manage-properties

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name: manage-properties description: Manage OFBiz application properties. Use for static .properties files or dynamic SystemProperty entity configurations.

Skill: manage-properties

Goal

Define and access configuration settings in OFBiz using static property files or dynamic database records.

Triggers

ALWAYS read this skill when:

• Adding new configuration keys to a component.
• Overriding core OFBiz settings.
• Accessing properties from Java, Groovy, or XML.

Use when

• Defining static defaults in config/ directory.
• Creating runtime-configurable settings in SystemProperty entity.
• Using UtilProperties to retrieve values.

Procedure

1. Static Properties (.properties files):
   • Create/Edit files in component's config/ directory.
   • Path: plugins/mycomponent/config/mycomponent.properties.
   • Access via Java: UtilProperties.getPropertyValue("mycomponent", "my.key").
2. Dynamic Properties (SystemProperty entity):
   • Define in data XML files.
   • Fields: systemResourceId (matches file basename), systemPropertyId (key), systemPropertyValue (value).
   • Advantage: Can be updated via DB/UI without restart.
3. Overriding Core Properties:
   • Avoid editing core framework property files.
   • Use SystemProperty records to override static values if the logic checks DB first (standard OFBiz practice).

Guardrails

• Uniqueness: Prefix property keys with component name to avoid collisions (e.g., shop.order.limit).
• Basename: systemResourceId must match the .properties file name if providing dynamic overrides for static defaults.

Examples

Example: Static Property File (myplugin.properties)

# Cache setting for the plugin
myplugin.cache.enabled=true
myplugin.max.items=50

Example: Dynamic Overrides (Data XML)

<entity-engine-xml>
    <!-- Override the static default at runtime -->
    <SystemProperty systemResourceId="myplugin" systemPropertyId="myplugin.max.items" 
                    systemPropertyValue="100" description="Maximum items override"/>
</entity-engine-xml>

Example: Accessing in Java

import org.apache.ofbiz.base.util.UtilProperties;

// Retrieves from DB if exists, else from myplugin.properties
String maxItems = UtilProperties.getPropertyValue("myplugin", "myplugin.max.items", "50");