We’ve hit a critical issue with risk scoring in our requirements management module after updating our risk assessment matrix. All requirement risk scores are stuck at zero despite having proper risk attributes configured.
Background:
- ELM 7.0.3 with Risk Extension installed
- Risk matrix updated to use new probability/impact scales (1-5 instead of Low/Med/High)
- 300+ requirements with risk attributes populated
- Risk scores calculated correctly before matrix change
Current state:
- All requirements show risk score = 0 in reports
- Risk attributes (probability, impact, mitigation) are populated correctly
- Manual risk score entry works, but automated calculation doesn’t
- No errors in UI, scores just don’t calculate
We’ve tried re-saving requirements and refreshing the risk dashboard, but scores remain zero. This is blocking our prioritization process since we rely on calculated risk scores for release planning.
GET /rm/risk/calculate?requirementId=REQ-234
Response: {"riskScore": 0, "calculationStatus": "pending"}
The calculation status stays “pending” indefinitely. Has anyone successfully reconfigured risk matrices and gotten the recalculate job to process existing requirements?
You’re right, I found the calculation script and it’s still using the old value mapping. I updated the script to use the new numeric scale, but the scores still aren’t calculating. Do I need to restart a service or trigger something to make the new script active?
Also, I notice there’s a “recalculate all” option in the risk dashboard, but it’s grayed out. Is there a permission requirement for that action?
When you change the risk matrix scale, you need to reactivate the risk calculation script. The script is tied to specific attribute value ranges, so switching from categorical to numeric scales breaks the calculation logic.
Check your project area configuration under Risk Management → Calculation Scripts. The script probably still references Low/Med/High values instead of your new 1-5 scale.
The script activation is key, but also check the matrix configuration itself. When you changed from categorical to numeric, did you update the risk score formula in the matrix definition? The matrix needs to know how to multiply probability by impact using the new scale.
If your matrix configuration still has the old calculation method, activating the script won’t help because the matrix is feeding wrong values to the script. Verify the matrix formula matches your new 1-5 scale.
After modifying the calculation script, you need to explicitly activate it. Just saving the script doesn’t make it active. Go to the script configuration page and click the “Activate” button. This registers the script with the risk calculation engine.
For the recalculate job, you need Project Administrator role to trigger bulk recalculation. If you don’t have that permission, you’ll need to ask your admin to run it or grant you temporary admin access.
Also worth checking the script permissions. The risk calculation script runs under a service account, and if that account doesn’t have read access to the new risk attribute values, calculations will fail silently with zero scores.
Look in the rm.log for any permission denied errors around the time you try to calculate risk. If you see access violations, you need to grant the calculation service account read permission on the risk attributes.