Document handling on activities

All documents in Vertec are stored via Activity. This means that the documents are always found on an activity and the handling of the documents takes place via the respective activities. In the System Settings it is possible to decide whether the documents are stored

• internal (in the Vertec database) or
• on the file system or in an external DMS

Internal document storage

If the document storage is set to Internal in the system settings, documents are saved on the activities and thus directly in the Vertec database.

The base path will not be shown on the activity:

If no document exists, you can select a document from the file system using the button with the 3 dots. This will then be saved in Vertec and the file name will be shown here.

If a document exists, the file name is shown here. It is also shown as a preview on the Document page:

Word or PDF documents as well as from Vertec 6.7.0.5 files of the formats .png, .jpg and .bmp supported. Documents in other formats are managed in the same way, but there is no preview available.

The buttons below have the following features:

• Save: Saves the document to the file system as needed.
• Edit: Open the document in the respective editor (a click on the arrow in the document field has the same effect). Change to the document are also saved in Vertec and the preview is updated. While editing, the button changes Bearbeiten on Bearbeiten beenden and the document is locked from other users (see section below). When editing is exited and the document is closed, click Bearbeiten beenden to approve the document in Vertec.
• Send as email: Opens a new email in Outlook with the document as an attachment. The email applies the following properties of the activity:
  • Title (becomes subject)
  • e-mail address from the address entry (becomes the recipient’s address)
  • Document (to be attached as an annex)
• Send as email (PDF): Convert documents to PDF and open a new email in Outlook with the document as an attachment (see above).
  • Available from version 6.7.0.6 in the cloud and Desktop App.
  • The button is displayed for documents with the formats doc and docx shown.

In the Web App , instead of Bearbeiten, Speichern and Als E-Mail senden the button Download available.

Lock on simultaneous editing

To prevent multiple users from opening or editing the same document at the same time, the document is locked as soon as it is opened by one user. The button Bearbeiten changes to Bearbeiten beenden. If the document is now opened by another user, the message appears:

Das Dokument wird bereits bearbeitet (User). Bei gleichzeitiger Bearbeitung können Änderungen verloren gehen.
Möchten Sie das Dokument trotzdem bearbeiten?

If more than one user edits the document, the last to save the document wins. Datum may be lost.

After editing the document, the user can edit it on the activity via button Bearbeiten beenden approve again. Without manual approval of the document, it remains locked for other users.

User rights Document handling

The following user rights are used for editing and displaying internally stored documents:

• To set the document name in the field (independent of the document) it needs write permission to Aktivitaet.DocumentFullName.
• To read the document name, it needs read permission on Aktivitaet.DocumentFullName. Note: For email activities, no document name is displayed, even if you have read permission.
• For uploading a document by means of the three dots write permission is set to Aktivitaet.documentdata needed.
• The document page is only shown if read permission is on Aktivitaet.content exists.
• If you do not have write permission, only the buttons Save (or Download in the Web App) and Send as email (no edit) are shown.

Document handling via Python code

The documents on activities are stored in a DocumentData Object that is attached to the activity.

The corresponding link is Aktivitaet.documentData- DocumentData.owningEntry.    

The DocumentData Object has a member named Data (blob) in which the document is saved.

For easier access via Python, there is the activity attribute directly on the derived content, from which the document can be read. The name of the document is also on the activity in the member documentFullName deposited.

In addition, the following Python Features can be used to feature document handling:

• Add document: To save a document to an activity via Pythonsave used the Python function setdocumentcontent().
• Add email: To save an email to an activity via Python, use the Python feature setemailcontent().
• Save document as: To save a document or an email from an activity on the filesystem, the Python feature vtcapp.sendfile() can be used:

   vtcapp.sendfile(argobject.content, argobject.documentfullname, showsavedialog=True)

• Delete document: A document or email can be deleted from an activity via Python code as follows:

  activity = argobject
  activity.documentsize = 0
  activity.documentfullname = ""
  activity.documentmodifiedon = None
  activity.documentdata.delete()

Document storage File system or DMS

If the Document Storage is set to file system or DMS in the system settings, the handling is as follows:

At the bottom of the activity there are two fields:

• Base path: This is calculated based on the File Storage Settings. Click on the arrow opens the file storage in the Explorer. If the path does not exist yet, a query appears if it should be created.
• Document:
  • If a document already exists, the document name is shown here.
    • Click on the arrow to open the document directly in the corresponding program (e.g. Word, Excel, Outlook).
    • Click on the three dots: Opens the file tray in the Explorer.
  • If no document exists yet, a document can be selected via the button with the three dots:
    • If the selected document is already at the location shown as the base path, only the document name is inserted.
    • If the document is located in a subfolder of the base path, the relative path and the document name are used.
    • If the document is located elsewhere, it is copied under the same name to the document tray of the base path, unless the Save absolute document paths to activities system setting is activated.
    • When using the Sharepoint online dms extension, the document is inserted into Sharepoint.