Expert Image Notes

May 7, 2018 | Author: Anonymous | Category: Documents
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Expert Image for Support The first part of this document: Notes as of 8.0SP1, intended as a brief introduction for technical support. The second part is notes taken during the transfer of Expert Image from ATG to Aderant. Need filled by the Expert Image product Expert Image is product that allows querying transactions (similar to QuickLook Inquiries) to view, print, or email images connected to the specific transaction. Examples of images: · AP invoices from vendors · Prebills and Bills sent to clients · GL Audit reports · Client or Matter documents – perhaps signed engagement letters Expert Image also includes several methods for getting the images into the database: · Picking up scanned, bar-coded images (AP Images, GL audit reports) · Converting RTF to PDF (bills/prebills) · Manually attaching a PDF (Client or Matter documents) History of Expert Image Expert Image was created as Quick Image. At some point, ATG redeveloped Quick Image and called it Expert Image. However, they also re-branded the old Quick Image as Expert Image as well, so you might see Expert Image showing in the application even if it’s truly Quick Image. You must look at the version number (Help | About). · Version 4.x is Quick Image. · Version 7.x is Expert Image. Knowing the version is usually critical for technical support issues. · Version 4.x is not supported. No development will take place in this version, although general questions will be answered to the best of Support’s ability. · Version 7.x is supported. The current version is 7.9.3. · Sites can upgrade from any version of 7.x to 7.9.3. (See more on this in a later section.) · Sites cannot upgrade from Version 4.x to 7.x. Version 4 to 7 is an install handled by Professional Services. Aderant acquired Expert Image in March 2012. There are 3 releases available in the Client Portal in the General section: · Version 3000 – this is a new install for Version 7. It is intended for new clients. · Version 3001 – this is the upgrade to Version 7.9.3. It is intended for sites upgrading from any 7.x version to 7.9.3. · Version 3002 –this is the upgrade to Version 7.9.3 for TiffStacker only. (Actually, to clarify, TiffStacker is really at 6.5.3, I think, but that is the version that matches Expert Image 7.9.3. There is no real need to use this release unless a site is already at 7.9.3 and just never upgraded Tiff Stacker. Very unusual.) Clients will see whichever release is appropriate for them. So, if a new site comes along, they should go to the General releases and download it themselves. Sometimes 3rd party vendors are contracted to do the install and will try to get Support to provide the release. Support should not be doing that – if the site can’t see the Release, then Release Management needs to get involved. Overview of Expert Image for installation purposes Although PS handles Expert Image installs, it’s still good to know what has to be considered. This is an easy install (compared to Expert), and it can be installed locally for Support use in less than an hour. Separate database Expert Image uses a separate database to store things like: · File paths to the location of the file. (Expert equivalent: DDM_PATHS to support viewing prepared bills) · Stored procedures that support the end user queries. (Expert equivalent: 2.0 Views) The Expert Image database is a very small database compared to Expert. It should be backed-up regularly, but there’s no financial data stored here. One critical point: The Expert Image database must reside on the same server as the Expert database. This is not negotiable. If the Expert database moves to a new server, the Expert Image database must also move to the new server. Note: This is one of the reasons you cannot upgrade from Version 4.x to 7.x. Version 4.x did everything in the Expert database. ATG wanted to support other products, like Javelan, so they decided to use their own database. Repository The documents – scanned AP invoices, PDF versions of bills, etc. – all live on the network, just like DocuDraft bill files do. It can live anywhere that all Expert Image users can access, but it does need to be backed-up regularly, and it will grow. There is no archiving mechanism, but these files can be moved to a new location if necessary. When that happens, the path stored in the Expert Image database must be updated. (I believe the table is img_files.) Fortunately, the path is spread out over several columns: · One column for the drive/UNC. For example: \\server01 · One column for the path once on the drive: \Apps\ExpertImage\Docs\AP\201301 · One column for the file name: \abch123.pdf So, the site could just move the files to \\server02, and then just update the first column through SQL. The one site that did this when I was in Support was quite willing to update the database themselves once they realized how it worked. It might not be a Support issue to update their database paths for them. Security Expert Image does not secure their executable. You can’t launch AppShell if