In order to create and edit Structure101 project artifacts (Specs, Actions, etc.), it is necessary to create or open a project file (*.hsp) in Studio. Whatever changes you make in Studio can be saved back to the same or a new project file. As well as the project artifacts, a project file contains a reference to the *.cpa file, and this is scanned afresh each time the project is opened.

However, sometimes it is not convenient or feasible for a specific user to access the latest *.cpa file for a specific project. For example a senior Architect may oversee the architecture of many projects. Such a person would be able to use the Dashboard to monitor ongoing architectural progress or otherwise, but would not be able to edit Specs or Actions in this way.

In this situation it is possible to open a project file in Studio, even if the specified *.cpa file is not available on the local machine, and then refer to the latest Structure101 repository snapshot for that project, using the association capability. This will obtain all the required information about the source code (at the most recent Build/Publish time), to create the basic model, and then apply the project artifacts (Specs, Actions, etc) to that model. The artifacts can then be edited and saved back to the project file. (The repository snapshot is not/ cannot be changed).

Often the modified project file will be pushed with the source code, and used at build time (by Build) in order to publish the next snapshot to a Structure101 repository, which can then be analyzed and/or modified (perhaps the next day) in the same way.