Configuring Architecture Settings

Define which architecture element types and which reports are available in your Process Space.

What you activate here determines which types can be created and which reports appear in the Architecture area. The two go together, because a report needs certain element types. If you activate a report, Bpanda asks you and activates the required types as well. If you deactivate a type, it asks you and deactivates the reports that need it.

Prerequisites

You are a BPM Manager.

How to proceed

Select Settings > Manage Process Space.
Select the Architecture Settings tab.

The tab is located in the settings of the Process Space because it applies to the entire Process Space; it is described here because it populates the Architecture area.

The page has two sections: Reports at the top and Architecture Elements below. In both, the Activated Only switch shows you what is currently enabled in your Process Space.

Reports

This section lists all reports that Bpanda offers. Use All Categories to filter the list. The Categories and Required Architecture Elements columns show what a report is intended for and which architecture element types it needs; on narrow screens these columns are omitted, in which case you will find the information in the expandable row. Click on a report to see its description, the activation date and the required elements.

A warning icon in front of the name means: the report is activated, but not all of the architecture elements it requires are — which is why it cannot be displayed.

Use the checkbox to activate a report for your Process Space. If it requires architecture element types that are not yet activated, Bpanda asks you and activates them as well. Some reports also bring along properties that are then available on the architecture element — the Business Continuity Management Report, for example, adds Recovery Time Objective (RTO, in hours) and Recovery Point Objective (RPO, in hours).

Use the icon next to the section heading to jump to the Reports tab in the Architecture area, where the results appear as tiles. See Using the Architecture Dashboard.

Which reports exist and what each of them shows is described under Available Reports.

Architecture Elements

This section lists all architecture element types, grouped by ArchiMate layer: Generic Elements, Application Layer, Business Layer, Implementation and Migration Layer, Motivation Elements, Strategy Layer and Technology Layer. Use the checkbox on a layer to activate all types of that layer at once, and the checkbox on a row to activate an individual type. Click on a type to see its description.

The types correspond to the ArchiMate® 3.2 specification. The Architecture Element type is an exception: it is Bpanda-specific and serves as a placeholder as long as you do not yet know the exact type. You assign the exact type later in the draft, in the Edit architecture element name and type dialog. It can only be linked via the Architecture Reference.

The Required for Reports column shows which activated reports depend on a type. If you deactivate such a type, Bpanda asks you — and deactivates the affected reports as well.

Business Process cannot be deselected. This type is permanently enabled, because otherwise the reports on processes would lose their basis.