Roadmap Themes 2021

The following provides a summary of the features and functionality available in SYSPRO 8.

Improved Control of Internal Operations

As globalization continues and access to world markets becomes easier, manufacturing industries are under pressure to remain competitive and improve efficiencies while reducing costs, and being able to deliver their product anywhere in the world at short notice.

These expectations require improved internal controls throughout the manufacturing business. To support this, a number of capabilities are being developed to offer the manufacturing business the required level of internal control.

2021-R2

The parent item of contaminated or defective products can optionally be included in the Product Recall Selections Review to ensure that all potentially spoiled items are identified.

Although this initially increases the list of items included, filtering options are available to refine the results (typically useful for companies that retain traceability data and don't archive lots). This list can then be used by companies to identify the affected products.

Read more...

A new batching rule (O - Cover shortages less than min overages up to max) allows processing of supplies up to the warehouse maximum level, even though the quantity on hand is above the minimum level. This ensures that stock levels can be increased prior to promotions or anticipated demand.

This caters for raising a suggestion when the minimum stock level in the warehouse is greater than the demand. Further supplies can be raised outside of MRP until the maximum is reached, at which time a cancel action is raised (i.e. when the supply quantity exceeds the warehouse maximum for that stock code).

This feature is relevant to sites that are not licensed for the Inventory Optimization modules, but which are using warehouse order policies in MRP.

This rule can only be used if the Schedule jobs and purchase orders setup option is enabled (Setup Options > Configuration > Manufacturing > Requirements Planning) and when running the Requirements Calculation in legacy mode.

The management of users in SYSPRO Point of Sale has been enhanced so that administrators can disable operators no longer in use and exclude them from the Manage Users program.

Previously, the Manage Users program was unable to distinguish between these users, which compromised system speed when dealing with a large number of operators. Being able to remove inactive users from the Manage Users program improves the efficiency when configuring and maintaining operators in SYSPRO Point of Sale.

Administrators can define a user as Active within the Add/Edit User screen of the Manage Users program. A new Show all users option (disabled by default) enables administrators to either include or exclude the inactive operators from the list view.

The Active option is enabled by default for all existing users. If you then disable this option against a user, the operator won't be able to log into SYSPRO Point of Sale.

This only applies to SYSPRO Point of Sale when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and doesn't apply when running in Silverlight.

The existing access control in SYSPRO Point of Sale has been extended within the Store > Manage Quotes and Store Management > Order Maintenance programs so that you can control operator access to creating and maintaining quotes for customers on hold.

The new Allow Quotes against Customers that has been placed 'On Hold' access control setting has been added to the Functionality column of the Access Control Setup program and is set as Deny by default. This enables administrators to define one of the following options:

  • Deny - Prevents quote generation for customers on hold.

  • Allow - Allows a customer to be selected for quote creation, regardless of their hold status and without user intervention.

  • Allow (auth req) - Quotations for customers on hold only allowed when supervisor authorization is provided.

  • Inherit all - The system checks higher up in the access control hierarchy to determine the function's access.

Once you've configured access control, the system allows quote generation, but blocks the quote from being converted to a sales order until the hold against the customer is released.

This only applies to SYSPRO Point of Sale when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and doesn't apply when running in Silverlight.

HTTPS and HSTS security

SYSPRO Point of Sale compliance and security features when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) has been strengthened by being able to run the application using HTTPS, a more secure form of communication.

During the installation, maintenance or upgrading of SYSPRO Point of Sale via the SYSPRO Installer Application, you can now specify the communication method you want to use.

Owing to its inherent security benefits, HTTPS has become the default and preferred method for running SYSPRO Point of Sale.

Single Sign-on

SYSPRO Point of Sale now supports Single Sign-on capabilities when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

Single Sign-on provides a simple to setup and robust method of using Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to control your users. Once configured, it enables a complete single sign-on experience as users are authenticated by Microsoft Windows and then simply use their email address to log into SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

It means that administrators can use Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to add, change, disable and delete operators virtually seamlessly. Any changes to user attributes automatically reflect against the operator without manual intervention.

Benefits

  • Increased login security.

  • Simplified login process for SYSPRO Point of Sale users.
  • Convenient administration of users managed by Microsoft Active Directory (AD).

Requirements

  • A registered certificate for the SYSPRO Point of Sale server is required to run Single Sign-on.

  • A customer account must be registered with Azure B2C and configured with the correct redirect URL back to the specific SYSPRO Point of Sale instance.

  • SYSPRO Point of Sale users must be configured with an email address for the system to identify the correct operator.

Setup

To enable Single Sign-on functionality in SYSPRO Point of Sale (when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti)) add the following tags within the Web.config file located in the \inetpub\wwwroot\SYSPRO8POS_xxxx\SYSPROPOSAVANTI folder (where xxxx is your company code):

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<add key="ida:IsB2Cauth" value="true" /><add key="ida:Tenant" value="yourcloud.onmicrosoft.com" />
<add key="ida:TenantId" value="yourUniqueTenantId" />
<add key="ida:ClientId" value=" yourUniqueClientId " />
<add key="ida:ClientSecret" value="YourClientSecret" />
<add key="ida:AadInstance" value="https://yourcloud.b2clogin.com/tfp/{0}/{1}" />
<add key="ida:RedirectUri" value="https://yourCompany.com/SYSPRO8POSAVANTI_EDU1/" />
<add key="ida:SignUpSignInPolicyId" value="b2c_1_susi" />
<add key="ida:EditProfilePolicyId" value="b2c_1_edit_profile" />
<add key="ida:ResetPasswordPolicyId" value="b2c_1_reset" />

This functionality doesn't apply when running SYSPRO Point of Sale in Silverlight.

