iIDEAS Administrator Release 6

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iIDEAS Administrator Overview

iIDEAS is an integrated suite of Web-enabled applications that implement a new vision of financial management.  These applications enable organizations to significantly improve productivity by leveraging the global networking capabilities of the World Wide Web. 

As the web-enabling component of the IFS IDEAS (IFW) financial management system, iIDEAS extends the reach of the financial management system to managers and content providers wherever they may be.

Modules to Set Up Before iIDEAS Administrator

It is necessary to set up the IFS IDEAS General Ledger and Security modules before setting up the iIDEAS Administrator module.

iIDEAS Administrator System Setup Procedures

To set up IFW to operate the iIDEAS Administrator module, complete the following steps in the order listed below.  Each step requires that you select a function from a drop-down menu and complete the screen(s) that IFW displays.  Please see the Screen-By-Screen Instructions section for detailed instructions on how to complete each screen.

Setup Requirements for All iIDEAS Modules

Setup Requirements for the iApprove Module

Modules to Set Up Before Using iIDEAS

To use iIDEAS you will need to set up several modules depending on the iIDEAS Functions being implemented.  These are outlined below.

For all iIDEAS modules, set up:

• IFS IDEAS General Ledger

• iIDEAS Administrator

• iIDEAS Web Site

For Electronic Workflow Management you will also need to set up:

• IFS IDEAS Accounts Payable

For Electronic Report Distribution you will also need to set up:

• IFS IDEAS Financial Report Writer

• Optionally, IFS IDEAS Enhanced Security

In the Following Sections

The following sections discuss the use of iIDEAS including:

• Logging In

• Navigating the Menus

• The Tool Bar

• Electronic Work Flow Management Processing

  • Invoice Approval Processing

• Retrieving Information

  • Electronic Report Distribution

Logging In

To log in to iIDEAS you need a User ID and Password. See iIDEAS Administrator to learn how to establish User ID’s and passwords.

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• User ID – Enter a valid User ID.  If you have Internet Explorer AutoComplete enabled, you may choose a User ID from the drop-down list.

• Password – Enter a valid password.  If you have Internet Explorer AutoComplete enabled, the password will be provided automatically. If you have enabled AutoComplete but have not previously memorized a password, the following dialog box will be presented.

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• Language – Choose your preferred language from the list.

  • Only English language captions are available at this time.

To Adjust AutoComplete Settings

You can configure AutoComplete to save and suggest only the information you want. You can choose whether to use AutoComplete for Web addresses, forms, and passwords, or not use it all. You can also clear the history for any of these.

1. In Internet Explorer, on the Tools menu, click Internet Options.
   
   
   

2. Click the Content tab.
   
   
   

3. Under Personal information, click AutoComplete.
   
   
   

4. Select the check boxes for the AutoComplete options you want to use.
   
   
   

Selecting a Database

iIDEAS is designed to provide access to IFS IDEAS data residing on any server within the network.  With Internet or Intranet, access and appropriate security data can be accessed from any location.

Selecting a Database for Access

Click on the available options in the left pane.

Navigating the iIDEAS Menus

The iIDEAS menu items available to you will appear in the left pane.  Only authorized items for the User ID and Database will appear.  The menu may contain different items for the same User ID when a different database is accessed.

Navigating the Menu

To select an item, hover the cursor over the text and click the item. While hovering, the text will be highlighted and the cursor will change to the selection cursor. By default this is the index finger icon (G).

To open an item in a new window, hover the cursor over the text and right-click. Then chose Open In New Window from the menu that appears.

The Folder Icon

You may collapse or expand menu selections by clicking the folder icon next to menu titles.

Hiding the Menu

You may hide a menu by dragging the pane closed.  To do so, position the cursor on the right margin of the menu pane.  The cursor will change to a double arrow. Drag the right margin to the left to cover the menu.

The iIDEAS Tool Bar

The iIDEAS Tool Bar provides several shortcuts.

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• Home – The home button returns you to the page from which iIDEAS was accessed.

