FIS BULLETIN Number 4

Announcements | Calendar | Status | T&T-Q&A | Training | Inside Peek | Odds & Ends

January 7, 1997

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS

GENERAL: None

ACQUISITIONS: None

BANNER REPORTS:

FOLLOW UP: MONTHLY TRANSACTION DETAIL BY ACTIVITY CODE REPORT (FWRTDEA): In the last FIS Bulletin, we reported that the FWRTDEA report shows encumbrance totals that do not always agree to the sum of the individual transactions. We asked for feedback to a number of questions in an attempt to determine the value of the report. We received three responses, each indicating that all the data except the open encumbrance detail and ending balances data were used. Based on the large number of non-respondents, we are believe that the report is of very limited use. As a followup, we would like to pose the following question:

Would a report that contains the same data as the FWRDOLD - Monthly Transaction Detail Report, but sorted by organization, fund, pool account, activity, and account code, with subtotals by pool account and activity code, be more useful than the FWRTDEA report?

Please direct your responses to Vicki Gutzwiller at vickig@cats

OTHER FIS/BANNER ITEMS: None

CALENDAR OF FIS / BANNER EVENTS

Please note that period close-related dates are estimated.

PROJECT STATUS

CALENDAR YEAR-END BANNER REPORTING: work continues on modifying Banner to produce year-end IRS Form 1099 reports. This is the first year in which Banner is being used to create the reports. These reports are distributed to non-employee, non-corporate vendors who provided goods or services to the campus in excess of a certain monetary amount during the 1996 calendar year.

STUDENT WORKER ACCESS TO BANNER: We should hear later this month about the disposition of our request for resources to fund the training effort required to implement this project.

DISTRIBUTED TRANSFER OF EXPENDITURES (TOE): The FIS team and the Accounting Office have begun work on developing the procedures and policies for allowing authorized Banner users in service centers to input non-payroll transfers of expenditures into Banner.

Tentatively, in cases where an unrestricted fund (e.g. 19900) and only that service center’s organization code or codes is/are involved, an authorized user or users in the service center will have final approval authority over the transaction. This should greatly simplify and accelerate the process of correcting FOAPAL codings for many types of expenditures. Distributed TOE’s involving restricted funds (e.g. Contracts & Grants, Gifts, Plant) will route to the Accounting Office for approval. More details will follow in the next FIS Bulletin.

We hope to have distributed TOE’s available for use by early April 1997. Distributed TOE training and user documentation will be provided prior to implementation. Please remember that in order to use Distributed TOE’s, you must be an authorized Banner user who has completed Banner Navigation and Document Query training. Contact info has been deleted because info is no longer valid.

MONTH -END REPORT PRODUCTION COORDINATION: Ever since Banner has been implemented, a number of different processes have been used to produce campuswide monthend paper and microfiche reports for service centers and central offices. Work has begun to automate, i.e. make more efficient, the process so that the various monthend paper and microfiche reports are produced one after the other, as part of a single process.

TIPS & TRICKS / QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

TIPS & TRICKS: None submitted over the past month

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS: None submitted over the past month

________________________
Questions or problems regarding the Banner system can be directed to:
Acquisitions, Accounts Payable - Karsen Jones kjones@cats
Ledger Reports, Fiscal Closing - Vicki Gutzwiller vickig@cats
Banner Security, Access - Monique Leduc mleduc@cats
Other questions - Kirk Lew kllew@cats

INSIDER’S PEEK AT FIS

BANNERLAND'S NEW AND IMPROVED RIDE: Banner Upgrade Intrigue.

A sundry collection of observations of the Banner 2.0.7 Upgrade

September 1995

• Planning for the upgrade begins. At that time version 2.0.5 was the latest Banner version. Installation was expected to take place in the Winter and Spring, but many more pressing Banner matters took precedence over the upgrade (to put it delicately).

August and September 1996

• Much time, over a month, was spent reviewing program modifications made by SCT to assess the impact on Banner’s functionality. Now, version 2.0.7, is the latest version, meaning that version 2.0.4 would be installed first, then version 2.0.5, followed by version 2.0.6, and finally version 2.0.7. A total of four upgrades are to be installed (causing the DBA’s, the folks who install the upgrade software, recurring nightmares) SCT indicated that improved functionality was provided in the areas of Contracts & Grants ledger, and stores inventory. Many nagging "bugs" were fixed (although several still remained).
  
• User-analysts (UA) and programmer-analysts (PA) reviewed SCT’s "bug list" of known problems with the various upgraded versions. Ever on the lookout for the dreaded "show-stopper" bug. A "show-stopper" bug is one that causes serious Banner functionality problems - so severe that it could prevent us from installing the upgrade. (We came close to finding one or two, but luckily fixes or workarounds were available from SCT or devised in-house by PA’s.)
  
• Numerous existing UCSC-specific program modifications (bug fixes and enhancements) had to be reviewed to determine which modifications would have to be reprogrammed, or "reapplied," in the upgraded version of Banner (PA’s live for this sort of thing, just kidding - they really hate it).
  
