DDMS Enterprise-Class Business System (EBS) SQL Applications
On this page: Benefits | Setup | Feature-Specific Documentation
DDMS offers comprehensive financial reporting.
DDMS makes it easy to manage customer and product
pricing.
ECi DDMS has instituted its enterprise-class business system (EBS) programming architecture based on SQL/.NET in some applications — particularly the new Executive Dashboard, Delivery Manifest, Customer Price Plans, Price Modeling, SQL Report Preview, Bank Statement Reconciliation, Address Taxability (sales tax per tax district), Furniture Project Management, Campaign Manager, and Notes Everywhere.
Our current generation of applications incorporate an enhanced user interface, Microsoft's latest SQL Server database architecture and the Microsoft C# (pronounced See Sharp) for .NET programming framework.
This technology is the key to DDMS' evolution to an enterprise-class business system. It provides ECi DDMS with new development tools, improved databases, a new smart-client architecture, a more intuitive user experience, improved enterprise scaling and more.
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Benefits
But what's the rationale behind this initiative? Our goals are as follows:
- Increase efficiency and reduce time-to-market of enhancements and maintenance releases. The .NET toolset allows us to create a framework of templates that can streamline development. The new codebase allows us to break away from writing redundant code for both graphical and text-based interfaces. In the long run, it will make it possible for ECi DDMS to design & release the enhancements you want for your dealership more efficiently.
- Revolutionize our code's scalability, portability, and integration. The initiative gives us new relational database architecture, Web services tools and industry-standard protocols. As a result, data access and manipulation is much more portable than with the original flat-file DBFs. You will be able to export data for reports much more easily. It will be easier to integrate with the systems of your vendors, customers, and partners. It will also be easier to deploy solutions that synchronize or connect directly with Web services and mobile handheld equipment.
- Permit a more consistent, intuitive, user-friendly, task-oriented look-and-feel. The framework that streamlines development will also simplify end-user task flow. Order entry code, for example, will be more standardized and more easily scalable among supplies, furniture, machines, and other industries, with only slight differences based on the needs of each industry. The new wizardlike interfaces will walk users through each task with even better guidance than our standard tabbed applications do today.
Upcoming applications (including Furniture Project Management) will also be based on this .NET and SQL framework. The new spreadsheet-style, wizard-like interface makes it easy to perform what-if scenarios, mass changes, and even exports to Microsoft® Excel and other formats for additional analysis.
Setup and Migration from DBF to SQL
However, as a consequence of the new tools and tighter control of data types in this new architecture, some preparations may be required:
New! Version 8.11 EnsiteEBS Conversion Only Required for New SQL Applications ECi released DDMS Version 8.11, Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006, and began shipping in waves to customers who requested the software update. This message is from your ECi DDMS Technical Support team, to provide guidance as you implement groundbreaking new features.
Backing Up SQL Data, Version 7.11 and above (PDF) Beginning with Version 7.11 released September 21, 2005, some DDMS applications use a SQL database engine that stores data in a different folder than the standard volumes. It’s important to ensure a complete backup in the event that you need to restore. Follow these instructions to verify that the SQL data is included in your daily and other period-end backups.
Identifying Invalid Records in Your Parameters File (PDF) If you have used third party software programs with DDMS, please note that they may have written records to the PARAMETERS file at some point. This may create invalid records that are incompatible with the new DDMS enterprise-class business system (EBS) architecture. As a result, it may prevent EBS applications from working properly, and an invalid data error message may display. Follow these instructions to verify if invalid records exist in your Parameters file.
Updated! Using the EBS SQL Import Panel (pdf) Beginning with Version 8.11, several DDMS applications work primarily with data in a SQL database. Before you can use Customer Price Plans, Price Modeling, and so on, your DDMS data must be initially validated, corrected as needed, and imported into the SQL database. After this initial processing in the EBS SQL Import Panel, you'll set up your schedule of "delta sync" (a process that synchronizes changes only) for the file groups and timetables you specify.
