Accessing the Vault. Parent article: Altium Vault Technology. Mod. ifi. Adm. Sep 13,

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1 Frozen Content Mod ifi ed by Adm in on Sep 13, Parent article: Altium Vault Technology This page contains information regarding browser-based access to the legacy Altium Vault Server. For browser-based access to the latest Altium Vault, see Browser-based Access and Management of an Altium Vault. For an Altium Vault Server only, connection is also possible through its browser-based interface, providing the URL to that vault is known. The browser interface allows for administration of vault access, as well as limited manipulation of vault content itself, including folder definition. This allows people other than the designer to contribute to the management and maintenance of vault data, as well as being able to access and download released data for specific Item Revisions. Accessing the Vault To access an Altium Vault Server, simply use a preferred external Web Browser and type the address for the vault in the following format: (e.g. for an Altium Vault Server installed using the default port assignment). You will be presented with a Sign-in page.

2 Sign in through the browser interface using the same vault credentials used to connect through Altium Designer. While the default admin user could be left for general entry to the vault by administrators, it is a good idea to change the First Name, Last Name and Username to something more meaningful for your organization. And it's definitely a good idea to change the default password from admin to something only known/passed to authorized administrators otherwise everyone could simply access the vault as an administrator! Access an Altium Vault Server through a preferred external Web browser. The interface divided into three pages, for browsing and managing: Users Groups Vault Structure (including folder-level sharing permissions). While all users can browse the vault structure, users and groups, only those with administrative privileges can make changes to user access (management of users and groups). In terms of vault structure, administrators have full access to create toplevel folders and sub-folders, and edit, share, and remove folders. Nonadministrators can create sub-folders, but cannot create top-level folders. In addition, they can only edit, share and remove sub-folders they have created.

3 Users Management of users for access to the Altium Vault Server is performed from the Users page, by an administrator of that vault. A user is simply a person who it is intended will need access to the vault. Although any number of users may be registered to access and use the vault, only a licensed number will be allowed to connect to it simultaneously. This number is specified at the time of purchasing the required licensing for connection to the Altium Vault Server. It is enforced by the license file (*.alf) generated through activation of the resulting vault license ensuring that only that number of people can access the vault concurrently. The same user can be accessing the Altium Vault Server concurrently in different ways (e.g. connected through Altium Designer AND signed-in through an external Web browser) and it only counts as a single connection from the licensing perspective. Create a 'database' of people who are to have access to the Altium Vault Server, from the Users page of the browser interface. All users will be listed by default. Each user in the list is displayed in terms of: Type represented by an icon as either an administrator for the vault ( ), or a standard user/non-administrator ( ). Full Name, comprising First and Last name. Username. In addition, if a user is an administrator for the vault is therefore a member of the Administrators group they will have the icon to the right of their entry. Controls are available at the top-right of the list to group and sort the users in a variety of ways: Group By use the options here to group the users by a specific criteria. Two options

4 are available: Group (arrange users according to the groups they belong to); None (no grouping all users presented in a single list). Sort By use the options here to sort the users by a specific criteria. Two options are available: Name (sort alphabetically by full name, in ascending order from A-Z); Username (sort alphabetically by username, in ascending order from A-Z). Use the Filter field to quickly find a particular user. This field is similar in nature to a standard search field. Simply enter a user's full name or username (or partial entry thereof) and press Enter or click the magnifying glass icon. The list of users will be scanned and results of the filtering listed, in terms of matching users. At this top level you can add a new user, or access controls to edit or remove an existing user. When migrating data to an Altium Vault Server from a legacy Satellite Vault, a user with the supplied AltiumLive credentials will be added to the list of users having access to that vault. Similarly, if there are any Items in the source Satellite Vault created by other people, then additional users will be created accordingly, based on their separate AltiumLive login credentials. These users will initially be non-administrative. Making use of its browser interface, you also have the possibility to browse and manage (where permitted) users for a connected Altium Vault Server directly from within Altium Designer, using the Users view available under the Home page (View» Home). Adding a New User To add a new user for vault access, simply click on the Add User button, located at the topleft of the page. Controls will appear with which to specify the contact details, login credentials, and additional group membership for that user.

