Chapter 7 Linking and Synchronizing Models in PowerDesigner

Introduction

The PowerDesigner enterprise modeling environment permits you to create and exploit complex interdependencies between your models. Such interdependencies may be created when, for example, you generate one model from another, create an external shortcut, or define mappings. You can track and analyze them via an object's property sheet, and use the impact analysis feature, to evaluate how changes made in one model may affect associated models.

The following types of interdependencies can be created between models:

Generation links. These links are created during model generation: each generated object is linked with its origin object.
Shortcuts. These links represent references to objects (target objects) in other models. A shortcut is a link explicitly created by a user. When models are open in the workspace, you can see the links between shortcuts and other objects in the Dependencies tab of target objects.
Manual links. These links are automatically created in several other cases: when you link objects using extended or calculated collections, extended dependencies, or related diagrams. When you create manual links, shortcuts are silently created in the model.