As you define work item types, you might find that some fields share the same set of values. Frequently, you can share across several work item types and even across several team projects. Some of these list item values change frequently, such as the build number of nightly builds, which requires an administrator to update these lists in many locations on a frequent basis. By using global lists, you can minimize the work required to update a list that is used by a number or work item types.
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Global lists must not include project-scoped groups because they are not scoped to a project. |
Global lists can be especially useful when a list must be derived from a third-party system. For example, suppose a company maintains a separate customer database. When you enter a bug that was discovered by a customer, the customer's name is entered into a custom Found By Customer field.
The name of each global list must be unique within a team project collection, and each list name must meet the following requirements. For more information, see Naming Conventions for Work Item Tracking Objects.
Global lists are maintained for a team project collection as XML files that you can list, import, export, and delete. You can share list items among multiple work item types for a team project collection by including the list items in one or more GLOBALLIST elements.
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There are no system defined global lists, nor predefined global lists in the Microsoft Solutions Framework (MSF) process templates. |
Topic Contents
A global list is a set of LISTITEM elements that is stored and used globally by all team projects defined in a project collection. Global lists are useful for work item fields that are defined within several work item types, such as Operating System, Found in Build, Fixed in Build, and other fields.
There are two areas for which you would define global lists:
Team project collection: You define global lists and the list items for each global list for a project collection.
Work item type definition: You add the global lists that you want to have available for a work item type to its type definition.
Syntax Structure of Global Lists Maintained for a Project Collection
To add a global list to a project collection, you import the following syntax by using the witadmin importgloballist command-line tool:
<gl:GLOBALLISTS xmlns:gl="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2008/workitemtracking/globallists">
<GLOBALLIST name="name of global list">
<LISTITEM value="List item 1" />
<LISTITEM value="List item 2" />
<LISTITEM value="List item 3" />
<LISTITEM value="List item 4" />
. . .
<LISTITEM value="List item n" />
</GLOBALLIST>
</gl:GLOBALLISTS>
A global list cannot be empty. Each GLOBALLIST element must have at least one LISTITEM element defined. Global lists are defined and managed as part of a work item type definition.
Syntax Structure of Global Lists Added to a Work Item Type Definition
To add a global list to a work item type, you add the following syntax to the work item type definition file:
<GLOBALLISTS>
<GLOBALLIST name=" name of global list 1" />
<GLOBALLIST name=" name of global list 2" />
. . .
<GLOBALLIST name=" name of global list n" />
</GLOBALLISTS>
For information about the structure and location of work item type definition files, see Working with Work Item Types.
Global List Schema Definition
The following code lists the schema definition for global lists.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8" ?>
<xs:schema
xmlns:xs="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema"
elementFormDefault="unqualified"
attributeFormDefault="unqualified"
targetNamespace="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2005/workitemtracking/globallists"
xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2005/workitemtracking/globallists"
xmlns:typelib="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2005/workitemtracking/typelib">
<xs:import namespace="http://schemas.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/2005/workitemtracking/typelib"/>
<!-- Root element -->
<xs:element name="GLOBALLISTS" type="typelib:GlobalListsDef" />
</xs:schema>
For more information, see GLOBALLIST Element (typelib Schema).
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