Tivoli Change Management Integration with Project Management Tools


Overview of project management tools

Configuring the DDE Interface with Microsoft Project

Enabling the MS Project button

Initializing a Microsoft Project file

Activities and the DDE Interface with Microsoft Project

Using DDE with Other Project Management Applications

Configuring the Export Function


Overview of project management tools

Tivoli Change Management provides a one way DDE interface with Microsoft Project. This chapter describes the processes of initialization, data exchange, and termination of the DDE links when you work with changes, and also describes how to set up a DDE interface if you use a project-management application other than Microsoft Project.

Tivoli Change Management also provides export functionality you can use to export change, rule, and model data, then import it into your selected project management tool. This functionality is in the form of an Export button.


Configuring the DDE Interface with Microsoft Project

The following sections describe the DDE link and explain how to configure it for your environment. You can use the DDE interface with other project management tools, but the instructions contained in this chapter are specific to Microsoft Project.

DDE messages

Communication between Tivoli Change Management and Microsoft Project is performed through the Tivoli Change Management window. Even though the data is for a change and the MS Project button is located in the Change dialog box, messages flow through the Tivoli Change Management window.

The Tivoli Change Management window processes the following from Microsoft Project:

DDE global variables

Variable Type Description
R_G_MainDDEWindow WINDOW Window handle to Main DDE Window
R_G_DDEWindow WINDOW Window handle to Microsoft Project system
R_G_DDEChangeWindow WINDOW Window handle to Change Dialog that started the DDE Link
R_G_ProjDDEWindow WINDOW Window handle to a specific Microsoft Project
G_DDETopicList LIST OF EE_DDE_TOPIC_REC List of current topics (Microsoft Project Files). Used when subprojects encountered.
G_DDETimerAmount INTEGER Timer interval for DDERequest send to Microsoft Project.
R_G_DDEDelay INTEGER Delay in milliseconds between DDE commands sent to Microsoft Project. Microsoft Project does not queue commands sent to it.

Enabling the MS Project button

The MS Project button is enabled upon creation of the Change dialog box. If the Microsoft Project application is found, a DDEInitiate() is issued. Microsoft Project then sends a $MsgDDEInitAcknowledge message to the Tivoli Change Management window, setting the R_G_DDEWindow.

Any $MsgDDEInitAcknowledge received after this is processed as a Microsoft Project file. This project in the G_DDETopicList is assigned the $DDEWindow handle.


Initializing a Microsoft Project file

The following events occur when a user chooses the MS Project button:

R_DDEStatusMessage() is called to perform the following:

R_InitializeProjectSchedulerDDE() performs the following:

DDE Delay

Microsoft Project does not queue DDE comments that are sent to it; therefore, the DDE delay is needed after every command sent to Microsoft Project. If this value in the preference setting is too small, Microsoft Project ignores any statements sent to it while processing a DDE command. The DDE Delay is set in the Preferences tab of the Tivoli Change Management Application dialog box. You can increase the DDE delay if data is not being updated as expected.Messages Processed by the Main Window.

Messages processed by the DDE main window

As mentioned earlier in this chapter, DDE messages (including the DDE timer) are received by the Tivoli Change Management window ). The following table lists the DDE messages received by the window.

Message Description
$MsgTimer When this message is received, Tivoli Change Management sends a DDERequest to Microsoft Project asking for the tasks, resources, and resource assignments for each change/activity.
$MsgDDEInitAcknowledge This message is received when Microsoft Project accepts the Tivoli Change Management DDE initialize request. The first time this message is received, it is for the window handle to Microsoft Project. Any subsequent messages received are for individual window handles of Microsoft Project files.
$MsgDDEAcknowledge This message is received when a DDEInitialize is sent to Microsoft Project. If the status is negative, then Microsoft Project could not complete the DDE link.
$MsgDDETerminate This message is received when Microsoft Project terminates the DDE link. All DDE links are then removed.

Activities and the DDE Interface with Microsoft Project

If a change has an activity, the activity is treated as a subproject in Microsoft Project. When the link to Microsoft Project is established, Tivoli Change Management creates the subprojects before creating the change. The true use of the G_DDETopicList comes into work here. All of the projects and subprojects are stored in the G_DDETopicList. When the $MsgTimer is received, the G_DDETopicList is read and information for each subproject and change is requested.


Using DDE with Other Project Management Applications

To use Tivoli Change Management with project management applications other than Microsoft Project, you need to do the following:


Configuring the Export Function

You can configure Tivoli Change Management to enable users to export data to a file. This function appears on the Tasks tab of the Change dialog box. You can then import this file into a project management application. This feature is useful if you do not use Microsoft Project, and you do not want to establish a DDE link with your project management tool.
To allow users to export data to a file, you must configure the Export button that appears in Tivoli Change Management.

To configure the Export function

  1. In the rchg_bf.kb file, comment out the line in the ACTIONS section of the procedure R_InitializeChangeData:
  2. DlgSetHidden(w,'sc_Export_Button',TRUE);

  3. In the rchg_bf.kb file, complete the procedure stub R_ExportChangeToProjectScheduler.
  4. Reparse Tivoli Service Desk.
  5. Complete the normal testing cycle for the export function.