Override the Teamcenter and Active Workspace text server for localization display values
Updated: Feb 27
In Teamcenter and Active Workspace, there are many locations which get their display values from a server-side file. In this post, explore the topics that are controlled by the text server and how to override the values to take use of the feature.
Explore our demonstration video for overriding the textserver or continue below to see detailed information about the process.
Examples of features that utilize the Text Server
Style sheets
Integrated Toolkit (ITK) functions which retrieve custom display names from a list of custom error messages
Query Builder Saved Queries
Error Message Handling (EMH)
More....
The elements in the Active Workspace interface are all controllable by the Teamcenter text server. If an administrator needs to make a change without the text server, that individual needs to modify each location, on every page to make the change.
Using the text server, all of the locations call to a specific variable. The variable is defined in a file in the text server and maps to a display value. If the administrator needs to make a change, and has the text server, the change need only be made to the file on the server and all locations which reference it will pick up the change (once the tcserver processes are restarted that is).
Siemens has provided a way to provide our own values for the display and error names. The location of the display names in Teamcenter and Active Workspace's style sheets (along with other features that use the text server) derive from is:
%TC_ROOT%\lang\textserver\en_USThe en_US value may be changed for various localizations.
Try it out
Learn how to create a text server override in Teamcenter and Active Workspace to create your own or override existing localization values. Future changes to values utilizing the text server can be evaluated and reused extensively without much effort in modification.
Version compatibility
The process is validated in Teamcenter 9 through the latest release (14.*). The process is also validated in Active Workspace 3.4 through the latest release of (6.*).
Process to override the text server
1.) Create a directory and file to contain the new and/or overridden values.
The directory should not be in the Teamcenter or Active Workspace installation directories, including the %TC_DATA% and %TC_ROOT%.
The directory must resemble the following
<DIRECTORY-YOU-BUILD>\lang\textserver\en_US.Tip. Change the localization folder for the localization you need. This is the en_US value at the end of the path.
2.) Create or Copy files from the existing textserver to override them in the new directory.
Example. To update the locations in the screenshot (above with the little red boxes), the tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file must be copied to the new directory.
Caution. Be certain not to remove or alter the original text server location:
<%TC_ROOT%>\lang\textserver\en_US (or other localization directory). The copy you create will be emptied and only values you need to override will be added. The rest will continue to determine other values from %TC_ROOT%.
The image (above) shows the tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file in the %TC_ROOT% directory. This directory varies by installation and site.
Tip. To locate the %TC_ROOT% location, open a Teamcenter Command Prompt and type: set TC
Copy the file (in the image above). The image (below) shows the newly created directory (AW5_textserver folder not required) with the copied tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file. Make sure to paste the file in this directory to resemble the screenshot (below).
3.) Update the XML file in the new textserver directory
Modify the copied tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file (in the AW5_textserver directory) to only include the value(s) you need to add or modify.
The goal is to override all places where the term "Overview" is used in a style sheet across all of Active Workspace (which is almost every stylesheet). This method of updating individually shouldn't be used anymore (in our opinion). The better method is to add the override and update the (copied) tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file with the value(s) we intend to override (hint. Overview).
The image (above) shows an example of where the "Overview" display name is used in Active Workspace.
In the tc_xrt_text_locale.xml file, modify the file to only include (1) entry.
<textsrvfilename="tc_xrt_text_locale.xml">
<!-- XML Rendering Template(XRT) key(s): tc_xrt_<Key> -->
<keyid="tc_xrt_Overview">Overview</key>
</textsrv>Be certain to erase any <key lines that you do not intend to override. Only the overridden or new <key's should remain. The system will "fall back" to the server (%TC_ROOT%) for the out of the box values which are not overridden.
Our goal is to replace the display name "Overview" with the value "Summary". The following code definition shows the resulting <key value.
<textsrv filename="tc_xrt_text_locale.xml">
<!-- XML Rendering Template(XRT) key(s): tc_xrt_<Key> -->
<keyid="tc_xrt_Overview">Summary</key>
</textsrv>The resulting file will resemble the image (below).
No other adjustments were made to the file except between the <textsrv and </textsrv elements. Anything outside of those elements was not altered.
Note. Don't forget to save the file.
4.) Update the %TC_DATA%\tc_profilevars.bat file with the TC_USER_MSG_DIR environment variable
Open the %TC_DATA%\tc_profilevars.bat file in an editor.
In the tc_profilevars.bat file, below:
set FSC_HOME=%TC_ROOT%\fsc add the following environment variable.
set TC_USER_MSG_DIR=C:\Apps\Siemens\TCAW\AW5_textserver\lang\textserver
Note. In the example, AW5_textserver is the name of the override directory you created earlier in the process.
Save and close the tc_profilevars.bat file.
5.) Restart any sessions to pick up the tc_profilevars.bat changes
On the server, restart any active tcserver.exe processes. These processes indicate a connection to the Teamcenter and Active Workspace server. They pick up the tc_profilevars.bat values at startup. Therefore, we need to restart them.
Restart the Teamcenter Server Manager Pool (Sometimes called a Pool).
Note. In the screenshot, the ID of the Server Manager may vary on environment. The format is Teamcenter Server Manager <YOUR-ID>_<SERVER-MANAGER-ID>. There could be multiple in an environment.
Restart any 2-Tier Rich Clients. (This must be done manually). If not started, then no need to do anything with the 2-Tier.
Wait for the Server Manager to restart.
Tip. On the server the Teamcenter Server Manager runs, in the Task Manager (in Windows), you see the individual tcserver.exe processes start up. This is when you know that the service is ready for new login.
6.) Test the change in Active Workspace
Log into Active Workspace and navigate to the same location to view the change.
Before the change was made, the summary style sheet in the image (below) had a value of "Overview" for the first tab/page.
Now that the modifications have been made, the tab/page's name is "Summary". Derived from the new text server override.
Also notice, in this instance, the change modified the value above the list. Between Navigate and Audit Logs (in the image above), the name is now Summary.
Note. Notice all of the other display names remained the same. The system looks at the new file and then falls back on the one in %TC_ROOT% to pick up the rest.
For additional reference. Below are additional links that will aid you in understanding, setting up, and learning about open issues and troubleshooting with the Teamcenter Text Server.
The links (below) direct you to documentation and resources that may be of help on this topic. The links direct to the Teamcenter 13.2 online help documentation on the Siemens website. However, the information is located in a similar location under each version of Teamcenter 12.3+.
Tip. Some of the following links direct to the Siemens Solution Center and it's content. You will need to have access to a Siemens Account. Login to the Siemens Solution Center, then click the link to redirect to the page.
Help Documentation Links
Support Center Knowledge Base (KB) Articles
It is recommended to visit the Siemens Support Center site and search all open tickets and Knowledge Base articles for useful tips, current issues, and more.
Tip. Be sure to filter by "Knowledge Base" or "Support Cases" to see articles related to this topic.