The Activities Tab screen (Workflow Editor) displays the Workflow Hierarchy field on the left side of the screen. The Workflow Hierarchy field contains the build machines and the associated activities for each Workflow. Highlighting a machine in the Workflow Hierarchy field displays the Machine Details and Configure Machine Environment fields on the right side of the Activities Tab screen. Highlighting an activity listed under the machine displays the Activity Information, Command, Configure Machine/Activity Environment, and Dependencies fields on the right side of the Activities Tab screen.
Add Remote Build Machine
For a installation that does not have Remote Build Servers, the only machine included by default for a Workflow is My Computer, your local machine. To run activities on remote machines, those machines need to be licensed as Remote Build servers. If a Remote Build server is licensed, then the machine will appear as an option on the Add Remote Build Machine pop-up window. Once a new machine has been added, the machine’s environment can be configured. Workflows and their associated activities can then be added to the machine and monitored and modified.
Add Activity
Activities are the basic building blocks of Workflows. In the Add Activity pop-up window, you can select a Plug-in (see Understanding Plug-ins) that includes a number of activities unique to a development tool. You can also select a macro that adds additional capability to the activity.
Understanding Plug-ins
Plug-ins know the syntax that each development tool requires for its commands. These plug-ins generate input lines for new activities based on the parameters that a development tool will accept. For example, the CVS plug-in, located in the Activity Adapter field in the Add Activity pop-up window, has an activity called the Update from CVS listed in the Activity Type field to the right. This activity is one of several CVS-compatible activities provided by the CVS plug-in. Other plug-ins have activities that provide capabilities unique to the specific development tool. The CVS plug-in will create a series of input lines for the activity into which the user can input parameters that the CVS tool accepts for running an update command. The plug-in will mark any required input line with an asterisk. See Activity Plug-ins for a full list and description of Plug-ins and their associated activities.
Creating Activities
To create a new activity for a Workflow, select the machine that you would like to execute the activity on and click the Add Activity button. Next, select the plug-in from the Activity Plug-ins field and then highlight an activity from the Activity Type field. Name the activity and specify the correct directory path for it. You can copy activities within Workflows, assigning to them your choice of machine. To copy an activity, select the Copy menu from the File menu. Choose a machine to which you want to copy the activity from the pop-up window that appears. Save the Workflow after adding the new activity.
Using Activity Macros
An activity can use macros that include specific additional information for the execution of the activity. Any macro that you add will be displayed on the Activity Name input line in front of the activity. For example, the $(LOG_URL) macro can be placed into the input line of the
Send E-mail activity to direct the e-mail’s recipients to the HTML logs of the executed Workflow. Likewise, the $(JOB_NUMBER) macro can be placed into the input line of the Commit to CVS activity to tag the built target with the Job Number as defined in the General Information field on the Overview Tab screen. Table DW-14 provides a list of activity macros and their descriptions.
Table DW-14. Activity Macros and Descriptions
|
Activity Macros |
Description |
|
$(LOG_URL) |
URL where log output for the Workflow is located. |
|
$(MACHINE_NAME) |
Name of the machine executing this activity. |
|
$(USER_NAME) |
Name of the user executing the Workflow. |
|
$(BUILD_DIRECTORY) |
Build directory from which activities will be executed. |
|
$(BUILD_DATE) |
Date the Workflow was executed. |
|
$(BUILD_TIME) |
Time the Workflow was executed. |
|
$(JOB_NAME) |
The Job Name that appears in the General Information field on the Overview Tab screen. |
|
$(JOB_LABEL) |
The Job Label that appears in the General Information field on the Overview Tab screen. |
|
$(JOB_NUMBER) |
The Job Number that appears in the General Information field on the Overview Tab screen. |
Remove
To remove either a machine or an activity listed under a machine, click the Remove button.