you don’t have rights in Expert Security. You can launch ExpertImage.exe. Note: Not to digress, but you *can* now launch Expert Time (the new one) even if you’re not in Logmaint. You do have to have a record in hbm_persnl and you do need a network login on the network. You won’t be able to print a time edit list, but you can probably do everything else. However, whether you see any modules listed – the equivalent of our Appshell menu items – depends on how security has been implemented at the site: · No security at all. If you have network access to launch Expert Image, you can see everything. · Module security tied to Active Directory groups. You can tie a module to an AD group, meaning that a user must be in this AD group for the module itself to appear on your menu. It’s not an all or nothing thing – you can tie one module to an AD group(s), tie another one to different AD group(s), and a third to no security at all. · Transaction security embedded in the SQL that pulls back the query results. This means that someone customized the SQL to include a filter in the where clause. Perhaps it was “user must be in the office of the transaction” or perhaps “user must be in this Expert security group.” It’s as flexible as SQL allows. Again, this type of security is per module, so you can mix it up as much as you’d like. Expert Image also has the concept of admin users (like the Expert P1), but it’s implemented a little differently. Admin users: · Are added to a table (maybe IMG_ADMIN) by their network name. · There are several columns – ignore AD security, allow delete, etc. – and a given user can have some or all of those rights. This is unlike the Expert P1 which is across the board. Custom columns Expert Image works with custom columns in the Expert database. To understand why – here’s a brief run-down of the life of an AP invoice: · Paper invoice received from vendor. · Paper stamped with a bar code · These bar codes can be generated with an Expert Image application · Usually they are printed on labels and then the labels stuck on the paper invoice · Paper entered into Expert Invoice Entry · Bar code entered into custom column on the Invoice Entry screen · User can type this into the bar code field · User can use a bar code reader to scan the barcode on the paper and have it automatically entered into the bar code field · AP transaction posted · Paper scanned into holding folder (often called StackOut) · TiffStacker, running on a schedule: · Picks up the scan from StackOut · Sorts out the pages by bar code into separate files (one per bar code) · Renames the file to the barcode · Puts the file in APInvoices folder · OmniLoader or Expert Image, running on a schedule · Picks up the file from APInvoices folder · Inserts the file path into Expert Image, including the barcode in a Source column · User logs into Expert Image · Clicks on the AP Invoices module · Performs a search that retrieves the AP invoice transaction · The search links the AP file to the Expert AP transaction by linking the Source in Expert Image to the custom Bar Code field in APT_INVOICE. · User clicks on the image link and the image is displayed In order to support this, a custom bar code column must exist in APT_INVOICE. This must be done at the time of installation of the module. The column is usually called _QI_ID, and is usually defined as an 8 or 12 character field. A custom script is used to make sure the barcode is unique, but that’s a customization on the Expert side, so not going into details here. Note: Many of the relevant Expert tables in Support databases already have this custom column in place as clients sent in .GEN scripts for various reasons. Scheduling the Tasks Expert Image needs several things to happen on a regular basis – perhaps as often as every two hours depending on volume and modules that have been purchased. The Expert equivalent is Event Scheduler/Event Server. Generally: · TiffStacker - If scanned images are used (AP invoices), then TiffStacker has to run. · If you scan a stack of paper invoices, it goes into one file. Bar codes should be only on the first page of the invoice, so TiffSTacker goes through looking for a barcode. It finds one, and then all pages until the next barcode are one file. · Yes, you could have a barcode from the vendor stamped on the paper, but you can set up the TiffStacker job so it knows to only look for barcodes that start with, say, “Q” and have, say, 6 characters after that. · OmniLoader or Expert Image – If scanned Images are used, then OmniLoader / ExpertImage.exe has to run to get the file paths into the database. · EICOPY – If bills or prebills are licensed, then EIPCOPY has to run. · EICopy is designed to go find RTF bills and then have Word launch and print those files to .PS files · Then EICOPY will go launch Adobe Acrobat to collect those .PS files and write them out to .PDF files. · It also converts the file from PREBILLNumber.BIL to BILLNumber.DOC. Each of these applications requires a job to be defined, just like the parameters / steps in Event Scheduler. Event Scheduler stores this information in the Expert database, but