Click an artifact to open it in read-only mode. If you plan to make changes to an artifact, click the Edit Session button. Most action buttons only become active if you are in a session. When you are done making changes, click Publish. All changes in a session are committed to the main repository, can be seen by others, and the server will begin executing. If you have validation errors, you cannot publish, though you can save rules with validation errors and work on them again in another session.

The Discard button enables you to cancel out of changes that you do not want to save. If, after making some changes in a session, you wanted to go back to the original state that you started from, click Exit Session. Click Edit Session again to see the last saved session information.

These icons and buttons provide more information:

1. Access Oracle SOA Composer using the following URL in your browser address bar:

   http://SERVER_NAME_OR_IP_ADDRESS/soa/composer

2. In the Oracle SOA Composer login page, in the Username field, enter a user name.
3. In the Password field, enter a password.
4. Click Sign In.

1. Launch SOA Composer.
2. On the login page, click Accessibility in the top right corner.

   The Edit Accessibility Settings page appears, as shown in Figure 12-6.

   Figure 12-6 Edit Accessibility Settings Page

   
   Description of "Figure 12-6 Edit Accessibility Settings Page"
3. Select any of the following options:

   • Use screen reader.

   • Use high contrast colors.

   • Use large fonts.

4. To save the new settings only for this session, click Use for this session. To save the settings for all sessions, click Save as preference and use.

1. Launch SOA Composer and log in.
2. From any page, select Preferences in the top right corner.

   The Preferences dialog appears.

3. In the Preferences column, click Accessibility.

   The Accessibility Preferences appear, as shown in Figure 12-7.

   Figure 12-7 Preferences Dialog

   
   Description of "Figure 12-7 Preferences Dialog"
4. In the Mode Settings field, select Enable screen reader mode if you use a screen reader. Select Disable screen reader mode if you do not use a screen reader.
5. In the Contrast Settings field, select Use high contrast to increase the contrast between objects on the console; otherwise, select Use normal contrast.
6. In the Font Settings field, select Use large fonts to increase the font size; otherwise, select Use normal fonts.
7. Click OK.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Rulesets tab, and click the Create Session button. The action buttons are enabled.
3. Click the down arrow next to ClaimRules, as shown in Figure 12-9, and choose a Ruleset. The ruleset is displayed and is editable. You can also add or delete rulesets from the toolbar.
4. Click the Rules panel to add Decision Tables, Verbal Rules, or General Rules. You can also delete, cut, copy, or paste rules.

   For information on adding verbal rules in SOA Composer, see How to Add Verbal Rules in SOA Composer.

5. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Value Sets tab, and click the Create Session button. The action buttons are enabled, as shown in Figure 12-11.
3. Click + and select Value Set to add a value set to the dictionary.
4. Click + and select Range Value Set to create a range value set.

   Figure 12-11 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Value Sets Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-11 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Value Sets Tab"
5. Click + to add values in the table. You can click in a row to make it editable. Selected rows can also be deleted or moved up or down.
6. The Name, Description, and Data Type cannot be changed only for 'enum' type value sets. They are editable otherwise.
7. The Include Disallowed Values in Tests controls whether cleared values from the Values list are included in tests.
8. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Globals tab, and click the Create Session button, as shown in Figure 12-12.

   Figure 12-12 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Globals Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-12 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Globals Tab"
3. Click + to add a Global. Enter a Name, Description, and Value.
4. Choose a Value Set and Type from the drop down.
5. Check the Final check box to indicate whether the global can be changed at runtime.
6. Check the Constant check box to indicate if the global is a constant or can be modified.
7. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Tests tab, and click the Create Session button. The action buttons are enabled, as shown in Figure 12-14.

   Figure 12-14 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Tests Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-14 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Tests Tab"
3. You can create and run Test Suites and Test Templates.

   For more information about testing and validating rules at runtime, see Testing Rules in SOA Composer.

4. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Explorer tab, as shown in Figure 12-15.

   The Explorer tab is used to view the data, its type and description. You cannot make any changes in the Explorer table.

   Figure 12-15 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Explorer Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-15 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Explorer Tab"

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Facts tab, and click the Create Session button. The action buttons are enabled. Only RL facts can be created in SOA Composer, as shown in Figure 12-16.

