Links to ENOVIA Objects

To enter a link in a description or other type of text box, use the mxLink keyword and specify the Type, Name, Revision, and Vault of the object. The vault value is optional and typically only used if your company uses items with the same names stored in different values. For example, if you enter this text in a text box:

"mxLink:Part|Part-5000|2|eService Production"

it is displayed as Part Part-5000 2. To take up less space, the link does not show the vault. Anyone who views that page can click the hyperlink to open the default page of the indicated object in a new browser window.

The system determines the end of the mxLink value when it finds a space after the last | symbol. If the last item defined in the mxLink could contain a space, such as the "eService Production" vault, you need to enclose the entire definition in double-quotes as shown above. Spaces in the type or name do not require double-quotes around the mxLink.

If you use an mxLink when entering data, the application verifies that you used the correct syntax and that the object exists when you click the Done button on the window. If you omitted the vault or revision, Business Process Services automatically includes the vault and revision (uses the latest revision identifier) to the link. See Advanced mxLink Values.

In addition, for pages that use the structure browser, the application verifies the mxLink entry when you exit an edit field in the table, or when you click Apply to Selected or Apply to All when using the Mass Update option.

If it cannot locate a single object that corresponds to what you entered (or for each object when using the Mass Update feature of the Structure Browser), it displays an error message indicating the problem. You can:

• Click OK to save what you entered anyway (if not fixed, anyone who clicks the link gets an error)
• Click Cancel and fix the mxLink value(s) before continuing

If you entered many mxLinks that could not be resolved, the message lists the first 10 errors, and indicates there are additional errors.

If a page includes the icon, you can search for the needed type, name, and revision values so you do not need to memorize these details.

ENOVIA Business Process Services evaluates the mxLink values you entered. If any of them cannot be converted into a hyperlink, for example you typed in a value but misspelled a word, it displays a message. You can save the page, and then fix the mxLink errors, or you can cancel the save and fix the mxLink errors immediately.

The mxLink search uses the full mxLink format to enter the value. When manually typing the value, you can use additional formats: