Configure PACE for Client Reporting
- Becky Weinberg (Unlicensed)
- Pamela Totas (Deactivated)
A number of system parameters control configuration of the Client Reporting functions. This section describes the PACE system settings that enable configuration of those Client Reporting functions.
Minimize Image Package File Size
You can minimize the file size of the imaged package by producing a separate file that contains only the image of the report package. This allows imaged packages to be retrieved more quickly when you review the batch via the Batch Status function’s Review Batch dialog box.
You can configure PACE so that the Advanced Reporting engine, which is run by the batch process, generates two separate files after imaging: an .ADVZ and an .ADVI file. The two files are stored in the same location and with the same file name.
The .ADVI file is a compressed file that contains only the image (.RDF) and the pcre_toc and pcre_pkg tables. The Review Batch viewer supports the ADVI file type. When the viewer window is launched from the Review Batch dialog box, you can select the Download Original File option to retrieve the.ADVZ file for use by the Batch Reports window.
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After selecting this option, save a local copy of the full.MDB file by clicking Save As. This provides you with access to the complete underlying data set to use in troubleshooting a reporting issue. If only the existing Microsoft Access file type option is used from the Save As menu when the two file approach method is configured for use, the.MDB file includes only the pcre_toc and pcre_pkg tables.
The Download Original File option on the viewer window appears on the Batch Reports window when the two file approach method is configured for use.
The auto approval and distribution processes are not impacted by this function and perform against the .ADVZ file.
The Delete Batch function searches for an .ADVI file when purging records and the Re-Submit Batch function searches for an .ADVI file when deleting package results.
System Parameter 91, Client Reporting Two File Approach, is disabled by default. When System Parameter 91 is enabled, the Advanced Reporting engine run by a Batch process generates two separate files after imaging: an .ADVZ and an .ADVI file. The two files are stored in the same location and with the same file name. The .ADVI file is a compressed file that contains only the image (.RDF) and the pcre_toc and pcre_pkg tables.
Propagate Recipient Overrides
You can configure Client Reporting so that when an override is selected for a client, it is automatically applied to the contacts of that client.
When this feature is enabled, selecting an override for a client does not select that override automatically for the contacts of the client. The override settings for clients and their contacts are independent when this feature is disabled.
Also, when an override is selected for a client, the selected override is applied also to the contacts of that client in the batch overrides dialog box. The contact level override can be changed after it is applied automatically based on the client’s setting. This fill down behavior applies to overrides at both the Advanced Report and variation levels. If a contact already has an override selected, then setting an override at the client level does not change that override.
Client Reporting can be configured so that when an Override is selected for a Client, that Override is automatically applied to the Contacts of that Client. System Parameter 90 drives this feature.
Specify a Report Start Date
The ad hoc Batch Submit function enables you to specify both the Begin and End effective dates of the Batch. This adds flexibility to the ad hoc Batch submission process and better supports off-period report processing.
System Parameter 89 enables the Report Start Date setting by default when launching the ad hoc Submit Batch window. When this setting is enabled, the Report Start Date is enabled by default in the ad hoc Submit Batch window. The Report Start Date defaults to the month-end date of the period prior to the Report End Date value.
When this PACE system configuration option is disabled, the Report Start Date is disabled by default in the Submit Batch window. To enable the Report Start Date setting, populate the check box.
PACE can be configured to enable the Report Start Date setting by default when launching the ad hoc Submit Batch window. When this option is enabled, the Report Start Date is enabled by default in the ad hoc Submit Batch window. The Report Start Date defaults to the month-end date of the period prior to the Report End Date value. For example, if a Batch is configured as a monthly Batch and each month of the Batch has an Advanced Profile selected, the Report Start Date defaults to the month-end date of the month prior to the month set as the Report End Date. If the user changes the Report End Date setting in the window, the Report Start Date is not adjusted automatically. If a Batch is configured as a quarterly Batch with every third month enabled with an Advanced Profile, the Report Start Date defaults to the month end date of three months prior to the month set as the Report End Date.
When this PACE system configuration option is disabled, the Report Start Date is disabled by default in the Submit Batch window. To enable the Report Start Date setting, populate the check box.
Also, the internal pcre_pkg table in the Batch is expanded to include the beg_eff_date column, which stores the Begin effective date of the Batch. The End effective date value continues to be stored in the eff_date column in the pcre_pkg table.
Require Comments on Rejection
You can set up the Comments field as a required field in the Parameters section of the System Management Center. This means that the Comments field will be required when an Approval is rejected or changed to a Rejected status value. This feature provides more details about why a particular Approval was rejected, facilitating the workflow process in Client Reporting.
