Entity of a CDM

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Entity of a CDM

Overview

To group information according the MERISE method, entities must be created.

The data model editor allows you to easily create entities in a CDM (Conceptual Data Model).

When generating the LDM from the CDM, the entities will automatically become files.

Creating an entity

To create an entity:

On the "CDM" pane, in the "Creation" group, expand "New" and select "New entity". The description of the entity is displayed.
Specify:
- the name of the entity. This name will be the logical name of the file created when the LDM is generated from the CDM.
- the caption of the entity that briefly describes the subject of the entity.
- whether an "Automatic identifier" property must be defined in the entity. The value of this property is unique for each record and it is automatically calculated.
- the notes that present the operating mode of the entity.
The entity becomes the current entity. The properties of this entity can be described automatically.

Operations that can be performed on an entity

Duplicating/Copying an entity

To duplicate/copy an entity:

Select the entity to duplicate.
Press Ctrl + C then Ctrl + V to copy the entity.
In the duplication window, specify the requested information and validate. The duplicated entity is automatically created in the current CDM.

Deleting an entity

To delete an entity:

Select the entity to delete.
Open the popup menu of the selected entity (right mouse click).
Select "Delete". The entity is automatically deleted from the CDM. If relationships were pointing to this entity, these relationships are also deleted.

Renaming an entity

To rename an entity:

Select the entity to rename.
On the "CDM" pane, in the "Current element" group, click "Description".
Modify the name of the entity and validate the entity description. The entity is automatically renamed.