The performance and responsiveness of SYSPRO Point of Sale when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) has been improved by speeding up the data binding process and subsequent display of modals and screens.

The SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) framework has been enhanced to allow the file contents to be passed directly to SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti). Previously, when displaying data in a grid, screen or modal in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti), the system speed was compromised by unnecessary disk usage.

The Missions and Tasks feature lets you create a work-to-list for queuing and moving inventory within a warehouse. This gives warehouse managers greater work allocation control and visibility.

A mission can be created for inventory putaway, sales order pick or cycle count transactions. Once missions and tasks are assigned to the employee or team they can be serviced using the Missions & Tasks application in SYSPRO Espresso (where operators can then view their tasks from a mobile device) or the WHM Review Mission Tasks program.

The system is updated in real time as the stock is allocated, physically moved and the task completed. Once all tasks are done, the mission can be completed.

Read more...

Tariff codes can be selected at all sales order lines, regardless of the tax configuration defined at company level. Previously, this could only be done if the EC VAT system required setup option was enabled.

Pricing structures within SYSPRO have been simplified so that pricing methods can be created and maintained in one place.

Price groups can be linked to a customer, branch, customer class, geographic area or custom form. Pricing rules or lists are then set up per price group and governed by effective dates.

Read more...

The enhanced Warehouse Bin Query program provides an easy way to create bin and warehouse transfers.

The bins within the warehouse can be selected from a tree structure. The bin content is displayed in a list view where you can select the ellipses at the Action column to create bin and warehouse transfers.

From there the Inventory Movements program is displayed where all relevant fields are pre-populated for ease of use. If the Enable for put-aways setup option is enabled, you can also create bin or warehouse put-aways.

Because the price of an item can change after a dispatch is created, a new setup option (Use sales order price on invoice) lets you choose to use the sales order price when consolidating dispatch notes for invoicing instead of defaulting to the original dispatch invoice price.

2021-R1

The Utilities panel lets you download all product files (including hotfixes) to your local SYSPRO Deployment folder.

The download process occurs in the background so you can continue using the SYSPRO Installer Application, or close the app and leave the download to continue overnight.

This is useful as it ensures that you have all the required installation files before proceeding with an install.

SYSPRO partners can also use this feature to download and copy product files to a storage device to save time when installing off-site (typically at a customer site with unstable internet connectivity).

The Utilities panel also lets you delete downloaded media files, such as product and hotfix files.

The Order Picking application has been added to SYSPRO Espresso. It lets operators remain on the shop floor to conduct order picking in a quicker and more efficient manner.

The SYSPRO Espresso application is equivalent to the Pick Maintenance program in the core SYSPRO product and lets you maintain order picks with the following functionality:

  • Start, stop, complete and cancel a pick.

  • Start, complete and cancel a pick line.

  • Complete selected pick lines.

The Order Picking application uses the SO Pick Query business object to output pick line information and the SO Pick Status Change business object to post the updated pick details.

The existing access control in SYSPRO Point of Sale has been extended in the Manage Orders program so that you can control an operator's access to the Invoice function, regardless of the order's type or status.

Previously, this function was accessible except when working with deposit or suspended orders. You can now hide or disable the Invoice button by configuring your requirements within the Access Control Setup program (available from the Setup menu).

If you previously defined the <InvoiceOnlyButtonManageOrdersAlwaysDisabled> element in the SystemConfig.xml file to be TRUE, then you need to reconfigure the access to this button using the Access Control Setup program after updating to SYSPRO 8 2021 R1.

The search capability in SYSPRO Point of Sale has been extended to barcodes when searching for stock items.

In addition, when you use the Add/Edit Line screen of the Manage Orders program, you can now add stock items using a stock code, serial number or barcode (normal or integrated). Previously, this was only possible using stock codes.

You can also define your preferences as follows:

  • Default filter options for the Manage Orders program can now be defined by barcode or serial number within the Search Defaults screens of the Branch Settings program.

  • Default filter options for the Search program can now be defined by barcode within the Search Defaults screen of the Manage Users program.

  • You can't use serial numbers when adding stock items to a quote.

  • You can only use normal barcodes when searching for stock items, as integrated barcodes are not supported within the search.

To simplify the debugging process and reduce the persistence of files to the file system, SQL logging within SYSPRO Point of Sale is now recorded within the SQL database.

Previously, each query logged was output to a unique file on disk. From SYSPRO 8 2021 R1, it is now logged to the SQLQueryLogging database table to ensure that all information relevant to debugging is centralized and located at a single point for reference.

To simplify the fault-finding process when SQL Query Logging is enabled, SYSPRO Point of Sale and its SystemConfig.exe file have been altered to limit the logging of SQL queries executed, to functional queries only.

Previously, when SQL logging was enabled, multiple miscellaneous queries were logged which increased the size of the log file and made it difficult to identify queries.

From SYSPRO 8 2021 R1, a standard exclusions list is now included in the SystemConfig.exe file and allows for the exclusion of certain SQL queries by name. A new XML node <SQLQueryLoggingExclusions> has been implemented at parent level and the ChildNodes are named <QueryNameToExclude>.

Although you can add further queries to the list if required, the following SQL queries are now excluded by default:

  • BranchSqlConnectionForBranchSelect

  • OfflineService

  • PoSTransactionListToProcessSelect

  • SystemSettingsSelect

  • UserSessionsCurrentUserStatusSelect

Each query included in the new exclusions list of the SystemConfig.exe file is not logged when the <OutputSqlQueries> element is set to TRUE.

The assigning of receipt numbers within the Account Payments program has been extended to the Account Payment Reallocations program.