Set System Parameter sys_item 77 to a value of 0 to not require Approval Comments (default). Set sys_value for sys_item 77 is set to a value of 1 to require Approval Comments when an Approval status record is updated to a status value of Rejected. This setting does not impact the Comments field when an Approval status record is updated to a status value of Approved.
When sys_item 77 is configured to require Approval Comments on rejection, and the Comments field is not populated when the Approval status is changed Rejected, an error message is displayed. A comment must be added in the Change Approval Status window to continue.
Require Comments System Settings
The Comments Required user security setting by itself does not permit you to change an Approval Status value to rejected.
In Client Reporting, you can also specify at the individual Approval level that an approval requires comments when its status value is changed to Rejected. You can indicate which approvals require comments when they are rejected and which approvals can be rejected without comments.
The three levels of settings that control Approval Rejection Comments (system, user and approval) all work with one another. In order for comments to be required when an approval is rejected, System Parameter 77 must be set with a value of 1 (Required), If you are rejecting the approval, you must have the Comments Required user security setting enabled and the approval being rejected must have the Comments Required for Rejection setting enabled.
If any one of these three settings is not configured to have rejection comments required, the approval can be rejected without comments.
Client Reporting Distribution Optimization
You can configure the number of Clients that are fed through the distribution analysis portion of the Client Reporting Distribution engine with Sys_item 59. Sys_item 59 is located in the PACE_MASTERDBO.PACE_SYSTEM table to allow the number of Clients that are fed through the distribution analysis portion of the Client Reporting Distribution engine to be configured. This parameter allows you to reduce this number to a level that allows Client Reporting packages to be marked for distribution more quickly. Since the number of Clients contained in the Batch and the number of relationships owned by each Client affect the speed of this process, each implementation of PACE finds a different optimum level for sys_item 59.
Customize Due Date Calculations
Client Reporting calculates the Batch and Approval Due Dates based on sys_item 57. in the PACE_MASTER.DBO.PACE_SYSTEM table, the sys_item 57 record controls whether the Due Date calculation is based on the Effective Date of the Batch or on the Create Date of the Batch. A sys_item 57 value of zero indicates that Due Date calculations are based on the Create Date of the Batch, while a sys_item 57 value of one indicates that the Due Date calculations are based on the Effective Date of the Batch. The default value for this record is zero.
For example, a Batch has been configured to have a Due Date setting of Plus five days, and the Batch is submitted on February 4 with an Effective Date of January 31. If the Due Date is calculated based on Batch Creation Date, the result is a Batch Due Date of February 9, or five days after the Batch record was created. If the Due Date is calculated based on the Batch Effective Date, the result is a Batch Due Date of February 5, or five days later the Effective Date of the Batch.
The same logic applies to the Approval Due Date values. Following the Batch example mentioned, an Approval associated with the Batch has a Due Date setting of Plus ten days. If the Due Date is calculated based on Batch Creation Date, the result is an Approval Due Date of February 14, or ten days after the Batch record was created. If the Due Date is calculated based on the Batch Effective Date, the result is an Approval Due Date of February 10th or ten days later than the Effective Date of the Batch.
Enable the Auto Registry Engine
The Auto Registry Monitor engine in System Management Center recognizes and registers Advanced Reporting DLLs for report imaging. The Auto Registry Monitor engine is enabled on a PACE Server only when any of the following are enabled on that server:
Advanced Reporting engine
Client Reporting Batch engine
Client Reporting Distribution engine
Google.com engine
The engine monitors, on a 60- second cycle, a designated shared directory for DLL files. The file is then copied and registered locally on the PACE Server machine so that the Advanced Reporting engine can successfully image a submitted Advanced Report.
The shared directory is maintained in the PACE_MASTER.DBO.PACE_SYSTEM table where the sys_item value is 39. This directory does not have to reside on the PACE Server, but should be accessible by the PACE Server. When an Advanced Reporting DLL is created or updated, the DLL file should be copied to the shared directory. When the Auto Registry Monitor engine on the PACE Server detects a new or updated DLL, it moves the DLL locally to the adv_rpt folder in the Working Directory. If this adv_rpt folder does not exist, the Auto Registry Monitor engine creates the folder.
There is no separate configuration to enable the Auto Registry Monitor engine. To prevent the Auto Registry Monitor engine from copying and registering files, do not populate the sys_item 39 record in the PACE_MASTER.DBO.PACE_SYSTEM table.
Client Reporting User Security
You can set access to the Client Reporting functions at the User or Role level on the PACE Roles window in the User Administration workspace. From the Client Reporting section, you can give users access to one or more of the Maintain Approvals, Approval Status, Maintain Views, Maintain Batches, Batch Status, Batch Status and Control, Custom Distributions, Maintain Other Approvals, Maintain Other Batches, Maintain Other Views, Others Approval Status, Others Batch Status, Run this Event as High Priority, Submit as Scheduled, and Custom Distributions functions.
