Structured Attribute Display

A structured attribute enables a single attribute value to store multiple related values -- for example, a structured attribute can contain a user's first name, last name, and email address in a single value. These types of attributes are used by certain endpoint types, but can be managed in .
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A structured attribute enables a single attribute value to store multiple related values -- for example, a structured attribute can contain a user's first name, last name, and email address in a single value. These types of attributes are used by certain endpoint types, but can be managed in
Identity Manager
.
You can configure
Identity Manager
to display the values in a structured attribute as a table, which users can optionally edit. In this case, changes made to values in the attribute are stored in the user store and propagated back to the endpoint account (if synchronization is enabled).
This page contains the following topics:

Prerequisites for Structured Attribute Support

To add structured attribute support in the User Console, the definition for the structured attribute in the directory configuration file (directory.xml) must include the following parameters:
  • multivalued="true"
    The attribute must be a standard multi-valued attribute in the user store.
  • displayhint="
    value1;value2;valueN
    "
    The displayhint parameter should contain a list of fields that are available in the attribute value, separated by a semicolon (;).
  • valuetype="structured"
    The valuetype parameter must be set to "structured" to configure a display table in the User Console. If this parameter is not set correctly, the fields required to configure the display table do not appear.
A completed attribute description for a structured attribute should resemble the following:
<ImsManagedObjectAttr physicalname="emailaddress" required="false" searchable="false" multivalued="true" displayhint="email;type;primary" valuetype="structured">
For more information on how to configure the directory.xml file, see the
Configuration Guide
.

Configure a Structured Attribute Display

To enable users to add or modify values in a structured attribute, you can add a structured attribute display to a profile screen. This display is typically used in account templates for endpoint types that support structured attributes.
To configure a structured attribute display
  1. Configure the prerequisites for structured attribute support.
  2. Add an additional field to the profile screen by using the controls below the list of fields.
  3. Click the right arrow icon to open the Field Properties dialog for the field that you are adding.
  4. Select a structured attribute from the list of available attributes in the Attribute Name field.
    The attribute you select must have the value type of
    structured
    in the directory configuration file (directory.xml).
  5. Select Nested Structure in the Style field.
    The fields in the Field Properties screen change based on the style selection.
  6. Add fields to the display table by clicking the right arrow icon and selecting a value from the list box.
    The values that appear in this list are the values that are available in the structured attribute, as defined in the directory configuration file (directory.xml).
    When you select a value,
    Identity Manager
    adds that value to the display table and enables you to configure properties for that value.
  7. Specify the following fields for the value in the display table configuration:
    • Name
      Specifies the label for the field.
    • Style
      Specifies the display properties for the field. You can select one of the following style options:
      • Checkbox
        Adds a check box next to the field name, which enables or disables a setting.
      • Date
        Displays a text box where administrators can enter a date.
        Identity Manager
        validates the date format.
      • Dropdown
        Allows the user to select a value for the field. Only one value is visible. Users click an arrow to see additional values in the list.
        The user can select a single value from the list.
      • Dropdown Combo
        Provides the same choice of values displayed by a Dropdown style, but adds a text box where the user can enter a new value.
      • Object Selector
        Allows you to add a search screen for selecting a managed object.
      • Radio Button
        Displays a list of values for a field. A radio button appears next to each value. Users can select a single value from the list.
      • String
        Displays the field's value as read only. If no value exists, the field is blank.
      • Structured
        Displays an Add button adds a new value to the nested compound attribute table.
      • Text
        Displays a box where the user can enter a value for the field.
        If the field's permission is read only, the value is displayed as a label.
    • Sortable
      Determines whether users can sort the display table based on the selected field.
  8. Select the Allow Reordering of Values check box to allow administrators to reorder the list of structured attributes in the display on the profile screen.
    When selected, this setting adds up and down arrows to the last column of the structured attribute display.
  9. Add support for adding information from other managed objects in a structured attribute, if necessary.
    Configuring support for other managed objects adds a search screen in the structured attribute display table that allows users to search for and add information that is stored in other types of managed objects. For example, you may want to allow users to select SAP Roles to add to a structured attribute on a user profile.
  10. Click Apply, then click OK.
    The structured attribute display is added to the Profile screen that you edited.

Add Other Managed Objects in a Structured Attribute Display

In some cases, you may want to add other managed objects to a structured attribute. For example, you may have a structured attribute in a user profile that lists SAP roles and a start and end date for when users can use those roles.
To configure support for this use case, you add a structured attribute display table as described in Configure a Structured Attribute Display, and then configure additional fields that allow you to search for and store information about another type of managed object in the structured attribute.
When this support is configured,
Identity Manager
displays a search screen that allows users to search for and select managed object values to add to the structured attribute.
To add managed objects to a structured attribute display
  1. Specify the following fields, as needed:
    • Object Field
      Select the field that contains the reference to the managed object. In most cases, this is the unique identifier for the managed object.
    • Object Type
      Select the type of object that contains the values to add to the structured attribute.
      For example, to add SAP roles to a structured attribute on the user profile, you would select the SAP roles object.
    • Object Attribute (optional)
      Select the attribute of the managed object that will be used to populate the Object Field.
      This attribute is only needed if the field that contains the reference to the managed object is not the unique name for the managed object. If no value is provided for this field, the unique name is used.
    • Search Screen
      Specify the search screen that users see when they click the Add button to add additional values to the structured attribute.
  2. Click Apply, then click OK.