You can modify an object's properties from its property sheet. To open a lifecycle property sheet, double-click its Browser entry in the Lifecycles folder.
The General tab contains the following properties:
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Name | Specifies the name of the item which should be clear and meaningful, and should convey the item's purpose to non-technical users. |
| Code | Specifies the technical name of the item used for generating code or scripts, which may be abbreviated, and should not generally include spaces. |
| Comment | Specifies a descriptive label for the item. |
| Stereotype | Sub-classification used to extend the semantics of an object without changing its structure; it can be predefined or user-defined. |
This tab contains all the properties necessary to define your lifecycle. The Policy group box contains the following properties:
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Policy type | Specifies the criteria used to advance data through the lifecycle. You can choose between:
|
| Start date | [age-based lifecycles only] Specifies the date from which you want the lifecycle to manage data movement. |
| Total retention |
Specifies the total length of time during which data is controlled by the lifecycle. For example, if you specify a total retention of 5 years, the lifecycle will manage the movement of each record from the moment of its creation until it has existed for 5 years. For age-based lifecycles, the total retention time must be equal to the sum of all the retention times of all the phases contained within the lifecycle. For access-based lifecycles, the total retention time is used as the minimum total time that the data must remain in the lifecycle. |
| Phases | Lists the phases (see Phases (PDM)) associated with the lifecycle. You can create phases using the Create a New Phase tool. Click on a phase to open its property sheet. Note: Your phase will display a yellow warning overlay until it is completely defined.
|
| Partition range | [age-based lifecycles only] Specifies the period of data to be contained in partitions for tables governed by the lifecycle. For example, a partition range of one month means that each partition will contain one month's data. |
The Managed Tables group box lists the tables whose data are managed by the lifecycle. Use the Add Objects and Create an Object tools to populate the list. If the lifecycle is used to archive data in an external database, the choice of tables to attach is limited to the tables in the external database, and the selected tables are generated to the warehouse PDM if they were not already present.
Click the Generate Data Archiving Script button to generate scripts to implement your lifecycle (see Generating Data Archiving Scripts to Implement your Lifecycle).
Select the Cost Saving Analysis checkbox and then click the Refresh Cost Savings Analysis tool to display a list of the cost savings to be obtained by managing data with the lifecycle. Use the tools above the list to export the cost savings data to Excel or to print it.