Format Documentation

SimML Reference

Complete XML schema reference for the .simml simulation model format. Reverse-engineered from the C# desktop engine's [SimMLElement] and [SimMLAttribute] contract decorators.

36 elements176 attributes2 sim types (Kanban & Scrum)

Document Structure

<simulation name="..." locale="...">
  <?parameter name="@var" value="..." ?>
  <execute type="kanban|scrum" limitIntervalsTo="..." ...>
    <visual />
    <monteCarlo cycles="..." />
    <sensitivity cycles="..." estimateMultiplier="..." />
    <addStaff cycles="..." />
    <ballot type="borda|schulze" />
  </execute>
  <setup>
    <backlog type="simple|custom" simpleCount="..." shuffle="true|false">
      <deliverable name="..." order="..." preRequisiteDeliverables="...">
        <custom name="..." count="..." estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="...">
          <column id="..." estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="..." />
        </custom>
      </deliverable>
      <custom name="..." count="..." ... />
    </backlog>
    <columns>
      <column id="..." wipLimit="..." estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="..." buffer="false" />
    </columns>
    <iteration storyPointsPerIterationLowBound="..." storyPointsPerIterationHighBound="..." />
    <defects>
      <defect columnId="..." occurrenceLowBound="..." occurrenceHighBound="..." count="...">
        <column columnId="..." estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="..." />
      </defect>
    </defects>
    <blockingEvents>
      <blockingEvent columnId="..." occurrenceLowBound="..." occurrenceHighBound="..."
                     estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="..." />
    </blockingEvents>
    <addedScopes>
      <addedScope occurrenceLowBound="..." occurrenceHighBound="..." count="..." />
    </addedScopes>
    <forecastDate startDate="..." costPerDay="..." targetDate="...">
      <excludes><exclude date="..." /></excludes>
      <actuals><actual date="..." count="..." annotation="..." /></actuals>
    </forecastDate>
    <distributions>
      <distribution name="..." shape="..." parameters="..." />
    </distributions>
    <phases unit="percentage|interval|iteration">
      <phase start="..." end="..." estimateMultiplier="..." costPerDay="...">
        <column id="..." wipLimit="..." />
      </phase>
    </phases>
    <classOfServices>
      <classOfService order="..." default="false" violateWIP="false" skipPercentage="0">
        <column id="..." estimateLowBound="..." estimateHighBound="..." />
      </classOfService>
    </classOfServices>
  </setup>
</simulation>

Element Explorer

<simulation>

`<simulation>`

simulationrequired

Root element of every SimML document. Defines a complete simulation model containing execution parameters and setup configuration.

Attributes(2)

Attribute	Type	Description	Default	Values
name	string	A user-defined name for this simulation model. For reference only.	""	—
locale	string	ISO locale culture string (e.g. "en-US"). If omitted, the culture of the environment running the simulation engine will be used.	System culture	—

Child Elements (3)

<?parameter>

Declares a reusable variable that can be referenced by @name throughout the SimML document. Values are substituted befor...

<execute>

Defines how the simulation is run: simulation type, cycle limits, output formatting, and which analysis modes (visual, M...

<setup>

Contains the complete simulation configuration: backlog, columns, events, iterations, forecast dates, distributions, pha...

Implementation

C# class: SimulationData

File: FocusedObjective.Contract/Data/SimulationData.cs

Attribute Quick Reference

Every attribute across all elements, searchable. Click an element name to jump to the explorer.

