Domain Properties

To view or edit a domain's properties, double-click its diagram symbol or Browser or list entry. The property sheet tabs and fields listed here are those available by default, before any customization of the interface by you or an administrator.

The General tab contains the following properties:

Property

Description

Name/Code/Comment

Identify the object. The name should clearly convey the object's purpose to non-technical users, while the code, which is used for generating code or scripts, may be abbreviated, and should not normally include spaces. You can optionally add a comment to provide more detailed information about the object. By default the code is generated from the name by applying the naming conventions specified in the model options. To decouple name-code synchronization, click to release the = button to the right of the Code field.

Stereotype

Extends the semantics of the object beyond the core UML definition. You can enter a stereotype directly in this field, or add stereotypes to the list by specifying them in an extension file.

Data type

Form of the data corresponding to the domain ; numeric, alphanumeric, Boolean, or others

Multiplicity

Specification of the range of allowable number of values attributes using this domain may hold. The multiplicity of a domain is useful when working with a multiple attribute for example. The multiplicity is part of the data type and both multiplicity and data type may come from the domain. You can choose between:
  • 0..1 – zero or one

  • 0..* – zero to unlimited

  • 1..1 – exactly one

  • 1..* – one to unlimited

  • * – none to unlimited

Keywords

Provide a way of loosely grouping objects through tagging. To enter multiple keywords, separate them with commas.

Detail Tab

The Detail tab contains a Persistent groupbox whose purpose is to improve the generation of code and data types during generation of a CDM or a PDM from an object-oriented model, and which contains the following properties:

Property

Description

Persistent

Groupbox for valid generation of CDM or PDM persistent models. Defines a model as persistent (see Managing Object Persistence During Generation of Data Models).

Data Type

Specifies a persistent data type used in the generation of a persistent model, either a CDM or a PDM. The persistent data type is defined from default PowerDesigner conceptual data types

Length

Maximum number of characters of the persistent data type.

Precision

Number of places after the decimal point, for persistent data type values that can take a decimal point.

The following tabs are also available:

  • Standard Checks - contains checks which control the values permitted for the domain (see Setting Data Profiling Constraints)

  • Additional Checks - allows you to specify additional constraints (not defined by standard check parameters) for the domain.

  • Rules - lists the business rules associated with the domain (see Core Features Guide > The PowerDesigner Interface > Objects > Business Rules).

The tables below give details of the available data types:

Numeric Data Types

Data Type

Content

Length

Mandatory Precision

Integer

32-bit integer

Short Integer

16-bit integer

Long Integer

32-bit integer

Byte

256 values

Number

Numbers with a fixed decimal point

Fixed

Decimal

Numbers with a fixed decimal point

Fixed

Float

32-bit floating point numbers

Fixed

Short Float

Less than 32-bit point decimal number

Long Float

64-bit floating point numbers

Money

Numbers with a fixed decimal point

Fixed

Serial

Automatically incremented numbers

Fixed

Boolean

Two opposing values (true/false; yes/no; 1/0)

Character Data Types

Data Type

Content

Length

Characters

Character strings

Fixed

Variable Characters

Character strings

Maximum

Long Characters

Character strings

Maximum

Long Var Characters

Character strings

Maximum

Text

Character strings

Maximum

Multibyte

Multibyte character strings

Fixed

Variable Multibyte

Multibyte character strings

Maximum

Time Data Types

Data Type

Content

Date

Day, month, year

Time

Hour, minute, and second

Date & Time

Date and time

Timestamp

System date and time

Other Data Types

Data Type

Content

Length

Binary

Binary strings

Maximum

Long Binary

Binary strings

Maximum

Bitmap

Images in bitmap format (BMP)

Maximum

Image

Images

Maximum

OLE

OLE links

Maximum

Other

User-defined data type

Undefined

Not yet defined data type