From SYSPRO 8 2021 R1, receipt numbers are assigned (using the same numbering method as account payments) to both the reversal payment and new payment when you process an account payment reallocation in SYSPRO Point of Sale.

In addition, the receipts related to these transactions are now available to view, print or reprint within the Account Payment Query program.

To improve governance around account payment re-allocations, you can now enable supervisor authorization for these transactions by configuring the Allow Account Payment Reallocation option within the Branch Settings program.

The SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) framework for SYSPRO Point of Sale has been enhanced to cater for providing data directly to SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

This removes the need to first save data to disk - improving the grid layout and data binding speed when running SYSPRO Point of Sale in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

A new operator preference has been added to the Sales Order Entry and Sales Order Entry Express programs that lets you indicate that the back order quantity must be updated before the ship quantity when maintaining orders. Previously, the ship quantity was impacted first when you adjusted the order quantity of an existing order line.

The Adjust b/order when order qty changed preference is available from the Options tab of the Preferences pane and requires that the Automatically put order qty in b/order operator preference is also enabled.

When you decrease the order quantity, the back order quantity is decreased first, followed by the ship (or reserved) quantity, if there is not enough stock on back order to satisfy the change. Similarly, when you increase the order quantity for an existing line, the additional quantity goes into back order.

Intrastat reporting now includes freight and miscellaneous charges for dispatches as well as service charges on non-stocked lines for arrivals. This addresses the need for European countries to record and report on Intrastat transactions that occur when goods are purchased from or delivered to other countries within the EU.

Other enhancements include:

  • Supplier invoice values can now be used to report on Intrastat arrival transactions (no longer Goods Received Notes).

  • The supplementary unit factor and method can be captured for sales orders and purchase orders to ensure recording of the actual quantity invoiced.

  • Goods for demonstration purposes and goods on consignment that are transported to a warehouse outside the supplier’s country are included.

Quick Sales, Counter Sales, Point of Sale and Credit Notes are not included in this enhancement.

Improved Organizational Controls

As the landscape changes, businesses need to focus on improving organizational controls and internal controls.

Improved organizational control will become steadily critical as the business changes and grows, and for improved real-time decision making by the leadership team.

2021-R2

SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) now supports Single Sign-on capabilities when using Microsoft Azure Active Directory B2C.

This provides a simple to setup and robust method of using Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to control your SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) users.

Administrators can use Microsoft Active Directory (AD) to add, change, disable and delete operators virtually seamlessly and any changes to user attributes automatically reflect against the operator without manual intervention.

Once configured, it enables a complete single sign-on experience as operators are authenticated by Microsoft Windows via the Microsoft Azure Active Directory B2C login page configured for their organization. Operators can then use their email address to log into SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and engage as normal.

Benefits

  • Increased login security

  • Simplified login process for SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) users

  • Convenient administration of users managed by Microsoft Azure Active Directory B2C

Requirements

  • A registered certificate for the SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) server is required to run Single Sign-on.

  • A customer account must be registered with Microsoft Azure Active Directory B2C and configured with the correct redirect URL back to the specific SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) instance.

  • The relevant tags within the Web.config file of the SYSPRO Avanti Web Service service must be updated accordingly.

  • As AD users are mapped to SYSPRO operators, each operator's configured email address must match their registered email address within the Microsoft Azure Active Directory B2C portal.

The SYSPRO Cloud ERP team are responsible for enabling Single Sign-on for customers in a SYSPRO Cloud ERP environment.

Read more...

The WIP Shift Patterns feature lets you establish schedules with different activities for work centers and machines within manufacturing and distribution facilities. Previously, you were restricted to allocating a full day for a specific activity.

Shift patterns can be defined at various levels (i.e. company, site, work center, production line, warehouse or machine) and a work day can have multiple shifts with different start and end times to accommodate shift requirements.

Allocating maintenance times ensures that machine time can't be booked for production time (i.e. avoids different activities coinciding at the same time on the same machine).

Read more...

The Tax Connectors feature has been enhanced with the following improvements when using the Tax Connector - Avalara module:

  • The filter options of the Tax Interface Setup program (which allow you to exclude certain states and countries from submission to Avalara) have been extended to filter submissions by product class.

  • The process for manually importing tax rates into SYSPRO using the Tax Rates Import program has been enhanced by the addition of the following new standardized panes:

    • Options - These options let you define import criteria.

    • Details - This lets you view and edit specific details of the import file.

    • Import Results - This displays a summary of the import results.

  • You can now select specific Customers and Sales orders for which you want to run the report when you use the Tax Interface Error Log Print program to view and print any errors that may have occurred during the posting of transactions.

    In addition, the following new columns have been added to the Tax Interface Error Log Print pane for ease of reference to information:

    • Customer - This indicates the customer assigned to the transaction.

    • Line type/Increasing - This indicates the status of the transaction.

    • Transaction description - This indicates a detailed description of the error that occurred.

  • The Exemption Certificates Setup program has been updated so that it is only accessible when the Tax Connector - Avalara module is licensed and installed.

Read more...

2021-R1

The WIP by Branch feature (which initially introduced ledger integration for work in progress at branch level) has been extended to include separate control accounts at work center level - useful when jobs are in transit during the production process.

A job transfer feature has also been added to let you track the total costs of a job when transferring a job between operations. The job's total cost is transferred to the WIP branch ledger account of the next operation. The WIP branch defined for the work center is used when posting labor transactions.

If ledger Integration for WIP is by job classification within the WIP branch, then the ledger account for the job classification is used for the job master as well as labor and material allocations.

The SYSPRO 8 architecture has been re-engineered to cater for connecting to cloud-based tax calculation systems. This provides a more sophisticated tax capability that allows you to remain compliant when facing complex tax scenarios in your business.

The following tax connector modules are now available for SYSPRO Cloud ERP and SYSPRO 8 on-premise (both in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and SYSPRO Desktop):

  • Avalara Tax Connector

  • Vertex Tax Connector

Once you obtain the appropriate licensing for these connected services and configure your preferred tax connector, you can establish a direct link between these platforms and SYSPRO using a prebuilt connection that allows for seamless interaction.

SYSPRO sends transaction data to Avalara or Vertex and receives the tax total in return, enabling the following capabilities:

  • Calculate tax requirements.

  • Record tax transactions in Avalara and Vertex.

  • Use the tax transactions recorded in Avalara and Vertex for reporting purposes.

  • Record invoices.

  • Create, maintain and store Avalara tax exception certificates (only applicable to Avalara Tax Connector).

  • Perform other tax-related functions.

Benefits include:

  • Simplified sales and use tax processes for all US states and Canadian provinces (from tax determination on transactions to exemption certificate management and tax returns).

  • Monthly updates to ensure constant application of current tax rates.

  • Analysis capability by state, county and city.

  • Enhanced VAT process efficiency (from indirect tax determination to reporting).

  • Improved accuracy and reliability of tax calculations at the federal, state, and local levels in the US and Canada.

Read more...

The following enhancements were introduced to the Digital Tax System for this release:

  • You can now capture the VAT registration number and User tax reference field at company and branch level.

  • The Digital Tax Tool program lets you design a template with your preferred input and output options while the new Browse on Digital Tax tool Template program lets you search and choose an existing template.

  • The Consolidated Tax Return program lets you identify records that still require submission in the selected financial period, by displaying transactions that have been submitted, not submitted and not printed.

  • The Tax Transaction by GL Allocation Account report includes the VAT registration number and User tax reference field.

  • The Digital Tax Tool Status report displays the status of the tax return for the selected financial period.
  • The VAT at a Glance program displays the month-to-date printed and unprinted VAT transactions for the current financial year.

The AP Group Payments feature simplifies the allocation of a single supplier remittance to multiple related suppliers, in a single transaction.

This avoids errors typically associated with the manual preparation of transactions related to secondary suppliers and improves the administrative time taken to process them.

Processing payments to suppliers across multiple SYSPRO companies is not yet available.

Read more...

The AR Group Payments feature simplifies the allocation of a single payment from a customer to multiple related customers, in a single transaction.

This avoids the errors typically associated with the manual preparation of transactions related to secondary customers and improves the administrative time taken to process them.

Processing payment from customers across multiple SYSPRO companies is not yet available.

Read more...

The Supply Chain and Connected World

The competitive landscape has changed and each manufacturer increasingly faces a requirement to find new and alternative routes to market, as well as being able to better service their current market.

SYSPRO's product roadmap provides capabilities to improve processes to support optimization of the sales and distribution channel as well as aftermarket support for the sale.

2021-R2

Online web portals have become the connection point for organizations, and self-service that maximizes the efficiency of interactions is key to empowering users, having connected interactions across channels, and enabling successful organizations.

In keeping with this self-service trend, the SYSPRO Supply Chain Portal has evolved to provide SYSPRO sites with enhanced account management capabilities for end-customers and suppliers.

The following functional roles are currently available when using the portal:

  • Request for quote (RFQ)

  • (SAM)

  • (CAM)

These functional roles will be extended as the capabilities of the feature grows.

A SYSPRO company can provide its customers and suppliers with access to information relevant to their relationship and the transactions between them. This forms the basis of self-service access and reduces the administrative burden of sending and requesting specific information through other communication channels.

Benefits

  • End-customers and suppliers have direct access to information relating to their account, including transaction details.

  • End-customers and suppliers can download invoices, statements () and remittance advices () in PDF format, as required.

  • Self-service access improves the administrative response time to communicate customer or supplier-specific information.

  • The average accounts receivable turnaround time is reduced for the SYSPRO company because of the immediate availability of information to the end-customer.

  • The immediate availability of information to the supplier can reduce supplier lead times and increase opportunities to take advantage of any early settlement discounts offered by the supplier.

Security

The portal's security ensures that the correct access is given to each portal user and that your end-supplier or customer can't access any unauthorized information.

This is achieved by each portal user being linked to a specific supplier or customer account from the SYSPRO company and then linked to a functional portal role. When logging in, portal users are presented with a landing page determined by their functional role(s) and includes insights into the relevant information.

For example:

functional roles includes insights such as credit standing, average days to pay, receivable days outstanding, outstanding balances, etc.

functional roles includes insights such as agreed invoice terms, value of goods ordered but not yet received, value of goods received but not yet invoiced, outstanding balances, etc.

Administrators can easily configure security access for each portal user by defining an operator as a portal user; configuring each portal role with the appropriate access; and assigning the correct functional roles to the portal operators.

Read more...

2021-R1

In a server-side reporting environment, the SYSPRO Reporting Services infrastructure caters for using the operator's Office 365 account when sending emails. This provides visibility to the recipients of distributed reports by displaying the address of the operator who emailed the report.

This only applies if a valid Office 365 account is configured and enabled within the Personal Settings program (SYSPRO Ribbon bar > Home > Personal Settings) and the appropriate Email/SMTP settings for emailing via Office 365 are configured at company or system-wide level (depending on your setup options).

If the Use system-wide SMTP details company setup option is enabled (Setup Options > Company > General) then ensure that the correct Email/SMTP settings are configured against the system setup options (Setup Options > System Setup > Connectivity).

Information and Intelligence

Along with the improved controls, a business needs information to function. Digital Transformation is bringing more and more information to the business, but without the tools to manage all of the extra information it adds no value.

