Creating impact analysis diagrams

You can create impact analysis diagrams to find artifacts that are related to a selected focus artifact. You can then investigate each of the linked artifacts.

Before you begin

Impact analysis diagrams are constructed from impact analysis profiles and provide an overall view of how artifacts in a product are related. You must have at least one impact analysis profile before you create an impact analysis diagram. For instructions, see Creating impact analysis profiles.

About this task

Use impact analysis diagrams to discover all the artifacts that link to or from the focus artifact or to explore the impact of changes on the related artifacts.

When you create an impact analysis diagram, depending on the focus artifact that you choose, the initial diagram can include many artifacts. You can focus on specific artifacts and links in the diagram by removing existing artifacts or by adding new ones. You can also examine the properties of specific artifacts in the diagram.

Procedure

  1. In the main menu, click Analysis > Create > Impact Analysis Diagram.
  2. In the Impact Analysis dialog box, set the focus artifact and the profile.
    1. Search for and select the artifact to be the starting point for the analysis by entering a partial or full artifact name in the Focus Artifact field. If you do not find the artifact you need, click Advanced Search to enter more detailed search criteria.
    2. Select a focus artifact.
    3. Select a profile, and then start the analysis.

      A profile specifies the traversal direction, traversal depth, and filters to apply during an analysis.

      If your administrator has deployed the Analysis content package, the Default profile and four additional profiles are in the Profile list box.

      In version 4.0.4 and earlier, one profile, Default, is in the Profile list box.

  3. To specify how the analysis traverses artifacts as it builds the diagram, complete the following steps:
    1. To include artifacts that are upstream from the focus artifact, downstream from the focus artifact, or both, click the Traversal tab.

      To learn more about the upstream and downstream settings, hover over the word Traversal to read hover help.

    2. Set the depth that you want analyzed by entering a number in the depth field.
    3. Optional: Set a type for the analysis to find by clicking the Set Depth Based on Type icon. In the Select Type dialog, set Value to specify the artifact type. The artifact type that you set replaces the depth, and the analysis searches until it finds the type.
  4. To generate the impact analysis diagram, click Apply. As the following screen capture shows, when you run an impact analysis, the diagram is displayed under the edit panel. Further, details about the analysis, such as added and hidden artifacts, are displayed in the accordion tabs on the right.

    Shows the new impact analysis diagram with details about the analysis in the accordion tabs on the right.

    In version 4.0.4 and earlier, details about the analysis, such as added and hidden artifacts, are displayed in the edit panel tabs on the right.

    Shows new impact analysis diagram with details about the analysis in the edit panel tabs on the right.

  5. In the editor, click in the title field and type a name for the new impact analysis diagram, if you want to save the diagram.
  6. Optional: You can control how the diagram is displayed on the page by using the controls on the diagram toolbar.
  7. To save the impact analysis diagram so that other team members can use it, click Save. The new diagram is automatically included in the list of available diagrams.
  8. You can explore the potential impact of changes by adding or removing artifacts.

    This exploration is useful when you must introduce a change to fix a bug or create a variant of the product hierarchy.

    • To hide or show artifacts in the diagram, click the Active Filters tab, and then click the Add Filter icon. In the Add Filter dialog box, use the Filter list box to select a filter to add. If your administrator has deployed the Analysis content package, the Default profile and four additional profiles are in the Profile list box.

      In version 4.0.4 and earlier, one profile, Default, is in the Profile list box.

    • To add artifacts to the diagram, click the Added Artifacts tab, and then click the Add icon to search for the artifact. You can add as many artifacts as you need. After you are finished adding artifacts, click Apply to run the analysis and view your changes.
    • To hide artifacts in the diagram, right-click over the artifact in the analysis diagram and choose Hide Artifact. The artifact is listed automatically on the Hidden Artifacts tab. Restore the artifact by clicking the Restore icon.
    • To hide types in the impact analysis diagram, right-click over the type of artifact in the analysis diagram, choose Hide Type, and then choose the type. The artifact type is listed automatically on the Hidden Types tab. Restore the artifact type by clicking the Restore icon.
    • To expand artifacts in the impact analysis diagram, right-click over the artifact in the analysis diagram and choose Expand. The expanded artifact, and all artifacts that have a direct relationship to it, are displayed to the right of the main artifact. Collapse the expanded artifact by right-clicking over the expanded artifact and choosing the Collapse icon.
  9. Optional: To examine the properties of an artifact in the impact analysis diagram, select the artifact and click the Preview icon.
  10. Optional: Find where an artifact is used in other products by clicking the Find Use in Products icon.

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