• Database – The Database button navigates to the Database Selection page where you may choose an alternate database.

• Logout – Click the logout button to end your iIDEAS session.

• Status Panels – Two status panels are shown on the tool bar, the current User ID login name and the current database.

Screen-by-Screen Instructions

The iIDEAS Administrator module offers functions to support all activities required to perform iIDEAS Administrator processing.  IFW organizes functions into drop-down menus.  Click once on a menu name to get the drop-down menu from which to select a function.  Following are the six drop-down menu names and the functions that fall under each:

 In The Following Sections

The previous chart lists the drop-down menu names for the iIDEAS Administrator module and the functions that fall under each.  The rest of the document covers this information systematically.  There is a major section for each drop-down menu, and a minor section for each function.  Each section begins with an overview and is followed by screen-by-screen instructions.

iIDEAS Administrator Module Main Screen

Functions in the iIDEAS Administrator module may be accessed through the drop-down menus. After you log into the iIDEAS Administrator module, select a function from one of the drop-down menus.

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iApprove Menu

The iApprove menu provides the capability to administer the iApprove (Electronic Work Flow) process.  Administrative functions include:

• Notification – The administrative tool for approver email notification.

• Approval Administration – An administrative tool to review and modify approval information and routing.

• Member Administration – A tool to create and group reviewers and approvers.

Notification

Use Notification to define email original and reminder notification text, to generate notices, and to specify the interval subsequent to the original notice for which approvers are reminded of un-actioned approvals.

Defining Notification Parameters

Select Notification from the iApprove drop-down menu. 

Modify this screen to add the sender’s information and email server name.  We now can send email through MS or Lotus notes or anything that uses SMTP.

The boxes at the top of the Notification screen provide email notification execution options.

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• Document Type - ???

• Sender's Name – Type in the name of the person sending the notice.

• Sender's Email – Type in the senders email address.

• Subject – Type in the subject of the notice you are sending.

• Email Server Name – Enter in the name of the server you are sending the notice to or from.

Use these boxes to specify what notices should be generated.  Options are:

• Notices – Check this box to indicate that original email notices should be generated.

Note: You can prevent emails from being sent to selected individuals by checking the Disable Email Notices box on the Member Administration form.

Note: You can schedule automatic email notice generation by setting the Appr_Notification_Email_Send parameter in iIDEAS Administrator Utilities, Miscellaneous Setup.

• Reminders – Check this box to indicate that reminder email notices should be generated.

• Days after notification to send reminders - Check this box to specify the number of days after the original email notice that a reminder notice should be generated, if no approval action has been taken.

The Notice and Reminder Text Box

Use the text boxes to specify the text that should be included in the email notification. 

Using the Text Box Toolbar

The buttons on the toolbar are shortcuts for common text editing tasks, such as font effects and alignment. You can see a description of each toolbar icon by placing your mouse over it.

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• Notice and Reminder Text – Click on the Edit Text Button to obtain a full rich text editor.

Generating Email Notifications

To create Email Notifications for pending approvals or reminder notices, click the Execute icon (!) on the Approver Notification toolbar.

The Email Notification Report

The Email Notification report is automatically produced when notices and/or reminders are sent.

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Approval Administration

 The Approval Administration form provides the capability to review and modify selected approval information for a particular document.  The edit capabilities of Approval Administration include:   

• Setting the Rejection status to Resolved or Unresolved

• Changing the Approval Status

• Changing Rejection Reason

• Modifying Comments and Messages

• Adding or Removing Attachments

• Changing the Charge To element values

History Tab

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The History tab provides information about the Approval History for a selected document.  To select a document, complete the text boxes at the top of the form:

• Company – Enter a company code or select a code from the drop-down box.

• Currency – Enter a currency code or select a code from the drop-down box.

• Vendor – Enter a vendor code or click the spyglass to search for a vendor code.

• Document ID – Enter a Document ID or click the spyglass to search for a Document ID.