SYSPRO adds the key tools to manage and analyze all of the extra information. Augmented Services translates all of the knowledge into an improved customer experience.

2021-R2

The SYSPRO Reporting Services architecture for printing and reporting (both client-side and server-side) has been upgraded to use SAP Crystal Reports 2020.

The advantages of this upgrade include:

  • Faster installation time (depending on the hardware and software configuration).

  • Reduced footprint on the reporting server installation (SAP Crystal Reports Server 2020 SP2 is 64-bit).

  • Faster start-up time for the Java server when using client-side reporting.

  • Improved performance when previewing, printing and archiving documents (depending on the environment and hardware configuration).

    Our internal testing has indicated an average of 50% reduction in processing time.

  • Quicker processing times when previewing reports and documents using the native XML driver.

  • Increased scalability lets you process reports with larger XML (depending on the complexity of the XML structure).

Because the 2013 and 2016 versions of SAP Crystal Reports have reached the end of their life cycles, the SYSPRO Additional Reporting Software is dependent on your version of SYSPRO 8:

  • Additional Reporting Software 2013 (i.e. SAP Crystal Reports 2013):

    Applies to SYSPRO 8 2020 R1 and prior versions.

  • Additional Reporting Software 2016 (i.e. SAP Crystal Reports 2016):

    Applies to SYSPRO 8 2020 R2, SYSPRO 8 2021 R1 and SYSPRO 8 2021 R2.

  • Additional Reporting Software 2020 (i.e. SAP Crystal Reports 2020):

    Applies to SYSPRO 8 2021 R2 and later versions.

Read more...

The SYSPRO OData feature lets you connect securely to SYSPRO data without direct SQL access and retrieve data for use by third-party applications. It is a future-proof technology that provides a RESTful API to the SYSPRO database and allows OData-compliant applications to query SYSPRO data in a standard and controlled manner.

Although it is available for both on-premise and cloud solutions, SYSPRO OData is the only mechanism available when applications need access to SYSPRO data in the SYSPRO Cloud ERP environment (the SYSPRO Cloud ERP platform doesn't allow direct database access by any application or personnel).

Accessibility

You can connect to the SYSPRO OData Service on an HTTPS endpoint and retrieve live data from the SYSPRO company and system-wide SQL databases (in that SYSPRO instance).

Security

SYSPRO OData is secured via a prerequisite SSL certificate on the endpoint. You can then use your predetermined SQL user credentials to access the underlying SYSPRO SQL table data.

For SYSPRO Cloud ERP, external access is then protected from attack and subject to intrusion detection.

Functionality

You can connect external third-party applications to the SYSPRO OData Service for analytics, reporting or triggering requirements. Scalability is supported by best practice guides.

Solution Use

A typical user would connect a product such as Microsoft Excel or Tablaeu to the SYSPRO OData solution, extract data for further analysis or presentation in a visualization tool, and set up schedules to refresh the data.

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SYSPRO Business Activity Queries provides a low-code dataset creation tool based on business logic that solves custom dataset requirements across a number of areas of enterprise reporting in SYSPRO.

These include:

  • Business insight tiles

  • Crystal Sub Reports

  • Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning Dataset Inputs

  • Business Intelligence Tools

  • SYSPRO Report Writer (via the Data Dictionary)

  • SYSPRO OData Custom Datasets

SYSPRO Business Activity Queries are SQL views that are created in the relevant company databases and (because they are defined in SYSPRO) are recognized as data sources. They provide a view into the business data commonly used during the typical business management process. The queries are built and secured in the core ERP system and then surfaced to users via their enterprise reporting and connectivity solutions.

Benefits:

  • Reduced risk of inappropriate access to SYSPRO data.

  • Increased flexibility of creating custom linked data, including custom form fields.

  • SQL views no longer need to be created outside of SYSPRO (i.e. using a tool like Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio).

  • Less reliance on custom SQL objects for data access (for both reporting and integrations).

  • Reduced need for SQL knowledge in creating custom datasets.

Read more...

The Insight Tile Definition program simplifies designing, verifying and deploying business insight tiles. New tiles are easily created with the revised program which supports regular text, line and bar chart tiles.

Existing and standard SYSPRO tiles can be copied and subsequently changed. The Insight Tile Definition program integrates with the new Business Activity Query Builder program to allow easy access to custom SQL views.

This functionality lets SYSPRO administrators import customized report templates into SYSPRO Reporting Services from any location (i.e. local disk or external hard drive). Previously, this involved a lengthy process of manually copying the relevant report templates in to a specific directory.

Customized report templates are created using the SAP Crystal Reports designer and imported into the SrsReporting table of the system-wide database.

Read more...

2021-R1

The Tax totals for SRS sales order documentation feature (exclusive to SYSPRO Reporting Services) is designed to comply with the Canadian and US legislation that requires tax total amounts to be shown on sales order documentation. All calculations relating to order and line totals in Sales Order Entry and Point of Sale Entry are performed using a 3rd party tax system.

Totals you can add when using a 3rd party tax system include:

  • Canadian GST and PST

  • US State, County and City tax

This feature is available once you have enabled the Apply USA 3rd party tax in Sales Orders setup option (Setup Options > Tax > Sales and Use Tax).

Power Tailoring and Customization

2021-R2

To provide operators with the same customization experience across any machine (and in the event of a pod loss in a SYSPRO Cloud ERP environment) the following customization settings per operator are now retained in SQL within the SysSettings table of the system-wide database:

  • System-wide personalization settings

  • Recent Programs

  • Favorites

  • Other SYSPRO menu personalization

When an operator logs into SYSPRO and the Persist operator UI settings to SQL option is enabled, the system checks the SQL system database for any customized operator settings defined and returns these if found. If these settings are not found during the start-up process, the system checks the file system (\Base\Settings) and, if found, copies these to the SysSettings table and returns the settings to the SYSPRO instance.