Tips on Validating DBF Data With EBS SQL Import Panel (pdf) DBF data validation is the most important step in implementing the new SQL applications. The new Microsoft SQL architecture has very rigid rules for database fields (or data types). By comparison, DDMS' legacy DBF flat-file database structure has been much more lenient. Before importing, you must make adjustments as needed to address validation exceptions, and test validation again until no more exceptions are found. Your ECi DDMS Technical Support teams offer several tech tips to help with this process.
New! Troubleshooting DDMS SQL Validation Errors (pdf) In the EBS SQL Import Panel, the Validate DBF Data tool checks each record in the files you mark to import. If data is missing or invalid, you will see a specific error. Common errors include: Split Volumes, File Not Found, File Not Compressed, Duplicate Key, Invalid Date, Invalid Number, and no purchasing vendor. Sometimes the software can logically make up for invalid data. Sometimes it’s actually okay to import a blank record. In many cases, however, it means manually correcting or deleting specific records. See this document for details on how to read the Validation error log, how to address each error, and a table that describes the best application to view and change individual records per file.
Updated! Installing Version 8 DDMS (pdf) This document explains how to install Version 8, including information about file conversion, journal parameter setup. It also includes important information about sharing a new folder on the server before installing the client software update. It also notes how to adjust your backup scripts to properly back up new SQL database files.
Feature-Specific Documentation
New! Setting Up Address Taxability (pdf) Sales tax rates vary not only from state to state, or city to city, but even within a zip code or city limits. The challenge is to keep up with local sales tax district rates for your nationwide customers' many remote locations. By default in DDMS, if you needed to change a tax rate, you had to create dozens of new tax districts and mass change your customers just to ensure your history would retain the original tax amount while new tickets reflect the new rates. Switching to the Address Taxability module allows you to more easily update tax tables on a regular basis. You can set up each tax authority (state, county, city, zip+4) with its own easy-to-maintain rate. You can set up individual items to be taxed correctly where they are only taxable in a specific jurisdiction. Item taxability is no longer tied to the general ledger department or item SIC code — eliminating double-use of these fields, and freeing you to use item departments and SIC codes for other purposes.
If you wish to use the SQL tables to maintain Address Taxability, it will require authorization with no additional charge from ECi DDMS Support. If you wish to automatically populate address-specific tax tables using CCH Tax Import subscription — instead of creating your own — please contact ECi Sales.
New! Delivery Manifests (pdf) The new graphical Delivery Manifest application is designed to help you streamline the delivery manifest. In line with our other EBS SQL products, including Price Modeling, Price Plans, SQL Report Preview, and Executive Dashboard, the Delivery Manifest application replaces a text-based screen with a graphical interface that has added functionality. The Delivery Manifest application replaces the text-based (TS) Shipping Manifest screen. The on-screen display is very flexible, allowing you to choose the display order of tables and determine what displays in each table. Using the Delivery Manifest applicaiton, you can scan tickets, add tickets based on limit criteria, or use manual entry. You can create a new manifest or append to an existing manifest.
Executive Dashboard (pdf) ECi DDMS now extends modern SQL and spreadsheet-like graphing capabilities to a high-level overview of your business — the new Executive Dashboard. You can easily monitor your company’s cash flow, and manage the display of (and access to) the data. The Executive Dashboard allows you to view and monitor the totals for your business. These totals are based on fiscal year totals, previously presented in the text-based (PD) President's Screens. However, the Dashboard includes a complete visual breakdown of all accounts receivable, accounts payable, bank totals, and sales totals. While the Sales tab pulls from the previous Day-End's closed business, all other tabs (Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable, and Bank) pull data in real time. For a different way of looking at your business, you can add new panels and screens, adjust screen layout or columns, and customize the graph type. With user groups and user security, you can grant executives and salespeople access to read-only views of data essential to their aspect of your business.
EBS SQL Furniture Project Management (pdf) Understand how to apply the power of DDMS's EBS SQL interface to ramp up project management efficiency. The Project Management feature is designed so that anyone in your company can quickly find and report on important information about any part of a project. For example, you can quickly view item delivery dates, acknowledgment information, order status, and items that have been added to an order. Project Management tasks display in an easy to use panel, with all the new functionality of the EBS SQL database. The hierarchy of views now falls into project, sales order, order summary (purchase order), and item levels. You now have unparalleled flexibility when limiting, filtering, summarizing, sorting, customizing, and updating your project data. You can even restrict salespersons to viewing only their customers’ project data. You can easily customize the display of columns and header information when you’re ready to save a report, or export to a spreadsheet or PDF file.
