Administering the OBS
Overview
There are three types of OBSs in ResourceFist:
The Project OBS – How projects are organized in the system (e.g., by functional organization unit, by delivery organization unit, by product line, etc.)
The Resource OBS – How resources are organized in the system (e.g., Company, Division, Department, Team, etc.)
The Cost Center OBS – How your financial assignments are organized in the system (either the Resource OBS or an independently defined Cost Center OBS depending on the “V” license key parameter).
If a “V” is specified in the license key, then financials for non-Labor items are tied to the Resource OBS instead of the Cost Center OBS, and the user rights are tied to the Resource OBS as well.
If this code is not specified and the Cost Center OBS is used, rights to financials are inherited from project rights. There is no such thing as Cost Center OBS rights.
Terminology: Each element in an OBS is a node.
Parent Node – a node with sub-nodes.
Leaf Node – a node with no sub-nodes.
Root Node – a node with no parent.
Child Node – a node with a parent node.
Branch – a parent node at any level, with all sub-nodes below it.
How OBS Settings are Used
Data Load Dialog
The default initial data load for new users is all project, resource, and assignment objects to which they have at least read access. Subsequently, they can use the Data Load dialog to limit the data load to a subset, for example to those objects they can modify and save to the database.
The funnel icon at the upper right of the page activates the Data Load dialog in which the user specifies which project and resource nodes to use in loading for the session. These settings remain in effect, until changed by use of the Data Load dialog, and are automatically applied on subsequent logins.
Access Rights and Permissions
There are multiple levels of node access rights that define what objects you can load and what you can do with them during a session.
If you have P0 rights to a project node for example, you can load (read or see), but not modify, all the projects in that node and its sub-nodes. Higher right levels give permission to create and delete objects and to modify some or all values related to an object.
For considerations and best practices related to defining the resource and project OBS, see the FAQ “What are some guidelines for setting up the Resource OBS and Project OBS?”
How To
Add OBS Node
Step 1: Activate the Admin>System>OBSs page.
Step 2: Select the OBS to edit with the OBS drop-down at the upper left of the page.
Click the blue +/- boxes to expand or contract a node.
Step 3: Select a node where you want to add either a child node or a node at the same level (a sibling) and click the “+” icon..
Step 4: Click the Add Child or the Add Sibling list item.
The new node is added below any previously existing nodes at its level. Nodes can be moved at any time to any position on the OBS tree structure (see Move OBS Node below).
Notice that the New Resource Node has a database id; this means it has been saved to the database.
Step 5: Enter a node name and click the Save icon.
The new node(s) remain in the same position after the save. After reload or the next Login, the nodes are sorted alphabetically in their level.
Note: The chararacters / < > are not allowed in node names. All other special characters are allowed.
Move OBS Node
Step 1: Select the node you want to move.
Step 2: Drag the selected node to the desired position.
Result
Step 3: Click the Save icon.
Delete OBS Node
Step 1: Select the node you want to delete.
Step 2: Click the trash can icon in the left toolbar.
Step 3: Click Delete Node or Delete Branch.
Other Toolbar Features
Reload 
button – Reload the page
Export 
button – Export the page
Advanced Node Fields
The Key, Area, Active, Partition, and Locked columns allow node-specific system behavior supporting advanced client needs:
Key – An identifier for the node. We recommend that field values be unique, however, uniqueness is not enforced by default. This can be used to facilitate importing data or integrating with other systems.
Area – Classification for one or more nodes, usually designating a functional area. This can be used for reporting or for custom (pulse) actions that apply to groups of nodes.
Active– Marking a node inactive will cause it to disappear from all ResourceFirst views along with all child elements (projects/resources/assignments), but the data remains in the database for archival purposes.
Partition – If a Partition is designated, the node will only be visible to users in that partition and users not in a partition. See Using Partitions for more detail about partitions.
Locked – When checked, the user cannot modify, delete, or add objects in the node (such as projects, resources, or assignments). For more on the types of data locks available in ResourceFirst, see Data Locking in ResourceFirst.
It is highly recommended that you discuss your needs with PDWare before using these advanced features.
PDWare can also assist you with importing the OBS from a spreadsheet if desired.
