In the event that you wish to modify the tag properties database for your application by adding large groups of tags, or by modifying their properties, you may choose to do so manually, rather than via the Tag Browser. For example, if you intend to add large groups of tags to your application, you could do so by importing their properties into the tag properties database ("Points.mdb"), rather than adding them one by one using the Tag Browser.
It is recommended that only 300 offline changes be made to tags at one time; any more than 300 simultaneous changes will slow down the startup process considerably. (It is estimated that there is an initial hiatus of approximately 1 minute, and that 2 tags per second are processed). At present, VTS is configured to request locks on a one-by-one basis for each tag that has been changed but for which a lock was not already held.
In the event that you have hundreds of tag modifications or additions, it is recommended that you make 300 offline changes, run the application to allow VTS to process the requests, then stop the application and make the next 300 offline changes. This will ensure that the startup process is not unnecessarily delayed.
To add tags offline, follow the steps below.
1. Open the VAM.
2. Stop the application.
3. Navigate to your application directory.
4. Open the tag properties database ("Points.mdb").
5. Make the necessary modifications to the tags.
6. Save the tag properties database.
7. Close the tag properties database.
8. Open the VAM.
9. Run the application. VTS has been configured to check for new resource items when the remote application is started. Any new or unidentified resource items are automatically locked for you (i.e. new tags that you have added to the tag properties database while the application was offline will automatically be locked.)
10. Logon to the application with a user account that has been granted all system privileges.
11. Click the "Configure" button in the Display Manager's title bar.
12. Click the "Remote Configuration" button (labeled with a key) in the Configuration Toolbox.
13. Select the (first) locked resource item you modified in the "Remote Configuration" dialog's list.
14. Click the "Update Item" button. The modification to the resource item will be propagated to all workstations running the application, and the lock(s) will be released.
Note: If you are the only user to have resource items locked, you may click the "Update All" button to update all modified resource items, rather than updating them on an individual basis.
15. Close the "Remote Configuration" dialog.
16. Close the Configuration Toolbox.
The section that follows discusses the process involved in making offline modifications to files and pages.