Step 3. Configure Attributes for the TADB

	Open the TADB Attribute Configuration dialog box.
	Configure TADB attributes.
	Important TADB attribute notes.

Open the TADB Attribute Configuration Dialog Box

Data for these attributes can be accessed through Order Execution Management Query.

Select a group in the Groups box.
Click above the Attributes box.

A blank TADB Attribute Configuration dialog box opens.

Configure TADB Attributes

Fill in the fields, as follows.

A	Item Type
B	Attribute Group
C	Name
D	Description
E	Data Type
F	Length
G	Default Value
H	F Group
I	Check boxes

Item Type

(Read only) Displays the selected Item Type ID .

B	Attribute Group

(Read only) Displays the attribute group that is selected in the Group box.

Name

Attribute name.

D	Description

Description of the attribute.

Data Type

Choose one of the following SQL Server data types.

Note: Microsoft MSDN is the source for the following definitions.

	bigint	"Integer (whole number) data from -2^63 (-9,223,372,036,854,775,808) through 2^63-1 (9,223,372,036,854,775,807). Storage size is 8 bytes. bigint is intended for special cases where the integer values may exceed the range supported by the int data type. The int data type remains the primary integer data type in SQL Server."
	bit	Integer data type 1, 0, or NULL.
	char	Fixed-length non-Unicode character data with length of n bytes. n bytes must be a value from 1 through 8,000. Storage size is n bytes. The SQL-92 synonym for char is character.
Up	datetime	Date and time data from January 1, 1753 through December 31, 9999, to an accuracy of one three-hundredth of a second (equivalent to 3.33 milliseconds or 0.00333 seconds). Values are rounded to increments of .000, .003, or .007 seconds.
	int	"Integer (whole number) data from -2^31 (-2,147,483,648) through 2^31 - 1 (2,147,483,647). Storage size is 4 bytes. The SQL-92 synonym for int is integer."
	nchar	Fixed-length Unicode character data of n characters. n characters must be a value from 1 through 4,000. Storage size is two times n bytes. The SQL-92 synonyms for nchar are national char and national character.
Up	nvarchar	Variable-length Unicode character data of n characters. n characters must be a value from 1 through 4,000. Storage size, in bytes, is two times the number of characters entered. The data entered can be 0 characters in length. The SQL-92 synonyms for nvarchar are national char varying and national character varying.
	real	Is a floating point number data with the following valid values: –3.40E + 38 through -1.18E - 38, 0 and 1.18E - 38 through 3.40E + 38. Storage size is 4 bytes. In SQL Server, the synonym for real is float(24). Note Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 treats n as one of two possible values. If 1<=n<=24, n is treated as 24. If 25<=n<=53, n is treated as 53.
	smalldatetime	Date and time data from January 1, 1900, through June 6, 2079, with accuracy to the minute. smalldatetime values with 29.998 seconds or lower are rounded down to the nearest minute; values with 29.999 seconds or higher are rounded up to the nearest minute.
Up	varchar	Variable-length non-Unicode character data with length of n bytes. n bytes must be a value from 1 through 8,000. Storage size is the actual length in bytes of the data entered, not n bytes. The data entered can be 0 characters in length. The SQL-92 synonyms for varchar are char varying or character varying."

Length

The following data types require a specified length.

The default length is 10. Review the data type definition to see the maximum allowed value.

G	Default Value

The value that is used, if no other value is specified.

F Group

(When F Group is used the attribute has to be a bigint data type)

If the group to which this attribute is related needs to be associated with another group, F Group enables you to specify the other group.

Example

You have two item types:

Body components

Includes the related groups and attributes associated with a vehicle that is being manufactured.

Has an installed parts group that includes the parts actually installed in the vehicle.

Vehicle Order

Includes the related groups and attributes that are ordered for a vehicle.

Has a parts group that specifies the parts that are to be installed in the vehicle.

In order to keep track of parts, you need to associate the parts that were actually installed in a body component with the parts specified in a vehicle order.

You can:

Create a primary key attribute for the Body Component Parts group that is the primary key in the Vehicle Order>Parts relational database and

Specify the Vehicle Order>Parts group as the F Group.

Result: The body component parts can now be associated with the Vehicle Order parts.

I	Check Boxes

Check any of the check boxes as follows.

Allow Nulls

If null values are not allowed, you must enter a default value.

Tip: If it is not required, make sure you check Allow Nulls. This can avoid entry errors, if there is no value for the attribute when an order is entered through .xml or CimView .

Indexed

Check to index the attribute if it will be included frequently in a search, to speed up the search.

Unique Part

Like a primary key, all of the attributes checked as a unique part are combined to form a unique constraint in a group.

Example

First name and last name are checked as unique attributes.

Joe is a first name.

Smith is a last name.

There can't be more than one Joe Smith.

There can be three Joe's and three Smiths.

There may, in fact, be more than one Joe Smith.

Middle name and Street Address are also checked as Unique Parts to resolve this potential problem.

Now there can't be more than one individual with the name Joe Frank Smith, who lives at 1 Columbia Street.

Lookup

(For list groups) The Lookup feature takes advantage of the relational database capability, using the primary key to eliminate duplicate reporting of attribute values.

This can be a powerful benefit, particularly when there are several records or several attributes related to a single group.

Example

A Feature Codes List group for a Vehicle Order item type includes an attribute, Description. Because this attribute is a description of a feature code, it can appear repeatedly in vehicle orders.

Lookup is checked.

As a result, instead of taking the space in the table line and in the database the value is stored in a single instance in the relational database.

Click OK.

Click the Save button on the TrackerCfg_UI toolbar to save your new entries.

Results:

The attributes display when you select the group to which they are associated.

Attribute configuration is written to the TADB database when you do a TADB Configuration Update.

Values for these attributes can be retrieved through Tracker Query for analysis and decision making.

Important TADB Attribute Notes

TADB attributes are entered into the TADB database only. They are not recorded in PRT.

If your system is configured to use the Historical TADB, it is bound by limits on the Microsoft SQL Server that Tracker Configuration does not enforce.

The limits are that a TADB attribute group can have the following maximum number of attributes.

Attribute	Maximum Number
Non-lookup	250
Lookup	250
Total	500

More information

3.1. Configure the TADB meta-data through the TrackerCfg_UI.