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XMI Import and Export

XML Metadata Interchange (XMI), defined by the OMG and based on XML, is an open standard file format that enables the interchange of model information between models and tools.

XMI and Enterprise Architect

Enterprise Architect uses XMI as a method of importing and exporting model specifications between different UML Packages, Enterprise Architect projects and other tools that support XMI. The system supports the XMI 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.4, 2.4.2 and 2.5.1 specifications. XMI 1.1 provides support for UML 1.3, whereas XMI 2.x is used for UML 2.0 - 2.5.

Enterprise Architect does not fully support the older 1.0 specification. When importing or exporting to XMI 1.0, some loss of data occurs due to the limitations of XMI 1.0.

With XMI, model details can be exchanged between different UML tools and other tools that are capable of using XMI. Limited support for export to Rational Rose is provided using the Rose version of the XMI 1.1 specification, as implemented by Unisys for Rational products.

Packages can be exported from and imported into Enterprise Architect models, which greatly improves the flexibility and robustness of the models, helping Analysts and Modelers to externalize model elements in XMI for:

  • Version control
  • Distributed development
  • Post processing and
  • Transferring Packages between models

When importing an XML file over an existing Package, by default all information in the current Package is deleted before the data is imported from the XML file. Please make sure you do not have important changes that you do not want to lose before importing from XML. Alternatively, use a merge file to merge the information in the XMI file with the contents of the Package.

XMI Tasks

Tasks you might perform in importing and exporting XMI include:

  • Setting XML Options - XMI import, export and Package control all rely on saving and loading XML files; you can set a number of options to streamline this process
  • Exporting a Package to XMI in XMI 2.1 (and earlier)
  • Importing from XMI with support for XMI 2.1 (and earlier)
  • Setting up controlled Packages
  • Manually controlling a Package by linking it to an XMI file
  • Batch exporting controlled Packages
  • Batch importing controlled Packages
  • Factoring in the limitations of XMI
  • Applying a UML Data Type Definition (DTD)
  • Importing a model from IBM Rational Rhapsody
  • Importing a model from a MagicDraw MDZIP file

Notes

  • XMI 2.1 exported by Enterprise Architect 7.0 (or later) might not be correctly imported into earlier versions of Enterprise Architect
  • When performing Enterprise Architect-to-Enterprise Architect transfers, ensure that either XMI version 1.1 or XMI version 2.1 is selected

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