Each file in the repository has a lifecycle. A lifecycle defines a sequence of states a file experiences as it passes from creation to review to approval. For example, an employee might create a new human resources form, another employee might review it, and a third employee might give the approval necessary to make the file available to all employees. The lifecycle defines the file’s state at each point in the process.

To view a file’s lifecycle, and current lifecycle state, open the file’s properties. If the file has no assigned lifecycle, then you can assign the lifecycle through the properties.

You also can assign a lifecycle to a file when creating, importing, or checking in the file, or by selecting the file in a file list, and using the Apply Lifecycle menu option. When applying a lifecycle, you can specify the initial lifecycle state for the file.

You can advance a file through its lifecycle manually by selecting the file and using the Promote menu option, or Records Manager (RM) Administrator can advance a file through its lifecycle automatically based on conditions specified in the lifecycle definition, if a retention policy is associated with the lifecycle. You can also demote a file to a previous lifecycle state.

See Table 8.1 for descriptions of common lifecycle states.