Understanding prefixes and suffixes

When a user creates a workspace, they are prompted to enter a name for the workspace. The folder and subfolder names are defined initially by the workspace template.

The template can also define a prefix or suffix for the workspace name, and optionally for any folders or subfolders created within it.

If a user creates a new workspace that includes a prefix or suffix to the name, the user does not need to manually enter a name. The prefix or suffix alone is sufficient to create the workspace.

Benefits

Defining a workspace name prefix or suffix in templates provides the following benefits:

This save users the time of entering a name when creating a workspace.
This ensure a consistent naming convention for workspaces, and enables users to quickly find and navigate to the workspaces using the suffix or prefix.

Using custom values in prefixes and suffixes

The prefix or suffix defined in the template can be a literal, such as (London Office). For example, a folder named Contracts would automatically be name as follows:

Prefix: (London Office) Contracts
Suffix: Contracts (London Office)

The prefix or suffix can also be populated using custom values, such as a custom1 and custom2 alias (client and matter respectively). Alternately, you can use the description for these custom fields. Any combination of custom1 through custom12, custom29, and custom30 aliases or descriptions can be used. For example, the client and matter may be added as a suffix to easily identify the container's purpose. If the folder is named Contracts, this may be like Contracts (001-1005). It may be added as a prefix, like (001 1005) - Contracts.

To add suffixes or prefixes that use custom value aliases or descriptions, you must use variables. For more information, see Variable values for names.

Adding Prefixes and Suffixes

Use this to add a prefix or suffix to a workspace or folder name.

Within iManage Control Center, navigate to the Templates page (Settings > Templates).

Select any existing template in the list shown.
Select to modify the workspace template settings. The Edit Template dialog appears.

Figure: Edit Template dialog box with prefixes and suffixes
Locate the Workspace Prefix/Suffix and Folder Prefix/Suffix options.
For each option,
1. Select either Prefix or Suffix using the selection menu.
2. Enter the value:

If this is a literal, enter the value in the text box. For example, enter (Mergers) -. When the workspace is created from this workspace template, (Mergers) - is prepended to the workspace name.

If this is a variable, enter the expression in the text box. The expression may also include additional text. For example, enter the prefix ( #C1ALIAS#) -. Assuming that custom1 alias is 001, when the workspace is created from this workspace template, (001) - is prepended to the workspace name. For more information about using variables, see Variable values for names.

Variable values for names

The following table explains the variable formats for iManage Work templates.

Variable name

Format

Examples

Comments

#attribute#

Specifies the type and custom property values to use.

Format:

#CxALIAS#
#Cx DESCR #

The expression must be enclosed with either the # or % characters. Do not mix these characters, such as %C1ALIAS#.

Multiple custom values can be used together in the prefix/suffix, such as #C1ALIAS#.#C2ALIAS#

The expression is case insensitive.

'C' is required.
'x' is the custom property number, such as 1, 2, or 10.
ALIAS specifies a custom property's alias value.
DESCR specifies the custom property's description value.

Specifies the custom 1 alias:

#c1alias#

Specifies the custom 11 alias:

%C11ALIAS%

Specifies the custom 1 description:

#c1descr#

Specifies the custom 1 and custom 2 alias:

#C1ALIAS#.#C2ALIAS#

Example prefix/suffix:
0002584.000023

Additional text may be included. For example, the expression (#C1ALIAS#): includes the two parenthesis, and a colon.

The text is always included even if no expression is provided. For example, the variable could be (Mergers):.

If the specified custom property has no value, the displayed value includes the specified text but the expression will be blank. For example, if the expression is (#C1ALIAS#): and custom1 has no value, this expression resolves as ():.

Template and Folder Properties - Features Compatibility Matrix

The following table explains the template and folder properties compatibility with the features iManage Work Workspace Generator templates, workspaces, and flexible folders.

Property	Workspace Creation	Workspace	Flexible Folder	Comments
Workspace Prefix/Suffix	No	Yes	Not applicable	Intended to provide a convenience mechanism for end users creating workspaces manually using the workspace dialog. iManage Work Workspace Generator already supports this through the mapping file.
Template Default Security	Yes	Yes	Not applicable
Template Security ACL	Yes	Yes	Not applicable	Applicable only to the workspaces created using the template.
Folder Prefix/Suffix	No	Yes	Yes	Intended to provide a convenience mechanism for end users creating workspaces manually using the workspace dialog. iManage Work Workspace Generator already supports this through the mapping file.
Folder Default Security	Yes	Yes	Yes
Folder Security ACL	Yes	Yes	Yes
Match Field(s)	Not applicable	NA	Yes	Applicable only to Flexible Folders created using templates in iManage Work clients.