What are object packages, components, and instances?

Object packages function as distinct objects in Crystal Enterprise. Think of them as folders you can schedule, along with all of their contents.

Object packages can be composed of any combination of report and program objects that are published to the Crystal Enterprise system. (Non-Crystal Enterprise objects, such as Excel, Word, Acrobat, Text, Rich Text, PowerPoint, and Hyperlink objects, cannot be added to object packages.) The objects within an object package are called object package component objects. Placing multiple component objects in a single object package allows you to schedule them simultaneously. For reports, object packages allow users to view synchronized data across reports. Component objects are not autonomous. They have more limited configuration options than other objects, and they do not appear in the list of all objects on the first page of the Objects management area of the CMC. Rather, you can only view them by opening their object package.

Crystal Enterprise creates an object package instance each time it runs an object package. The object package instance contains individual instances of each of its component objects. Component instances are tied to object package instances, rather than to component objects. For example, if you run an object package, and thereby create an instance, then remove a report object from the object package, the existing object package instance does not change; it still contains the report instance from the report object that you removed. Future instances of the object package, however, will reflect the change.

For hyperlinked report instances in object package instances, the hyperlinks point to the other report instances in the same object package instance. For details about hyperlinked reports, see Working with hyperlinked reports.