6.2. Object Properties

Engineering Knowledge Manager

User's Guide | Chapter 6: Object Types and Properties |

6.1.3. Custom Types and Extended File Formats |  | Chapter 7: Transferring Files
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## 6.2. Object Properties

There are three types of properties that can be associated with an object in EKM: system-created, extracted, and user-defined.

- System-created properties are properties generated by EKM such as the object's name, type, size, date content modified, the path to the local machine, drive, or file server where the object resides, and so on.

- Extracted properties are special properties that are extracted from built-in and custom CAE simulation files after the file is uploaded to the repository, updated using send changes, and synchronized if it is a remote object. Extracted properties summarize key data that is intrinsic to a simulation and vary depending on object type. Extracted properties are used by EKM to generate reports, and you can use these properties as search criteria to retrieve the object in the repository. Extracted properties are also referred to as “extracted metadata.”

- User-defined properties are properties that you define for an object. These include required and optional properties that are predefined for an object type, as well as dynamic properties that you can add as “tags” in the Edit Properties dialog box to help identify the object.

To display properties for an object, you select the object and then select (More) > Display > Properties. Properties are displayed in groups on the Properties tab in the file list window. You can collapse and expand groups as needed. If custom properties are defined for an object type and a display order is specified, then the custom properties will be listed at the top of the display, in their display order. Otherwise, properties are listed alphabetically, by name. Any property that is associated with an object can be used to retrieve the object using EKM search tools. See Searching a Repository for details.

### What is Metadata?

Metadata is a general term that is used to describe properties in EKM and is often used to describe properties that are extracted from CAE files. When a file is uploaded to a repository, data that are associated with the file are stored in two separate locations: file contents are stored in the EKM file server, and properties are stored in a relational database.

Once you have uploaded certain built-in and custom CAE simulation files, updated them using send changes, or synchronized them if they reside on an external file server and are linked to EKM, metadata relating to the simulation model are automatically extracted by EKM and applications run in the background to do the extraction. If you view a file's properties by selecting the file and then clicking the Details tab, you will see extracted metadata in addition to the other properties. The example in Figure 6.1: Example of Fluent Case Properties shows a Fluent case file's extracted metadata as Properties such as `Energy Model`, `Fluent Version`, `Formulation`, `Solver,` and so on. These extracted simulation metadata are used in generating simulation details and other EKM reports, and they can be used as search keywords or as criteria in advanced property searches to help you retrieve the file.

Important: If the required application (`.app.xml` file) is not installed in the data extraction queue under /Administration/Servers/Master/EKM Server, or is not defined correctly, then metadata extraction may fail. If this happens, the file will be identified in the repository with a warning icon next to it. The corresponding tool tip will indicate that Extracted data is not set, and when you display the properties for the file, the values that are missing will be listed as “Value has not been extracted.” You can subsequently extract metadata by selecting Edit > Extract Data. See Extracting Data on Demand for more details.

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