• Rejection – When a document is rejected by an approver, the Rejection status is initially set to Unresolved.  This enables rejected documents to be tracked until the issue is resolved with the vendor. To change the Rejection status, click the option button for either Resolved or Unresolved.

When you are changing the Approval Status or Rejection Reason the History grid provides information on file for each reviewer/approver for the selected document. Within this grid you may delete rows or change the values in the Status or Reason columns.

To delete a row, select it by clicking in the left-most column (dark gray).  The row will be highlighted.  Once the row is highlighted, you may right-click in the row and chose Delete from the drop-down menu, or press CTRL+L.

• You can de-select a row by clicking the left-most column a second time.

• To add a reviewer or approver, access the AP Invoice Entry form and click the Approvers command button at the bottom of the form on the Member Administration form.

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To change the Status or Reason for a given row, click in the Status or Reason column on the row to be changed.  Click the resulting spyglass to choose a new status or reason.

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Miscellaneous Tab

The Approval Administration Miscellaneous tab provides the capability to modify comments and messages, add or remove attachments, and change the Charge To element values.

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• Comments and Messages - To change approval comments and messages, edit the text boxes on the Miscellaneous tab of the Approval Administration form.

Changing the Charge To Information

Any Charge To information entered via iIDEAS web pages may be modified through the Approval Administration, Miscellaneous tab and Elements panel.  Select a replacement value from the drop-down menu that appears when the spyglass is clicked in the Elements panel.

• The Charge To elements are defined in the iIDEAS Administrator, Codes, iApprove Coding Parameters form.

Accessing and Editing Attachments for a Document

Any attachments to the current document may be accessed by clicking the Attachment command button. Clicking this button will provide a list of current attachments.  Attachments can be added or removed by using the features of the Attachment pop-up.  To delete an entry, select it and click the X button.  To add an entry, click the spyglass and chose an attachment from the list.

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Viewing Attachments

Any attachments to the current document may be accessed by clicking the Attachment command button.  Clicking this button will provide a list of current attachments.  To view an attachment, double-click the item.  The item will be displayed using the program associated with the file type of the attachment.

To associate a file extension with a file type, do as follows:

1. Open Folder Options in the Control Panel.

2. Click the File Types tab.

Highlight the File Type extension and click the Change button.

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Member Administration Screen

Member Administration provides the capability to define and administer the rights of staff members who are reviewers or approvers.  The process also provides the capability to associate staff members with Profiles.

Processing the Member Code Administration Screen

Member Code Administration is used to assign approval and notification information for a staff member.

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• Member – Select a staff member code from the drop-down list.

• Member Name – Enter the member’s name.

  • In order to set up member approval information, the member code must first be established in Security, User Administration.

Member Tab

The Member Tab of Member Administration provides the capability to assign the member’s email address for approval notifications.  If the Disable Email Notification box is checked, no approval notifications will be generated for this Member.  The PIN (Personal Identification Number) field is optional.  If left blank, no PIN will be required to approve a document.  If a PIN is entered, it is necessary to enter a confirmation in the Confirm PIN field to ensure that the original PIN was correctly entered.

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Authorization Tab

The Authorization tab provides the capability to specify financial authority limits for an approver.  If the approver is the final approver for a document, the approver must have financial authority which exceeds the amount of the document being approved.

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• Code - Enter the Currency Code and related value in the Authorization grid in the Member Code Administration form, Authorization tab.

RQ Authorization Tab

This tab will provide the maximum amount that an approver can approve in RQ iApprove screen.

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Member Administration Profile Screen

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The Approver (Member) Profile provides the capability to establish a group of reviewers and approvers. Profiles provide a convenient mechanism to assign the appropriate group for a particular purpose.  Examples of profiles may be for a particular project, department, type of expenditure, contract, and so on.

Administering Profile Reviewers and Approvers

• Profile - To define an Approver profile, use the Member Profile Administration form. Assign a Profile Name of up to 20 characters.  An optional 60-character description may also be provided.