5 When you click to add a new user, you will be presented with controls with which to specify that user and their group membership. Specify details for the user. The following are required fields (marked with a red asterisk): First Name Last Name Username Password The Username and Password become that user's login credentials for access to the vault. Specify also which of the existing groups the user is to be made a member of, if required. If the user is required to have administrative powers, check the box next to the Administrators entry. Once all details are filled out and specified as required, click the Add button the new user will be created and added to the list of users with access to the Altium Vault Server.

6 Fill out details for the new user and assign to one or more existing groups as required, then click Add. You will be prevented from trying to add another user with the same Username as an existing user. Editing an Existing User Clicking on an individual user's Full Name in the list, or using the Edit command from the associated control drop-down at the far right, accesses their full user details. Make any changes to the contact details for that user, their login credentials (Username, Password) and group assignment as required.

7 Access and make changes to a user as required. When all modifications have been made as required, simply click the Apply button to effect those changes. Changing Forgotten Passwords Non-administrative users can only view the users who have access to a vault. They cannot make any changes. This applies also to their own details. Therefore if such a user forgets their password, they will need to get an administrator for the vault (any user who is a member of the Administrators group) to effectively 'reset' the password for them. This simply involves the administrator: Accessing the details for the user and entering a new password in the Password field. Clicking Apply to effect the change. Communicating the new password back to that user. The user cannot change this password by themselves, so it might be an idea to supply the administrator with the required (and more memorable!) password beforehand. Removing a User To remove a user, simply use the Remove command from the associated control drop-down at the far right. A dialog will appear asking for confirmation to proceed with the deletion. Click OK to proceed, after which the user will be removed from the vault's user database. They will no longer have access to the vault.

8 Access the control for removing an existing user. The remove operation cannot be undone. If you remove a user by mistake, you will need to add that user back, in the same way that you would add any new user. Groups Management of groups for the Altium Vault Server is performed from the Groups page. Groups allow you to further organize your users according to, for example, the particular section of the Organization in which they are involved, or the design team they are in. Groups make sharing of vault content more streamlined. The same user can be a member of any number of defined Groups. Create specific groupings (or 'memberships') of users. Each group in the list is displayed in terms of: Type represented by an icon as either a system group ( ), or a standard user-

9 created group ( ). Group Name. Member Count how many defined users are part of this group. In addition, for the user currently signed into the browser interface, the icon to the right of a group name is used to visually indicate what groups they currently belong to. A single system group Administrators is defined by default for an Altium Vault Server. This group gives administrative privileges to the members of the group. Anyone who is a member of this group has complete access to the vault, including the ability to manage user access and vault structure through the browser interface. Use the Filter field to quickly find a particular group. This field is similar in nature to a standard search field. Simply enter a group's name (or partial entry thereof) and press Enter or click the magnifying glass icon. The list of groups will be scanned and results of the filtering listed, in terms of matching groups. At this top level you can add a new group, or access controls to edit or remove an existing group. Making use of its browser interface, you also have the possibility to browse and manage (where permitted) groups for a connected Altium Vault Server directly from within Altium Designer, using the Users view available under the Home page (View» Home). Creating a New Group To create a new group, simply click on the Add Group button, located at the top-left of the page. Controls will appear with which to define the group, in terms of its name and members.

10 When you click to add a new group, you will be presented with controls with which to specify that group and its members. Use the Group Name field to enter a meaningful name for the new group. For example this may be a name that is reflective of the task performed by its members. This is a required field, as denoted by the red asterisk. The Members region is where you define the members of the group its constituent users. This can be done as part of creating the group, or by editing the group afterward, as required. To add a user as a member of the group, simply click inside the Add Member field and start typing the full name (First Name Last Name) or username for that user. As you type, a drop-down list will automatically and dynamically populate with matching results, based on existing users that have access to the vault click the required user. Dynamic search filtering enables you to quickly obtain the user required as you type. Continue adding further users in this manner. If you need to remove a user from the field, simply click the small cross at the right of the box containing that user's name. Once all users have been entered as required, click the Add button. The new group will be added.

