How to store only metadata for an object of type sys:base or cm:object in Alfresco Share?

Question

How to store only metadata for an object of type sys:base or cm:object? I have a type which is sub-type of sys:base. I need to store the metadata of it.

My doubts are: 1. Where should the data be stored?

1. How to retrieve the data, as in content and folder you can see the appearance as icon in the company home or user home etc. How does the metadata appear in a folder(is it like an icon of cm:object)?

2. With reference to the question posted earlier in alfresco forum (http://forums.alfresco.com/forum/developer-discussions/content-modeling/can-i-store-only-metadata-alfresco-11292012-0437) should the object be of type cm:content to store the metadata (except that they do not have a content property). Is there anyway to create metadata other than being subtype of cm:content?

Thank you

Answer 1

You can store metadata on instances of any type as long as the content model includes properties that meet your needs. Those might be out-of-the-box types or they might be custom types.

If you need to create objects that have a content stream, use cm:content. If you don't need to set a content stream you might consider using one of the two types you mentioned. But it won't necessarily hurt anything if you elect to simply create instances of cm:content that don't have a content stream.

If you want to use sys:base or cm:object, simply create an instance of either of those types. Alternatively, define your own sub-type of those types then instantiate that custom type and set your metadata.

If you don't know how to define custom types or you are unsure about how to set, update, or query metadata, you could start by reading this tutorial.

Also note that if you create instances of any type other than cm:content, cm:folder, or a custom type that inherits from one of those two types, you will be unable to do that using CMIS. That isn't the end of the world, just be aware that it is currently a limitation. Someday Alfresco will support the "item" type which is new in CMIS 1.1, but until then, CMIS in Alfresco can only work with documents, folders, and your custom types that inherit from those types.