Advantages of storing this data in the database include:

  • Centralized access to all related data

  • Simplified portability of data and backup strategy

  • Improved performance

  • Provision for enhanced scalability in future releases

Read more...

To provide operators within defined roles with the same customization experience across any machine (and in the event of a pod loss in a SYSPRO Cloud ERP environment) the following role customizations are now retained in SQL within the system-wide database:

  • Role customization files (e.g. \Settings\Role_xxx, stored in the SysRoles table)

  • Role menu files (stored in the SysMenu table)

When operators within a defined role log into SYSPRO, the system checks the SysRoles and SysMenu tables for any customized role settings or menus defined and returns these if found. If these settings are not found during the start-up process, the system checks the file system (\Base\Settings) and, if found, copies these to the respective SQL database tables and returns the saved settings to the SYSPRO instance.

Advantages of having this data available from the database include:

  • Centralized access to all related data

  • Simplified portability of data and backup strategy

  • Improved performance

  • Provision for enhanced scalability in future releases

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Technology Development

2021-R2

The SYSPRO Advanced Browse feature consolidates SYSPRO's traditional browse look-ups into a single program, making it easier to administer and customize. The traditional browse look-up programs are typically accessed from the browse icon, or by pressing F9.

From SYSPRO 8 2021 R2, all new programs that require browses default to using the new advanced browse facility which is available for valid key fields on a toolbar, grid or form.

For the traditional browse look-up programs (accessed from the browse icon, or by pressing F9) you will need to enable the Enable advanced browse option (Setup Options > System Setup > System-Wide Personalization) to take advantage of the new advanced browse features.

Read more...

The architecture of the Electronic Signatures system has been re-engineered to simplify and enhance the user experience of configuring eSignatures in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

The functionality of the legacy eSignature Setup program has been split into the following new programs (which are accessible both within the SYSPRO Desktop and SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti)):

  • Electronic Signature Configuration Setup

    This program lets you enable the Electronic Signatures system and create or maintain your eSignature configuration levels and their associated access control.

  • Electronic Signature Transaction Setup

    This program lets you configure specific transaction conditions against your eSignature configuration levels.

This assists system administrators who prefer to manage their administrative tasks in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti), as they can now configure the Electronic Signatures system using the web UI.

In addition, new import and export functionality has been introduced within the Electronic Signature Configuration Setup program that lets you import and export your eSignature configuration levels from one environment to another.

The eSignature Setup program is still accessible via the Ctrl+R command and is fully functional in the SYSPRO core product, however this will be rendered obsolete with a later release of SYSPRO 8.

The GL XML Report Viewer program is available in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) from the GL Financial Reporting option of the Financial Reporting menu.

This lets you process GL financial reports based on a specific report code and allows for GL reports that have been designed for the XML Viewer to be rendered in the SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and previewed in PDF format.

Other capabilities include:

  • Financial figures within the report include hyperlinks that let you drill down to the applicable account.

  • The Account Transactions list view lets you query a GL code, post to the applicable account and drill down to transaction level.

  • The Transactions list view allows you to view journal information and execute the following Zoom functions for a specific source against the journal:

    • General ledger

    • AP Expense Journal

    • AP Expense Journal

    • A/R Cash Posting Journal

    • A/R Invoice Detail

    • Inventory Journal

    • GRN Journal

    • WIP Labor Journal

    • WIP Part Billing

    • AP Disbursement

    • Cashbook Journal

The Avanti Event Viewer (accessible from the icon on the Home page) logs all events and calls to the system so that support personnel can identify and resolve technical problems that may arise.

The Support Diagnostics function (accessible from the icon on the Home page) can also be used to help resolve issues with grid content not populating. Enabling this function retains grid files in the \Base\Settings\HTMLUX folder during the run of SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) for the logged-in user. When exiting SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti), these grid files are removed and the Support Diagnostics option automatically switched off.

The user-interface includes the following improvements for a more intuitive and engaging user experience:

  • To-Do List

    You can display the To-Do List in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) (which lists activities that require your attention) by selecting the Gear icon () on the Home page, followed by the Enable To-Do List option.

    Similarly, you can display the To-Do List in a web view by launching the Visual Designer and adding the To-Do List Details grid to your layout section.

  • Customizing Task Dialogs

    You can customize task dialogs to improve throughput, particularly on transactional screens. These customizations range from removing buttons and changing the default action button, to preventing the dialog from being displayed at all.

    Currently, task dialog customization must be performed in SYSPRO using the Customize Task Dialogs program (accessible from the Administration tab of the Ribbon bar) however, these customizations are also applied when running in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

Read more...

As part of the continuing process to simplify SYSPRO configuration and consolidate the user interface, administrators can now manage the Company password and Prevent logins functionality from within the Setup Options program (Setup Options > Company > General).

This functionality was previously located within the Company Maintenance program.

Administrators can now add multiple printer devices that enables the printing of PDF documents using any third-party application. Depending on the application you choose to install, these third party applications dramatically improve print quality issues experienced when using Type 3 fonts and dot-matrix printers. These applications integrate to SAP Crystal Reports 2016 (used within SYSPRO) and let you silently print a PDF file with Adobe Acrobat Reader DC on your client machine.

Previously, SYSPRO required the underlying associated document information before it could print a PDF document. The file previously used to configure specific printer device names (UserSrsDocumentPrint.txt) has been replaced by this new functionality.

