Workflow for global configurations

Initial setup

The initial setup is typically performed by a configuration lead or the Jazz™ administrator. To learn about the Configuration Lead role, see Role-based permissions for Global Configuration Management (GCM).

Global Configuration Management (GCM) is a Jazz application that is registered with a single Jazz Team Server. In a distributed environment, friend relationships can be set up across different servers, providing access to the application data.

1. The team leads for the contributing Rational solution for Collaborative Lifecycle Management (CLM) applications set up streams where the teams develop requirements, tests, or designs.

   Before you can share configurations across IBM products, teams must set up streams in their CLM application. These are the configurations that are assembled by a global configuration.

   See Creating streams in configuration-enabled applications.

2. In GCM, the configuration lead selects or creates a component on the Browse Components page.

   The component represents physical or logical pieces of your system and provides context to help you define a “family” of configurations, including baselines.

   See Creating a component to establish a work context.

   When you create a component, a baseline is created automatically, and an initial stream is created from the baseline.

3. The configuration lead adds configurations to the stream.

   The stream is where you can group configurations contributed by this and other CLM applications, such as Rational Team Concert™, Rational Quality Manager, Rational DOORS Next Generation, and Rational Design Management.

   From each application, choose the appropriate set of configurations (streams, change sets, baselines, snapshots) to contribute. For example, the Requirements Management (RM) application team contributes a requirements configuration that is named AMR (RM) 1.0. In addition, the Quality Management (QM) team contributes a test configuration that is named AMR (QM) 1.0. The configuration lead groups those configurations into a global configuration for a new Automated Meter Reader configuration: AMR 1.0.

   Engineers that use global configurations now work in a context that has the appropriate artifact versions across the contributing applications. When engineers work in the applications or follow links between the applications, the artifact versions that are shown come from the contributing applications.

   For example, as part of the AMR 1.0 global configuration, the test artifacts in AMR (QM) 1.0 link to the requirements in AMR (RM) 1.0. If the requirements configuration is updated to AMR (RM) 2.0, then the links from AMR (QM) 1.0 reflect the links in the updated AMR (RM) 2.0. The test links are resolved in the new context.

   See Adding configurations to a stream.

4. The configuration lead manages the configurations.

   Development teams are dynamic and change occurs for a variety of reasons. You might need to move, rename, remove, reorder, or replace configurations to keep up with changes.

   See Managing configurations.

5. Create a baseline to save a milestone at critical points in a release.

   At certain points in a release cycle, your team reaches milestones, such as sprint dates or a beta release. A milestone is a good place to create a baseline. When you create a baseline, a new frozen version of the configuration is saved. The stream is not changed when you create a baseline from it, so your team can keep working in that stream.

   You can return to the baseline later, for example, if you need to troubleshoot a defect for a product that was released to customers. You can also use the baseline as a branch point in the future, for example, to create a product fix from a release milestone.

   See Creating a baseline to save a milestone.

Workflow for users

This workflow explains how to solve a development problem and create a related but different variant of a product or application. The workflow assumes that a team member completed the Initial setup.

• Solve a product development problem by replacing a configuration.

  At some point in a release, an aspect of development might stop because of a problem. In the example in step 3 under "Initial Setup," imagine that AMR (RM) 2.0 has many problems. The project lead decides to return to AMR (RM) 1.0. In the global configuration, the configuration lead replaces AMR (RM) 2.0 with AMR (RM) 1.0. The links in AMR (QM) 1.0 resolve correctly.

  See "Replace a configuration" in Managing configurations.

• Privately test one or more insulated changes in a personal stream before delivering them to a shared stream.

  Sometimes you need to test your changes to configurations and change sets privately. A stream is usually shared and used by many users. Changes to a shared stream are immediately visible to all users, whereas a personal stream is insulated.

  Use a personal stream to add a change set created in the RM or DM application as an insulated addition to a shared stream.

  See Creating change sets in the RM or DM application. If creating multiple change sets in the RM or DM application, see Working with multiple change sets

• Branch to create a variant of a physical product or software application.

  This action creates a modifiable duplicate of the baseline, which you can then change by adding, removing, or replacing configurations.

  See Creating a variant by branching.