Autodesk Productstream 2009 ®
®
Technical What’s New
Technical What’s New Contents Summary.......................................................................3
Change Order Enhancements............................... 7
Direct Access from File Dialog Boxes.................. 10
Search............................................................................3
Create, Save & Submit............................................... 7
Browser Performance.............................................. 10
New Search Engine Technology...............................3
Add Markups and Comments.................................. 7
Negative Bias................................................................3
Add Parent or Child.................................................... 8
Support for LOD Suppression with Open from Vault Operations...................................................... 10
Configurable Basic Find..............................................3
Edit Item from Change Order.................................. 8
Advanced Search Editing..........................................4
Modify Routing........................................................... 8
Parameterized Search................................................4
Reporting...................................................................... 8
Performance and Scalability.................................4
Due Date in Worklist.................................................. 8
Re-Indexing..................................................................4
Flexible Numbering.................................................... 8
Paging............................................................................4
Security Enhancements.......................................... 8
Visualization................................................................5
New Roles Added....................................................... 8
DWFx..............................................................................5
Role Compounding..................................................... 9
Remove Visualization File Link.................................5
Folder ACL Propagation............................................ 9
Visualization Warnings...............................................5
Active Directory Integration................................ 9
Update Visualization File.......................................... 6
User and Group Management................................. 9
New Screenshot Publish Option for Inventor...... 6
Authentication............................................................ 9
Customer Improvement Program....................... 6
Automatic User Inclusion....................................... 10
Workspace Synchronization.................................. 6
Publish to Microsoft SharePoint........................ 10
Workspace Sync Versus Quick Sync...................... 7
Live Backup Support.............................................. 10
Options and Configuration...................................... 7
Inventor Integration.............................................. 10
Command Line Support............................................ 7
Single Step Check In................................................ 10
Separate Server Login (Disable single sign-on).10 AutoCAD......................................................................11 Publish Options XML.................................................11 AutoCAD Electrical Integration..............................11 Aero Compliance in Windows Vista.......................11 Miscellaneous Updates...........................................11 Search............................................................................11 Items..............................................................................11 Vault...............................................................................11 Change Orders............................................................11 Inventor Integration...................................................11 Office Integration.......................................................11 Packaging...................................................................12 Online Help................................................................12 Learn More or Purchase.........................................12
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Search
Welcome to Productstream 2009
Significant improvements have been made to Autodesk Productstream software’s search capabilities to enhance performance and usability.
Autodesk® Productstream® 2009 software provides many significant enhancements. This document provides a detailed description of the changes in this release.
New Search Engine Technology The search engine technology used for Productstream has been updated with the latest technology available for optimal search performance. You will notice a dramatic advancement in search response times.
Key focus areas are Performance and Scalability, including enhancements to Productstream’s Search capability. Improvements to Productstream’s Administrative capabilities provide new features such as Windows Authentication, Live Backup and Flexible Roles. Deep CAD Integration remains an important priority, enhancing Productstream’s best-in-class Inventor integration and enabling Digital Prototyping. Finally, user productivity is increased through more flexible ECO Process functionality and integration with Microsoft SharePoint® software.
Negative Bias In previous versions of Productstream software, any new file-level property found in the system was automatically added to the database and made available for searching. Productstream 2009 now offers a “negative bias” on property management, meaning that all properties are automatically recognized, but they are not made available in the system until the administrator switches them on and re-indexes the server. Configurable Basic Find Over the years, Productstream users have said that the primary way they search for data in the program is by using the “basic” find, or the Find bar located throughout the system. As a result, Productstream 2009 provides the ability to configure the specific properties that are searchable. This configurability leads to a higher level of accuracy and faster searches. In addition, the search box is now available by default for all users and is always on, encouraging its use. The basic find also offers a new Query Builder capability, making it easy to create an advanced search at any time.
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Advanced Search Editing The Find dialog box has also been improved with a subtle workflow modification that allows a change to a previously added property-value pair. You simply select the previously added search value, make the desired changes, and then click Replace to quickly modify the search criteria.
Parameterized Search Parameterized searches are now available with both Find and saved searches. For any desired criterion, the user can set the value to “ask me later”, rather than an actual value. Saved searches set up this way will prompt the user to supply the missing criterion before executing the search.
Performance and Scalability Significant efforts have been made in Productstream 2009 to make it work more efficiently for organizations with many users and large amounts of data. The following features improve system performance and scalability.
helping to provide that if any one document fails to index, the server will simply continue to the next instead of the entire process failing. A report of any failed documents can be generated at the end of the process.