Setting Up & Using SQL Preview Reports for DDMS (pdf) The new Preview Reports function in the Report Menu combines the current capabilities of the existing sales database report screens in DDMS with the new functionality of the SQL EBS database. It is designed to allow both new and experienced users to easily view and print SQL reports. It also allows users to make minor report changes on the fly that could previously only be made in more complex report designer applications. Information is displayed in an Excel-style grid with columns that can be fully customized using sorts and limits.
SQL Reporting Field Definitions (pdf) In DDMS 8.13 and higher, standard SQL reports print from their respective SQL tables. For example, the sales reports print from the current SQL SalesOrderJournal table and related supplemental files. This handout provides definitions for the fields in these new reports. In this handout, we provide field definitions for the sales reports and customer reports. For each of these reports, we provide a summary of the report, an example of the report, and field definitions. This document serves as a handy reference for experienced SQL query writers to use when using C1 Report Designer to compose SQL statements, design custom reports, and save them for other users to access from DDMS' SQL Report Preview application.
Bank Statement Reconciliation (pdf) One of our most-requested enhancements is here. Bank Statement Reconciliation provides an on-screen worksheet that lets you quickly and easily mark cleared and outstanding checks and deposits to balance against your bank statements. Plus, this new application utilizes our smart-client, .NET architecture and intuitive interface design.
Advanced SQL Reporting Guide (pdf) If you are familiar with SQL databases and queries, you can use C1 Report Designer to create custom reports that you can view and edit in the DDMS Preview Reports application. While ECi DDMS does not support C1 Report Designer, this document presents helpful rules and definitions that should be useful in designing reports that are compatible with the Preview Reports function. See also:
Authorization Request For Third-Party C1 Report Designer (pdf) ECi DDMS developers rewrote all of DDMS' sales history databases and tables in Structured Query Language (SQL), a widespread industry standard for relational databases. As a result, all the SQL data for your DDMS sales history are now available for use with SQL reporting. With authorization, you can launch the C1 Report Designer from the Keyop Menu in DDMS 8.11 or higher. C1 entails composing SQL statements to design custom reports. You can select from lists of fields and limits, customize each report’s display, and manage saved custom formats. Other users can view and print your saved C1 reports in the Report Preview application, from the DDMS Reports menu. Report Preview can send the output to the printer, or export to Excel, PDF, or other options.
Setting Up C1 Report Designer for SQL Reporting (pdf) Learn how to set up C1 Report Designer to access the DDMS sales history database data now available in SQL. With authorization, you can launch the C1 Report Designer from the Keyop Menu in DDMS 8.11 or higher. Once your connection is successful, you can use C1 to compose SQL statements and design custom reports. You can select from lists of fields and limits, customize each report’s display, and manage saved formats. Other users can view and print your saved custom C1 reports in the Report Preview application, from the DDMS Reports menu. Report Preview can send the output to the printer, or export to Excel, PDF, or other options. You can use the same connection information to use the data on a read-only basis from Microsoft Access, Crystal Reports, or similar database reporting software.
Price Modeling (pdf) Like its predecessor (SG) [J], you can use the new Price Modeling application to measure the profitability of past sales as compared to initial pricing. But now you have amazing spreadsheet ability for modeling pricing and profitability. Using actual sales statistics, you can create new pricing models and directly compare the results against initial and historical pricing models. You can apply numerous filters to past sales journals, contracts, and inventory files to target a very specific item or customer sales history. Flexible on-screen display lets you choose fields and types of totals to display. Once a satisfactory price model is created, the on-screen end results can be saved as a new contract or exported to an Excel® file.
Customer Price Plans (pdf) The contracts application (ET screen) has been completely redesigned using the latest technology available. With a new smart-client architecture and incorporating the .NET programming framework, the Customer Price Plan makes it easier than ever to create, configure and analyze your customer contracts in ways never before possible.