Changing Catalog Schema

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You use the Catalog Designer module to change your catalog schema. You can change your catalog schema if you create a new catalog or update an existing catalog. When you make changes to the schema for a new catalog, you should make your changes before adding products and categories to the catalog.

You can make changes to the schema after you have populated the catalog with products and categories, but these changes can affect the catalog that users see on your Web site. In many organizations, a person who understands the database concepts creates the catalog schema.

To change a category definition

To change a product definition

To change a property definition

Ee797759.note(en-US,CS.10).gif Note

  • You cannot change the name or type of property in a catalog schema. You can delete the property, and then add it again using a new name and type.

To change a category definition

  1. In Catalogs, click Catalog Designer.

  2. In the Catalog Designer: Category Definitions screen, click View on the toolbar, and then select Category Definitions from the drop-down list.

  3. Select the category you want to change, and then click Open on the toolbar.

  4. In the Category Definitions screen, in the Category Properties section, select the property you want to change in the Assigned Properties box, and then do one of the following:

    • To add a property to a category definition, select the property you want to add from the Available Properties box, and then click Add. You can create a property by clicking New if the property does not exist.

    • To remove a property from a category definition, select the property you want to remove from the Assigned Properties box, and then click Remove.

    • To change the order of the properties assigned to a category, select the property you want to move in the Assigned Properties box, and then click either Move Up or Move Down to change the property order.

  5. To save your changes and return to the Catalog Designer: Category Definitions screen, click Save and go back on the toolbar.

To change a product definition

  1. In Catalogs, click Catalog Designer.

  2. In the Catalog Designer: Category Definitions screen, click View on the toolbar, and then select Product Definitions from the drop-down list.

  3. Select the product definition you want to change, and then click Open on the toolbar.

  4. In the Catalog Designer: Product Definition screen, in the Product Properties section, select the property you want to change in the Assigned Properties box, and then do one of the following:

    • To add a property to a product definition, select the property you want to add from the Available Properties box, and then click Add. You can create a property by clicking New if the property does not exist.

    • To remove a property from a product definition, select the property you want to remove from the Assigned Properties box, and then click Remove.

    • To change the order of the properties assigned to a product, select the property you want to move in the Assigned Properties box, and then click either Move Up or Move Down to change the property order.

  5. To save your changes and return to the Catalog Designer screen, click Save and go back on the toolbar.

To change a property definition

  1. In Catalogs, click Catalog Designer.

  2. In the Catalog Designer screen, click View on the toolbar, and then select Property Definition from the drop-down list.

  3. In the Property Definitions screen, select the property you want to change, and then click Open on the toolbar.

  4. In the Property Definitions - <Property Name>** screen, do the following:

    Use this For property type To do this
    Name All You cannot change this property.
    Display on site All Select this check box to display the specified property to users on your Web site.
    Display name All Type the name that is to be displayed on the Web site as a label for this property. For example, for a property named "ShirtColor," you may want the label to be "Color."
    Free text searchable Text, multiple choice, file Select this check box so that free text searching on your catalog will apply to values stored in this property.

    When you select the Free text searchable option, the property definition is added to the full index for the catalog. You must update the full text index after changing items in your catalogs that are marked as searchable. For information about updating the full text index, see Refreshing and Publishing a Catalog.
    Specification searchable All Select this check box in order for this property to be used in specification searches. A specification search enables users to select the values of interest to them that help them find particular products.
    Minimum length Text Type the number that defines the minimum length of the value for this property type. The default minimum length is zero (0) character. If you specify a length other than zero, this property becomes a required property for product or category definition.
    Maximum length Text Type the number that defines the maximum length of the value for this property type. The maximum allowed length is 3600 characters.
    Minimum value Number, decimal, money/currency Type the number that defines the minimum value for this property. The default minimum value is zero (0).
    Maximum value Number, decimal, money/currency Type the number that defines the maximum value for this property type. For example, to add a property for money, enter a number including the decimal point or a comma and any fractional amount that could accommodate the greatest monetary value to be applied to a product.
    Earliest date Date/time Type the date for the earliest date that is to be associated with the property. For example, the earliest date users can order a new record.
    Earliest time Date/time Type the time in 00:00 format for the earliest time that is to be associated with the property. For example, a start time.
    Latest date Date/time Type the date for the latest date that is to be associated with the property. For example, the latest date users can order a promotional product.
    Latest time Date/time Type the time in 00:00 format that is to be associated with the latest time for the property. For example, an expiration time.
    Default value Text, number, decimal, money/currency, date/time, multiple choice Type in the default value for the property type. This value varies depending on the property type you are adding.
    Assign to all product types All Select this check box to assign the property to all product types. Do this for generic product properties such as name, description, or weight.
    Export to Data Warehouse All Select this check box to export the property to the Data Warehouse. Exporting to the Data Warehouse makes data available for reporting purposes.
    Display in products list All Select this check box to display this property in the products list.

  5. To save your changes and return to the Catalog Designer screen, click Save and go back on the toolbar.


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