Exporting artifacts from a requirements project or component into ReqIF files

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You can export artifacts, modules, and folders from a requirements project or component into a ReqIF (Requirements Interchange Format) file by creating a definition and then exporting the artifacts. The artifacts that are exported are determined by the content in the definition.

Before you begin

To export data to a ReqIF file (.reqif or .reqifz), you must have:
  • Export ReqIF permission
  • A ReqIF definition in the ReqIF editor. To create a ReqIF definition, you must have the Manage ReqIF permission.

About this task

You can export several types of data from a requirements project or component to a ReqIF file, including these types:
  • Artifact types
  • Attribute definitions
  • Data types
  • Date Time
  • Diagram artifacts
  • Folders
  • Folder hierarchy
  • Graphical artifacts
  • Links to other artifacts in the RM project or component
  • Link types
  • Modules
    Important: To export a module to a reqIF file, the default artifact format of that module must be Module.
  • Tags
  • Textual artifacts
  • View column information
The following types of data cannot be exported:
  • Audit History
  • Comments
  • Date
  • Links to artifacts in applications that are integrated by using OSLC, such as IBM Engineering Workflow Management (EWM) and IBM Engineering Test Management (ETM)
  • Reviews
  • Time
  • User
  • View filtering information
If you are exporting artifacts to IBM Engineering Requirements Management DOORS (DOORS), the following data types are not supported. These data types are from the Requirements Management (RM) application for the IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management (ELM).
  • Full rich-text formatting.
  • Graphical artifacts, such as business process diagrams, use case diagrams, and wireframes.
  • Requirements that include embedded collections.

If you use modules to capture information about your project or component requirements, you can export specific artifacts in the module. Start by creating a shared view of the module that contains only those artifacts that you want to export; Create a new ReqIF definition from the Manage Project (or Component) Properties page. Click Add Module. In the selection window, select the module first, then select the view from the Select View pane. Click Add View and Close. Save the ReqIF definition. Only the artifacts in the selected view are exported to the ReqIF output package.

Important: During the export process, any embedded artifacts or images that are added from a different component, which is linked through a global configuration are not exported.

Procedure

  1. On the Administration menu , click Manage Project Properties.
    Note: If configuration management is enabled for your project, on the Administration menu, click Manage Component Properties.
  2. Click the ReqIF tab.
  3. Click New Definition.
  4. Type a name for the definition. If necessary, specify other information, such as a description or whether to include links or folders in the export.
  5. Click Add Artifact or Add Module or a shared view. To select a shared view, select the module first, then select the view from the Select View pane. Select a share view to specify exported artifacts and attributes from the module, as defined by the view's filter and columns.

    When you use a shared view, some system-specified attributes are always included in the export to ensure that import and roundtrip works as expected.

  6. After you create a module, you can add shared views and shared module views to a definition for export. This does not use the view to filter artifacts or columns, but the view is available whenever you import a ReqIF package that contains the view.
  7. Optional: Specify attributes to be restricted during export to DOORS version 9. Click the attributes restricted link and select the attributes that you want to restrict and add them in the Selected Attributes list. Click OK. For more information, see restricting attributes.
  8. After you finish adding artifacts, click Save. The definition is displayed in the ReqIF Definitions section.
  9. To start the export, click the pencil icon (Menu icon ) that is next to the ReqIF definition, and then click Export.
  10. Optional: To apply a mapping context during export, click Export with context. Select an existing context from the Available Contexts list and then click OK.
    For more information about mapping contexts, see Mapping Contexts.
  11. When the export is complete, click Download to save the export to a file on your computer.
    The downloaded ReqIF file has the (.reqifz) extension. To see the data that was exported, click Show Report.

What to do next

You can download packages and view report information in the ReqIF Manager window. Click the action icons in the ReqIF Files section of the editor.