The distinction between a Reviewer and an Approver is that Reviewers are notified in parallel (all Reviewers at the same time) whereas Approvers are notified serially (one after the other, in sequence).

• Reviewer - To add a Reviewer, select a Reviewer from the drop-down list obtained by clicking on the spyglass. Then click OK.  To delete a Reviewer, highlight the Reviewer in the Reviewer text box and click the Delete ( X ) icon.

• Approver - To add an Approver to the Approver grid, click on the first empty row in the grid and select an Approver from the drop-down list obtained by clicking on the spyglass. Then click OK.  You may add, delete, or insert items in the Approver grid. 

To delete a row, select it by clicking in the left-most column (dark gray). The row will be highlighted.  Once the row is highlighted, you may right-click in the row and chose Delete from the drop-down menu or press CTRL+L. You may de-select a row by clicking the left-most column a second time.

To insert a row, select the row before which the new row will be inserted by clicking in the left-most column (dark gray). The row will be highlighted.  Once the row is highlighted, you may right-click in the row and chose Insert from the drop-down menu. Or, press CTRL+I. You may de-select a row by clicking the left-most column a second time.

The sequence in which the Approvers appear in the grid is the sequence in which they will be notified.

Codes Administration Drop-Down Menu

Codes Administration Drop-Down Menu Main Screen

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iApprove Coding Parameters

The iApprove Coding Parameters define the Charge To elements that will be available for approver entry when a document is approved.  This provides a means for an approver to specify where an invoice should be charged, to a project or a department, for example.

Establishing the iApprove Coding Parameters

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• Ledger - Select the relevant ledger from the drop-down list. This will provide a list of available elements. For each element, indicate if the Element ID should be displayed on input forms and reports. If an element is displayed, you may also indicate that the element is a required input field by checking the box in the required column.

• Min No. of Elements - Optionally, you may specify a Minimum Number of elements user must input. The Minimum Number specification indicates how many of the elements marked as required must be input.  If the Minimum Number field is left blank, all elements marked as required must be input. 

  • The Minimum Number specification allows for “OR” logic; for example you can specify that the approver must enter a department or a project.  To do this, set  the department and project to Required and set the Minimum Number to 1.     

Notices Entry

The Notices Entry feature provides the capability to define multiple messages and reference these messages at Notification Generation.  This feature is useful if you change messages regularly.  For example, you may have a standard message, a payment cutoff message and a month end cutoff message.

Notices Entry Screen

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The Notice and Reminder Text Screen

Use the text boxes to specify the text that should be included in the email notification. 

• Notice and Reminder Text – Click on the Edit Text Button, located below Notice Text, to obtain a full rich text editor. 

• Toolbar - The buttons on the toolbar are shortcuts for common text editing tasks, such as font effects and alignment. You can see a description of each toolbar icon by placing your mouse over it.

When you type one of the Internet protocols in the body of a message (www, http, https, etc.) Microsoft Outlook  creates a hyperlink from the text. If recipients of the message have Internet browsers (such as Internet Explorer) that support the protocol, they can click the hyperlink to quickly go to the destination.

If the Internet address includes spaces, or Chinese, Japanese, or Korean characters, you must enclose the entire address in angle brackets (< >). For example, <file://C:\My Documents\MyFile.doc>.

The Notices Entry Report

A report of the Notice text on file may be prepared by clicking the Preview or Printer icons on the toolbar on the Notices Entry form.

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Reject Reason Codes

Reject Reason Codes are established to provide a systematic way to specify approval rejections.  The Reason codes are referenced in the approval process (iIDEAS iApprove) if the approval is rejected.  This form is used to specify the code and description.

Reject Reason Codes Screen

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• Code - Enter a code of a maximum of 5 characters.

• Description - Enter a description of up to 60 characters.

Status Codes

The Status Code table provides descriptions of system status codes.  These codes should not be modified.  The descriptions may be adjusted if desired.

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• Code - Enter a code of a maximum of 5 characters.