Paging In previous versions of Productstream, the entire list of search results would be returned regardless of the number of records that were possible for the query. In Productstream 2009, the administrator can specify the maximum number of records that can be returned at a single time. If additional results are needed for the user’s work, a “More” button is presented, which can be used to add blocks of data to the search results. This paging function affects search results, Item Master, Change Order List, and Custom Views. Paging not only provides fast performance as the amount of data scales, but also requires fewer resources on the server when users are searching for data, since less data will always be returned.
Re-Indexing The re-indexing command now runs as a separate process on the server that is assigned a “below normal” priority. As a result, the administrator can invoke a re-index without loading the server. The command can also be run without blocking access to the server, and it can pause for operations such as backups and server reboots, and continue later. Finally, the indexing for each document is run as a separate transaction,
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Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Visualization New visualization options are available in Productstream 2009 software, with many new ways to manage the published formats that are automatically created when designs are stored in Productstream. Previously called DWF™ publishing and viewing, this functionality now includes additional file formats, as described below.
Remove Visualization File Link Customer support requests identified incidences of out-of date visualization files resulting from certain operations. The remove link ability enables you to break the association with the visualization file, minimizing errors.
DWFx The Autodesk DWF™ file format has been joined by a new format used for publishing 2D data from various applications: DWFx. The DWFx format is based on the new Microsoft® XPS format and is readily viewable in Internet Explorer® 7 and Windows Vista® without an additional viewer requirement. Since the DWFx format is standards based, more external users can view this data without needing an additional viewer. The user can elect to create DWFx files instead via the Publish Options.xml file.
The command is preloaded with the appropriate default settings to provide the best results. In addition, a new Visualization Compliance property can be added to a view or searched on, enabling the user to quickly see which files have an up-to-date visualization file.
Visualization Warnings Additional warnings have been added to the “View” tab which provide new levels of information about whether your visualization files are up to date. These warnings are also available in the web client.
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Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Update Visualization File To help provide that the visualization files are up to date, a new Update command has been added to all relevant areas of the user interface: the File View, Item View, and ECO Files tabs. Any user who encounters an out-of-date or missing visualization file can easily create one without checking out the file in Autodesk® Inventor™ or AutoCAD® software. In addition, no new version of the file is created, meaning that this update can be done at any step in the process, even after data has been released.
Customer Involvement Program Autodesk Productstream now includes the option to participate in the Autodesk Customer Involvement Program. This program helps Autodesk better understand how users interact with the software. These insights are then incorporated in future updates and new versions.
It is important to note that in the case of updating a visualization file, a get operation for a specific version is performed, not a get latest. This means that if newer versions of children are available that contain changes, these changes will not be reflected in the visualization file unless a “get latest command” is run from Inventor or AutoCAD. New Screenshot Publish Option for Inventor A new publish option is available for Inventor 3D files that enables an image to be published instead of the 3D model. This provides fast, consistent publication of 3D data; however, the ability to view a true 3D model is not available. A Facet Quality option has also been added to Inventor to provide improved performance when publishing true 3D data. It is set by default to Medium.
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Workspace Synchronization The new Workspace Synchronization option reduces the need to manage the local workspace manually at each user’s machine. The command supports two primary operations: first, downloading and updating out-of-date files, and then removing (recycling) files that fall within the expiration rules.
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Workspace Sync vs. Quick Sync Two options are available. The primary interface, the Workspace Sync command, provides full user interaction with options as well as the ability to override defaults. The secondary interface, Quick Sync, simply runs the command without any user interaction using defaults based on previously configured settings. Options and Configuration The workspace Sync feature enables you to configure the different rules on a per-user basis. The following rules can be applied: temporary-file removal by extension, expiration rules for managed files (ones in Productstream) and unmanaged files (those not yet in Productstream), and exclusions. These rules can also be stored in an XML file for use by other members of the team.
Change Order Enhancements Many workflows in the Change Order module have been streamlined and improved, providing a streamlined interface to create, manage, and track changes throughout your company. Create, Save & Submit The previous create, save, and submit process has been reworked to remove several steps; you can even create, save, and submit in a single operation, if you so desire. Notice that the Save and Close button on the change order has been replaced with a Save button. Now you can save modifications and continue working on the change order without having to close and then reopen it. Then, once you have saved your changes, the Submit Workflow button becomes active and you can route the change order to the next person in the process.
Add Markups and Comments Multiple changes have been made to simplify the markup process. The first is an administrative setting that enables the user to force markup files to be stored alongside the original file. This option works extremely well when used with Inventor and AutoCAD software and their round trip-markup capabilities.