Attribute	Type	Req	Description	Default
name	string		A user-defined name for this simulation model. For reference only.	""
locale	string		ISO locale culture string (e.g. "en-US"). If omitted, the culture of the environment running the sim...	System culture
name	string	Yes	Unique name to identify this parameter. Referenced by prefixing with "@". Must not contain @, <, >, ...	—
value	string	Yes	The value assigned when the parameter is referenced by @[name] elsewhere.	—
type	string		Includes this parameter for interactive experiments.	—
lowest	number		Lowest allowed numeric value for interactive experiments. Number types only.	—
highest	number		Highest allowed numeric value for interactive experiments. Number types only.	—
step	number		Increment step size for interactive experiments. Number types only.	—
type	enum		Simulation model type.	kanban
limitIntervalsTo	integer		Maximum number of simulation steps. The simulation returns even if not all work is completed by this...	9000
intervalUnit	string		Label describing what each simulation step represents (e.g. "days", "hours").	"days"
decimalRounding	integer		Number of decimal places numbers are rounded to in output.	3
dateFormat	string		Date format string used to parse date values throughout the model (e.g. "dd-MMM-yyyy", "yyyyMMdd").	"yyyyMMdd"
currencyFormat	string		Currency format string for cost output.	"C2"
percentageFormat	string		Percentage format string for output.	"P"
aggregationValue	enum		Statistical aggregation method used to summarize Monte Carlo results into a single forecast figure.	average
deliverables	string		Pipe-separated list of deliverable names to include in the simulation. When empty (default), all del...	""
defaultDistribution	enum		Default distribution shape applied to estimate bounds when no distribution is explicitly specified.	"uniform"
completePercentage	number		Lowest percentage of completed work items before the simulation is recorded as complete. Allows earl...	100.0
activePositionsCompletePercentage	number		When active cards on the board fall below this percentage AND completePercentage is satisfied, the s...	0.0
pullOrder	enum		Controls how items are selected and processed when multiple items could move in the same interval.	afterOrdering
basePath	string		Base file path for resolving external references (distribution data files, includes).	""
cycles	integer	Yes	Number of Monte Carlo simulation cycles to execute.	1000
rawResults	boolean		"true" returns individual result data per cycle. "false" (default) returns only aggregate statistics...	false
cycles	integer		Number of Monte Carlo cycles per sensitivity test.	1000
estimateMultiplier	number		Factor applied to estimate bounds during sensitivity tests (e.g. 1.2 = +20%).	1.2
occurrenceMultiplier	number		Factor applied to occurrence rate bounds during sensitivity tests.	1.2
iterationMultiplier	number		Factor applied to iteration velocity bounds during sensitivity tests (Scrum only).	1.0
sensitivityType	string		Type of sensitivity analysis to run.	"oneFactor"
sortOrder	string		How sensitivity results are sorted in output.	"ascending"
cycles	integer		Number of Monte Carlo cycles per staffing test.	1000
count	integer		Number of staff increments to test per column.	1
optimizeForLowest	boolean		When true, finds the staffing allocation that minimizes time. When false, maximizes throughput.	true
type	enum		Voting algorithm to use.	"borda"
type	enum		Backlog specification type. "simple" creates identical items from a count. "custom" uses explicit de...	simple
simpleCount	integer		Number of backlog items when type="simple".	100
nameFormat	string		Format string for work item names. Placeholders: {0}=sequential index, {1}=custom name, {2}=custom o...	"Story {0}"
shuffle	boolean		Whether the backlog is initially randomized for entries sharing the same order value. Set "false" to...	true
name	string	Yes	Unique name for this deliverable. Used as a reference in prerequisites and deliverable filters, and ...	—
dueDate	date		Due date used for ordering work start alongside other deliverables with the same priority order. For...	""
skipPercentage	number		Percentage of simulation runs where this entire deliverable is omitted from the initial backlog (mod...	0.0
order	integer		Sort order determining when this deliverable is started relative to others. Lowest value is started ...	int.MaxValue
preRequisiteDeliverables	string		Pipe-separated list of deliverable names that must fully complete before any items in this deliverab...	""
earliestStartDate	date		Earliest simulation date at which items from this deliverable may be pulled from the backlog. Format...	—
name	string		Name identifying this custom backlog type. Used as a reference in event targeting and displayed via ...	""
count	integer		Number of items generated from this entry and added to the backlog.	1
completed	boolean		If true, these items are considered already completed at simulation start. Used for "forecast from c...	false
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest story point estimate for these items (Scrum only).	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest story point estimate for these items (Scrum only).	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for story point estimates (Scrum only). Must reference a distribution defined in ...	""
classOfService	string		Class of service name assigned to these items. Must reference a class of service defined in <classOf...	""
dueDate	date		Due date for priority ordering alongside items with the same sort order.	""
percentageLowBound	number		Lowest percentage of column cycle-time range used for these items (Kanban only). 0 = column low boun...	0
percentageHighBound	number		Highest percentage of column cycle-time range used for these items (Kanban only).	100
order	integer		Sort order determining when these items are started. Lowest value started first. Omitting defaults t...	int.MaxValue
valueLowBound	number		Lowest random business value amount assigned to these items. Used for cost-of-delay and ROI analysis...	0
