Manage an attribute set

An attribute set consists of multiple attributes to classify entities, such as the different types of products, according to demand or production contexts. For example, if you are selling clothes, you may need to define an attribute set for shirts and another one for trousers. The attributes contained in each attribute set will differ, as the shirts will include the attribute Collar size, whereas the trousers will have the attribute Waist size. The same is valid for other entities, such as dispatch notes or packaging types. You can define different types of these entities depending on your specific needs.

Several plugins may bring their own attribute sets as a starting point for the tenant's configuration, such as PIM basic set in the PIM module or the Packaging type basic set in the Fulfillment module.

You can create attribute sets, edit existing attribute sets and deactivate attribute sets that are not in use. You can add attributes to or remove attributes from an attribute set and change the required attributes within an attribute set.

Create an attribute set

Create an attribute set to define a new attribute set with different attributes to the predefined attribute sets.

Several plugins have their own configuration user interface, where only those attributes and attribute sets are listed that belong to the specific plugin. When using the plugin-specific user interface, several options may be restricted or not available. For example, in the PIM module, only PIM relevant attributes, attribute sets, and functions are displayed.

Define the attribute set basic data

Define the basic inputs, such as name and description, for the attribute set.

Prerequisites

Additional attributes for the attribute set have been created, see Create an attribute.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS

1. Click the (Add) button in the bottom right corner.
   The Create attribute set view is displayed.

   

2. Enter a name for the attribute set in the Name field and, if desired, add an attribute set description in the Description field.

   If you want to provide the attribute set name and description in different languages in the system, you can select the desired system language in the "Language" drop-down list on top of this view. By default, the following options are currently available: English (United States) and Deutsch (Deutschland).

3. Enter a key for the attribute set in the Key field. The key is required for API access and must be system-wide unique. An attribute set key must fulfill the following criteria:

   • valid characters are a-z (upper and lower case), 0-9 and the underscore ( _ )
   • the key must not start with a number
   • a double underscore ( ___ ) and a trailing underscore are forbidden

   In order to facilitate the assignment of sets in the further process, it is recommended to add the prefix datahub_ to all attribute sets created in the DataHub module.

4. Click the Entity type drop-down list and select the appropriate entity type. The list of options may differ depending on the system configuration.

   Entity types are all classes interacting with the DataHub module. For detailed information on entity types, see DataHub Basics.

5. For the next steps to create an attribute set, follow the appropriate procedure:
   • Create an attribute set without attribute inheritance
   • Create an attribute set with attribute inheritance
   • Create an attribute set with attribute copying

Create an attribute set without attribute inheritance

When you create an attribute set without inheritance, you have to add all attributes manually to the created attribute set. Neither attributes nor configurations are applied from another attribute set. In exchange, you can define individually which attributes are required and customize their configuration.

Prerequisites

The basic data of the attribute set has been completed, see Define the attribute set basic data.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS > Button Add

1. Select the No inheritance option in the Inherit/Copy values from drop-down list.
   The Inherit configuration toggle and the Inherit/Copy values drop-down list are locked.

2. Click the [SAVE] button.
   The new attribute set has been saved. The Create attribute set view changes to the Edit attribute set view. A confirmation message is displayed.

3. Click the (Back) button in the upper left corner to return to the list of attribute sets or proceed to edit the attribute set.

Create an attribute set with attribute inheritance

When you create an attribute set with attribute inheritance, you adopt all attributes from the selected attribute set. The inherited attributes cannot be changed. Further, all changes in the inheritance attribute set are also applied to the linked attribute set. Each time a change is made in the inheritance attribute set, the linked attribute sets are updated.

Prerequisites

The basic data of the attribute set has been completed, see Define the attribute set basic data.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS > Button Add

1. Select an attribute set in the Inherit/Copy values from drop-down list.

2. Enable the Inherit configuration toggle if you also want to adopt the configuration to the new attribute set.

3. Select the Inherit option in the Inherit/Copy values drop-down list.

4. Click the [SAVE] button.
   The new attribute set has been saved. The Create attribute set view changes to the Edit attribute set view. A confirmation message is displayed.

5. Click the (Back) button in the upper left corner to return to the list of attribute sets or proceed to edit the attribute set.

Create an attribute set with attribute copying

When you create an attribute set with attribute copying, you copy all attributes from the selected attribute set once. After copying, the attribute set behaves like an attribute set without attribute inheritance. Further changes in the copied attribute set are not affecting the created attribute set.

