External Class Properties

The following table lists all the properties for the particular element. Not all properties might be visible when an element is added, or an existing element is selected. Some properties become visible only when a dependent property is set to a specific value.

The Synchronize properties are relevant only to external classes with persistent members. These properties indicate the external database schema file that is imported and whether the external class should be synchronized with the imported schema file.

Property	Function
(Name)	Specifies the logical name of the selected element. The following are reserved words and cannot be used to name an element: SUPER, COMPONENT, THIS, and OWNER.
Alias	An automatically generated unique name for the selected element. You can change this name, but if it clashes with an existing alias, you are prompted for another name or to cancel the name change.
Description	Specifies a short description of the selected element.
IsExternal	Specifies whether the class is external and acts as a proxy for an external component, class, library, or data source.
Kind	Read-only. Identifies the kind of selected element.
Owner	The namespace to which the element belongs. *Note:* When namespace is changed, system modeler prompts for a confirmation based on the settings of System Modeler Policies. Refer to System Modeler Policies for more information.
ReservedBy	Read-only. The identifier of the user that currently has the selected element reserved.
VersionFile
Author	Read-only. The identifier of the person who created the selected element.
Created	Read-only. The date on which the selected element was created.
Modified	Read-only. The date the element was last modified.
MemberPersistence	Specifies the default persistence of the members of an external class. *Note:* This property is False for an imported OLTP view file.
InterfaceType	Indicates additional framework methods required to represent the interface. Set to None for external classes that are manually created. This property is not available for an imported EAE RDML schema file. The OltpView option is set for an imported OLTP view file. *Note:* The ViewName and ViewType properties are available if you have selected the OltpView option.
SourceName	Set by the External Class Wizard to the external resource name. For manually created external classes, the SourceName is automatically set to the class name. You can also set it to a name other than the class name so that it does not change if the class name is changed. *Notes:* The SourceName is not case-sensitive. This property is available for external classes that are used for external data sources. If the SourceName does not match the name on the host, Debugger reports a schema mismatch error.
ViewName	Should match the View name of the server view files. *Note:* This property is available only if you have selected the OltpView option in the InterfaceType for an external class.
ViewType	Should be set to X_COMMON as AB Suite currently supports only this type. *Note:* This property is available only if you have selected the OltpView option in the InterfaceType for an external class.
SynchronizeFile	Set by the External Class Wizard to the resource used to create and synchronize the external class and is read-only. *Note:* This property is available only for external classes with persistent members.
SynchronizeState	Indicates the status of the resource if it is present in the SynchronizeFile. It is read-only. InSync Indicates that the resource has not changed since the class was last created or synchronized. NeedsSync Indicates that the resource is present but has changed since the class was last created. This value is changed to InSync after an external class is synchronized or it is changed to NoFile if the resource file is removed. NoFile Indicates that the resource does not exist. This value is changed to NeedsSync after the resource file is specified or it is changed to InSync if the resource file is removed and then added after an external class is imported. *Note:* This property is available only for external classes with persistent members.
Length	Read-only. Specifies the sum of all the lengths of it members.
Multiplicity	Specifies the number of instances. Each instance represents a unique connection to the external resource.
MemberVisibility	Specifies the default visibility of the members of an external class. Is set to Private by default. Is set to Public for an external class that contains an imported database schema file.
Visibility	Specifies the level of visibility for the external class. Private – Only visible within its namespace. Protected – Visible within its namespace and any namespace that inherits from it. Public – Visible outside its namespace. Is set to Public for an external class that contains an imported database schema file.

For details about other properties, refer to Setting Properties.