Considerations:
  • This applies to SRS server-side document printing (i.e. your Reporting configuration setup option needs to be configured as Server-side reporting using SQL).
  • SAP Crystal Reports 2016 is required to leverage the benefits of this enhancement.
  • There are various methods that you can use to print your PDF documents:

    • Print using the preview window

    • A forced print using an installed instance of Adobe Acrobat Reader DC

    • Opening the document using the Windows Default Viewer. This doesn't apply to all documents, excluding PDFs which are easily printed using the SYSPRO Reporting Host Service and SAP Crystal Reports 2016 (client-side printing).

Inventory and General Ledger control records within the SYSPRO database architecture have been redesigned for greater scalability to allow the independent management of individual key numbers (e.g. registers, journals, etc.). This addresses the need to cater for the locking and, by extension, queuing of processes of the current control tables while a process retrieves and uses the next keys held in these tables.

Benefits

  • Greater scalability for high-volume sites

  • Less excessive blocks and bottlenecks in high transaction environments

Control records (which have been a core part of the SYSPRO architecture for many years) are used to store certain values that are updated continuously by multiple transactions (e.g. Financial next journal and register numbers, Lowest unprocessed journal numbers, MTD and YTD values per module, etc.). In high-volume environments (with high user activity or high automated transactions) these control records are read and updated constantly and can potentially cause record locks and result in SQL deadlocks and rollbacks.

From SYSPRO 8 2021 R2, the next key and next journal columns have been removed from the GenControl and InvCompanyCtl control files and redefined as individual rows in a new set of tables that are defined by module:

  • GL register numbers: GenNextKeys

  • Inventory journal numbers: InvNextKeys

The next numbers are now allocated in a self-contained SQL transaction by the COM Fetch Next Key And Update Audit business object and an audit record is created to track when this number was allocated. The transactional data is then created in a separate SQL transaction and used to update the audit record to indicate that the transaction has been completed.

This prevents record locks by ensuring that the InvCompanyCtl and GenControl records aren't accessed or locked as frequently.

To assist with auditing purposes, the InvNextKeyAudit and GenNextKeyAudit tables can be used for the following:

  • Trace the next numbers allocated (where no transaction was created).

  • Explain missing transaction numbers in the transactional tables.

In addition, the Lowest Unprocessed Journal numbers (used for locating unprinted journals and unposted GL integration records) have been removed from these control records (they were originally introduced to speed up the processing time in C-ISAM environments and have little value in SQL). Using the capabilities in SQL enables SYSPRO to locate unprinted journals and unposted GL integration records quickly and easily.

Read more...

2021-R1

The user-interface includes the following improvements for a more intuitive and engaging user experience:

  • GeoLocation support

    When working with address fields in a web view, you can now use the Resolve Address feature to ensure that the customer or shipping address is correct, or the Map Directions feature to get directions using Google Maps.

    You can configure how GeoLocation works within SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) using the Setup Options program (Setup Options > System Setup > System-Wide Personalization).

  • Multimedia object inclusion

    Using the Visual Designer or Customize Application programs you can now select the Multimedia button to add multimedia objects (e.g. images, documents, etc.) associated with key fields.

  • Multiple web page handling

    The SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) infrastructure has been enhanced to allow for a new browser tab to be opened for a given URL.

  • Simplified interface customization

    When adding a custom form field using the Customize Application program, you can now select to automatically add the field to the web view, without having to use the Visual Designer.

  • Easier program navigation by role

    A Program List card that mimics the functionality of the Avanti Program List in the hamburger menu has been added to the Visual Designer to allow easier navigation of programs by certain user roles.

  • Program name and version visibility

    For improved debugging purposes, you can now access the (Admin Shift+F7 System Information) program from the Gear menu to view the name and version of a program in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti).

  • Quicker grid entry

    Editable grids in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) that support the notion of automatically adding rows now enable you to paste the contents of your clipboard directly into the grid.

  • Help popups & group headings on forms

    To assist you when configuring new or existing setup options within the Setup Options program, form fields now include descriptive group headings and you can hover over fields to view Help text for each option.

The SYSPRO 8 Avanti Initialization Service has been enhanced to improve performance and enable more concurrent SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) user sessions.

A number of enhancements have been made to increase stability and reduce memory consumption, including:

  • The ability to limit the number of SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) instances.

  • Improved support for comments in cells.

  • Minimal CPU consumption when idle.

  • Decreased memory usage per user upon initial login to the home page.

  • Increased robustness when handling rapid data entry in data grids (specifically to prevent data corruption in grid rows).

The footprint on the file system has been reduced by moving non-static data (e.g. setting files) to the SQL database.

When you enable the Persist operator UI settings to SQL setup option (Setup Options > System Setup > System-Wide Personalization) the ADMPRO.DAT indexed file is converted to the AdmProControl table in the system-wide database and thereafter any records are stored in this table. The ADMPRO.DAT file contains information about custom fields, table master and scripted fields that have been added to forms.

An App Store plugin has been developed that allows you to activate or deactivate SYSPRO applications in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti). The SYSPRO.AvantiAppStore.Avanti.Plugin.dll plugin is accessible from the hamburger menu.

Read more...

The previous release outlined the consolidation of all the options from the System-wide Personalization program to the Setup Options program.

At the time, you could still run a standalone version of the System-wide Personalization program (i.e. IMPFRB) from the SYSPRO Ribbon bar or using the Run a Program function (Ctrl+R).

