FileNet Basics

What is IBM FileNet?

IBM FileNet is an Enterprise Content Management and Business Process Management (ECM & BPM) product. Enterprises use this product to manage their content and business workflow.

Explanation: Every business contains data (content), process (business workflow). So FileNet is used to store this data in the database and perform some action on them nothing but business actions.

What is ECM?

Enterprise Content Management (ECM) is a formalized means of organizing and storing an organization's documents, and other content, that relate to the organization's processes

What is BPM?

Business process management (BPM) is a systematic approach to make an organization's workflow more effective,   a business process is an activity or set of activities that will accomplish a specific organizational goal.

FileNet Core Components

FileNet Contain 3 core components to work with ECM and BPM.

1.     Content Engine

2.    Process Engine

3.    Application Engine

1. Content Engine: Content Engine is used for managing the content of the enterprise.

2. Process Engine: Process Engine is used for managing the process of the enterprise.

3. Application Engine: Application Engine acts as client to interact with Content Engine and Process Engine. Provides an UI on top of it.

                                               Content Engine

The system comes with a set of predefined classes, called base classes.

The core classes of content engine are

1.     Document

2.    CustomObject

3.    Folder

4.    Annotaion

1.    Document: This class is used to store and manage the data that contains Properties, Content (attachments), Lifecycle and Versioning.

2.    CustomeObject: This class is used to store and manage the data that contains only properties.

3.    Folder: This class is used as a way to access the data that is stored in database.

4.    Annotaion: This class is used for highlighting or indicating the things on content.

Events and subscriptions:

Ø  Events provide a mechanism for initiating the actions when Objects are created, deleted, updated etc.,

Ø  Subscriptions is an action that is triggered when the event is generated.

I.e. when object is created it is called event and if workflow is lunched based on this event then it called subscription.  

Data Storages in FileNet:

There are three types of data storages in FileNet.

1.     Data Store

2.    File Store

3.    Fixed Store

1. Data Store: This is default storage type in FileNet. The metadata and content is stored in the database tables, content is stored as blobs, lobs and metadata is stored as fields.

2. File Store: In this type of storage metadata is stored in the database tables as fields and content is stored as files in folders in a system.

3. Fixed Store: In this type of storage third party software is used to store the data example: Image Services.

Security in FileNet:

In FileNet there are three types of securities.

1.     Security

2.    Default Instance Security

3.    Security Policy

1. Security: This type of security is a Class level security, the users of this type of security can modify the Class. I.e. the user can add properties, delete properties,  update properties.

2. Default Instance Security: This type of security is an Object level security, the users of this type can modify the Object. I.e. the user can add value, delete value, update value. Whenever this type of security is applied on a class, the objects created for this class gets this type of security.

3. Security Policy:

Search types in FileNet:

 There are two types of search is in FileNet

1.     Content Engine Query Builder

2.    Search Templates

1. Content Engine Query Builder: This type of search is used by the developers to search the documents form FileNet Enterprise Manager (FEM). This tool is not given to the end user it is only give to the FileNet developers.

2. Search Templates: This search templates are created by the developers and provided to the end user to search the work items based on the filters selected by the user.

Versioning:

There are 2 types of versions

1.     Minor

2.    Major

1. Minor Version: When the content in the workflow is being changed and it is in process then it is treated as a minor version.

2. Major Version: When the changes are completed and released then it is treated as Major version.

Version Status:

FileNet by default has 4 types of version status such as

1.     Released

2.    In process

3.    Reservation

4.    Superseded

1. Released: When the content is in Major Version then status is set to Released.

2. In process: When the content is in Minor Version then status is set to In process.

3. Reservation: When the content is Checked Out then status is set to Reservation.

4. Superseded: Whenever the content version is changed to next version the previous version is set to Superseded.

Entry Templates:

Entry Templates are created by the developers and provided to the end user to create the objects from Workplace. FileNet provides an option to the Developers to create the Entry Templates.

Object Store: Object Stores are created within the FileNet Domain and it represents location on the content engine server in which objects are stored, accessed, and managed, An Object Store is used to store a related set of data and provide access to metadata and to collection of objects such as documents, folders and class description.