Get started with Document Management

The Document Management System (DMS) in Project and Portfolio Management (OpenText PPM) gives you more control over document search and storage.

The Document Management System is modelled to fully leverage your current Oracle databases—either a OpenText PPM–dedicated database or an external database on your network, providing you the standard document management capabilities.

With the new DMS, you can track, index, and search multiple versions (including historical versions) of supporting documents attached to OpenText PPM entities in Demand Management, Portfolio Management, Program Management, and Project Management.

Documents managed in these environments are always directly associated with a OpenText PPM entity through the standard attachment field and document references functionality in OpenText PPM. Entities include requests (portfolios, proposals, projects, and assets), project plans, and programs.

The system requirements for the Document Management System are the same as those for the OpenText PPM database. For more information, see the System Requirements and Compatibility Matrix.

Functional Capabilities of Document Management

The Document Management System provides the following key functional capabilities:

  • Add documents to a OpenText PPM entity from the References section of a details page, from any document field on a request, from user data fields in both the PPM Workbench and the standard interface.

  • Access documents from OpenText PPM

  • Ability to check documents in and out, and to override check-outs

  • Version control of attached documents and maintenance of version history

  • Add key words and versioning information to documents at check-in

  • Search for entities based on key words in documents attached as references to OpenText PPM entities or to user data fields

  • Ability to conduct both keyword and full text content searches of the document repository from within PPM Center, including historical versions

  • Ability to retrieve archived document versions

  • Full text indexing supporting multiple languages

Note: For information on how to use Document Management, see Attachments.

Document Management Use-Case Scenario

The following use-case scenario exemplifies how the Document Management System is used within large organizations.

A large national insurance company, XYZ Corporation, has just installed OpenText PPM. A business analyst working with the IT organization at XYZ is preparing a proposal for new software to be used by insurance investigators across the corporation. Before submitting the proposal for review, the analyst must complete a business case document.

The OpenText PPM workflow associated with the proposal enforces this requirement. If the business case document is not attached to the proposal, the analyst cannot move to the next workflow step.

As the analyst checks out the business case document, and later checks in new drafts, document versions are created and stored. If necessary, users can access earlier versions of the business case document.

Documents managed using the Document Management System follow the same security rules (including field-level security rules) that apply to all OpenText PPM entities. This means that application users view only information that applies to their current roles and tasks.

The business analyst can use the document management system to search for entities based on the contents and metadata of documents attached to the entities. The analyst can use key words to locate relevant proposals, assets, requests, and other entities related to a business case, regardless of where the details about the entities reside.