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| Application Directory > FAQ |
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Application Directory FAQ
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Understanding the Application Directory
What is the Application Directory?
The Rollbase Application Directory contains a growing number of business applications that you can browse, test drive and install into your Rollbase account with a single click. All applications available in this directory have been built using Rollbase and are designed to run exclusively on the Rollbase platform.
Who can use the Application Directory?
Anyone with a Rollbase account, including trial users, can test drive and install applications from the directory. If you don't already have an account, sign up now for a Free 30 Day Trial.
Who creates the applications in the Application Directory?
All applications currently available in the directory have been built and published by our own in-house Rollbase experts. As more users become familar with Rollbase, you will see applications published by partners, developers and anyone else that chooses to participate. Each application is reviewed by Rollbase staff before it becomes available in the Application Directory.
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Installing and Upgrading Applications
How do I evaluate an application before installing it?
Most applications provide a Test Drive button allowing you to login to a fully functionaly read-only version of that app to experience it first-hand. You do not need to have a Rollbase account to access Test Drives. In addition, the Application Directory includes a rating and reviews system providing a way for Rollbase users to voice opinions and feedback on each application.
How many applications can I install?
You can install as many applications as you want. Many applications include portals which can be integrated with your website. However, you are limited in the number of portals that can be deployed at any given time. If you are using a Trial version of Rollbase you can only have 1 deployed portal.
Once I install an application, who can use it?
After an application is installed, only Administrator users will be able to access it. As an Administrator you can edit the application's permissions to provide access on a role and user-specific basis.
Can applications installed from the Application Directory be customized?
Yes. Any application in your account can be completely customized to meet your specific business needs. In this respect there is no difference between applications created by you and those installed into your account from the directory.
How do upgrades work for applications installed from the Application Directory?
Application publishers can update their applications at any time. If you have installed an application that has updates available, you will see "Updates Available" when viewing the application's details in the Setup area. By clicking "Check Updates" you will be taken to the application's page in the Application Directory where you will see an "Install Updates" button. This will install any new components included in the updated version of that application. You will also be given the option to overwrite any changes you may have made to components installed from previous versions (we do not typically recommend this option unless you are sure you have not made any important customizations to the app since you installed it).
Can I uninstall applications installed from the Application Directory?
Yes. Any Rollbase application can be deleted from your account, regardless of whether it was created by you or installed from the Application Directory. Rollbase enforces a safety precaution for applications, objects and portals by not allowing you to delete them until 1 hour after they have been undeployed.
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Security, Quality Control and Data Ownership
Can anyone else access applications that I install?
No. Only users in your Rollbase account that you give access to can access applications you have installed. Publishers do not have the ability to access your applications, they can only publish new versions of the app for you to install if you choose to.
Does Rollbase enforce any quality control on published applications?
Yes. All applications are reviewed by Rollbase staff to ensure they meet basic certification guidelines before they are made available for installation. These certification guidelines will be made available prior to the completion of the beta period.
Do I own all of the data stored in an application that I install?
Yes. All of the data stored in any of your applications is exclusively owned by you and Rollbase includes features that make it easy to extract all of your data on-demand. If you delete an application all of the data inside it will be permanently deleted.
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Publishing Applications
Can I publish an application I have built?
Yes. Once you have created an application and have revised it to the point where you feel it is ready for distribution, you can publish the app from the Setup area. A Rollbase employee will then review your application within 24 hours and let you know whether any modifications are required before it will appear in the directory. Application certification guidelines will be made available prior to the completion of the beta period.
Can I make money on my applications?
Yes. The Rollbase Partner Program provides a way to market and sell applications that run on the Rollbase platform at a discounted rate. This means you can sell Rollbase applications at a discount from our list prices, and you decide what to charge your customers for the applications plus any value-added services you provide.
Can I publish an application privately for only me to install for my clients?
We are working on a way to allow applications to be published privately and will provide more details about this after the beta period.
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More Details
What happens when an application is installed?
Installing an application from the Application Directory is the equivalent of using the Setup area to create an Application instance along with a number of Tabs, Portals, Objects, and their components such as Fields, Relationships, Pages, Views, Charts, etc. Once an application is installed you will see all of its Objects and other components in the same Setup locations you use to manage components from other applications.
Can applications share objects and other components?
Yes. Many applications share object definitions. When you install an application that uses an object you already have installed, that object will not be overwritten. Instead, Rollbase will only add any object components that are missing from that object to bring it up to date with the application being installed. This may include the creation of fields, relationships, views, charts, and other object components.
How does object sharing work across multiple applications?
Although you don't see this as a Rollbase Administrator, all objects have a unique global ID that allows Rollbase to track which objects have been installed in any given account. In this way, Rollbase automatically takes care of any object conflicts for you. When publishing an application that should share an object from another application, you must first install an application containing that object and use it in the application you intend to publish.
How was the Application Directory built?
At Rollbase we eat a lot of our own dog food. We use Rollbase applications internally to manage most of our business. This includes everything from account creation and management, to customer support, bug tracking, release management, product roadmap, market research, legal documents, online forums, employee management, and much more. The Rollbase Application Directory is one of many sophisticated portals we have created using standard Rollbase portal technology.
How does application publishing and installation work behind the scenes?
Rollbase is a purely metadata-driven, multitenant, on-demand application development and delivery platform that is based on a proprietary application serialization, publishing and execution engine. Whenever an application is published, the entire application including all of its components and component configurations, including images and document templates, get serialized into the Rollbase XML format which is then stored in the Application Directory. The only thing not included in the published version of an application is the actual data in the publisher's account. When another user installs this published application, the XML representation is parsed and recreated in the user's environment as if it was copied directly from the publisher.
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