• Description - Enter a description of up to 60 characters.

iIDEAS Security Administration

Database Profile Administration Drop-Down Menu

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The iIDEAS Database Profile Administration provides the capability to define the IFW databases available to iIDEAS.  “IFW Database” refers to the database instance in which the IFW data tables reside.  This typically would be on a database server distinct from the Web Server which is running the iIDEAS Web components. There must be at least one database server local to the iIDEAS Web Server.  In addition, there may be any number of remote IFW servers.  Remote IFW servers must be accessible by the Web Sever through a network connection.  See the figure below.

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Profile Administration Screen

Setting up an iIDEAS Profile Administration Screen

To create an iIDEAS reference to an IFW database complete the Profile Administration form.

Once a database profile has been established, it may then be assigned to users through the iIDEAS Security Administration.  Once assigned, the user will see this database option upon accessing iIDEAS.

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• Profile - Assign a name for this database profile.

• Profile Description - Provide a description for this database profile.

• Default Ledger - Assign the default ledger ID.  This is the ledger on the target IFW database for which data should be processed in iIDEAS.  If multiple ledgers reside in this database, create a profile for each ledger for which access is desired.

• Provider – SQLOLEDB is assigned by the system and may not be changed. (iIDEAS supports only Microsoft SQL Server databases.)

• Server – The name of the database server on which the IFW database resides.

• Data Base – The name of the IFW database on the IFW database server reference above. If multiple IFW databases reside in this database instance, create a profile for each IFW database for which access is desired.

• User ID – The database instance system administrator or proxy ID.

• Password – The password for the database instance system administrator or proxy ID.

Menu Security Administration

Menu Security Administration provides the capability to define the permissions for a specific user. Permissions for a user may vary for each database profile.

The iIDEAS user will see only those functions for which access has been granted through Menu Security Administration.  The iIDEAS user will see only the database profiles for which this user has been granted at least one permission.

Assigning iIDEAS User Permissions (Access)

To provide an iIDEAS user access to iIDEAS menus and processes, complete the Menu Security Administration form for the user and database profile.  Permissions must be specifically assigned. A user is provided no access by default.

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• User ID – Enter a valid User ID by typing the ID or by selecting an ID from the drop-down list or the pop-up list displayed when the spyglass is clicked.

• User Name – The User Name will be displayed. No entry.

• Profile – To assign permissions for a specific profile, enter a valid database profile by typing the Profile ID or by selecting an ID either from the drop-down list or the pop-up list displayed when the spyglass is clicked.  To assign permissions for all database profiles, chose the profile ALL.

• Module – To assign permissions for an iIDEAS module, enter a valid module name by typing the name or by selecting an ID from the drop-down list or the pop-up list displayed when the spyglass is clicked.  To assign permissions for a module for which no permissions have previously been granted, use the spyglass to make the selection.

• Menu Access – To assign Menu Access permissions, select a menu item from the pop-up list displayed when the spyglass is clicked.  To remove access for a menu item, highlight the item in the Menu Access box and click the delete icon ( X ).

Obtaining the Security Administration Report

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To obtain the Security Administration Report, access the Security Administration form from the iIDEAS Administrator, Security Menu.  Click the Print or Print Preview icon to obtain the report.  If the User ID box is left blank, the report will be produced for all users.  To obtain the report for a selected user, enter the desired User ID in the User ID box and click the appropriate icon.

User Administration

The iIDEAS Administrator, User Administration function provides the capability to establish valid iIDEAS users.  iIDEAS users are independent and separate from IFW users. An iIDEAS user need not be an IFW user and vice versa.

Creating iIDEAS Users

To create an iIDEAS User, access the User Administration form from the iIDEAS Administrator, Security menu and complete the form. 

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• User – Enter a code for this user (User ID). The maximum is 30 characters.

• User Name – Enter the users name. The maximum is 50 characters.

• Password – Enter a password for this user. The maximum is 50 characters.

• Confirm Password – Re-enter the password entered above.  The password is not displayed for security reasons; the purpose of this entry is to verify the accuracy of the original entry.