   Figure 12-16 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Facts Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-16 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Rules Dictionary Facts Tab"
3. Select a fact and click the Edit Facts button to open the Edit Facts dialog. You can edit RL and XML facts here, but Java and ADFBC facts are read-only.
4. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Decision Functions tab.
3. You can view information on the following tabs: Inputs, Initial Actions, Outputs, and Rulesets Decision Functions as shown in Figure 12-17.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Links tab, as shown in Figure 12-18.

   Figure 12-18 Viewing the Linked Dictionary Name

   
   Description of "Figure 12-18 Viewing the Linked Dictionary Name"
3. Select to Prefix Linked Names.
4. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

An Oracle Business Rules dictionary can be linked to other dictionaries. The complete data model defined by a dictionary and its linked dictionaries is called a combined dictionary. You can create multiple links to the same dictionary. However, in this case, all but the first link is ignored.

You cannot use Oracle SOA Composer to link dictionaries. However, if a deployed composite already has linked dictionaries, using Oracle SOA Composer, you can view the linked dictionary names and make use of the Globals, Value Sets, and Rulesets of the linked dictionaries across applications. For example, you have an application called App1 that contains a dictionary called Dict1. Dict1 is linked to another dictionary called Dict2. Because Dict1 is linked to Dict2, the objects of Dict2 will be available for use in App1.

For more information on viewing linked dictionary names, see How to View Linked Dictionary Names.

In Oracle SOA Composer, you can use the Prefix Linked Names check box in the Links table to either display or hide the linked dictionary name that is prefixed to the all the items in the dictionary such as Globals, Value Sets, and Rulesets. Selecting the check box prefixes facts from the linked dictionary with its dictionary name, and deselecting hides the linked dictionary facts prefix. By default, the Prefix Linked Names check box is in selected state as shown in Figure 12-19.

For more information about linked dictionaries, see What You Need to Know About Dictionary Linking.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, open a Rules file.
2. Click the Translations tab, as shown in Figure 12-20.

   Figure 12-20 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Translations Tab

   
   Description of "Figure 12-20 Using the Oracle SOA Composer Translations Tab"
3. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. To edit either a Value Set or a Range Value Set, in Oracle SOA Composer select the Value Sets tab. This displays both master and detail sections for the value sets in the dictionary.
2. Select the appropriate Value Set from the master list. This displays the detail table, as shown in Figure 12-23.

   Figure 12-23 Editing Value Sets

   
   Description of "Figure 12-23 Editing Value Sets"
3. Edit the appropriate fields in the table. You can click Add Value to add a value, and also select a row and click Delete Value to delete a value.
4. To change the order of values in the value set, select a value and then click the up or down arrow to move the selected value.

   You can change the relative position of values in an LOV value set only; you cannot reorder values in a Range value set.

   Only when a value has the Allowed in Actions field selected does the value set display in the condition cell drop down in a Decision Table.

5. Click Save Changes in Current Tab to confirm the changes.

   Click Validate in the menu bar to validate the dictionary while making changes to a Value Set.

1. To edit a decision function, in Oracle SOA Composer, select the Decision Functions tab. This displays a master list of decision functions on the left, and the detail panel on the right.
2. Select the appropriate decision function on the left. This displays the Decision Function Editor dialog box as shown in Figure 12-24.

   Figure 12-24 Editing a Decision Function

   
   Description of "Figure 12-24 Editing a Decision Function"
3. In the Description field, optionally enter a description.
4. Enter the required number value from the Rule Firing Limit list. By default, the selected value is unlimited. However, you can enter an integer value for the rule firing limit and press the Tab key. The newly specified value gets added to the Rule Firing Limit list.
5. Select the appropriate decision function options:

   • Check rule flow: When selected, this option specifies that the rule flow is checked

   • Make stateless: When selected specifies the decision function is stateless.

   You cannot edit the following:

   • Name field

   • Inputs tab

   • Outputs tab

6. In the Initial Actions tab, you can add actions that could be used to change input facts before they are asserted, change the ruleset stack, set the effective date, or even assert output facts. These actions could be used instead of rules, or to "set up" the environment for running rules. Initial Actions always run just before the inputs are asserted and the rules are run. The RL for the actions will be executed just before the inputs are asserted.