Prerequisites

The basic data of the attribute set has been completed, see Define the attribute set basic data.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS > Button Add

1. Select an attribute set in the Inherit/Copy values from drop-down list.

2. Enable the Inherit configuration toggle if you also want to adopt the configuration to the new attribute set.

3. Select the Copy once option in the Inherit/Copy values drop-down list.

4. Click the [SAVE] button.
   The new attribute set has been saved. The Create attribute set view changes to the Edit attribute set view. A confirmation message is displayed.

5. Click the (Back) button in the upper left corner to return to the list of attribute sets or proceed to edit the attribute set.

Edit an attribute set

After you have created an attribute set, you can edit it. Depending on the selected inheritance type, only a certain number of attributes may be editable. However, you can add further attributes to an attribute set or remove unmapped attributes from an attribute set.

If the Locked toggle is enabled, this means that the attribute set is currently undergoing maintenance. No entity that is assigned to this attribute set can be read or written as long as the lock is in place. An overview of all locked attribute sets is displayed in the SET LOCKS tab, see Attribute set locks.

Add an attribute to the set

Add a new attribute to an attribute set to define any further specifications. In the DataHub module, all available attributes can be added to the different attribute sets.

Prerequisites

• An attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute set.
• At least one additional attribute that is not yet assigned to the attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS

1. Click the attribute set you want to edit in the list of attribute sets.
   The Edit attribute set view is displayed.

   

2. Click the (Add) button in the Assigned attributes section.
   The Add attributes view is displayed. All active attributes that are not yet included in the selected attribute set are displayed in the list.

   

   If the There are no unassigned attributes. notice is displayed in the Add attributes view, all active attributes are already included in the selected attribute set. Check if you have selected the appropriate attribute set, click the (Refresh) button to update the list or create a new attribute.

3. Select the checkboxes of the attributes you want to add to the attribute set.
   The editing toolbar is displayed above the list.

4. Click the [ADD] button in the editing toolbar.
   The selected attributes have been added to the attribute set. The Add attributes view is closed. The Edit attribute set view is displayed again. The added attributes are displayed in the Assigned attributes section.

   Any changes to the assigned attributes are automatically saved in the attribute set.

Remove an attribute from the set

Remove an attribute from an attribute set to limit the specifications. Inherited attributes or mapped attributes cannot be removed from an attribute set.

Prerequisites

• An attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute set.
• At least one additional attribute that is not yet assigned to the attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS

1. Click the attribute set you want to edit in the list of attribute sets.
   The Edit attribute set view is displayed.

   

2. In the Assigned attributes section, select the checkboxes of the attributes you want to remove from the attribute set.
   The editing toolbar is displayed above the list.

3. Click the (Delete) button in the editing toolbar.
   The selected attributes have been removed from the attribute set. The list of attributes is updated.

   If the selected attributes cannot be removed from the attribute set, an error message is displayed in the upper right corner.

Change the required attributes in the set

The entity completeness, which is mostly used to determine the product completeness in the PIM module, is calculated depending on the required attributes within an attribute set. All required attributes are marked with a (required) indication in the product view in the PIM module. Note that entities can be saved even if not all (required) attributes are completed.

You can define whether an attribute should be required or not. Bear in mind that inherited attributes can only be changed in the origin attribute set and the required status is also inherited to the linked attribute sets.

Be aware that the activation or deactivation of languages and scopes affects the completeness calculation. Further, deactivated attributes are not included in the completeness calculation even if they are required.

Prerequisites

An attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute set.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS

1. Click the attribute set you want to edit in the list of attribute sets.
   The Edit attribute set view is displayed.

   

2. Click the (Settings) button in the Assigned attributes section.
   The Required column in the list of attributes is unlocked. The color of the (Settings) button switches to blue.

   

3. Enable or disable the Required toggle in the Required column to define whether or not an attribute value should be required in the selected attribute set.

   Be aware that you can only edit the Required option for attributes that are not inherited.

4. Click the (Settings) button in the Assigned attributes section.
   The Required column in the list of attributes is locked. All changes in the attribute list have been saved.

5. Click the (Back) button in the upper left corner to return to the list of attribute sets or proceed to edit the attribute set.

Deactivate an attribute set

If an attribute set is no longer used, it is recommended to deactivate the attribute set to prevent any problems because of existing dependencies. If you deactivate an attribute set, it is no longer available when creating attributes or other entities.

Prerequisites

At least one attribute set has been created, see Create an attribute set.

Procedure

DataHub > Data model > Tab ATTRIBUTE SETS

1. Click the attribute set you want to deactivate in the list of attribute sets.
   The Edit attribute set view is displayed.

   

2. Disable the Active toggle.

   If you want to reactivate an attribute set, enable the Active toggle.

3. Click the [SAVE] button.
   The attribute set has been deactivated. The Edit attribute set view is closed.

4. Press the F5 key to initialize the Core1 Platform and to apply the changes.