• Weekly Banner upgrade meetings took place beginning in September in order to coordinate the work of UA’s, PA’s, DBA’s technical training. (The tension level seemed to increase with each successive week) The upgrade plan spreadsheet extended over four pages (in tiny type, too)

October 1996

• In early October, one of the test versions of the Banner database (a.k.a. an "instance") is upgraded to Banner 2.0.7. Data is copied to it from the "live" production database.
• Programmer-analysts begin to reapply the many modifications to the unadorned version 2.0.7 of Banner.
• User-analysts begin developing test plans to ensure the upgrade is working as expected. Campus coworkers in various offices are involved (coercion was not needed).
• Analysis of impact on Banner training begins. Technical training determines that enhancements and fixes can be adequately addressed through updated user documentation.

November 1996

• PA’s complete reapplication of modifications early in month. The work went relatively smoothly. All told, it took about 180 hours of programmer time to reapply 46 Banner form modifications and 10 report modifications (and the P-A’s didn’t make too many mistakes at that).
• UA’s complete test plans and communicate them to the various testers. Testing begins mid-month and continues through the end of the month. Some "bugs" are uncovered, mostly in the Acquisitions area. One potential showstopper "bug." A stressful two days follow this find. PA (our hero for the day) is able to fix bug.
• Banner security coordinator makes the necessary changes to Banner security to account for new Banner forms. A modification is also made to the Banner menus to accommodate new query forms.
• Despite constant contact with SCT, contracts and grants ledger conversion fails repeatedly in tests. (Much heated email crosses the internet) Decision made to postpone implementation of this functionality. (Causing much frustration because everything else seemed to be going well)
• Weekly meetings become very tense.
• DBA upgrades other Banner test instances (good practice for the main event - upgrading the production database)
• Preparation of user upgrade documentation begins.
• Most testing complete (successfully) by end of month (giving us even more to be thankful about). Interfaces (i.e. entries fed into Banner from other systems, like payroll and telecommunications, are successfully tested. All reports, except fiscal yearend, are rerun and checked.
• Final plan is developed for upgrading the main production database (BPRD) on the weekend of December 7 and 8 (Butterflies in stomach syndrome starts to hit)
• Notification of service center managers of Banner upgrade implementation plan prepared and distributed (Fingers and toes crossed)

December 1996

• Testing completes successfully early in first week of month. No showstoppers.
• Middle of the first week - One last instance is upgraded to 2.0.7 (very smoothly at that, a very auspicious sign)
• Last weekly meeting before upgrade of BPRD is surprisingly calm. (Realization that there’s nothing that can be done and everything is now in the hands of fate?). UA’s, PA’s, and DBA’s coordinate upgrade steps for the weekend (only a two page spreadsheet in larger type). CATS Systems Operators (remember them? the folks who run the rides at Bannerland) are informed of the processes they need to run during the upgrade. If all goes well, work will complete by early Saturday evening. If not so well, by Sunday. If really badly, by Monday. (If pathetically badly, no one bothers to come in after Monday)
• Users are notified of upgrade schedule. Upgrade documentation is distributed via email with paper copies provided to service center managers.

December 7, 1996

• BPRD instance is successfully upgraded by DBA. (All that practice pays off)
• Certain processing rule codes are updated by UA’s
• Certain system defaults are updated by PA’s
• Brief testing of modifications is done by UA’s
• Upgrade is successfully installed by late Saturday afternoon (Reports of big sighs of relief heard around the world)

December 9, 1996

• Upgraded Banner system is available to users first thing in the morning. (Welcome to the improved Bannerland)

FINAL THROUGHT: The success of the Banner upgrade would not have been possible without the hard work of the following people:
Coordination: Laura Martin, Kirk Lew
User-analysts: Vicki Gutzwiller, Karsen Jones, Monique Leduc
Programmer-analysts: Rich Apple, Diane Koletzke
Database administrators: Doug Jackson, Jeanne Whitney
Testers and advisors: Stephanie Bundy (Purchasing), Peter Fullenwider (Technical Training), Catherine Hawkins (Social Sciences Division), Jim Kendrick (Accounting Office), Jane Kling (Accounting Office), Troy Lawson (Planning & Budget), Sue Miller (Purchasing), Alison Newland (Accounting Office), Bob Rodriguez (Accounting Office), Peggy Tippit (Stevenson College), Jane Wong (Planning & Budget)

Thanks also to the CATS Computing Operations group for their help during "crunch time."

In the next issue:
Now that we’re in the middle of Bannerland: Where do we go from here?

ODDS & ENDS

FIS / BANNER: None

REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK ISSUES

Service center managers were sent a survey by Vicki Gutzwiller requesting information about transfer of expenditure processing at the service center. This information is very important to us and will assist us in developing the distributed TOE process. We would appreciate receiving replies by Friday, January 17.

Contributors: Kirk Lew, Laura Martin
Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Please direct them to the editor, Kirk Lew (kllew@cats)

Financial Affairs | Accounting Offices | Campus Controller | FIS

Comments to: controller@ucsc.edu - Maintained by FIS, Updated