   Consider a situation where a decision function (DF1) calls another decision function (DF2) using the Initial Actions tab. DF1 is configured to push Ruleset1 to the ruleset stack. DF2 is configured to push Ruleset2. In DF1, before the initial actions are executed, Ruleset1 is pushed to the ruleset stack. Then, when DF2 is called, Ruleset2 is also pushed. So when rules start running, rules from both rulesets fire because of the ruleset stack. If you want to push Ruleset2 (because in the initial actions, you are calling DF2), you can use initial actions in DF1 to clear the ruleset stack before calling DF2, and push Ruleset1 on the stack after calling DF2.

   You can add any required action ranging from assert, call, modify to even conditional actions such as if, else, elseif, while, for, if (advanced), and while (advanced).

   The if (advanced) and while (advanced) structs accepts only boolean values. For each of the action conditions, you can add different test form types.

   Note:

   If decision function DF1 contains DF2 in the Rulesets & Decision Functions tab, then DF2 may not have any initial actions.

7. In the Rulesets & Decision Functions tab, use the left and right arrow buttons to move items from the Available box to the Selected box.
8. Select an item in the Selected box, and click up or down arrow buttons as appropriate to order the rulesets and the decision functions.
9. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

Use the Rulesets tab to view and edit Rulesets, and the General Rules, Verbal Rules and Decision Tables they contain, in the currently selected Business Rules dictionary, as shown in Figure 12-25.

In the Rules master list, you can enter an alias and search for rules. Click Clear to clear the Search by Alias field. You can also sort rules--click the Sort Ascending or Sort Descending arrows to sort the IF/THEN detail panel.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, with an Oracle Business Rules dictionary open, click the Rulesets tab.
2. Select the appropriate ruleset from the drop down and choose a rule from the list. The rule appears in the detail panel.

   Use the Add, Delete, Cut, Copy, and Paste buttons in the Rules toolbar to modify the rule.

   Note:

   The Paste button is disabled if the selection is multiple. The button is enabled only on single selected condition/action. When pasting, the copied/cut items are added at the end of the list.

3. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, click Add Rule and select to add either a Decision Table, Verbal Rule, or General Rule.
3. In the IF area, enter search terms to get results and filter them further by pressing the right arrow to create the condition.
4. In the THEN area for the rule, click Add Action to add the required action for this rule.
5. When done, click Save Changes in Current Tab.
6. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule detail area, locate the rule you want to delete and click Delete.
3. When done, click Save Changes in Current Tab.
4. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area and locate the rule you want to show or change advanced settings. Expand the rule first, if necessary.
3. Click the Advanced Property Editor button next to the rule name. This displays the advanced settings dialog, as shown in Figure 12-26.

   Figure 12-26 Advanced Properties Editor Dialog

   
   Description of "Figure 12-26 Advanced Properties Editor Dialog"

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, locate the rule where you want to add a condition.
3. Next to the existing rule condition, click the down arrow to display a list of options available for adding a condition as shown in Figure 12-27.

   Figure 12-27 Adding a Condition

   
   Description of "Figure 12-27 Adding a Condition"

   If the rule where you want to add a condition does not contain any existing condition, then you need to click the Add Test down arrow to display a list of available options for adding a condition as shown in Figure 12-27.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, locate the rule where you want to delete a condition.
3. Next to the rule condition that you want to delete, click the down arrow, and then click Delete Test from the list.

   A separate list is available for each nesting level. So the delete operation can be performed on a single condition or a nested block.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area locate the rule where you want to modify conditions.
3. In the IF area, use the controls, buttons, and selection boxes, including the Left Value expression button, list for an operator, and Right Value expression button to modify the condition.

   Filtering is supported for expressions. For example, when you type Employee, values are filtered and the values with Employee are displayed in the drop-down. Use mouse or arrow keys to select a value.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area locate the rule where you want to add an action.
3. In the THEN area for the rule, next to the rule action click Add Action, as shown in Figure 12-28.