• Status – The status for a new user defaults to Active.  You may change a user’s status to Inactive.  Inactive users will be denied access to iIDEAS.

• Days Until Password Expires Option – You may require that users change their password from time to time for security purposes.  If desired, enter the number of elapsed days for which the password is valid.

• Password Never Expires Option – You may allow passwords to be valid indefinitely.  To do so, chose this option.

• Allow to see all invoices – This feature relates to the reporting of Accounts Payable invoice information in iIDEAS.  If this box is checked, iIDEAS will display all invoices meeting the selection criteria. Otherwise, iIDEAS will display only those invoices routed to this user.

• Allow to see all Pos – This feature relates to the reporting of Accounts Payable invoice information in iIDEAS.  If this box is checked, iIDEAS will display all PO’s meeting the selection criteria. Otherwise, iIDEAS will display only those PO’s routed to this user.

• Allow to see all RQ’s – This feature relates to the reporting of Accounts Payable invoice information in iIDEAS.  If this box is checked, iIDEAS will display all RQ’s meeting the selection criteria. Otherwise, iIDEAS will display only those RQ’s routed to this user.

iIDEAS Administrator Reports

Approval Status Report Drop-Down Menu

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Approval Status Report Screen

Preparing Approval Status Reports

The iIDEAS Administrator Approval Status Report provides a flexible means of obtaining approval status and history information. To prepare an Approval Status Report, access the Approval Status Report form from the iIDEAS Administrator Reports menu.  Complete the desired options and click the Print or Print Preview icons to obtain the report.

First you will need to select the Document Type you wish to report on. 

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Once you have selected the document type execute the report using the (!) icon the following screen displays.

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Choose from among the following options:

• Company – To limit the report to specific company enter desired company.

• Currency – To limit the report to invoices of a specific currency enter desired currency.

• FQA Elements to Display – This option provides the capability to display selected Charge To element values on the report.  If left blank, no element columns will be displayed.

• Invoice Selection-Invoice Date – To limit the report to a specific range of invoice dates enter the desired Beginning and Ending dates.

• Invoice Selection-Validation Status – To limit the report to specific Validation Status (Valid/Invalid) chooses the desired option.

• Due Date - To limit the report to a specific range of invoice due dates enter the desired Beginning and Ending dates.

• Invoice Approval Status – To limit the report to specific Approval Status (Approved/Unapproved) chooses the desired option.

• Approval Selection-Member – To limit the report to specific approver choose the desired approver from the drop-down list.

• Approval Selection-Approval Status – To limit the report to specific Approval Status (Approved/Unapproved) choose the desired status from the drop-down list.

• Approval Selection-(element) – To limit the report to invoices charged to a specific Charge To choose the desired value from the drop-down list.

• Sort By – Select one or more sort criteria from the Sort By list.  To do so, highlight the desired criteria in the left-hand box and click the right-facing arrow to move to the Sort By box.  To remove a sort criteria, highlight the desired criteria in the right-hand box and click the left-facing arrow to remove from theSort By box.

Sample Approval Status Report

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Email Notification Report

The Email Notification Report is produced automatically upon processing email notifications in the Email Notification form. In the case of automatically generated notifications (see "Setting the Automatic Email Notification Parameter" below), the Email Notification Report function can be used to obtain the report for a range of dates.

Preparing the Email Notification Report

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Access the Email Notification Report form from the iIDEAS Administrator Reports menu, complete the desired Start and End Date parameters and click the Print or Print Preview icons.

Sample Email Notification Report

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iIDEAS Administrator Utilities

iIDEAS Administrator Utility Drop-Down Menu

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Attachment Processing Screen

 Attachment Processing provides the capability to:

• Capture new scanned images and save these images to an IFS IDEAS Document Management database or to a Windows directory. (See "Scan Image Table Definition" below to learn how to set up an IFS IDEAS Document Management Database.) 

• Create references to existing files (images or other electronic files such as Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel files).