11 With name and members defined as required, click Add to effect creation of the group. You will be prevented from trying to create two groups with the same name. Once the new group is added, it will be available in the list of groups to which a user can be made a member, when adding a new user, or editing the details for an existing one. Editing an Existing Group Clicking on a group's name in the list, or using the Edit command from the associated control drop-down at the far right, accesses full details for that group. Make changes to the group name and/or user membership as required.

12 Access and make changes to a group as required. When all modifications have been made as required, simply click the Apply button to effect those changes. To remove a user from the list of members for the group, simply uncheck the associated Member checkbox they will be removed from the list upon applying the changes. The system group Administrators cannot have its name changed. You can, however, manage members for this group, as with any other user-created group. Removing a Group To remove a group, simply use the Remove command from the associated control drop-down at the far right. A dialog will appear asking for confirmation to proceed with the deletion. Click OK to proceed, after which the group will be removed.

13 Access the control for removing an existing group. The remove operation cannot be undone. If you remove a group by mistake, you will need to add that group back, in the same way that you would create any new group. Note also that as a system group, the Administrators group cannot be removed. Vault Structure The Vault page gives you access to the structure of the Altium Vault Server. From here, you will be able to browse the folders and Items within the vault. And although you can't create, edit, or remove Items from within the browser interface, you are able to create and edit folders, and so build the structure of the vault, without having to be connected to that vault through Altium Designer. Browse and define the structure of the vault. Each folder in a list is displayed in terms of: Folder Name. Date and time the folder was created, or last updated, as applicable. The user who created (or last updated) the folder. For a folder you have created/updated, this entry will simply appear as 'You', while you are signed in to the vault's browser interface. In addition, if you create or modify a folder while you are signed in, that folder will have

14 the icon to the right of its name. Clicking on a folder name will drill down into that folder, presenting any sub-folders therein. Clicking on an Item name within a folder will drill down to the detailed page for that Item. And depending on the type of Item, you can download released documents.

15 Browse the Items that have been released to the vault.

16 The Sort By control, located at the top-right of the page when browsing the content of a folder, can be used to sort sub-folders or Items in a variety of ways: Name sort alphabetically by folder name (or Item ID), in ascending order from A-Z. Date sort by created/updated date, from latest to earliest. Description sort alphabetically by folder (or Item) description, in ascending order from A-Z. Comment for a folder of Items, sort alphabetically by Item Comment field, in ascending order from A-Z. At the parent folder level you can add a new sub-folder, or access controls to edit, share, or remove an existing sub-folder. At the highest level of the structure, you can add/edit/share/remove top-level folders for the vault. Again, what can be done depends on the access privileges you have: Administrators full access to create top-level folders and sub-folders, and edit, share, and remove folders. Non-Administrators can create sub-folders, but cannot create top-level folders. In addition, they can only edit, share and remove sub-folders they have created. You cannot move existing folders (or items for that matter) within the structure. This can be performed only through direct connection with the vault, via the Vaults panel interface, and provided you have the appropriate privileges to do so. Making use of its browser interface, you also have the possibility to browse and manage the structure for a connected Altium Vault Serverdirectly from within Altium Designer, using the Vaults view available under the Home page (View» Home). Although if you are directly connected to the vault through Altium Designer, the Vaults panel offers a far superior interface, especially since it allows creation and management of Items themselves, along with other vault management features. Adding a New Folder To create a new folder structure in which the at the top-left of the of its name, type, and within the vault structure, simply browse to the level in the folder is to be added, then click on the New Folder button, located page. Controls will appear with which to define the folder, in terms description.

