How to Open a Management Pack File in the Authoring Tool

  • Article

Applies To: System Center Service Manager 2010

If you want to customize objects that are defined in a management pack, you have to open the management pack file that contains these objects in the System Center Service Manager Authoring Tool. The Management Pack Explorer pane displays all the management packs that are open. A management pack that you open and change, is designated with an ‘*’, for example ‘CustomMP*’, until it is saved.

When you select a management pack file to open, the system opens the specified management pack, and additionally, it opens the following management packs:

  • All the other management packs that are located in the same folder as the management pack that you are opening.

  • All the management packs in the Library folder in the Service Manager installation folder, for example, in the \Program Files (x86)\Microsoft System Center\Service Manager 2010 Authoring\Library folder.

This is important because the definitions from all open management packs co-exist in the Authoring Tool, and therefore, they cannot contradict each other.

Note

You cannot create new management pack files in the <Authoring Tool Installation>\Library folder.

To open a management pack file

  1. In the Authoring Tool, on the menu bar, click File, and then click Open.

  2. In the Open File dialog box, select the management pack file that you want to open, and then click Open. The file that you select must have an .xml or .mp file name extension. For example, select Management Packs as the file type, and then select the following management pack file:

    <Authoring Tool installation drive>\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft System Center\Service Manager 2010 Authoring\Library\ServiceManager.IncidentManagement.Library.mp

  3. Wait for the management pack to open, and then verify that it is displayed in the Management Pack Explorer pane.

You can now select the management pack file that you opened, and you can expand Classes, Forms, Workflows, or References to view the objects of the management pack.

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