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20.4 Saving and Working Together

Changes in Modeller are kept in memory until you Save (Ctrl+S). Nothing reaches Datashop users before that. Tables with unsaved changes show an asterisk after their name in the Warehouse diagram, e.g. Customer * (new in build 20335).

Saving

Save is available when something has changed. Before saving, Modeller checks the model:

  • The dimensional model is unfinished or contains errors – Modeller saves anyway, but Datashop users may run into problems. Look at the Messages panel and validate the project.
  • You need to specify a project name – give the project a Name in Properties.

Closing, opening another project or starting a new one with unsaved changes asks Your current project has changed. Save changes?

When Others See Your Changes

  • Datashop, Modeller and Enterprise Manager users get your changes the next time they open the project – or, with synchronization switched on, the next time they save or use Load changes / Synchronize (see below).
  • Acinta Server loads your saved changes by itself within about 30 seconds – see Synchronization in 33.1 Acinta Server (build 20265 and later). If distributions don't run as expected after a change, restart the service.

[!NOTE] Before build 20265, Acinta Server used the new model only after a restart of the service.

Synchronization

Build 20223 and later.

With synchronization on, each time a program saves, it also loads the changes other users and programs have saved to the project since its last save. Changed objects are updated, new objects appear and deleted objects disappear – no need to reopen the project.

Synchronization needs two settings:

  • the project option Synchronize changes from other users – on by default, the same for everyone; see 26.2 Project Options. Turning off Log changes turns it off too;
  • <SynchronizeMetadata> in each program's settings file – on for Acinta Server, off for Datashop, Modeller and Enterprise Manager. An administrator switches it on per program and PC – see 30.2 Configuration Files and Project Registrations.

It only works for projects in a database repository; projects in a file or folder never synchronize.

Synchronize (PROJECT tab, F5) in Modeller and Load changes in Datashop load others' changes on demand, without saving. They are greyed out unless both settings are on – so by default they are greyed out in Datashop and Modeller (build 20279 and later; before, they stayed available but did nothing). Datashop can't load changes while edit dialogs are open.

Conflicts

Build 20248 and later.

  • If you have unsaved changes to an object that someone else also changed, your changes are kept. After loading, one notice lists all objects concerned.
  • If someone deleted the object you are editing, you can't save it – you are told the object no longer exists.
  • If someone changed the object since you opened it, you are asked whether your save should replace their changes.

Several People on One Project

  • A project stored as a File can only be open in one Modeller at a time: This project is already open in another instance.
  • Database projects can be opened by several users. There's no object locking – see Conflicts above for what happens when two people change the same object. Agree on who changes what.

Tips – Saving and Working Together