Attachments have the following characteristics:
Attachments are stored differently in the staging and production environments:
- In the staging server environment, attachments are stored as objects in the database. Since many users read and write to the attachment data, the database provides more efficient storage and retrieval.
- In the production system, the attachments are stored on the file system. Since most users will be only reading the attachment data, the file system is a more efficient storage method on the production server. The attachment targets themselves have no knowledge of how they are being stored.
- Attachment targets behave in the same way on both the staging server and production environments.
- Workspaces
- Attachments can be used within or outside of a workspace. Within a workspace, attachments are workspace-enabled content. Outside a workspace, changes to the attachments are made to production-ready data.
- Attachment targets and attachment assets
- Languages
- If an attachment asset is applicable for all languages, there must be only one attachment asset attached to the business object for that usage.
- If an attachment asset is already assigned to language A then other attachment assets cannot be assigned to language A. For example, if attachment asset B is in both English and French, and attachment asset C is in both English and German, only one attachment assets can be assigned to English. In this case, you can attach attachment asset B to French and English and attach attachment asset C to German.
There cannot be two attachment assets for the same language within the same attachment target.
If an attachment target is applicable for all languages, there must be only one attachment asset in the attachment target.
- Attachment asset ownership
- All attachment assets for the same usage are owned by the same user.
All attachment assets within the same attachment target are owned by the same user, and this information is stored in the attachment target. The attachment asset itself does not contain information about it's owner. The owner of the attachment implies the scope of the attachment.
- Attachment assets must not be shared between business objects. That is, you cannot attach multiple business objects to the same attachment asset.
Attachment assets cannot be shared across attachment targets. If the same attachment asset must be used for multiple targets, copies of the attachment asset must be made.
- Attachment target ownership
There is no direct link between a store and attachment relations. However, attachment targets contain information about which store the target belongs to.
- The attachment target and the attachment assets within the target are owned by the same store.
- The store that owns the attachment target and attachment assets is the logon store when the attachment is created.
- An attachment target can be used only for the store to which it belongs.
- Attachment targets contain information about to which store the attachment belongs.
- Languages