Electronic attachments must be indexed through Attachment Processing to be available to other iIDEAS processes.  The Attachment Processing feature is accessed through the iIDEAS Administrator Utilities function or through the IFW Accounts Payable, Invoice Entry function.

Attachment Maintenance Screen

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How to Review or Edit an Existing Attachment

Access the Attachment Processing function from the iIDEAS Administrator Utilities menu. Click the spyglass for Attachment Code and select an item from the pop-up menu. 

Once the item has been selected in the Attachment Code popup menu, click OK.  The available information for the attachment will be displayed on the Attachment Processing form.  Use the Preview icon in the Existing Documents panel to display the attachment.

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Attach Existing File Tab

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This feature enables you to browse an existing file, save this file in a Windows directory (accessible to iIDEAS), and create an iIDEAS index entry.  You may reference files of any type through this process.

To create a new attachment from an existing file, in Attachment Processing, click the New button on the Attachment Processing form and enter the following information:

• Doc Type – Only INV attachments are currently supported.

• Attachment Description – Enter a description for the attachment.

• Attachment Comments – Enter optional comments.

• Attach Existing File Option – Choose this option to elect to attach an existing file.

• Browse Attachment – Use the binocular icon to obtain the Open File dialog box. (See Figure below.)  Using the Open File dialog box you may browse to and select the file to be referenced.  Once the file is selected, the path will appear in the Browse Attachment box.  You may use the Preview icon to display the content of the file.

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 Scan New Image Tab

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This feature enables you to create a new scanned image, save this image, and create an iIDEAS index entry. 

To create a new scanned image attachment in Attachment Processing, click the New button on Attachment Processing form and enter the following information:

• Doc Type – Only INV attachments are currently supported.

• Attachment Description – Enter a description for the attachment.

• Attachment Comments – Enter optional comments.

• Scan New Images – Click this option to elect to scan a new image.

• Scan Information, Multiple Pages – Check this box if the document to be scanned has multiple pages.  If this box is checked the image will be saved and displayed as a PDF file (Acrobat Reader file). Otherwise the image will be saved as a JPG file.

• Save Attachment – Choose either Documents on File or Document On Database. If the file option is chosen, you must then complete the In a Directory information by providing the directory and file name in which the image should be saved.  If the database option is chosen, no further action is required.

Once the above information is completed, click the Scan button to capture the document image.  If multiple scanners are available to the workstation, you will be prompted to select a scanner.  If no scanners are available, you will receive the message at the bottom of the form: No Devices Available. Refer to the document or help associated with the imaging program you are you using for assistance in the scanning operation.

Attach Existing DB Image Tab

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Viewing Attachments

Attachments to the current document may be accessed by clicking the Attachments Preview button.  The item will be displayed using the program associated with the file type of the attachment. 

• Images scanned within iIDEAS are either JPG (single page) or PDF (multi-page) file types by default. An iIDEAS attachment can be any type of file.

To associate a file extension with a file type:

• Open Folder Options in the Control Panel.

• Click the File Types tab.

• Highlight the File Type extension, and then click the Change button.

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Miscellaneous Setup

The Miscellaneous Setup utility provides the capability to establish various system parameters.  These include:

• Email Notification Parameter

• Default  Image Directory

Setting the Automatic Email Notification Parameter

The Automatic Email Notification Parameter provides the capability to have email notices automatically generated on a daily basis.  If this parameter is not set, you must manually invoke the notification process. (See Generating Email Notifications above.)

To set the parameter, select the Code Appr_Notification_Email_Send from the drop-down list in iIDEAS Administrator > Utilities > Miscellaneous Setup.  Set Field 1 to the desired generation time.

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• Code – Select Appr_Notification_Email_Send from the drop-down list.

• Field1 – Enter the start time for the process to be invoked in the format HH:MM AM/PM.

• Field2 – This field displays the date and time of the last execution.

• Field3 – This field displays the result message of the last execution.

Setting the Default Image Directory

The Default Image Directory provides the default source location for files to be attached during Attachment Processing.  If this parameter is left blank, the default is the most recent Open File location. 

