Creating a Compatibility Rule

To create a compatibility rule, from the page Actions menu, click Create.

The Create Boolean Compatibility Rule page opens.

Type the details, as necessary. The following can be defined in the Basics component:

Basics Component Field	Description
Name	Type the name of the new compatibility rule or check Autoname for the system to assign a name automatically. This field is required.
Rule Classification	Select the rule type: Configuration, Logical, or Manufacturing
Mandatory	Select either Yes or No. Features and rules can be defined as mandatory or non-mandatory. A feature or rule that is mandatory is inherited by all lower level models and products. Mandatory features and rules are maintained at the product line level and promote product consistency.
Description	Type details that describe the rule. This field is required.
Error Message	Type an error message that explains the rule. This field is required. If a product configuration fails when it is validated, an error icon appears beside the feature that was the cause. Clicking the error icon brings up the error message that is entered in this field.
Design Responsibility	Click to select the organization or project that has design responsibility for the rule. For details, see Assigning Design Responsibility.
Vault	If you want to use a vault other than the default, click to select a different vault to specify where the rule information will be stored in the database. For details, see the BPS - AEF User guide.
Policy	The policy is Rule.

Note: You can collapse and expand the Basics and Feature Selector components with the and controls to provide additional space for creating rules. Any data entered is saved when the component is collapsed and reappears when the component is expanded.

Select the features you want to include in the rule using the Feature Selector component.

1. Select the context object and feature type.

   Feature Selector Component Field	Description
   Context	Click to search for and select the source objects for the rule. The following types are displayed in the Search window: Configuration Feature Logical Structure Model Product Line Product You can select only one object from the search results at a time. This object is added to Context drop-down list. You can search for and select an object to add to the list as many times as needed. Each selected object remains in the list. The feature structure of the object selected from this drop-down list is shown in the structure browser below the Name field.
   Feature	From the drop-down list, select the type of features you want to show: Configuration or Logical.

   Click the Filter button to the right of Feature to filter the objects displayed by feature type.

2. Enter a name pattern and maximum number of objects to display.

   Feature Selector Component Field	Description
   Name	If you want to filter the objects by name, enter one or more characters in this field. Leaving the default '*' matches all names.
   Limit	If you want to limit the number of displayed objects, enter a number of 1 or greater. Leaving the default '*' places no limit the number of objects displayed.

   Click the Filter button to the right of the Limit field to filter the displayed objects by Name and Limit.

3. Expand the object displayed in the structure browser to the desired number of levels:

   
   

   • To expand the object up to five levels deep, click , then select a number from 1 to 5.
   • To expand all levels, click and then select All, or simply click .

   The structure browser table includes the following columns with information on the displayed features:

   Feature Selector Structure Browser Column	Description
   Display Name	The name and revision of the object
   Name	The name of the object
   Type	The object type (e.g., Hardware Product)
   State	The state of the object in its lifecycle (e.g., Preliminary)

Define the left side of the expression with the Left Expression component.

1. Check the Include with Parent box if you want features to be inserted in the expression fields in full context.
2. Select one or more features from the Feature Selector and click in the Left Expression field. The feature is added to the left expression.

   Additionally, you can use the selector next to a feature to view and add that feature's subfeatures to either the left or right expression in the rule.

   Note: Neither Product Line nor Model can be inserted in the Left or Right Expression.

   Each time the rule is modified, the Completed Rule field is updated.

3. Click one of the boolean operators: , , . Use and to form the boolean expression.
4. Click to remove an item from the expression.
5. Click or to navigate through the expression.
6. Click to remove a feature.
7. Click to remove an option.
8. Click to clear the expression.
9. Repeat the above until the required left expression is formed.

Select a Comparison Operator from the drop-down list.

• Incompatible. If two options cannot be included together, they are Incompatible.
• Requires. If option A must be included whenever option B is included, but B doesn't have to be included when option A is included, then B requires A.
• Co-Dependent. If two options must be included together, they are Co-Dependent.

Define the right side of the expression with the Right Expression component. See the steps described for Left Expression, above.

Review the complete rule definition in the Completed Rule component.

When you are satisfied with the rule definition, click Done in the upper right-hand corner of the Create Boolean Compatibility Rule window.

Note: The same view is available for both the Left and Right Expressions.