Extended Attributes

What is the PowerSoft Repository?

The Powersoft repository (AKA Powersoft Catalog) is a series of 5 tables containing extended attributes pertaining to a data table and its columns. These attributes contain information such a s labels, headings, display formats, validation rules, and edit styles.

Do not confuse the database catalog with the repository. The database catalog contains column definitions, initial values, constraints, and referential integrity rules and has no relationship with the PowerSoft repository.

How can I modify a table with out dropping it and clobbering the extended attributes?

1. Use the “Object|Export syntax to log” menu selection to save the data table syntax to the painter log.

2. Select Design|Save Log As to save the log to a file. The log contains both the syntax and INSERT statements that populate the repository with the extended attributes for the table.

3. Make changes to the SQL statements in the saved file, import the file into the Database Administration painter notepad, and execute the statements to recreate the table and populate the repository.

Or you could use a database design tool

How do I synchronize the repository?

When data tables are deleted outside the Database painter, for example using DROP table from SQL Plus, extended attributes associated with the deleted table remain in the repository. This information is now orphaned and takes up space.

To remove orphaned attributes from the repository, select Design|Synchronize PB Attributes in the Database painter. This menu items compares all attribute information to the list of existing tables and purges attributes for tables that no longer exist.

Warning: make sure you have access to all the data tables, otherwise you risk deleting extended attributes for tables that you can’t see.

What is DWEAS Utility?

The DataWindow Extended Attribute Synchronizer (DWEAS) lets you update many of the attributes of an existing DataWindow object with the current extended attribute values from the Powersoft repository.

This is important because when a new DataWindow is built, its extended attributes are gathered from the current values in the repository. When the values change, the object attributes are not automatically updated.