To set the parameter, select the Code Attachment_DefaultDirectory from the drop-down list in iIDEAS Administrator > Utilities > Miscellaneous Setup.  Set Field 1 to the desired path name.

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Scan Image Table Definition

The Scan Image Table Definition function provides the capability to establish a document management database within iIDEAS. This function describes the characteristics of the table to the system.  A default table is created during system implementation. Use this process,to create a different database or to reference a database in a location other than the default location.

Creating a Document Management Database for iIDEAS

To create a document management database for iIDEAS complete the Scan Image Target Table Definition form.  If the specified table does not exist, it will be created.  The connect string information must be valid (the database must exist on the specified server) in order to complete the form.

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• Database Name – Enter a name for the image database, maximum 30 characters.

• Provider – SQLOLEDB is assigned by the system and may not be changed. (iIDEAS supports only Microsoft SQL Server databases.)

• Server – The name of the database server where the image database will reside.

• Data Base – The name of the image database on the server reference above. 

• User ID – The database instance system administrator or proxy ID.

• Password – The password for the database instance system administrator or proxy ID.

• Table Name – Provide a table name for the images table, maximum 50 characters.  An example is IMAGE_TABLE.  This must be a valid SQL Server table name, and the first character must be one of the following:

  • A letter as defined by the Unicode Standard 2.0. The Unicode definition of letters includes Latin characters from a through z and from A through Z, in addition to letter characters from other languages.

  • The underscore (_), "at" sign (@), or number sign (#).

• Subsequent characters can be:

  • Letters as defined in the Unicode Standard 2.0.

  • Decimal numbers from either Basic Latin or other national scripts.

  • The "at" sign, dollar sign ($), number sign, or underscore.

• The identifier must not be a Transact-SQL reserved word. SQL Server reserves both the upper-case and lower-case versions of reserved words.

• Embedded spaces or special characters are not allowed.

• DB Key Column Name – Provide a column name for the key column for the images table, maximum 50 characters. For example: IMAGE_KEY.  This must be a valid SQL Server column name.  The column name must conform to the same rules as the table name stated above. 

• Image Column Name – Provide a column name for the image column for the images table, maximum 50 characters. For example: IMAGE_INFO.  This must be a valid SQL Server column name.  The column name must conform to the same rules as the table name stated above.

• Image Type Column Name – Provide a column name for the key column for the images table, maximum 50 characters. For example: IMAGE_TYPE.  This must be a valid SQL Server column name.  The column name must conform to the same rules as the table name stated above.

• Comments – Enter any comments regarding this table.

Approval Notification Settings

The Approval Notification Settings screen allows the user to define the information necessary to send notification emails from the web server. The sender’s name, email, and SMTP server information are defined on the server along with the password and port number for the email service that is being used. The setup can be verified by sending a test email from within this screen. The Notification service can be stopped or started from within this screen as needed.

Defining Approval Notification Settings

The iApprove Notification Service is installed to the application server and only needs to be configured there.  An email account to send emails from should be created in advance for use with the sending of the notification emails.

Open

• Profile – Select the IDEAS Profile that this configuration will be used for.

• Active – Mark the Active box to enable the Profile configuration.

• Sender’s Name – Enter the name that is associated with the email account that will be used to send the emails.

• Sender’s Email – Enter the email address for the account that the emails will be sent from.

• SMTP Server – Enter the name of the SMTP Server that will be used to send the emails.

• Password – Enter the password for the email account.

• Port Number – Enter the port number that is required by the SMTP Server.

• SSL – If the SMTP server requires SSL, select this checkbox, otherwise, leave the checkbox cleared.

• Send Test Email – Click this button to display a window that will allow the entry of an email address to send a test email to so that the configuration settings can be verified.
  
  

  Open

  

   

• Service Status – Informational field to display the status of the notification service (IDEASApprovalNotificationService).

• Start Service/Stop Service – Click either button to stop or start the notification service as needed.