System Fields
System fields display and use values that iBase provides from system information maintained for all records. Users can see most of the information for a particular record by displaying the Properties dialog for that record.
Optionally, you can include any of the system information as system fields in the definition of an entity type or link type, either for specific entity types or link types or for all types. Including a system field in an entity type does the following:
Makes the field available for use in a query.
Makes the information available in Browse dialogs and other lists.
Makes the date fields available for use in calculated fields.
Makes it possible for users to select custom icons and security classification codes for given records.
You can add only one system field of each type to an entity or link type.
The following system field types are available:
Case
The system field Case records the case name to which each record belongs, but unless specifically added to an entity or link type it is not exposed to the user. Its value cannot be edited.
Adding a Case field simply maps the value of the system Case field, and is intended for use in multi-case analysis mode, when you want users to be able to identify which case a record came from when running a query, browsing or finding data across several cases (that is, when they are logged on in multi-case mode). If you want to expose the case value in this way, then you should add a Case field to every entity type and link type in the database.
Note: This field type is only available in case controlled databases.
Create Date
The creation date and time for each record. It is automatically added by iBase whenever a record is entered in the database.
The format matches the current date and time settings specified in your Windows environment.
Create User
The user identifier of the person who created the record. This is automatically added by iBase when the record is first saved in the database.
The Create User field appears as a hyperlink in the Properties dialog for a record. When clicked it displays contact details for the user who created the record.
Icon
Provides the representation for an entity record in place of the default icon for the entity type. For example, a Location Icon code list might include icons to represent houses, offices, bars, and so on. If you do not provide an icon field, then the default icon for the entity type is used.
Record ID
The system field Record ID provides a unique record identifier, which is automatically added by iBase whenever a record is created.
A record ID, for example PER130 or PER130\GEN, consists of the following:
Element | Description |
|---|---|
Table prefix code | This is unique for each entity type or link type, for example PER for a Person entity, or PE0 if there is a naming clash with another prefix. This is three characters long. |
Record number | This is unique for each record within the table and automatically assigned by iBase. For this example, the record number is 130. |
Separating character | A separating character is present only if there is a following database identifier. It is always the backslash ( \ ) character. |
Database identifier code | This is blank by default. When you create and name a new database, you can specify a code of your choice up to five characters long, in the Advanced page of the Create New Database dialog. |
Security Classification Code
The system field Security Classification Code forces a user to select a value from an SCC list (a special code list) that you provide, or to leave the field blank. You can only add one field of this type to an entity type or link type.
Once defined, this field is linked to the chosen code list. It is still possible to edit the code list, which is listed in the iBase Designer Explorer pane under the heading Code Lists \ SCC Lists.
Note: This value is not shown in the Properties dialog. The only way to see or affect its value is to create a field of type Security Classification Code.
With SQL Server databases only, and when Extended Access Control is enabled, a security administrator can make various records of various entity types or link types inaccessible according to the security classification code (SCC) given to each record.
Update Date
The date and time at which the record was last updated. This is automatically added by iBase whenever the record is edited in the database. The format matches the current date and time settings specified in your Windows environment.
The field has no value until an edit has been performed after initial creation of the record.
Update User
The user identifier of the person who last updated the record. This is automatically added by iBase whenever the record is edited in the database.
The field has no value until an edit has been performed after initial creation of the record.
The Update User field appears as a hyperlink in the Properties dialog for a record, and when clicked, displays contact details for the user who last updated the record.