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Object locks

A lock is placed on an object to preserve the integrity of the data when the object is under, or has gone under a revision or modification.

Consider the following regarding locks:
Edit lock
When an object is open for editing, a check-out lock is placed on the object so that no one else can edit it at the same time. When the object is checked-in, the edit lock is removed.
Project lock
If an object is edited or modified in a project, a project-lock is placed on all copies of that object outside the project. This ensures that, until posted, there are no lost or conflicting edits made to the same object. However, the object may continue to be edited within the project.This includes modifications to the object's metadata. When the project is posted, the Project lock is removed. Note: When an object is placed in a project it is not automatically locked; it is only locked if it has been modified in any way.

If an object exists in more than one project and the object is modified in one of the projects (Project 1), a project lock prohibits it from being modified in the other project (Project 2). When the object is posted to stable data the project object is removed, however, the other project (Project 2) now has data that is not current. In this case, the object in that project (Project 2) is marked out of date. This alerts the user that there is a more recent version of the object than the copy in his or her project. The user can easily update the out-of-date object in the project if he or she wants to modify it.

The four types of locks in Contenta include the following:
  • Edit Lock—a short-term lock, which is applied on an object for a brief modification. For example, modifying user properties or changing the data applies edit lock on an object. Edit lock is cleared as soon as you finish modifying an object or if you log out from a Contenta session (manually by clicking on Log Out or automatically after period of inactivity—session timeout).
  • Checkout lock—a long-term lock, which is applied to an object by a user or a tool. This lock remains until the user or tool removes the lock. Note that long term locks can be removed by SysAdmin.
  • Project lock—a lock applied on an object when an object is modified in the project. The lock is an indicator to other users that the object is modified in the project, and has not yet been posted to Stable Data. The Project lock prevents modifications of the object in any other place outside the project in which it is locked. The lock is cleared when the object is posted or if it is removed from project’s Post list.
  • Owner lock—a lock that you can apply using the Lock tool, which you access through the user interface. The Owner lock prevents other users or tools from modifying the object. You clear the lock by clicking Unlock in the user interface.

All locks are visible in a list view in the user interface.