The EVMS GUI is a flexible and easy-to-use interface for administering volumes and storage objects. Many users find the EVMS GUI easy to use because it displays which storage objects, actions, and plug-ins are acceptable for a particular task.
The EVMS GUI lets you accomplish most tasks in one of two ways: context sensitive menus or the menu.
Context sensitive menus are available from any of the main "views." Each view corresponds to a page in a notebook widget located on the EVMS GUI main window. These views are made up of different trees or lists that visually represent the organization of different object types, including volumes, feature objects, regions, containers, segments, or disks.
You can view the context sensitive menu for an object by right-clicking on that object. The actions that are available for that object display on the screen. The GUI will only present actions that are acceptable for the selected object at that point in the process. These actions are not always a complete set.
To use the menu, choose → → . The menu provides a more guided path for completing a task than do context sensitive menus. The option is similar to the wizard or druid approach used by many GUI applications.
All of the operations you need to perform as an administrator are available through the menu.
All of the changes that you make while in the EVMS GUI are only in memory until you save the changes. In order to make your changes permanent, you must save all changes before exiting. If you forget to save the changes and decide to exit or close the EVMS GUI, you are reminded to save any pending changes.
To explicitly save all the changes you made, select → , and click the button.
The button updates the view and allows you to see changes, like mount points, that might have changed outside of the GUI.
Along the left hand side of the panel views in the GUI is a "+" that resides beside each item. When you click the "+," the objects that are included in the item are displayed. If any of the objects that display also have a "+" beside them, you can expand them further by clicking on the "+" next to each object name.
You can avoid using a mouse for navigating the EVMS GUI by using a series of key strokes, or "accelerator keys," instead. The following sections tell how to use accelerator keys in the EVMS Main Window, the Selection Window, and the Configuration Options Window.
In the Main Window view, use the following keys to navigate:
Table 2.1. Accelerator keys in the Main Window
| Left and right arrow keys | Navigate between the notebook tabs of the different views. |
| Down arrow and Spacebar | Bring keyboard focus into the view. |
While in a view, use the following keys to navigate:
Table 2.2. Accelerator keys in the views
| up and down arrows | Allow movement around the window. |
| "+" | Opens an object tree. |
| "-" | Collapses an object tree. |
| ENTER | Brings up the context menu (on a row). |
| Arrows | Navigate a context menu. |
| ENTER | Activates an item. |
| ESC | Dismisses the context menu. |
| Tab | Gets you out of the view and moves you back up to the notebook tab. |
To access the action bar menu, press Alt and then the underlined accelerator key for the menu choice (for example, "A" for the dropdown menu).
In a dropdown menu, you can use the up and down arrows to navigate. You could also just type the accelerator key for the menu item, which is the character with the underscore. For example, to initiate a command to delete a container, type Alt + "A" + "D" + "C."
Ctrl-S is a shortcut to initiate saving changes. Ctrl-Q is a shortcut to initiate quitting the EVMS GUI.
A selection window typically contains a selection list, plus four to five buttons below it. Use the following keys to navigate in the selection window:
Table 2.3. Accelerator keys in the selection window
| Tab | Navigates (changes keyboard focus) between the list and the buttons. |
| Up and down arrows | Navigates within the selection list. |
| Spacebar | Selects and deselects items in the selection list. |
| Enter on the button or type the accelerator character (if one exists) | Activates a button |
Use the following keys to navigate in the configuration options window:
Table 2.4. Accelerator keys in the configuration options window
| Tab | Cycles focus between fields and buttons |
| Left and right arrows | Navigate the folder tabs if the window has a widget notebook. |
| Spacebar or the down arrow | Switches focus to a different notebook page. |
| Enter or type the accelerator character (if one exists) | Activates a button |
For widgets, use the following keys to navigate:
Table 2.5. Widget navigation keys in the configuration options window
| Tab | Cycles forward through a set of widgets |
| Shift-Tab | Cycles backward through a set of widgets. |
The widget navigation, selection, and activation is the same in all dialog windows.