Special configuration of test and configuration environments

Alfabet Expand need to connect to the Alfabet database as well as to the Alfabet Web Application in the configuration environment. This requires specific settings in the server alias which are not required for the Alfabet Web Application.

A new server alias must therefore be created for Alfabet Expand with the tool Alfabet Administrator. You can use the server alias of the Alfabet Web Application as a blueprint to connect to the same database:

1. Expand the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer.
2. Right-click the server alias that you want to create a copy from and select Create the Alias as Copy.
3. Click the new server alias in the in the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer.
4. In the table, select the server alias that you want to edit and click the Edit   button in the toolbar.
5. Define the following attributes in the tabs of the server alias:
   • Overview > Name: Change the caption to clearly destinguish the new server alias from the one of the Alfabet Web Application.
   • Overview > Caption: Change the caption to clearly destinguish the new server alias from the one of the Alfabet Web Application during login processes.
   • Overview > Port: Change the port number.
   • Expand > Test Web Server: Enter the URL of the Alfabet Web Application in the test environment.
6. Click OK.

The session time-out can be changed for the Alfabet Web Application. It is recommended that the standard time-out of 20 minutes is maintained for productive environments and that the time-out is altered only for test environments as needed.

1. Open the Alfabet Administrator.
2. Click the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer. A workspace with a toolbar opens.
3. In the toolbar, click Tools > Configure alfasettings.json. An editor opens.
4. Click the Browse  button on the right of the Web Folder field and select the main directory of the Alfabet Web Application from the directory browser. The alfabet.config file in the config subdirectory of the selected directory opens in the editor.
5. Set the sessionTimeout field to the required time-out in the format hh:mm. The timeout should not exceed 1 hour:
   • "AlfabetPresentationSessionServiceConfig": {
   • "sessionTimeout" : "00:20"
   • }
6. Click Save.
7. Open the IIS Manager of the Internet Information Services hosting the Alfabet Web Application and change the Idle Time-out (minutes) of the Advanced Settings of the application pool used by the Alfabet Web Application to the new time-out value.

In a configuration or test environment, the solution designer or tester usually accesses the Alfabet user interface frequently with the same user login. If standard login is used, the Alfabet Web Application of the configuration or test environment can be configured to open the login shield with the user name of the test user predefined in the field for the user name:

1. Open the Alfabet Administrator.
2. Click the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer. A workspace with a toolbar opens.
3. In the toolbar, click Tools > Configure alfasettings.json. An editor opens.
4. Click the Browse  button on the right of the Web Folder field and select the main directory of the Alfabet Web Application from the directory browser. The alfabet.config file in the config subdirectory of the selected directory opens in the editor.
5. Set the easyin field to the default login user name:
   • "AlfabetPresentationSessionServiceConfig": {
   • "easyin": "Alfabet"
   • }
6. Click Save.

When testing Alfabet functionality including sending of emails, you can configure the Alfabet Web Application to send all emails to a specified test email account, thus preventing the email from being sent to Alfabet users. You can then test sending of emails without changing the email account configuration of the Alfabet users.

To ignore email account settings of Alfabet users and to send all emails to one central email account, you must configure the server alias of the Alfabet Server.

1. Expand the Alfabet Aliases node of the Alfabet Administrator.
2. In the table, select the server alias that you want to edit and click the Edit   button in the toolbar.
3. In the Server Settings > Email Settings tab, enter the name of the test email account in the Test Receiver Email Account field.
4. Click OK to save your changes.

The Alfabet user interface can be rendered in a design mode that is suitable for testing and configuration. In the design mode, the following additional features are added to the Alfabet user interface:

• The technical name of the current view is displayed on the upper right of the view. Testers can communicate the technical name to the solution designer when reporting an issue to unambiguously specify the test location.
• A Configure Buttons option is available in the three-dots menu of each view. If a button shall be customized for the user profile you are currently working with, you can set the button to Custom . A button overwrite is then automatically created in the relevant class settings and you can open Alfabet Expand and alter the button there.

To render the Alfabet user interface in design mode:

1. Open the Alfabet Administrator.
2. Click the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer. A workspace with a toolbar opens.
3. In the toolbar, click Tools > Configure alfasettings.json. An editor opens.
4. Click the Browse  button on the right of the Web Folder field and select the main directory of the Alfabet Web Application from the directory browser. The alfabet.config file in the config subdirectory of the selected directory opens in the editor.
5. Set the easy field to the default login user name:
   • "AlfabetRuntimeConfig": {
   • "ApplicationRuntimeMode": "Design"
   • }
6. Click Save.