ReqIF import behavior for deleted artifacts that are re-added during an update

This article describes, through two realistic cases, what happens during ReqIF exchange with deleted artifacts for you and your exchange partner. We hope this article helps you and your partner avoid issues or resolve them quickly and efficiently on your own.

Case 1:

Step 1:

The customer sends a module containing Artifact A. The supplier imports this artifact into their DNG and receives the module with Artifact A.

Step 2:

The customer exports a new version of the module, this time without Artifact A. The supplier imports the new module version into their DNG.
If the supplier uses the ReqIF Manager without selecting the “deleted not included artifacts” option, Artifact A remains visible in their module but receives the tag “reqif_manager_deleted”.
If the supplier selects the “deleted not included artifacts” option during import, Artifact A is removed from the module.

Step 3:

The customer exports a new version of the module, now including Artifact A again. The supplier imports this new version into their DNG.
If the supplier does not select the “deleted not included artifacts” option, the Artifact A from Step 1 remains visible in their module with the tag “reqif_manager_deleted”, and the Artifact A from Step 3 is added to the module as a new entry.

The reason for this is that DNG assigns different Spec-Object identifiers in the ReqIF file for the same base artifact within the module (see Reuse article). Additionally, it also receives different binding identifiers.

Case 2: