Templates and SmartSync
Consider the following content when designing templates to help CaseView templates remain stable in a SmartSync environment.
SmartSync Conflicts
SmartSync conflicts for CaseView and other external documents (Microsoft Word, PDF, etc.) are resolved by selecting which version to retain and manually copying across changes from other versions. With this process, a specific version of a CaseView document is determined to be the most up-to-date. It is important to understand where information is stored and how it is brought into the document to ensure a resolved conflict does not result in part of the data being out of date. The options discussed in this section are meant to minimize or prevent these conflicts.
Considerations for template design and SmartSync
As each template is unique, there is no single path to ensuring the document is SmartSync compatible. Consider the following questions when determining how best to approach the transition.
- Does the template make use of the CaseView database?
- Is information brought into the document from more than one source (another document, the CV database, etc.)?
- How is the template installed? How will a reinstall or update work?
- How is the template used? What is the workflow and will that change in a SmartSync environment?
Anticipating Conflicts
SmartSync allows more than one user to modify the same CaseView document, with each user accessing a copy of the document saved locally. Users changing the same CaseView document at the same time results in a conflict that must be resolved by a user. Simultaneous access to a CaseView document can be removed. This is recommended with developed templates to minimize the number of CaseView conflicts. For more information, see Locking documents for exclusive use.
The CaseView Database
The following options can be enabled for the entire client file or they can be overridden on a document by document basis. New documents adopt the global settings. It is good template design practice to set these options for the document, allowing the client to dictate the global settings. The document level settings saved in the template take priority.
Record ownership
Template developers making use of the CaseView database should consider record ownership, enabled on Document Settings | Client Options by selecting Document owns CaseView database records. This adds a unique document ID to all CaseView database records. Any records written to the database with this unique ID can be tracked by Working Papers and SmartSync. Reverting to an older version of a CaseView document in the SmartSync history restores that version of the document and the CaseView database records corresponding to that document version.
With Document owns CaseView database records enabled, records written to the database are appended with their document IDs. During retrieval, logged events try to locate a matching Group/Form/ID/Document ID. If no matching record is located, the cell attempts to retrieve any Group/Form/ID, regardless of the Document ID. External data access cells attempt to locate a matching Group/Form/ID/Document ID. If no match is found, the cell displays a null value. It does not look for an independent record or a record owned by another document.
Additionally, select Delete owned CaseView database records if document is deleted to ensure that database entries owned by a document are eliminated if document is removed from the client file.
Delayed writing of information to the database
On Client Options, select CaseView database records saved when document saved to bypass an error caused by users working in a CaseView document, writing values to the CaseView database and closing without saving. This leads to values in the database that do not correspond to the information in the document. Selecting CaseView database records saved when document saved holds changes in a cache with CaseView applying the database changes once the document is saved. Cells retrieving values from the database check the cache first and proceed to the database if no matching value is found. If the document is not saved when closed, the changes listed in the cache are lost (along with any changes made to the document).
Note: Selecting Document owns CaseView database records automatically selects CaseView database records saved when document saved.
Information from multiple sources
Special consideration must be made when working with documents that pull information from more than one source. Example: A template document has a supporting "settings" document which also makes use of the CaseView database to store values. To resolve a conflict, a previous version of the template is restored along with the document owned database records, but not the corresponding settings document. This will cause an inconsistency with information contained within the two documents requiring adjustment.
