Report Deletion of Cross Package References

Your model might contain at least one XMI 1.1 Controlled Package that is also used in other models, but not necessarily in the same context. For example:

You have a model of Power Generation and a model of Power Consumption
Both models contain the Package called Power Storage
In the Generation model, the Power Storage Package has links to a Package called Turbine Control (which does not exist in the Consumption model)
In the Consumption model, the Power Storage Package has links to a Package called Consumer Demand (which does not exist in the Generation model)
All Packages are maintained in a master project, Power Control, where all the cross-Package relationships exist; compared with Power Control, both Power Generation and Power Consumption are incomplete

Problem

Consider the process at the end of a work session on Power Storage in, say, the Power Generation model. When saving the Package to XMI, Enterprise Architect has no information on relationships between Power Storage and the Consumer Demand Package from the Power Consumption model, and so these are not represented in the XMI file. Consequently, when the XMI file is imported into Power Control, Enterprise Architect deletes the relationships in the master project because they don't match the file.

Solution

You can easily check for and preserve the cross-Package relationships by selecting the 'Report Cross Package Reference Deletions (XMI 1.1)' checkbox in the 'Preferences' dialog ('Start > Workspace > Preferences > XML Specifications'). When you save a controlled Package, Enterprise Architect compares the XMI for that save with the most recent XMI 1.1 revision of the Package. Any items that are missing from the Package are listed on the 'Missing Cross References' dialog.

Note that if all users are connecting directly to the same repository then detection of missing cross references should not be necessary, and you can disable the feature by deselecting the 'Report Cross Package Reference Deletions (XMI 1.1)' checkbox.

Actions

Action	Detail	See also
Decide which cross-references to merge	In some case Enterprise Architect cannot determine whether a cross-reference is missing or intentionally deleted by the user. When the 'Missing Cross References' dialog displays, the basic analysis process should be: If the item was deleted intentionally, deselect the checkbox beside it If the item was not deleted intentionally, its presence in the list suggests it is a missing cross reference and you should leave the checkbox selected
Merge missing items	Items missing from the exported Package are listed in the 'Missing Cross References' dialog. To regenerate them into the XMI file that is being saved: Select the checkbox against each item type Click on the OK button Items of any type that you do not select are omitted from the saved XMI file.
Abort or cancel this XMI Export	If you do not want to proceed with the export (or Check-in or Put Latest) operation: Click on the Cancel button
Review the details of an entry	To display the details of an entry on the 'Missing Cross References' dialog: Double-click on the type name The details of each item are shown on the 'Missing <item type>' dialog. For any items where information is missing from the XMI file, the missing details are grayed-out. To find the item with the missing cross-reference in the Project Browser, either: Right-click on the entry in the list and select the 'Find in Project Browser' option, or Click on the item and press Alt+G
Copy a value from a column on the dialog to the clipboard	To preserve a copy of an item from the dialog on the clipboard: Click on the column value to highlight it; the selected value is shown in the bottom left corner of the dialog Select the text in the bottom left corner and press Ctrl+C to copy that value to the clipboard

Learn more

XML Specifications