17 When you click to add a new folder, you will be presented with controls with which to specify that folder. Use the Folder Name field to enter a meaningful name for the folder, perhaps an umbrella term that reflects the relationship of the Items that will be stored within it. Use the Folder Type field to declare the intended purpose of any given folder that is the type of content it will be used to contain. The following table summarizes the different folder-types available for use in a vault. You have full control over the folder-type, it can be changed at any time. Folder Type Code Intended Purpose altium-component-library CMPL Used to contain released Component Items. altium-component-management-zone CMZ High-level folder under which sub-folders of Component Items and their related domain model Items are stored. altium-design-content-zone DCMZ High-level folder under which sub-folders of reusable design content Items schematic sheets, templates, reference designs are stored. altium-managed-sheet-catalog SSC Used to contain released Schematic Sheet Items. altium-part-choice-list PCLT Used to contain released Part Choice List Items. altium-pcb-component-library PCBCL Used to contain released PCB Component Model Items. altium-production-release-zone PRZ High-level folder under which sub-folders of PCB production data Items Blank Board and Assembled Board are stored. altium-schematic-template-catalog STC Used to contain released Schematic Template Items. altium-symbol-library Used to contain released Schematic Symbol Items. SSL

18 generic-folder GEN Used to contain content of any description a sort of generic 'bucket' of released Items if you will. A folder's Folder Type property has no bearing on the content of the folder. It simply provides a visual 'clue' as to what is stored in a folder and can be beneficial when browsing a vault for particular content. Use the Folder Description field to enter a description for the folder, perhaps describing the content it is to hold. Once all attributes of the folder have been defined as required, click the Add button. The new folder will be added as part of the vault structure. With folder properties defined, clicking Add will effect its creation. You will be prevented from trying to create two folders with the same name in the same directory. While non-administrative users can create their own sub-folders, they cannot create top-level folders. Editing an Existing Folder To modify the properties of an existing folder, simply use the Edit command from the associated control drop-down at the far right of the folder's entry. Controls will be presented for making changes to the folder's name, type and description as required. Use the Sharing control below the Folder Description field to access the Sharing Settings

19 window, from where you can modify the access permissions for the folder see Folder-Level Sharing. Access and make changes to a folder as required. When all modifications have been made as required, simply click the Apply button to effect those changes. Non-administrative users can only modify the properties of a folder they have created. Removing a Folder To remove an empty folder, simply use the Remove command from the associated control dropdown at the far right. A dialog will appear asking for confirmation to proceed with the deletion. Click OK to proceed, after which the folder will be removed. A folder must be totally empty for it to be removable. If it contains one or more empty sub-folders, remove those first. However if a folder contains released Items, it cannot be removed through the vault's browser-based interface. The Items would need to be removed first, which can only be done through the Vaults panel interface to the vault. Access the control for removing an existing folder.

20 Non-administrative users can only remove a folder they have created. The remove operation cannot be undone. If you remove a folder by mistake, you will need to add that folder back, in the same way that you would create any new folder. Folder-Level Sharing Related article: Controlling Access to Content in an Altium Vault Server An Altium Vault Server also supports the ability to 'share' vault folders facilitating connection to, and access of, vault content of a particular nature. By sharing vault folders, design content in a vault can be easily partitioned and shared with others. A folder in a vault can be shared on a number of different levels, in effect defining both the level of visibility of that folder, and the level of security for access to it. This can range from being strictly private access by specified individuals or groups, through to levels for allowing anyone in the same organization to view or change content respectively. By careful configuration of folder-level access permissions, the administrator of a vault can fully control who is able to see what content in that vault, and whether other users can simply view a folder and its content, or also edit it (effectively releasing design data into it). A single vault can be partitioned into various effective 'zones' of content, but with controlled permissions, the content can be made selectively visible, or hidden, as required giving the right people, the right access, to the right data. Those with administrator-level privileges will be able to see and manage all vault content. For a shared user of the vault (non-admin), only those folders that have been shared i.e. the user has permissions to access will be accessible when the user connects to that vault. To share a folder, simply use the Share command from the associated control drop-down at the far right of the folder's entry. The Sharing Settings window will appear, from where you can modify the access permissions for the folder as required. The Sharing Settings window can also be accessed by clicking the Sharing control, when editing a folder.

