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Defining Global Resources

Altova Global Resources are defined in the Global Resources dialog, which can be accessed in two ways:

This pops up the Global Resources dialog.

Once the toolbar is displayed, click the Manage Global Resources icon. This pops up the Global Resources dialog.

The Global Resources XML File

Information about global resources that you define is stored in an XML file. By default, this XML file is called GlobalResources.xml, and it is stored in the folder C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Altova\. This file is set as the default Global Resources XML File for all Altova applications. As a result, a global resource defined in any application will be available to all Altova applications—assuming that all applications use this file.

You can also re-name the file and save it to any location, if you wish. Consequently, you may have multiple Global Resources XML files. However, only one of these Global Resources XML File can be active at any time, and only the definitions contained in this file will be available to the application.

To select a Global Resources XML file to be the active file, in the Global Resources dialog (screenshot below), browse for it in the Definitions File entry and select it.

Managing global resources: adding, editing, deleting

In the Global Resources dialog (screenshot above), you can add a global resource to the selected Global Resources XML File, or edit or delete a selected global resource. The Global Resources XML File organizes the aliases you add into a list having three sections: files, folders, and databases (see screenshot above).

To add a global resource, click the Add button and define the global resource in the Global Resource dialog that pops up (see description below). After you define a global resource and save it, the global resource (or alias) is added to the library of global definitions in the selected Global Resources XML File. To edit a global resource, select it and click Edit. This pops up the Global Resource dialog, in which you can make the necessary changes (see the descriptions of files, folders, and databases in the sub-sections of this section). To delete a global resource, select it and click Delete.

After you finish adding, editing, or deleting, make sure to click OK in the Global Resources dialog to save your modifications to the Global Resources XML File.

Adding a global resource

Creating a global resource involves mapping one alias name to one or more resources (file, folder, or database) in one-to-one mappings. Each mapping is called a configuration. A single alias name can therefore be associated with several resources via different configurations (screenshot below).

In the Global Resources dialog (screenshot above), when you click the Add button, you can select whether you wish to add a file-type, folder-type, or database-type resource. How to add and edit each type of resource is described in the sub-sections of this section.

See also:

Using Global Resources, for a description of how Global Resources can be used in an SPS.

Tools | Active Configuration, for the menu command to change the active configuration of the application.

Toolbars and Status Bar, for information about the Global Resources toolbar.