   Figure 12-28 Rule Actions in a Ruleset

   
   Description of "Figure 12-28 Rule Actions in a Ruleset"

   If the rule to which you want to add an action does not contain any existing action, then you need to click the Add Action button in the THEN area.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, locate the rule where you want to delete an action.
3. In the THEN area for the rule, select the action.

   Click Delete Action.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, locate the rule where you want to modify an action.
3. In the THEN area for the rule you can do the following:

   • Add and delete actions using Add and Delete buttons on the top.

   • Select the action and move it up and down using the respective arrow buttons.

   • Cut, copy and paste using the Cut, Copy and Paste buttons on the top.

   • Click the More link in the drop-down area to launch Select a Target popup and select a value.

   • Click the Edit Properties button next to the rule action and modify properties.

   The Properties dialog box is displayed where you can modify the property details.

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area, locate the rule where you want to show or modify advanced mode rules.
3. Click Advanced Property Editor button to show advanced settings. For more information on showing advanced settings, see How to Show and Edit Advanced Settings for Rules.
4. If the Advanced Mode check box is not selected, then select the Advanced Mode check box. This shows the advanced mode rule options, as shown in Figure 12-29.

   Figure 12-29 Showing Advanced Mode Rule Options

   
   Description of "Figure 12-29 Showing Advanced Mode Rule Options"

1. In a session, the Ruleset tab, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the rule area locate the rule where you want to show or modify tree mode rules.
3. Select Advanced Property Editor button to show advanced settings.
4. If the Tree Mode check box is not selected, then select the Tree Mode check box. This shows the tree mode rule options, as shown in the ROOT area in Figure 12-36.

   Figure 12-36 Showing the Tree Mode Rule Area in a Rule

   
   Description of "Figure 12-36 Showing the Tree Mode Rule Area in a Rule"

Expression Builder is used to build different types of expressions such as XPATH expressions, rule expressions, and so on.

Expression Builder has a field where you can enter the expression directly. It has four tabs: Variables, Functions, Operators, and Constants. Each of these tabs display data in a tree structure. The Variables tab displays all the variables in the rules meta-data. The Functions tab displays all the functions in the rules meta-data. The Operators tab displays operators such as +, -, *, and so on. The Constants tab displays all the constants that exist in the rules meta-data.You can switch between the tabs, select an item in the tree, and click the Insert Into Expression button to insert the selected item at the cursor position in the expression field. When an item is selected in the tree, the Content Preview and the Description areas display more information about the selected item. Once you create the expression and click OK, the newly created expression appears in the field that is available to the left of the expression builder button.

Figure 12-37 displays the Expression Builder browser.

The Condition Browser has a field, a hierarchical tree, and an Expression Builder embedded inside it. You can enter the expression directly in the field, or select an item from the tree. Condition Browser supports filtering. For example, when you start entering customer the tree is narrowed down to items with customer.

When an item is selected in the tree, the new selection appears in the field immediately. You can also use the embedded Expression Builder to create an expression.

Once the Expression Builder is launched and an expression is created, the new expression appears in the Condition Browser field. Once you create an expression and click the OK button in the Condition Browser, the newly created expression appears in the field that is to the left of the Condition Browser button.

Figure 12-38 displays the Condition Browser.

The Date Browser is used to select a Literal Date or a Date Expression. The Date Browser has two options to switch between a Literal Date and a Date Expression. When one option is selected, the other one is disabled.

Select:

• Literal Date option to enter a date using a Calendar pop-up.

• Date Expression option to enter the expression directly in the Date Expression field or to launch the Condition Browser to select a date expression.

Figure 12-39 displays the Date Browser.

The Right Operand browser is used to select multiple right expressions. The browser displays operands in each row. You can enter an expression directly in the operand field or launch the Condition Browser to select an expression. The + button adds a row after the current one. The - button deletes the current row. These buttons are enabled and disabled based on the selected operator. For instance the in operator allows multiple right expressions. So in this case, the buttons are enabled.

Figure 12-40 displays a Right Operand browser.

1. In a session, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the ruleset area, click Add and then Add Decision Table, as shown in Figure 12-41. An empty Decision Table appears.

   Figure 12-41 Adding a Decision Table in a Ruleset

   
   Description of "Figure 12-41 Adding a Decision Table in a Ruleset"

1. In the Decision Table toolbar, from the list next to the Add button, select Add Condition that displays the Condition Browser window where you can specify or select conditions.

   The selected or specified condition row and a Rules column with the header R1 is added to the table; the cell below R1 has a "?" symbol (Figure 12-42). The "?" symbol indicates that the cell does not have a value yet.

   Figure 12-42 New Condition Row Added in a New Decision Table

   
   Description of "Figure 12-42 New Condition Row Added in a New Decision Table"

   If you are adding a condition to a table that has existing condition rows, similar to adding a condition to a blank Decision Table, Oracle SOA Composer prompts for specifying the condition details. Once the details are provided, the specified condition is added as the last condition row; the condition cells under each rule column in the new row also have "?" symbols.

   Figure 12-43 New Condition Row Added As Last Row in a Decision Table

   
   Description of "Figure 12-43 New Condition Row Added As Last Row in a Decision Table"

   For information about all symbols that might be used in a decision table, see Editing Decision Table Cells.

2. If you want to edit a specified condition, in the Conditions area, click the condition row, and then click the Edit Condition button on the toolbar. This displays the Condition Browser.
3. Enter an expression by clicking in the Conditions Browser to select a variable, or click the Expression Builder button to display the Expression Builder.

   Expression Builder lets you build expressions.

4. Each condition row requires a value set from which to draw the values for each cell. When the value you select has an associated global value set, then by default the value set is associated with the condition row.

   If there is no global value set associated with the value, then after you add a condition row to a Decision Table, you need to either specify an existing global value set or create a Local List of Values or a Local List of Ranges value set.

   To associate a value set for the condition, perform either of the following:

   • In the Conditions area, select the condition, and select an existing value set from the Select Value Set list.

   • In the Conditions area, select the condition, and select either Local List of Values or Local List of Ranges (as relevant) from the Select Value Set list.

   You can edit the value set for the selected condition by clicking the Edit Value Set button.

   This displays the Value Set Editor where you can add, edit or delete values. If editing a Local List of Values value set, you can also reorder values in the value set.

   For more information on number formatting in value sets, see What You May Need to Know About Localized Number Formatting Support in Oracle SOA Composer.

5. Repeat Step 2 through Step 5, as required to add additional condition rows in the Decision Table.

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table where you want to add actions.
2. From the list next to the Add button, select Add Action and select an available action from the list. For example, click Modify as shown in Figure 12-44.

   Figure 12-44 Adding Actions to a Decision Table

   
   Description of "Figure 12-44 Adding Actions to a Decision Table"

   Table 5-1 in Working with Decision Tables, lists the available actions.

3. In the Action Editor window, select the action target and then specify values for an action cell.

   For more information on number formatting in value sets, see What You May Need to Know About Localized Number Formatting Support in Oracle SOA Composer.

1. In a session, select a ruleset of interest, select the Decision Table where you want to add the rule.
2. In the Rules master list, select the Decision Table where you want to add the rule. Next to the Add button in the detail section, select Add Rule.

   A new column for the added rule is displayed.

   Notice that the new rule is added as the first rule of the Decision Table and the other rules have moved as required to keep the values in their defined order. This is because Order Rules By Bucket is enabled by default, which means rule ordering in a Decision Table is set according to the relative position of values associated with a condition expression. If Order Rules By Bucket is not enabled when you add a rule, the new rule is added as the last rule of the Decision Table. In either case, the cells in the new rule column have "?" symbols, indicating the cells do not have values yet.

   For information about all symbols used in a table, see Editing Decision Table Cells. For additional information about rules ordering, see Controlling the Order of Rules in a Decision Table.

3. Enter values for the condition cells by clicking the cells.
4. Click an Action row to enter values for the action cells.

1. Select the rules column that you want to delete.

   If you want to delete more than one rule, press the Ctrl key, and by keeping the key pressed, select the other rule columns

2. Click the Delete button.

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table where you want to add a test.
2. Click the Advanced Properties Editor button next to the Decision Table name. If Advanced Mode is selected, clear the check box.
3. Click the Click to view tests and variables link under the Decision Table name.
4. Click the down arrow next to the Add button and select any of the options according to your requirements.
5. Use the field controls or Left Value and Right Value buttons, and the operator list to create the condition expression.