Expert Image uses files: · Parameters are stored as XML the Jobs folder – a subfolder under \ExpertImage\Apps. · The steps themselves are stored in a .CMD file usually located in the same place. · Parameters are passed into the step as a switch on the command line. (After an install, you’ll find a sample .CMD file in the Jobs folder with an example. I’m not going to document that here, but it’s just like running the Daily Recap with a .BAT file with the choices.) Then Event Server runs to pick up Expert jobs at the scheduled time, but Expert Image uses Microsoft Task Scheduler. The reason Support needs to know about all this is sometimes clients have to move where the jobs are running to a new workstation, just like Expert clients have to move the RQS to a new machine. Things to know about that: · New workstation has to have the pre-requisites: · .Net 2.0 · Word (if they’re doing bills – so far all versions have worked) · Adobe Acrobat (if they’re doing bills – so far all versions have worked) · User has to have access/rights to do whatever the .CMD files need to do’ · Copy files to a new location · Delete files · Run the Expert Image applications · Jobs need to be scheduled on the new workstation just as they were on the old · Generally speaking, as long as the .CMD files still exist, all is good. If they were storing the .CMD files on the old workstation and it crashed without a backup for these .CMD files, Support could advise what was probably in them, but it may need to be a PS issue to have those files recreated. Expert Image Upgrades Upgrading an Expert Image site from version 7.x to 7.9.3 is usually straightforward and quick. This upgrade is not a billable exercise, unless it takes place during non-Support hours. Technically, Support is supposed to do the upgrades for clients, but all the clients I worked with wanted to do it themselves, with Support on the line. Basically, though: · Download the release (GENU 3001). Unblock. Extract to a temporary folder somewhere. · Backup the Apps folder. · Make sure the repository is not included as that will take forever to backup · Check to see how many log files are in the Logs subfolder in Apps · All Expert Image applications log to text files, whenever they do anything · Nice for trouble-shooting, but you could have a Gb of data that you don’t really care about · Schedule the upgrade · You want it to be just after the Expert Image database has been backed-up, so the site will have to decide · You want it to be when no users are accessing Expert Image files. (This is a requirement as you cannot replace a file if it is locked by a user.) · However, if you have access to the computer that stores the Expert Image files (like remoting into it, not just the ability to see files on it), then you can go to Computer Management on that computer, and kick users off from Shared Files. Not saying you *should* just saying you *could.* · Perform the upgrade · Copy all files from your temporary Apps folder up to the real one · Run the database script in the Database folder against the database · There are notes in the Upgrade folder, but they basically say those two items above · Test the upgrade · Launch Expert Image and see if you can search for something · The one thing that might go south –files, similar to CMS.INI files, might get overwritten. · There’s two apps to review those – ConfigEdit.exe and IniEdit.exe. You have to look at both of them. I can’t recall the names of the specific files they edit, but you could also just drop the .INI files from your backup of the Apps folder back in. No site did a test upgrade, as it just wasn’t worth it. These upgrades are more like applying an Expert GENU than anything else. Very limited changes; little risk. There are release notes that document everything they did in the upgrade itself. But if you had to rollback, restore the Expert Image database, revert back to your backup of Apps, and you’re back to where you were. Time required: · Downloading the release can take a while, depending on connection speed. Some sites took as much as 30 minutes, which is why I suggested they go ahead and get it before the upgrade. · Backing up the Apps folder can take a while, depending on how many log files you have. One site took about 20 minutes to backup that folder, and it was all due to log files. · Tracking down users who are in Expert Image while you’re doing the upgrade of the bin (Apps) folder is the other large time item. That just takes as long as it takes! · Copying the files into the Apps folder is 5 minutes max. · Running the database script probably isn’t more than 5 minutes either. · ATG advised it took about 15 minutes to do an upgrade, which is true if you’ve already downloaded it (our release package might be larger, containing all files, as opposed to ATG –for all I know, they just transferred specific files) and nobody is in the files. · ATG recommends extracting the release directly into Apps, but I’ve a personal preference against doing that. I want it in a temp folder, and then I’ll copy it up when I’m ready. 1 | Page


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