Review these topics to learn about selector snapshots and
understand how to use them.
Selector snapshot use cases
The following
examples describe some common use cases for selector snapshots:
- Snapshot a selector to make changes to the selector configuration
or perform testing of new tools or scripts while continuing to run
jobs with the existing selector.
- Store a snapshot of a selector as a temporary backup or as part
of an official archive.
- Snapshot a selector to capture a point-in-time selector configuration
that corresponds with a milestone, such as an external or internal
release.
Selector snapshot concepts and terms
Snapshots
introduce some new concepts and terms for working with selectors.
Selector
snapshot: A snapshot is a new instance of an existing
selector. Some key points to remember about snapshots are as follows:
- A snapshot is a separate selector object. Making a change to one
snapshot in a snapshot set does not affect the other snapshots in
the set.
- A snapshot is not a copy. If you snapshot an object associated
with a selector, snapshot creates a separate instance of the object.
Copy maps relationships between objects, it does not create new objects.
- A snapshot is not a revision of a selector:
- Snapshot does not support comparing changes between two selector
snapshots.
- Changes to selector snapshots are not tracked or identified with
a version number as in a source control system. However, you can correlate
selector snapshots to milestones by using a snapshot naming scheme
that includes version numbers, for example, 7.5.0, 3.4.01.
Snapshot set: A snapshot set is
the set of all the selector snapshots that are descendants of one
base snapshot. At a minimum, the set includes the base or parent snapshot
and a child snapshot. In the UI, the Snapshot icon
beside the selector name indicates that a snapshot
set for the selector exists.
Base snapshot:
Initially, all selectors have a snapshot name of Base Snapshot. You
can change Base Snapshot to another name. The base snapshot is the
parent of the snapshot set.
Default selector snapshot:
The default selector snapshot is the current, working selector. Only
one snapshot in the set can be the default. If you do not specify
a default snapshot, the base snapshot is the default.
- In the console, the default snapshot is displayed at the top-level
of the selectors list. Select Servers > Selectors to
display the selectors list.
- When you select a selector with snapshots, the default selector
snapshot is used unless you select a different selector snapshot in
the list box.
- To access and work with other snapshots in the selector snapshot
set, you must click the Snapshot
icon.
Selector snapshot views
Select the Snapshot
icon

to display the Snapshot view. The Snapshot view
shows the hierarchy of the snapshots in a set:
- The base snapshot is at the top level and has the name Base Snapshot,
if you do not assign it a unique name.
- All selector snapshots are children of a base snapshot. Children
of the same base snapshot are indented at the same level in the Snapshot
column.
- Selector snapshots that are created from a child snapshot become
children of the child snapshot and are indented at the next level
in the Snapshot column.