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How Template Inheritance Works

Risksheet configuration uses a simple inheritance model:
  1. When a document is created from a template, it does not receive its own copy of the sheet configuration. Instead, it inherits the configuration from the template document.
  2. When Risksheet loads, it first checks for a sheet configuration attachment on the current document. If none is found, it searches the document’s template hierarchy.
  3. Changes to the template’s sheet configuration automatically propagate to all documents that inherit from it.
diagram
1

Create a Template Document

  1. Create a LiveDoc in a central project (for example, a Templates or Library project) that serves as the template repository.
  2. Attach the configuration files to this template document:
    • The sheet configuration (risksheet.json) — the primary configuration with columns, levels, data types, formulas, styles, and cell decorators
    • The top panel configuration (risksheetTopPanel.vm) — optional Velocity template for the info panel above the grid
    • The PDF export configuration (risksheetPdfExport.vm) — optional Velocity template for PDF export formatting
  3. Configure the template with the settings that should be shared across all risk documents.
Creating a global-template project with the templateDoc custom field defined as type STRING
Setting the templateDoc property using the PROJECTID:TEMPLATE_PATH format
Risksheet has no mandatory fields or work item types. The configuration is fully flexible and works with any custom work item types your organization uses. Rating scales such as severity, occurrence, and detection are not declared inside the sheet configuration — they come from Polarion enumerations (Administration > Enumerations) and are referenced by columns through type: rating:<enumId> together with bindings: <fieldId>.
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Install Default Templates (Optional)

Risksheet ships with two built-in project templates:To install:
  1. Navigate to Administration > Nextedy Risksheet > Setup.
  2. Click Install Templates.
  3. The system installs both templates into Polarion’s template repository.
The installer automatically checks whether templates are already present before installation. Reinstalling overwrites previous versions. The installation is transaction-safe — it either completes fully or rolls back on error.
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Create Documents from the Template

  1. Open the Risksheet home page for your project.
  2. Click Create New Document.
  3. Select a folder and enter the document name.
  4. Choose the template from the template list.
  5. Click Create.
The new document inherits the template’s sheet configuration. It does not receive its own copy unless you explicitly override it later.
Creating a new Risksheet document from the global template
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Configure the Global Template Path

Risksheet locates the global template through the Polarion configuration property nextedy.risksheet.risksheetTemplatePath. This property is a STRING. To point at a template stored in another Polarion project, use the format PROJECTID:TEMPLATE_PATH, where PROJECTID is the project ID hosting the template document and TEMPLATE_PATH is the space and document name within that project. For a template in the current project, use a plain path with no prefix (for example, Risks/Risk Specification).In the example, the template is the document Risks/Risk Specification in the project GlobalLibrary. Multiple paths can be separated with commas (for example, GlobalLibrary:Risks/FMEA,GlobalLibrary:Risks/HARA).
Setting nextedy.risksheet.risksheetTemplatePath to GlobalLibrary:Risks/Risk Specification
See Configure Template Paths for detailed instructions on setting this property.

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Cross-Project Templates

Templates can be stored in a different project than the documents that use them, which is the typical pattern for centralized template libraries:
  1. Create the template document in a shared project (for example, GlobalLibrary or SharedTemplates).
  2. Reference the template through nextedy.risksheet.risksheetTemplatePath using the PROJECTID:TEMPLATE_PATH format.
  3. Ensure all users have read access to the template project.
All users must have read permissions on the template project. If a user lacks access, they see a broken or inconsistent Risksheet structure instead of an explicit error message. This is a common source of confusion in multi-project deployments.

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Multiple Configurations Per Project

You can maintain multiple Risksheet configurations within a single project. Each document or document group can inherit from a different template:
  • One template for FMEA analysis with RPN (Risk Priority Number) columns
  • A separate template for HARA with ASIL (Automotive Safety Integrity Level) columns
  • A third template for STRIDE or TARA (Threat Analysis and Risk Assessment) cybersecurity analysis
Risksheet is a generic tool that supports any risk methodology, including FMEA, HARA, TARA, STRIDE, and CVSS.

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Update a Global Template

To modify the configuration for all documents that inherit from a template:
  1. Open the template document in Polarion.
  2. Open the configuration editor (Menu > Configuration > Edit Risksheet Configuration). The editor supports YAML editing with syntax highlighting and error detection.
  3. Make your changes and save.
  4. All inheriting documents use the updated configuration on their next page load.
During critical project phases, use Menu > Override Template to detach a document from the global template. This prevents unintended configuration changes from template updates. You can revert to the template later, but reverting discards document-specific changes.

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Verification

After setting up your global template and creating a document from it, you should now see:
  • The document loads with the template’s column layout and settings.
  • The templateName property in the Risksheet metadata shows the template name.
  • The fromTemplate flag is true in the configuration metadata.

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See Also

Last modified on July 10, 2026