   Note:

   If a Decision Table already contains test conditions, you can add new test conditions by clicking Add at the end of an existing condition and selecting the required test form type.

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table that you want to split or compact.
2. Click the Split Table button or Compact Table button on the Tools drop down.

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table in which you want to check for missing rules.
2. Select Gap Analysis from the Tools drop down.

   The Gap Analysis window is displayed as shown in Figure 12-46. You can select the rules that need to be added to the Decision Table.

   Figure 12-46 The Gap Analysis Window

   
   Description of "Figure 12-46 The Gap Analysis Window"

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table on which you want to perform the Conflict Resolution.
2. Ensure that the Show Conflicts button is selected on the Tools drop down.
3. Click the Advanced Property Editor button next to the Decision Table name.
4. Ensure that Conflict Policy is set to Manual in the Advanced Settings area. This is the default conflict policy.

   Note:

   For more information on conflict policies, see Understanding Decision Table Conflict Analysis.

5. Select the Conflict row and then click the rule that has a conflict to display the Conflict Resolution window.
6. In the Conflict Resolution window, for each conflicting rule, in the Resolution field select a resolution from the list and click OK as shown in Figure 12-47.

   Figure 12-47 Conflict Resolution Dialog

   
   Description of "Figure 12-47 Conflict Resolution Dialog"

   For more information about the conflict resolution options in Decision Tables, see Understanding Decision Table Conflict Analysis.

In Oracle SOA Composer, you can turn the rows in a Decision Table to columns by clicking the Switch Rows to Columns link in the detail area. This enables the rules to be displayed as rows, and the conditions, actions, and conflicts to be displayed as the columns.

Switching rows to columns provides ease of navigation when a Decision Table has many rules because you can see all the rules together and you do not need to "page the columns" for viewing the rules.

Figure 12-48 displays a Decision Table before the switch operation.

Figure 12-49 displays the sample Decision Table after switching the rows to columns.

1. From Oracle SOA Composer, select a ruleset from the Rulesets navigation tab and select the Decision Table on which you want to add more complex rules.
2. Click the Advanced Property Editor button next to the Decision Table name.
3. Select Advanced Mode.

   The advanced mode options in a Decision Table are similar to the advanced mode options in a ruleset. For more information, see Working with Advanced Mode Options.

1. In a session, select a ruleset of interest.
2. In the Rules master list, click the Decision Table you want to delete.
3. Click Delete.
4. When done with changes, click Save Changes in Current Tab. If you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

Business users may find that editing Decision Tables is easier to do in Microsoft Excel. New functionality enables both developers and business users to export and edit Decision Tables in Excel and then import the Decision Tables back into the dictionary.

When exporting Decision Tables in Microsoft Excel, only basic Action types such as Assert New, Modify, Assign, Retract, and Call are supported.

You can export and edit Decision Tables at design-time in Oracle JDeveloper or Business Process Composer. At runtime, you can export and edit in SOA Composer. You can export one or more Decision Tables from a Rule dictionary to the same Excel workbook.

When you import back into the dictionary, you can create a new dictionary, overwrite the existing dictionary, or perform a Diff-Merge. The Diff-Merge enables you to compare dictionaries.

For more information about comparing dictionaries, see Comparing and Merging Oracle Business Rules Dictionaries.

The Excel workbook structure consists of several worksheets: a Readme sheet, a Value Set sheet, and one sheet for each exported Decision Table, as shown in Figure 12-50. Only Rules and Value Sets can be edited in Excel. You can export to .xlsm (default) or .xls.

When you open the spreadsheet, the macros are disabled by default. If you enable the macros, a new tab called Oracle Business Rules, appears. This tab enables you to add or delete rules, merge or split cells, and add or remove values from value sets. You can also disable or enable highlighting, use a simple or advanced mode and hide or show the Readme sheet.

You can edit with the macros disabled, though you will not be able to:

• Choose values from drop lists for restricted cells.

• Edit free form cells.

• Copy and paste a range of cells to add a rule or Value Set.

• Delete a range of cells to delete a rule or Value Set.

• Split or merge cells.

• Create Value Sets automatically.

• Validate the structure of Decision Tables or Value Sets.

Using the predefined macros, you can:

• Add and delete rules.

• Split or merge cells.

• Add or delete Value Sets.

• Editable cells include:

  • Description for Rules, Conditions, Actions.

  • Condition and Action nodes.

  • Action state.

  • Parameterized options for Action parameters.

• Non-editable cells include:

  • Condition expressions.

  • Action expressions.

  • Action parameters.

  If you try to edit these cells, you will get an error message, as shown in Figure 12-51.

  Figure 12-51 Non Modifiable Cell

  
  Description of "Figure 12-51 Non Modifiable Cell"

1. In SOA Composer, with the newer dictionary open, click Actions, Diff Merge.

   The Dictionary version dialog appears, as shown in Figure 12-54.

   Figure 12-54 Dictionary Version dialog

   
   Description of "Figure 12-54 Dictionary Version dialog"
2. In the Select Dictionary field, select one of the Dictionary version to compare.

   • File-System - File-system version give users an option to compare the rules file available on the local file system against the rules file of the composite deployed on the server.

   • Published Version - Published version is the composite versions which changes when versions change.

   • Saved Version - Saved version is the composite version which changes when versions change.

3. Click OK to open the dictionary that you want to compare with.

   All differences between the two dictionaries are flagged with change icons.

   The change icons are shown for all tabs and for the specific artifacts within each tab. An example is shown in Figure 12-55.

   Figure 12-55 Merging or Reverting Changes

   
   Description of "Figure 12-55 Merging or Reverting Changes"
4. Click Keep to retain the changes or select Revert to discard the changes made.

   You may click each tab and decide to keep or revert the changes.

5. Alternatively, you can choose to Accept All or Reject All in the Actions drop down list to accept or reject all the changes on one click.

   Figure 12-56 Accept All or Reject All from the Actions Drop Down

   
   Description of "Figure 12-56 Accept All or Reject All from the Actions Drop Down"

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, select the Translations tab. The Translations tab displays a table with multiple columns. By default, there are two columns one displaying the untranslated identifier of the rules component. The other displays the English locale.

   If you have defined other locales in your application, these also appear as columns in this table. See Localizing Oracle Business Rule Resources. for more information.

2. In the column of the locale you want to edit, double-click in cell corresponding to the alias you want to translate.
3. Enter the localized text for the alias.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to localize all the aliases required for the locale.

The Validation Log tab lists all the dictionary-level validation errors.

The Validation Log does not get updated automatically. The validation is only run if you click Validate and when you save any changes.

For example, when a new rule is added with errors, the Validation Log tab is not updated automatically. Click the Validate button on the toolbar to update the Validation Log with the new error entries.

1. For each item in the table, use the Resolution drop down to Ignore, Adopt, or Overwrite changes.
2. Adopt will try to merge changes.
3. Ignore means your changes will be discarded.
4. Overwrite means that your changes will be made, other users changes will be discarded.
5. Click Publish when done.

The History Center tab displays any pending changes that you or other users have made in a currently active session. You can discard changes from here, for example, if you want to quickly undo all changes you have made all at once.

The Save Log tab is updated whenever you save. It adds an entry to the save log if it succeeds. It it fails it will show the error message here.

1. In Oracle SOA Composer, to open a task or an AMX rules metadata artifact, from the Types View, expand the Human Tasks folder, and click an artifact to open it in a new tab, as shown in Figure 12-60.

   Figure 12-60 Opening a Task

   
   Description of "Figure 12-60 Opening a Task"
2. If you want to make changes, click Edit Session. When you are ready to apply the changes to the runtime version, click Publish.

   For more information about how to use the session buttons, see Creating and Publishing Sessions

Task Configuration enables business users and administrators to review the rules that were configured automatically by the workflow designer. These predefined rules can be changed for a specific customer based on the customer's applicable corporate policies.

In Oracle SOA Composer, Task Configuration enables you to edit the event-driven (only tasks) and data-driven rules (tasks with an associated AMX rules) associated with an approval flow at runtime.