FAQ

Frequesntly asked Questions for CRM.cockpit.

What information is included in a package?

Packages are a container for configuration items you have defined in the course of customizing Aurea.CRM win, Aurea.CRM web etc.

On the development machine, a package is stored in the Aurea.CRM win database. The package in the database includes references to the configuration items within the package, as well as the description, history, links and descriptive documents. As such, configuration items themselves are stored within the corresponding areas in Aurea.CRM.

Configuration items are extensions to the standard application as provided by update, such as formats, catalogs, configuration files (e.g. JavaScripts for Aurea.CRM web), designer units and the data model. You can also add records to a package.

When the package is exported, the .zip file generated by CRM.cockpit includes the actual items, which are copied from the Aurea.CRM database on the target machine, as well as any data entered in CRM.cockpit (e.g. descriptions, hyperlinks, descriptive documents). These items can then be imported on the target machine.

I have added some custom info areas to Aurea.CRM. How can I apply my changes to the data model to another Aurea.CRM installation?

The data model is automatically included in the package if you add an item from the customized data model. Add one of the info areas you have created to a process in the package. Export the process and import the .zip file on the target machine.

Can I import a package into an existing installation (i.e. not a new one with a blank database)?

You can upgrade earlier versions of the same package by importing a newer version of the package from a .zip file.

You can import a package into a database that already contains data, providing the source and target stations have different numbers. If the station numbers are identical, existing records with the same key are overwritten in the target database.

How does cockpit and transport management relate to other mechanisms such as CRM.bulkloader, initial stock downloads, communication etc.?

The transport mechanism provided in CRM.cockpit has been primarily designed for transferring extensions to the default configuration from one system to another. Formats, changes to the data model, designer configurations and files in the file system can be transferred.

Whilst it is also possible to transfer records using CRM.cockpit, this is not CRM.cockpit's main task, and CRM.cockpit has not been designed with the mass transfer of records in mind.

Other transport mechanisms cater to other tasks, and are better suited to transferring and synchronizing data between systems.

Can I perform all customizing work from within cockpit?

Customizing is performed from within Aurea.CRM. You cannot customize items from within CRM.cockpit.

What do I have to do when a new version of Aurea.CRM is released? Can I still use my packages?

Yes, you can use your existing packages. However, CRM.cockpit is only able to import .zip files that were exported from the same version of CRM.cockpit.

To migrate a package (available as a .zip file or in the database) to a .zip file corresponding to the latest version:

  1. Import the .zip file into the database, if necessary.
  2. Upgrade Aurea.CRM win and Aurea.CRM web to the current version and upgrade the designer database.
  3. Upgrade CRM.cockpit.
  4. Load the package in cockpit.
  5. Export the package from cockpit as a zip file.

This ensures that the owner of the package migrates the package to the latest version of Aurea.CRM and verifies that the package works correctly, before implementing the package on a customer's system. It is therefore up to the owner of a package to migrate the package once a new version of Aurea.CRM is released.