Patent ID: 7099899

Claim:
A computer-implemented method for item versioning in a database content management system that includes a plurality of tables, the method comprising: acquiring a predetermined version control indicator of allowable versions for an entire hierarchical structure of an item type of one of the database tables, wherein the hierarchical structure comprises a root component and at least one child component; updating an item that is an instance of the item type; and implementing version control of the item based on the version control indicator and attributes of the root and child components that are defined by the hierarchical structure of the item type; wherein, upon updating the item, automatically creating a new version of the entire item, so that multiple versions of the item are maintained in the hierarchical structure of the item type; wherein the multiple versions of the item share a single item identification, with each version being identified by a unique version number; and wherein each of the multiple versions of the item reflects a different version of the item and includes a corresponding version of the entire hierarchical structure of the item type.