History of lock/unlock

[ngong]

For an SQL Server based EA model I enabled security with "Require User Lock to Edit".

Would it be possible to record all locks and lock releases together with the users issuing that function?

[Geert Bellekens]

No, not really, unless you would create triggers on the database (which I don't think is good idea).

I don't think there are EA_OnUserLock and EA.OnReleaseUserLock events.

Geert

[ngong]

Thank you Geert

why do you think programming those triggers would not be a good idea?

Such a trigger could ask the user about a Change Request ID - supporting reviews as well as quality and safety assessments.

I can close EA and get back in and still see whether a package or diagram is locked. That is why I think that information is stored somewhere in the database. If it is in the DB a trigger should be possible. Would be good using EA API for that. If API does not allow to register callbacks on lock/release-lock event, it should be possible on DB level (though I am completely blind in how to do triggers for SQL Server).

[Sunshine]

May be you should consider making use of reviews, discussions, base lining and enabling audit.

[Geert Bellekens]

Thank you Geert

why do you think programming those triggers would not be a good idea?

1. In order to add a trigger you would have to change the database schema, which could cause any number of issues. One of them would be that the model transfer would not take into account these triggers.
2. Triggers have a notoriously bad reputation. (search for "are database triggers evil" and you'll get the gist of it)

Geert

[ngong]

Thank you Sunshine and Geert for your contribution.

All these are no good news to me.

Reviews and Discussions are techniques for manually enhancing quality and creativity - they would need high discipline in an ever changing team and hard to automate formal reviews in order to link change requests to actual changes.

Audits are too late for that purpose.

Baselines are also a bit late. I am thinking about proprietarily comparing baselines - based on project specific SW architecture profile - and group the list of differences by authors. Then ask the authors to apply CRs to their group. A bit late. Doing it just prior to a session creating a set of changes would be much better, that is at lock-time.

Geert, I got to thank you for that warning. However - does not make my problem smaler.

[PeterHeintz]

Just wondering why you need that EA log stuff at all, because as I remember you are using PTC Integrity for versioning.

If you have version controlled packages, the users must lock the package against the version control system, and the information who changed what when you should get from you VCN in use.

[ngong]

Thank you for that question, Peter.

Yes, we were used to PTC together with JET engine. But we noticed failures at the interface to PTC - especially 'Get All Latest'. I tried hard to find a solution and/or suitable help for that problem - without success. In order not to let the projects suffer, I gave up.

We switched to SQL Server. No longer using PTC on a per package base. However, in the course of ASpice and ISO26262 we need at least a history of the relationship of change requests and actual changes. Logging that information at lock time seems to me the easiest solution.

I would refuse to re-investigate the PTC per-package trial, as I do not have found the reason for that problems. For getting help, I would have to provide an example model exposing the problem. The one showing the failure is confidential. Trying to create one, I was not successful, yet.

Our experiences using SQL Server for EA in a multi-user environment are very positive. Our work is now more content focused, than on operating the tool. No more "memory overflow", "DAO failure" or "corrupted database" (at least until now). There is no way back for us. JET engine seems to be sufficient for single-user EA work with an ever growing model, not changed much in existing parts - as I did for more than decade.