valueHighBound	number		Highest random business value amount assigned to these items.	0
initialColumn	integer		Column id where these items start (Kanban only). Items skip all columns before this one. Default -1 ...	-1
id	integer	Yes	Column id to override default estimate values for (Kanban only).	—
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest cycle-time value for this column for these item types (Kanban only).	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest cycle-time value for this column for these item types (Kanban only).	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for cycle-time estimates for this column (Kanban only).	""
skipPercentage	number		How often items of this type skip this column (0–100). Default 0. (Kanban only)	0
id	integer	Yes	Unique column id number. Referenced by defects, blocking events, phase overrides, and custom item ov...	—
displayWidth	integer		Width of this column in the visual simulation board. Default 1.	1
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest cycle-time value (number of intervals) for work in this column (Kanban only).	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest cycle-time value (number of intervals) for work in this column (Kanban only).	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for cycle-time estimates in this column (Kanban only). Must reference a distribut...	""
wipLimit	integer	Yes	Maximum number of items allowed in this column simultaneously (Kanban only). Set to 0 for unlimited.	0
skipPercentage	number		Percentage of items that skip this column entirely (0–100). Default is 0.	0
buffer	boolean		If true, this is a buffer/queue column. Work entering is immediately flagged as complete for this co...	false
replenishInterval	integer		Number of simulation intervals that must pass before new work can enter this column. Default is 1 (e...	1
completeInterval	integer		Number of simulation intervals that must pass before completed work can exit this column. Default is...	1
storyPointsPerIterationLowBound	number		Lowest story points delivered per iteration (Scrum only).	0
storyPointsPerIterationHighBound	number		Highest story points delivered per iteration (Scrum only).	0
storyPointsPerIterationDistribution	string		Named distribution for iteration velocity (Scrum only). Must reference a distribution in <distributi...	""
itemsPerIterationLowBound	number		Lowest number of items completed per iteration. Alternative to story points for throughput-based Scr...	0
itemsPerIterationHighBound	number		Highest number of items completed per iteration. Alternative to story points.	0
itemsPerIterationDistribution	string		Named distribution for throughput-based iteration velocity. Must reference a distribution in <distri...	""
allowedToOverAllocate	boolean		Whether the sprint can allocate stories beyond the iteration target. When false, stories larger than...	true
columnId	integer		Column id where items are counted toward the occurrence rate and where defect items originate (Kanba...	-1
occurrenceType	enum	Yes	Measurement unit for occurrence rates. "count"/"cards"/"stories" = absolute item count trigger. "siz...	count
occurrenceLowBound	number	Yes	Lowest occurrence rate value in units specified by occurrenceType.	5
occurrenceHighBound	number	Yes	Highest occurrence rate value in units specified by occurrenceType.	10
occurrenceDistribution	string		Named distribution for occurrence rate (instead of low/high bounds). Must reference a distribution i...	""
startsInColumnId	integer		Column id where defect items start their journey (Kanban only). -1 = backlog (default).	-1
count	integer		Number of defect items added each time this event triggers. Default 1.	1
classOfService	string		Class of service assigned to newly created defect items. Blank = same class as the triggering card.	""
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest story point estimate for defect items (Scrum only).	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest story point estimate for defect items (Scrum only).	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for defect story point estimates (Scrum only).	""
isCardMove	boolean		If true, the triggering card is moved back to the defect start column rather than creating a new def...	false
phases	string		Pipe-separated phase names where this defect event is active. Blank = active in all phases.	""
targetCustomBacklog	string		Only items of this custom backlog type are counted toward the trigger. Blank = all item types.	""
targetDeliverable	string		Only items in this deliverable are counted toward the trigger. Blank = all deliverables.	""
columnId	integer	Yes	Column id to apply the defect estimate override (Kanban only).	—
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest cycle-time for defects in this column.	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest cycle-time for defects in this column.	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for defect cycle-time in this column.	""
columnId	integer		Column id where items are counted toward occurrence and where blocking takes effect (Kanban only). -...	-1
occurrenceType	enum	Yes	Measurement unit for occurrence rates.	count
occurrenceLowBound	number	Yes	Lowest occurrence rate value.	5
occurrenceHighBound	number	Yes	Highest occurrence rate value.	10
occurrenceDistribution	string		Named distribution for occurrence rate.	""
estimateLowBound	number	Yes	Lowest blocking duration estimate (intervals for Kanban, points for Scrum).	0
estimateHighBound	number	Yes	Highest blocking duration estimate.	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for blocking duration.	""
phases	string		Pipe-separated phase names where this event is active. Blank = all phases.	""
blockWork	boolean		Whether regular work items can be blocked by this event.	true
blockDefects	boolean		Whether defect items can be blocked by this event.	false
blockAddedScope	boolean		Whether added-scope items can be blocked by this event.	false
targetCustomBacklog	string		Only items of this custom backlog type can be blocked. Blank = all types.	""