Command Line Support Most synchronization commands are invoked by the user; however, if you want to automate the process, you can do so from the command line. The following syntax can be used to run the process: “C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Productstream 2009 (Client)\Explorer\Connectivity.WorkspaceSync. exe” -VUadministrator -VP -S”C:\Settings.xml” -F”C:\ WorkspaceSync.csv”
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Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Markups can now be created with a new Markup command that is available to anyone with access to Productstream. A new special permission has been added for this capability, enabling you to better configure access to the folders in Autodesk® Vault software. (For example, reviewers no longer need full access to the Vault folders.) In addition, all markups are now visible on the Files tab, as well as being available as attachments to the individual user’s comments. Much like markups, comments can also now be created at any point in the process, encouraging users to communicate and collaborate as much as possible. Add Parent or Child New functionality is available on the Item tab that enables you to easily add related items from the related Bill of Materials or Where Used information for the selected item. And if you click the Auto Add button, Productstream automatically adds related items that were not previously released whenever a change order is created from an item.
Modify Routing Any predefined complete change order routing can now be selected at any time, so you can adjust routings without manually re-creating a routing that might already be in the system. Reporting The Change Order report has been significantly reorganized to provide a more readable report when printed on standard-size paper. Due Date In Worklist The Worklist feature now has the due date of the change order listed after the number, and the worklist is automatically sorted in ascending order. This capability helps users to better determine which change orders have priority. Flexible Numbering The change order number can now be manually typed in during the creation, enabling you to use skipped or previously assigned numbers.
Security Enhancements The following enhancements involve the user roles and folder-based permissions in Productstream software. New Roles Added Two additional roles have been added to Productstream providing new flexibility with regard to users’ access to functionality. The first new role, Vault Basic Editor, removes a user’s ability to move, rename, delete, or perform any other operation in the Vault that affects many people. This new role provides an excellent default role for larger organizations that need more control over file access.
Edit Item from Change Order While in the preview pane for a change order, you can now edit an item directly from the change order, where previously you had to use Open or Go To first.
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The second role, Productstream Basic Creator, removes the user’s ability to bump an item’s revision and change its lifecycle or to delete an item.
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Role Compounding Starting with Productstream 2009, roles for Vault operation and Productstream operation are no longer automatically compounded. For example, the Productstream Reviewer role doesn’t automatically have read/write access to Vault data; instead, this permission must be granted exclusively through assignment of an appropriate Vault role. Folder ACL Propagation Any change made to a folder’s permission causes the new Propagation of Permissions dialog box to appear. The options it contains enable administrators to adjust the way permissions are applied to subfolders, allowing for greater control and flexibility over folders’ access control lists.
Existing users who have been migrated from a previous Productstream version can be automatically associated with the appropriate Active Directory user if the user names match; otherwise, they can be mapped manually.
Authentication When the system is set up for Windows authentication, users no longer have to enter their user name and password during login. As the user attempts to authenticate, the Autodesk Data Management Server communicates with Active Directory, verifies that the user is still valid, and grants the user access to the system. Or, if the user has been disabled in Active Directory, Productstream denies the user access.
Active Directory Integration One of the highlights of Productstream 2009 software is the ability it provides for managing users and groups via Microsoft® Domain and Active Directory®, which greatly simplifies user management. User and Group Management Both users and groups from Active Directory can be included in Productstream. A simple user can be linked to Productstream, or for more powerful management, an Active Directory group can be linked as well. When a group is used, any new or removed user from that group is considered valid to Productstream. (This functionality is discussed further under “Automatic User Inclusion.”)
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Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Automatic User Inclusion Administrators can optionally allow user accounts to be automatically created in Productstream anytime a user attempts to authenticate with Productstream and Active Directory and belongs to a valid Active Directory group with the appropriate permissions. This functionality means that accounts will automatically be created for new hires without an administrator having to do this explicitly within Productstream.
Inventor Integration The user can now spend less time interacting with the Vault and more time working on designs. Enhancements to the Vault client reduce the time required to retrieve files when you are starting work and less time returning files when you have finished. Enhancements to Vault workflows reduce unnecessary interaction, and improve the performance of check-in and check-out operations by reducing unnecessary network traffic. Single Step Check In Save time when checking work into the Vault. The Add Files and Check In commands have been combined to provide a single check-in process that automatically adds files that are not already in the Vault. Check-in operations are faster because of improvements in DWF publishing and optimizations made in the Check In command itself. In addition, you can now access the Check In command directly from the Vault browser. (Note that the Add Files command has been removed.)
Publish to Microsoft SharePoint Autodesk Productstream software now includes the ability to publish files to MIcrosoft SharePointÂŽ via the Pack and Go functionality. Administrators can configure different directories that users can publish to. Users can then manually publish either native or visualization files directly to SharePoint.
