The effectiveTime and activefields in the release fileenable the use of a "log style" append-only data model to track all changes to each component, providing full traceability. Once released, a row in any of these files will always remain unchanged. Historic data is supplied in the RF2 release files,dating back to the first release in RF1format in 2002.

In order to change the properties of a current component(and, therefore, to create a new version of it), a new row is added to the applicable file, containing the updated fields, with the activefield set to true and the timestamp in the effectiveTime field indicating the nominal date on which the new version was released.

To inactivate a component,a new row is added, containing the same data as the final valid version of the component,but with the activefield set to false and the timestamp in the effectiveTime fi eld indicating the nominal date of the release in which the final version ceased being valid.

Where editorial policy does not allow a particular property of a componentto be changed whilst keeping the same Identifier,the componentas a whole is inactivated (as described above), and a new row added with a new id, the effectiveTime set to the nominal date of the release in which this version of the componentbecame valid, and the activefield set to true.

It is thus possible to see both the current values and any historical values of a componentat any point in time.

Content will not be future dated with respect to the release that it appears in, although a release itself may be released a few days before its nominal release date. Where there is a business requirement for specifying a future activation date for some components,this may be modeled using reference sets.

The following example demonstrates how the history mechanism works on the Concept, but the same rules apply equally well to the Description, Relationshipand Reference setmember files. In this example, the descriptionsassociated with the moduleId and definitionStatusId have been shown in place of their SCTID values.

A new concept(101291009) is ad ded on the 1st July 2007:

In the next release (on 1st January 2008), the conceptis moved from |Module 1| to |Module 2|. Because the moduleId field is not immutable, the conceptmay be updated simply by adding a new record with the same Id.

In the next release (on 1st July 2008), the conceptis changed from being Primitiveto being Fully defined.

In the next release (on 1st January 2009), the conceptis deactivated:

Notes

1. At no stage in this process are previously written records ever amended. Once a record has been released in a release file,it will continue to be released in exactly the same form in future release files.

2. Changes are only recorded at the point of release in the RF2 release files.If a componentrecord is changed a number of times between releases (during an edit and review process), only the most recently amended record will be appended to the release file,not individual records showing each separate edit to the released component.

3. In the last example, as well as inactivating the concept (active=0), the definitionStatusId is changed from 900000000000073002 | Defined| to 900000000000074008 | Primitive| . In practice this change is not essential since the value of data columns is ignored when a componentis inactive. Although the change is unnecessary and insignificant, it typically occurs since all the relationships of an inactive concept must also be inactive, and as a result, from the perspective of the authoring environment the concept cannot be regarded as 900000000000073002 | Defined| .

Related Links

• 3.1.4.1. Component features - History