targetDeliverable	string		Only items in this deliverable can be blocked. Blank = all deliverables.	""
occurrenceType	enum	Yes	Measurement unit for occurrence rates.	count
occurrenceLowBound	number	Yes	Lowest occurrence rate value.	5
occurrenceHighBound	number	Yes	Highest occurrence rate value.	10
occurrenceDistribution	string		Named distribution for occurrence rate.	""
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest story point estimate for added scope items (Scrum only).	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest story point estimate for added scope items (Scrum only).	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for added scope story point estimates (Scrum only).	""
count	integer		Number of items added to the backlog each time this event triggers. Default 1.	1
phases	string		Pipe-separated phase names where this event is active. Blank = all phases.	""
classOfService	string		Class of service for newly created items. Blank = same as triggering card.	""
customBacklog	string		Custom backlog type for newly created items. Blank = same as triggering card.	""
deliverable	string		Deliverable for newly created items. Blank = same as triggering card.	""
targetCustomBacklog	string		Only items of this custom backlog type count as triggers. Blank = all.	""
targetDeliverable	string		Only items in this deliverable count as triggers. Blank = all.	""
startDate	date	Yes	First calendar day the project starts. Format per <execute dateFormat=...>.	—
intervalsToOneDay	integer		Number of simulation steps per calendar day. Use 8 for hourly intervals in an 8-hour workday.	1
workDays	string		Comma-separated working days of the week. Non-work days are skipped in date calculations.	"monday,tuesday,wednesday,thursday,friday"
costPerDay	currency		Monetary amount per working day used for total cost computation.	0
workDaysPerIteration	integer		Number of work days per iteration (Scrum only). Used to map iterations to calendar dates.	10
targetDate	date		Target completion date for cost-of-delay analysis. Format per <execute dateFormat=...>.	—
targetLikelihood	number		Desired probability (0–100) for the forecast date to meet the target.	85
revenue	currency		Expected revenue per revenueUnit once the target date is reached. Used for cost-of-delay calculation...	0
revenueUnit	enum		Time period for the revenue attribute.	month
date	date	Yes	Calendar date to exclude. Format per <execute dateFormat=...>.	—
date	date	Yes	Calendar date of this actual measurement. Format per <execute dateFormat=...>.	—
count	number	Yes	Cumulative number of completed items as of the specified date.	0
annotation	string		Text annotation displayed on charts at this data point.	""
name	string	Yes	Unique name for this distribution. Referenced by *Distribution attributes elsewhere.	—
shape	string	Yes	Distribution shape. 25+ built-in types including: uniform, weibull, normal, lognormal, triangular, b...	—
parameters	string		Comma-separated distribution parameters. Meaning depends on shape (e.g. alpha,beta for Weibull).	—
numberType	enum		Type of number returned by the distribution.	—
generator	enum		Underlying uniform random number generator algorithm.	alf
count	integer		Count of random numbers to pre-generate. Default 1000.	1000
lowBound	number		Lowest allowed value. Values below are clipped or stretched.	—
highBound	number		Highest allowed value. Values above are clipped or stretched.	—
boundProcessing	enum		How out-of-bound values are handled. "clip" truncates at bounds, "stretch" rescales.	clip
location	number		Starting point (offset) on the X-axis for the distribution.	—
multiplier	number		Multiplier applied to all generated values. Default 1.0.	1.0
separatorCharacter	string		Entry separator character for sample-data distributions.	—
zeroHandling	enum		How zero values in sample data are processed.	keep
zeroValue	number		Replacement value when zeroHandling="value".	—
path	string		File path for external distribution data.	—
decimalSeparator	string		Decimal separator character in sample data.	—
thousandsSeparator	string		Thousands separator character in sample data.	—
unit	enum		Unit system for phase start/end values. "percentage" = % of backlog items pulled, "interval" = simul...	percentage
start	number	Yes	Lowest trigger value to activate this phase (in units defined by parent <phases unit=...>).	0
end	number	Yes	Highest trigger value — phase deactivates above this value.	0
estimateMultiplier	number		Multiplier applied to all cycle-time estimates while this phase is active. >1 = slower, <1 = faster.	1.0
occurrenceMultiplier	number		Multiplier applied to defect and blocking event occurrence rates while active.	1.0
iterationMultiplier	number		Multiplier applied to iteration velocity (Scrum only). <1 = reduced velocity.	1.0
costPerDay	currency		Cost per day override while this phase is active. Overrides the global forecastDate costPerDay.	0
id	integer	Yes	Column id to override WIP limit for (Kanban only).	—
wipLimit	integer	Yes	WIP limit override when this phase is active.	0
order	integer		Work priority order. Lowest order = highest priority (pulled first). Used in the multi-key sort: del...	1
default	boolean		Whether this is the default class of service applied to items without an explicit assignment.	false
violateWIP	boolean		When true, items of this class can enter a column even when it is at WIP limit. The lowest-priority ...	false
skipPercentage	number		Percentage of items in this class that are automatically completed without entering the board (0–100...	0
maximumAllowedOnBoard	integer		Maximum number of active items of this class allowed on the board simultaneously.	int.MaxValue
id	integer	Yes	Column id to override (Kanban only).	—
estimateLowBound	number		Lowest cycle-time for this COS in this column.	0
estimateHighBound	number		Highest cycle-time for this COS in this column.	0
estimateDistribution	string		Named distribution for COS cycle-time in this column.	""
skipPercentage	number		How often items of this COS skip this column (0–100).	0

