User:DVT/UserDocumentation/DVT Building Analysis Features

An Analysis Feature (AF) consists of a DVT Solution and a Control XML file.

Use the Graphical Solution Builder (GSB) to build the Solution for your AF. You have to provide the Solution with the required fields so that it can configure itself. To do that add a Text File Reader and a Field Translator to create the fields, or alternatively add a CSV File Reader instead (an appropriate CSV file must be included with the Solution in this case). Most likely you would anyway add one of these Readers to test and debug your solution.

Designate any inputs to your AF with specially named Taps $Input.0, $Input.1, etc. If there’s only a single input it can be named $Input. When the AF is launched the input tap itself and any components before it will be replaced with a single Buffer Data Source component hooked up to the buffer that backs the view it was launched from. IMPORTANT: AF input taps must have a single input and a single output.

Sometimes it is useful to add additional buffers and views for easier debug of the AF Solution. These components can be pre-fixed with $Debug (e.g. $Debug.MyView). If then the AF is added to an Analysis Session these components will be automatically removed. To keep the debug components in the solution set the debug option for dvt.analysisfeature.add to true when adding the AF (also applicable to dvt.dataprovider.add).

Create a folder with the desired name of the AF in the Analysis Library folder located at <ccs_installdir>\ccsv5\ccs_base_5.xxx\dvt\AnalysisLibrary\AnalysisFeatures and save the AF solution in it. Use the same name for the AF solution as the you used for the folder. The AF folder structure will then look as follows:

• <AFName>\
• <AFName>.sol
• <AFName>.sol.dm
• <AFName>.sol.vmd
• <AFName>.sol.layout
• <AFName>.sol.gsb

Note: The <AFName>.sol.vml file saved by the GSB is not needed and may be deleted. You may also have xml configuration files for some components and a sample CSV file required for configuring the solution. These files can be saved in the AF folder directly or in sub-folders of any name.

Now create a Control XML file named <AFName>.control.xml in the AF folder. The control file allows you to

• control how the AF is launched, configured and run
• provide a wizard or configuration dialog that allows to user to configure the AF
• add menus and toolbars that allows the user to interact with the AF
• add status information and buttons to the Analysis Dashboard

The Control XML syntax is based on Apache Ant. The available DVT Control tasks are documented in Writing DVT Control XMLs The easiest way to get started is to use one of the existing control files in the Analysis Library as a starting point.

Some important Control tasks are

• dvt.analysisfeature.add: Adds an Analysis Feature to an Analysis Session
• dvt.hookup: Hooks up an Analysis Feature to a view
• dvt.property: Sets or reads out DVT properties of views or data processors
• dvt.start: Runs an Analysis Feature
• dvt.view.show: Opens and shows a DVT view
• dvt.menu.context: Creates a view context menu
• dvt.config.wizard: Defines a wizard dialog consisting of elements such as pages, labels, edit boxes, combo boxes, etc.