4) Add all of the Ungrouped VIs to this VIG as members. This would create Grouped Virtual Items that have the attributes that I defined in step 2.

5) Add the rest of the attributes in the excel sheet to these new Grouped VIs that were created.

6) Approve the VIG and grouped VI once all of the members and attributes have been added.

Does this sound correct? If so, I'd imagine that the provisioning spreadsheet would help somehow with this process?

Here is a quick outline of steps to generate a virtual item structure:

1. Create a Virtual Item Class called "Test Requirement". Note that VIs do not require a class unless you are using attributes.
   
   
2. Add the desired attributes to the VI class. These attributes will be populated for each requirement, so they should correspond to your excel column headings.
   
   
3. Create a VIG Class called "Test Requirements". The requirements VIG corresponds to what is documented – the Licensing/Design Documents. I’m assuming that each document you’re referencing has multiple requirements that are satisfied by test(s). These are what will be broken down into virtual item structures.
   Notes:
   * You can also add attributes to this class, but these attributes will apply to the virtual item structure (Requirements Document) as a whole.
   * Often, a VIG is created for each requirements document. The VIGs can be nested within each other and also under GVIs to build deeper structures if needed.
   
   
4. Create a VIG Template from the VIG Class.
   
   
5. Create the VIG from the template. You may use the requirement document’s title and number to identify the VIG.
   
   
6. Add the test requirements as VI members of the VIG. This should correspond to the rows in your excel sheet. The VI description identifies the requirement that is addressed. Now the VIs are “grouped VI” (GVI) members of this VIG. You can use the Virtual Item Members page in the provisioning workbook to generate this structure. Make sure that the VI class you created is applied so that your attributes will be inherited.
   
   
7. Add the attribute values to the GVI members. Use the Instance Attributes page in the provisioning workbook..

            The object type is 123.

           On this sheet, you will need to “pivot” the excel column headings into the attribute name column. For example, if there are 10 attributes per requirement, there would be 10 rows per requirement where each row specifies an attribute name and value for that object. Repeat the cell values on each row, except for those 2 values.

       8.  Approve the VIG once all of the members and attributes have been added.

       9.  The GVI’s can then be pointed to specific objects that implement / are subject to / must satisfy the tests.

I've attached a composite screen shot from Director that shows the objects within a hierarchical VIG structure. This example has child VIGs within a parent VIG, as mentioned in step 3 notes.

Finally, the references to the provisioning sheet are relevant only to versions 16.4.2 and 15.x. If you have a newer version, the provisioning process is different.

As I was following these instructions, I ran into the following error in eB Director.

What version are you using? We will need to reproduce it over here.

Version 15.6.1.115

This error occurred as I was dragging the VI onto the VIG as a member.

Thanks. I will look at this and let you know if we need to file a service request.