Enumeration Reference

SimulationType

Determines whether the simulation uses Kanban flow or Scrum iteration mechanics.

kanbanscrum

BacklogType

Simple creates N identical items. Custom uses deliverables and typed entries.

simplecustom

OccurrenceType

Unit of measure for event occurrence rates. 'count'/'cards'/'stories' are equivalent count-based triggers. 'size'/'points' use story points (Scrum). 'percentage' is a per-interval probability.

countcardsstoriessizepointspercentage

PullOrder

Controls how items are selected for processing. 'afterOrdering' randomizes items that share the same priority. 'fifoStrict' prevents out-of-order completion.

afterOrderingrandomindexfifofifoStrict

AggregationValue

Statistical method for summarizing Monte Carlo results into a single forecast.

averagemedianfifthtwentyfifthseventyfifthninetyfifth

PhaseUnit

Unit system for phase start/end trigger values.

percentageintervaliteration

ShufflePositions

Controls backlog randomization. 'afterOrdering' shuffles within same-priority groups.

afterOrderingtruefalseFIFOFIFOStrict

BoundProcessing

How distribution values outside bounds are handled. 'clip' truncates, 'stretch' rescales.

clipstretch

ZeroHandling

How zero values in sample data are processed. 'value' replaces them with zeroValue.

keepremovevalue

RevenueUnit

Time period for the revenue attribute in cost-of-delay calculations.

dayweekmonthyear