Direct Access from File Dialogs Boxes You can now access the Vault directly from frequently used file dialog boxes. Click the Vault icons located in these dialog boxes to work with files from the Vault. The Vault icon is available on the File Open, Place Component, and Derived Part dialog boxes, as well as the Base View dialog box in the Drawing Manager environment and the Create View dialog box in the Presentation environment. Browser Performance Vault browser performance has been improved. To reduce browser overhead, updates are performed to the status icons only when the browser is accessed and only for items visible at the top level. Lower-level status information is retrieved only when the assembly item is expanded. Support for LOD Suppression with Open from Vault Operations Enjoy faster check-outs when working with complex assemblies. When you call out specific Level of Detail or Design View representations in the Open from Vault dialog box, Inventor 2009 downloads only those files required for the selected representation, reducing server traffic and increasing checkout speed.
Live Backup Support In addition to its incremental backup capabilities, Productstream now provides the ability to back up the entire system without blocking access to the server. This functionality helps companies with larger data sets by giving users access to the system even if a backup has not yet finished.
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Separate Server Login (Disable Single Sign-On) Configure separate servers for Vault and Content Center. You now have the option to specify and log into a separate server for Content Center libraries and the Vault. From the File menu, select Autodesk Data Management Server > Connection Options. Separating content and Vault servers provides more options for optimizing performance in large installations.
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
AutoCAD Publish Options XML AutoCAD software now includes the ability to customize publishing options for all visualization files added to the system. This means that visualization files can now be published for DWG files with uninitialized layouts. AutoCAD Electrical Integration AutoCAD® Electrical software now includes the ability to perform a Property Write Back for all visualization files added to the system. This means that visualization files can now be published for DWG files with uninitialized layouts. Aero Compliance in Vista The AutoCAD add-in now supports Aero™ compliance in Windows Vista
Miscellaneous Updates Search • Leading wildcards are no longer supported in searches, for performance reasons. • A trailing wildcard might need to be added in some cases to get results similar to those of previous releases. Items • The revision scheme can now be changed after items are added to the system. All previously created items follow the original scheme, and new items follow the new scheme. • The Assign Item, New Item, and Change Item Number dialog boxes no longer automatically consume item numbers if the Cancel button is clicked. • The Edit command for files is now available from the Item Master’s Associated Files list. Vault • New administrative options are now available (and turned on by default) that block the ability to drag and drop, add, and check in CAD files from Productstream and Vault Explorer. • The Edit command has been changed to Open, enabling you to choose whether you would like to check out the file. • The Replace command no longer has the restriction that the file had to originate from the same base file. You can now replace any file with any file (although constraints may be lost, of course).
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• Pack and Go options persist from session to session. • A special icon is displayed for Inventor substitute part files. • Visualization files can no longer be checked out from the client(s). Change Orders • The Comments tab user interface has been simplified to allow more comment text to be displayed. • A simple note has been added on the Routing tab to tell participants whether the routing requires unanimous approval. • Administrators can now delete any change order at any time (unconditional delete). • To improve performance, when the Files tab is selected, a default file is no longer displayed. Inventor Integration • A new Save File prompt has been added before checking, allowing automated saves without canceling the action. • The software includes improved support for placing components with iMates. • The Productstream Property Write back function automatically checks out every file that is not currently locked, helping to provide that all properties are up to date. (Note that this occurs only when the command is selected manually, not when it is run via prompts.) • The Check Out command can be run on checkedout files, enabling you to check out all child files without first checking the parent file back in or undoing the check-out. • Support for Inventor Substitution in the Level of Detail command, with full support for an accurate bill of materials (BOM) when checked in. • A Vault Tool Bar has been added to Inventor. (It must be turned on manually, however.) Office Integration Office add-in now fully supports Microsoft Office 2007.
Autodesk Productstream 2009
Technical What’s New
Packaging The Autodesk Productstream 2009 product options have been greatly simplified. The product now includes web client and replicator functionality that were sold separately in previous versions of the software. Please talk to your trusted partner about the benefits of this simplification for your business.
Online Help Additional tutorials have been added in this release to shorten learning time for all new Productstream users. New tutorials include Administration and Setup, Basic Item Workflow, Basic Change Order Release, and Batch Plot.
Learn More or Purchase Stay ahead of the competition with Autodesk’s practical approach to data management. For more information, visit www.autodesk.com/productstream. For more information on extending the power of your data management technology, visit www.autodesk.com/subscription. For more information on making the most of your software investment, visit www.autodesk.com/consulting. Purchase Autodesk Productstream through your Autodesk Authorized Reseller. To locate the reseller nearest you, visit www.autodesk.com/reseller.
Autodesk, AutoCAD, Autodesk Inventor, Autodesk Vault, DWF, DWG, Inventor, and Productstream are registered trademarks or trademarks of Autodesk, Inc., in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. Autodesk reserves the right to alter product offerings and specifications at any time without notice, and is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document. © 2008 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.