Maintaining and updating namespaces and procedures

This section gives an overview of how you can use Provisioning Manager to maintain and update namespaces and their procedures.

• Specify how namespaces are implemented

  You can control how Microsoft Provisioning Framework (MPF) implements each registered namespace and each of its procedures by modifying the properties of the individual namespace or procedure.

  The properties that you can modify for each namespace include:

  Provider source

  This property identifies the provider, if any, that the namespace calls. The identifier is the COM PROGID of the provider.

  Description

  This is a brief description of the functionality provided by the namespace.

  XML

  The XML of a namespace documents the procedures of that namespace. These procedures call a provider or another procedure, including procedures of other namespaces.

  The Microsoft Provisioning Framework Software Development Kit (SDK) contains additional resources to help you implement the XML schema. For more information on the SDK and how to use it, see Microsoft Provisioning Framework SDK.

  Security

  You can specify users who have permissions to execute all procedures of a namespace. For each user you add to MPF, you can stipulate whether to allow or deny them permissions to execute procedures.

  By default, permissions propagate from the parent to the child. Adding or deleting a user in a namespace adds or deletes the user permissions in all procedures of the namespace, unless you configure a procedure so that it does not propagate permissions.

  Caution

  • Although you can use Provisioning Manager to access and modify the XML for a namespace, doing so is not recommended because it can cause unpredictable results. Instead, you should modify and test the XML outside of the production environment, and then import it after testing is complete.
  • Modifying a namespace name cause significant problems. If you must modify a namespace name, you should create a new namespace with the new name, and then copy the XML and other namespace information, including permissions, from the old namespace. Then delete the old namespace.

  For more information about how to configure namespace properties, see View or modify namespaces.

• Specify how procedures are implemented

  You can change the way MPF implements each procedure of a registered namespace by modifying the properties of the individual procedure.

  The properties that you can modify for each procedure include:

  Procedure name

  This property identifies the name of the procedure. You can change the name of a procedure at any time.

  Access type

  Each procedure is either a public or private procedure. A public procedure can be called from an incoming request outside of MPF, but a private procedure can only be called from within MPF. The default access type of a procedure is private.

  Request type

  This option specifies which functions a procedure can invoke.

  • Read

    This request type invokes only an execute function to process the request with no rollback function.

  • Write

    This request type invokes both an execute function to process the request and a rollback function to implement after a failure.

  • Two-phase enabled

    This request type invokes an execute function and a prepare function to process the request. It also invokes either a commit function or a rollback function, depending on whether the prepare and process actions complete successfully.

  Execute as

  This option specifies the user credentials with which MPF invokes this procedure. Only credentials previously defined in Provisioning Manager can be selected. This option does not exist for read-only namespaces, such as the Error Provider namespace.

  Audit

  This option specifies whether the procedure should save information to the audit log.

  Auto-generate performance counters

  This option specifies whether to automatically implement performance counters for the procedure. Note, however, that a performance counter does not show up in the performance monitor until the first time a procedure runs.

  Save data for rollback

  This option specifies whether to automatically save the input data that enables the rollback of a failed procedure.

  XML

  The XML implements each procedure necessary to call a provider or another procedure, including procedures located in other namespaces. You can modify any of the XML for a procedure.

  Security

  You specify who can execute each procedure and determine the permissions to allow or deny each user. By default, permissions propagate from the parent to the child (from the namespace to the procedure), so changes made to the permissions of a namespace are applied to all procedures of the namespace. For each procedure, you can choose whether to propagate changes from the namespace to the procedure.

  Caution

  • Although you can use Provisioning Manager to access and modify the XML for a procedure, doing so is not recommended because it can cause unpredictable results. Instead, you should modify and test the XML outside of the production environment, and then import it after testing is complete.
  • Modifying a procedure name cause problems if other procedures call it. If you modify a procedure name, be sure to also change the XML of all other procedures that call that procedure.
  • It is recommended that you not change the Save data for rollback property. Doing so can cause data and system corruption if a transaction fails.

  For more information about how to configure procedure properties, see View or modify procedures.

• View information about namespaces and procedures

  In addition to the properties of each namespace and procedure, Provisioning Manager displays the names and the procedures of each namespace.

  For more information, see To view namespaces and procedures.

• Add or delete namespaces and procedures

  You can add namespaces using one of the following options:

  • Use Provisioning Manager to create a new namespace by entering all namespace information, including the XML required to implement the namespace in the appropriate dialog boxes.
  • Incorporate a namespace that you have already created by either importing it with Provisioning Manager or registering it from the command line. This is the recommended method for a live production environment.

  You can also add one or more procedures to an existing namespace. You cannot add a procedure to a read-only namespace. Nor can you delete a read-only namespace or its procedures.

  Caution

  • Microsoft Provisioning Framework (MPF) does not maintain copies of namespaces and procedures. If you delete a namespace or procedure, you cannot add it back in unless you maintain a backup copy.

  Important

  • Read-only namespaces, indicated by the red highlighting for the namespace in the console tree, are critical to the operation of MPF.

  For more information about adding and deleting namespaces and procedures, see Managing Microsoft Provisioning Framework from the command line, Implementing custom providers and namespaces, To create a namespace, To import a namespace, To delete a namespace, To add a procedure to a namespace, and To delete a procedure from a namespace.

• Export the XML of a namespace

  You can save the XML of a namespace to a file. The exported XML includes the XML of all procedures in the namespace. You cannot, however, export the XML of a private namespace or procedure.

  For more information, see To export the XML of a namespace.

For more information about namespaces and procedures, see Namespaces and Procedures.