Client Reporting Windows User Security Settings
You can grant or restrict access to Client Reporting components owned by other users, as well as the current user, in the Client Reporting section of User Administration.
Approval Status
The ability to update Approval Status records is controlled by the list of Users or Groups assigned to a particular Approval. The ability to access the main Approval Status window, however, is controlled by the Enable check box in the Approval Status section of Client Reporting User Security.
The Approval Status section of Client Reporting Roles section differentiates between the ability to Reject Approval Status records and the ability to Reject Approval Status records back to a preceding approval in the workflow.
When you select the Reject setting in Approval Status check box, you grant the ability to simply change an Approval Status value to Rejected. When you select the Reject Preceding check box, you grant the ability to Reject an Approval back to a preceding Approval in the workflow.
If you only select the Reject check box, the user only sees a modified version of the Change Approval Status dialog box when changing an Approval Status value. The user can set the status to Approved or Rejected only and cannot reject the Approval to a preceding step in the workflow.
If you do not select either the Reject or the Reject Preceding privileges check box, the user sees a modified version of the Change Approval Status dialog box when changing an Approval Status value. The user can set the status to Approved only, and cannot reject the selected Approval.
If you select the Reject Preceding privilege check box, then the users sees the complete Change Approval Status dialog box when changing an Approval Status value. The user can change the Approval Status value to Rejected and can reject preceding approvals. If the Reject Preceding privilege is enabled, the Reject privilege is essentially ignored.
For example, if the Reject Preceding privilege is enabled, the user sees the same Change Approval Status dialog box as a user with both the Reject Preceding and Reject privileges enabled.
When you select Rejection Comments Required in the Approval Status section, the user must add a comment when changing an Approval Status value to Rejected. This allows you to determine which users must add a reason or comment when rejecting an Approval, and which users can change an Approval Status value to Rejected without providing comments.
Others Approval Status
When you select the Others Approval Status check box in the Client Reporting section, the user can view approval status records assigned to others from the Approval Status and View Batch’s Approvals window.
Batch Status
In the Batch Status section, you can grant users the ability to delete current batch records, submit, review, cancel, change the due date, and re-submit batches. In the Others Batch Status row, these same privileges can be granted for batches the user does not own.
Users submit batches in the Batch Status window. You can control access to this feature by selecting or deselecting the Submit check box in Batch Status and Others Batch Status.
Batch Status and Control
You control the Batch Status and Control window at the user level via the Batch Status and Control setting in the Client Reporting section of User Security. Select the Enable check box in the Batch Status and control row to allow users to launch and use the Batch Status and Control window, and view scheduled batches, including those that are currently active and those not yet submitted.
Client Reporting User Security information is stored in the PCRE_ACCESS and PCRE_ACCESS1 columns of the PACE_MASTER.DBO.PACE_USERS table.
Custom Distributions
You control access to the Custom Distributions function by selecting or deselecting the Custom Distributions check box in the Custom Distribution row.
The Custom Distribution User Security information is stored in the PACEADMIN_ACCESS column of the PACE_MASTER.DBO.PACE_USERS table.
Additional Security Settings
User security contains the additional security settings described in the following table:
Option | Description |
Maintain Approval | Allows you to grant users the ability to create, edit, view, copy and delete Client Reporting approvals. |
Maintain Batches | Allows you to grant users the ability to create, edit, view, copy, delete, submit and set batch overrides. |
Maintain Other Approvals | Allows you to grant users the ability to edit, view, copy and delete approvals owned by other users. |
Maintain Other Batches | Allows you to determine who can submit all batches, but only delete batches they own. The ability to create batches is not included in the Maintain Others Batches section of User Security since users should not be able to create a batch under a different user name. |
Maintain Other Views | Allows you to grant users the ability to edit, view, copy, delete and publish Custom Views owned by other users. |
Maintain Views | Allows you to grant users access to the Maintain Views window in Client Reporting, where they can create, edit, view, copy, delete, and publish Custom Views. |
Business Group Security
Business Group Security is also part of all of the Client Reporting windows. Your users only have access to the approvals assigned to the entities and clients in their business group or approvals that are directly assigned to them.
There are two levels of security at the batch level. The Batch windows display only those batches the user has access to through the entities or clients assigned to the batch. The user must also have access to the Advanced Report profile or profiles selected to image the batch.
Business Group Security applies to the Maintenance and Status windows as well as the custom views in Client Reporting.
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