64.4 Managing Libraries

As your GroupWise DMS system grows and evolves, you might need to perform the following activities:

64.4.1 Managing Library Access

Access to libraries is controlled by the rights users have to the Library object. By default, when a new library is created, all of the following rights are granted:

Public Right

Description

Add

Allows users to add new documents to the library.

Change

Allows users to make changes to existing documents in the library.

Delete

Allows users to delete documents, regardless of who created them or has rights to the documents. However, to be able to delete a document, users must also have rights to locate and modify the document (View and Change rights), in addition to the Delete right.

View

By itself, this right allows searching, viewing, or copying documents, but does not permit editing them. Copies can be edited, because a copy is saved as a separate document. Therefore, editing a copy does not affect the original document or any of its versions.

Designate Official Version

Allows any version of a document to be designated as the official version. The official version, which is not necessarily the most recently edited version, is the one located in searches.

The official version is usually determined by the creator or author of the document. However, the official version can be designated by the last user to edit the document (if the user has this right). A user also needs the Change right to the document to be able to designate an official version.

Reset In-Use Flag

The In-Use flag protects against data loss by preventing multiple users from concurrently opening the same document. The purpose of the Reset In-Use Flag right is to allow a user or librarian to reset a document’s status when the document is in use by someone else or when it is erroneously flagged as in use.

In the GroupWise client the document properties Status field displays the current In-Use flag setting for a document. The Status field is automatically set to In Use when a document is opened and reset to Available when a document is closed. There can also be other values, such as Checked Out. A document cannot be checked out when its status is In Use.

There are a variety of reasons for which you might want to restrict certain library rights, including:

  • Your libraries are specialized by department and you want to restrict access to sensitive libraries, such as a payroll library.

  • Your libraries are distributed across multiple post offices and you want to restrict the scope of user searches to only the libraries they should use, thereby speeding up searches.

  • Your libraries are distributed across multiple servers and you want to minimize network traffic.

  • You have some users who should have more rights than other users to certain libraries.

To restrict public rights while granting individual rights:

  1. In the GroupWise Admin console, browse to and click the name of the library.

  2. Click the Rights tab.

  3. In the Public Rights box, deselect the rights that you want to remove from all users.

  4. In the Individual or Group Rights box, click Add, select the users or groups to grant rights to, then click OK.

    If the number is large, you might find it easier to create a group for users who need rights. Then you can select one group rather than multiple users. See Section 56.0, Creating and Managing Groups

  5. Above the list, select the rights that you want to grant.

  6. Click Save, then click Close to return to the main Admin console window.

64.4.2 Adding and Training Librarians

When you first create a library, you might for convenience assign yourself as the initial librarian. As library activity increases you can add librarians, and if desired, remove yourself as a librarian.

Understanding the Role of the Librarian

Keep in mind the following when assigning librarians:

Librarian Identity

Any GroupWise user with access to a library can be a librarian for the library. You can have multiple librarians for a single library. You can also assign a single user as a librarian for multiple libraries. Because being a librarian entails additional functions and rights in the library, you should choose responsible users as librarians.

Librarian Functions

A librarian can perform the following actions:

  • Check out a document without a copy.

  • Modify the properties of any document in the library.

  • Copy documents to another library.

  • Delete both documents and properties.

  • Reassign document creators and authors to handle orphaned documents

  • Reset a document’s status (change the In-Use flag).

  • View all activity log records of any document in the library.

  • Restore document BLOBs from backup.

  • Perform mass operations, such as moving, deleting, archiving, and changing properties.

  • Perform searches (but not full-text searches) on documents that are not available for searching by regular users.

  • Use GroupWise third-party APIs to generate reports on all library documents.

All operations available to a normal user are also available to a librarian, as long as the security requirement discussed under Librarian Rights is not compromised. The intention is that librarians can modify their own documents and document properties.

All actions taken by a librarian are written to a document’s activity log.

Unless the librarian’s own GroupWise user name is in the Author or Security fields, a librarian cannot perform the following functions:

  • Open a document

  • View a document

  • Save a document

  • Check out a document with a copy

To help new librarians get started, you should explain these librarian functions to them. You can also refer new librarians to the “librarian users” topic in the GroupWise client help.

Librarian Rights

In addition to the six public rights, libraries also have a Manage right. When you grant the Manage right to a GroupWise user, you designate that user as a librarian. The Manage right gives the librarian full access to the properties of every document in the library. However, the Manage right does not grant the librarian direct access to the content of any document.

Because a librarian has full access to document properties, the librarian could add his or her own personal GroupWise user name to the Author or Security field of a document, thus gaining access to the document’s content. However, a high-priority email notification would automatically be sent to the original person listed in the Author field informing him or her of the action by the librarian. Therefore, document privacy is maintained.

The following table lists the various librarian functions, and whether an email notification is sent if the function is performed.

Librarian Function

Notification?

Modify the Author or Security fields

High-priority email to the author

Copy a document

High-priority email to the author

Delete a document

High-priority email to the author

Replace a document with a copy from backup

High-priority email to the author

Perform a mass document operation (copy, move, delete, or archive documents; modify document properties)

Mass operation emails

Reset a document’s status (In-Use flag)

None

Check out a document without a copy

None

View the activity log of any document

None

Generate reports on any documents (using GroupWise third-party APIs)

None

Mass operation notifications do not specify what action was taken by the librarian; they only specify that an action was taken.

The following table lists the document property fields that the librarian has rights to modify, and whether an email notification is sent if the field is modified.

Property Field

Notification?

Subject

No

Author

Yes

Security (sharing list)

Yes

Document Type

No

Version Description

No

Custom Fields

No

File Extension

No

Official Version

No

Current Version

No

If you remove the Manage right from a user, you must manually deselect any rights that the user gained from being made a librarian that the user did not previously have.

Setting Up a Librarian GroupWise Account (Optional)

The Manage right is always in effect for those users who have been assigned as librarians. However, there might be times librarians want to act on their own accord without the possibility of seeing or modifying documents that belong to other users.

To allow users assigned as librarians to act as normal GroupWise users, you could create a single librarian account for a library and have users who need to perform librarian tasks log in using the librarian GroupWise account and password instead of their own.

If users assigned as librarians log in under a librarian GroupWise account, they do not have access to any documents they would normally have access to under their own accounts, except by altering the Author or Security fields.

Assigning Librarians

To add librarians to a library:

  1. In the GroupWise Admin console, browse to and click the name of the library.

  2. Click the Rights tab.

  3. In the Individual or Group Rights box, select the librarian users, then select Manage (Librarian).

  4. Click Save, then click Close to return to the main Admin console window.

64.4.3 Maintaining Library Databases

The Mailbox/Library Maintenance feature of the GroupWise Admin console offers database maintenance features to keep your library and document databases in good condition. See Section 44.0, Maintaining Library Databases and Documents. It also helps you manage the disk space occupied by library and document databases and document storage areas. See Section 46.4, Reducing the Size of Libraries and Document Storage Areas.

When document creators or authors are removed from your GroupWise system, orphaned documents might be left behind. See Section 66.3.3, Handling Orphaned Documents.

To supplement your library maintenance procedures, you should back up your libraries and documents regularly. See Section 48.3, Backing Up a Library and Its Documents.

64.4.4 Deleting a Library

You should not delete a library until you ensure that all documents still in the library are no longer needed.

  1. In the GroupWise Admin console, click Libraries.

  2. Select the library to delete, then click Delete.

    All document storage areas and documents are deleted along with the library.

  3. Click OK to close the Libraries page and complete the deletion of the library.