21 Configure folder-level sharing from the vault's browser-based interface. Sharing can be configured to be simple 'any logged-in user can view' or 'any logged-in user can change', or it can be made more private in nature adding individual users, or groups of users, and setting explicit permissions for each. In this way you can fully control who is allowed to Collaborate (released data into the folder), and who is allowed to only View the folder's data (Read-only permission, as it were). Non-administrative users can only share a folder they have created. Navigating the Vault Structure You can navigate the content in an Altium Vault Server through the browser interface in several ways, as highlighted in the following image and described thereafter.

22 The various ways in which to navigate vault content. 1. By clicking on a folder name whose contents you wish to peruse. 2. Using the breadcrumbs at the top of the page. These reflect the current folder being browsed, along with the hierarchical path to that folder. Click on any entry in the path to jump directly to that folder, making it the current folder being browsed. 3. Using the search feature. Simply enter a keyword based on an Item's ID, Comment or Description and press Enter or click the magnifying glass icon. The entire vault will be scanned and results of the search listed, in terms of matching Items. Additional The latest release of the Altium Vault Server brings several improvements to administration of the vault through its browser-based interface. These improvements are available, irrespective of whether access is made through an external web browser, or through the applicable views under Altium Designer's Home page. Remember that while all users can browse users and groups through the vault's browser-based interface, only those with administrative privileges can make changes to user access (management of users and groups). Indication of Vault Access by Users Current usage of the vault in terms of which users are currently accessing it (through Altium Designer or an external web browser) can be quickly gauged from the Users page of the browser interface. Indication is provided through a dedicated icon to the immediate left of the icon for group membership ( ). For an administrator of the vault, being able to see who is accessing the vault be very useful in determining whether current licensing provides for sufficient connections. If all connections are quickly being used up, additional licensing be purchased as needed, to allow a higher number of simultaneous connections to can user can the

23 Altium Vault Server. If this is not an option, there is the ability for an administrator to forcibly log users out. Quickly assess which users are currently accessing the vault. For each user, the icon is used to reflect their state of vault access, and can be in one of two states: currently logged in to the vault. not currently logged in to the vault. Ability to Logout Users An administrator for the Altium Vault Server has the power to logout any user that is currently logged into the vault (apart from themselves of course!). This enables licensed vault connections to be 'freed up' as it were, for assignment to other users, should the route of purchasing additional licensed connections not be viable. To do so, locate the user of interest on the Users page of the browser interface, and use the Logout command from the associated control drop-down at the far right. A dialog will appear asking for confirmation to proceed with the deletion. Click OK to proceed, after which the user will be logged out from the vault, distinguished by their vault access state changing from to.

24 An administrator for the vault (General Administrator) logs out another user that is currently accessing the vault (Neal Geneare). Indication of User Group Membership User group membership can quickly be seen from the Users page of the browser interface. To do so, hover the cursor over the group membership icon associated to the user of interest. A pop-up will present, listing all groups that user currently belongs to.

25 Quickly see which groups a particular vault user belongs to. Support for Windows Authentication The Altium Vault Server supports two modes of user authentication when accessing the vault: Built in this is provided courtesy of the vault's own Identity Service (IDS). The user accesses the vault by entering the credentials supplied to them by an administrator for the vault. Windows using Windows Domain Authentication. The user accesses the vault by entering their Windows login credentials. Setting the required mode of authentication is performed when initially adding a user to the vault, through the browser-based interface, but can be switched at any stage thereafter. Windows authentication is only available for an Altium Vault Server installed on a PC that is part of a domain. Mode is specified using the Authentication field. By default, Built in mode is used. To use Windows Domain Authentication, click on this field and choose Windows from the drop-down. Switch user access control to use Windows Domain Authentication. The sub-fields change from Username and Password, to Username and Domain respectively. The Domain field is pre-filled with the name of the domain of which the PC is currently part. Enter the Username to be exactly the same as the Username for that user's Windows login.

26 When using Windows authentication, the Domain is filled ready. You just need to enter the Username portion of the user's Windows login credentials. Under Windows Domain authentication, users need to be managed externally as part of the organization's Windows network administration. Username and Password maintenance (and issues) are handled by your Windows Network Administrator. If a user's Windows Domain Username changes, this should be updated for that user on the vault-side too, otherwise access to the vault will not be possible. Source URL: