"Create Package" process is not taking the default value as specified in the process

Products

• CA Harvest Software Change Manager
• CA Harvest Software Change Manager - OpenMake Meister

Issue/Introduction

We are trying copy an existing project & create a new project and make some modifications in the new (copied) project.

 

We have a state called "Development from production", and in this state we have process "Create Package".  Each project should follow a naming conditions in our engagement and we cannot use a different name other than the suggested one.

 

We noticed that the "Create Package" process is not taking the "Default" value which we give rather it takes some random value. 

 

For the first time, when we create package, it takes the default name and from next time on, it started creating package in different name rather than the specified one in the "Create Pacakge" process.

Environment

Harvest Software Change Manager all versions

Cause

Your Create Package properties page looks like this:

The “Default Name” field should show a pattern, not an actual number, more like this:

The reason to use a pattern rather than an actual value is that you don't want all your packages to actually be named "ER-004067", but instead you want the next package to be named "ER-004067" and the next one "ER-004068" and so on.  You want the names to have sequential numbers and to be formatted following a pattern.

Resolution

Here’s where the documentation is for setting up the Create Package process: Define Lifecycle Processes - Define a Create Package Process
 
There’s a section there called “How to Specify Default Package and Form Names” that explains how to set up the pattern you want to use in the “Default Name” field.  If you want your package names to look similar to what you have specified, your Default Name field would be “ER-%N('099999MI')”.