From the SYSPRO 8 2021 R1 release, this program is no longer available and all settings must be managed from within the Setup Options program (SYSPRO Ribbon bar > Setup > Setup Options > System Setup):

As part of the journey to reduce file system persistence, when running SYSPRO 8 on-premise you can opt to retain the following RTF and CMS data in the SQL database (instead of the file system):

  • RTF notepad documents attached to entities

  • CMS Activity body RTF documents

  • CMS Activity attachments

  • CMS Organization lists

You can migrate these files to your SQL database and vice versa using the Migrate Files To SQL program (Program List > Administration > General Setup).

Alternatively, you can access this program via the Migrate RTF files to SQL from file system or Migrate RTF files from SQL to file system hyperlink against the RTF and CMS files in SQL option in the Setup Options program (Setup Options > System Setup > System-Wide Personalization). The name of this hyperlink changes depending on the current state of your file storage.

Advantages of moving this data from the file system to the database includes:

  • Centralized access to all related data

  • Reduction of file system usage

  • Simplified portability of data and backup strategy

  • Improved performance

  • Provision for enhanced scalability in future releases

During the SYSPRO 8 2020 R2 release, the custom SRS Document Print XML control files were migrated to Microsoft SQL Server as part of the initiative to reduce file system usage.

Continuing on this journey, the setup and printing processes for SRS Document Printing is now optimized to reduce file persistence and address the overhead of loading the control information into memory when using SRS Document Printing.

The standard SRS Document Print XML control files and templates are now loaded into a set of three global SQL temporary tables for each instance of SYSPRO as they are required:

  • Standard document types

  • Standard document samples

  • Available archive fields

In addition, the SRS Document Print programs that read the control files are now SQL-optimized for faster retrieval and updating of data. This improves performance, eliminates the use of in-memory collections and reduces the scope of resource locks.

The scope of the resource lock is now reduced to only lock the document type that is being maintained and the document that is being maintained or designed (i.e. multiple users can now maintain different document types and different documents at the same time.

SYSPRO's licensing system has been extended for both SYSPRO 8 on-premise and SYSPRO Cloud ERP sites.

The e.net System Manager is required to access these new modules.

The BOT infrastructure and technology (available as an early adopter product for the past few SYSPRO 8 releases) is now a purchasable, licensed module.

The following modules are now available for licensing to run in SYSPRO Web UI (Avanti) and the core SYSPRO 8 product:

  • Avalara Tax Connector

  • Vertex Tax Connector

To assist service personnel in providing speedy resolutions, the diagnostics capability of SYSPRO 8 has been extended to record a log of identified problems in SQL Server for current and future analysis. A Black-box capability has also been introduced to record what was happening on a system prior to failure. Recording the information in SQL is vital for the SYSPRO Cloud ERP offering where the file system cannot be used to persist information.

When the SYSPRO Run Time System (RTS) detects a problem, diagnostic files are now written to the \Work\Diagnostics folder using a naming convention that includes the date and time. The current contents of the black box are also appended to the existing log, providing a trace of the events leading up to the RTS error.

A single log file per exception or message is written to the \Work\Diagnostics folder instead of all exceptions or messages being concatenated into a single file. This simplifies the SQL Server handling of log files on an individual basis and improves the performance during the upload process. It also lets you check each exception or message as an individual record in the AdmDiagDetail table.

If an unexpected error occurs in the underlying run time when you log into SYSPRO, the system first verifies whether the mfdebug.log file exists in the \Base folder before moving it to the \Work\Diagnostics folder. The system then creates the new mfdebug.log file for the current unhandled exception in the \Base folder.

This effectively retains a record of all exceptions instead of just the last example (previously, the original file was overwritten by a subsequent unexpected error).

The introduction of Service Accounts in SYSPRO Cloud ERP aims to provide controlled access for selected SYSPRO personnel and partners to assist with various support related tasks like implementation, system configuration and training.

SYSPRO Cloud ERP administrators can now designate an operator as a service account, assigning the email address of the support person to the account (the email address is the unique identifying attribute used as part of the cloud authentication).

Although the service account operator can access the SYSPRO Cloud ERP environment without affecting the Named User licensing, the local site administrator retains full control over the account (i.e. the service account is treated as a regular user and all the standard access permissions, logging and auditing capabilities are available). These service accounts have no effect on SYSPRO 8 on-premise sites.

To implement this feature, the account status of the operator must be enabled within the Operator Maintenance program (i.e. the Service account option must be enabled), as well as the SYSPRO Cloud ERP Active Directory (managed by the SYSPRO Cloud ERP team).

New customization capabilities in SYSPRO Reporting Services allows the SYSPRO company database connection string to be dynamically set at run-time when processing third-party SRS reports. This effectively allows the same report to be used across multiple companies.

Whereas standard SRS reports in SYSPRO are typically driven by business objects that query data from the company database to which you are connected, third-party SRS reports (such as Crystal) were designed using a specific data source connection that was fixed per report. In the past, to run the same report in all companies, you had to copy the report to each company and configure the connection string for each report, for each company.

From SYSPRO 8 2021 R1 there is a new Use current company database for ODBC data option available within the SRS Report Control).

When processing third-party SRS reports, this option allows the SYSPRO 8 Reporting Host Service at run time to dynamically update the connection string to the database that you are currently logged into.

If you then switch SYSPRO companies and run the same report, the data source automatically points to the currently logged-in company database for which you are processing the report. This effectively reduces the burden on report management and maintenance across multiple companies, as the same single Crystal report can now be used across multiple companies.

Considerations:

  • This option uses the credentials configured against the SRS reporting database connection setup options (Setup Options > System Setup > SQL).

  • This option is configured per report and applies to any third-party report developed using the ODBC (RDO) connection (including sub reports attached to standard SYSPRO reports).

  • The report control file is defined at system-wide level. Therefore, when enabled, it affects reports that have been defined at system, company, role, group or operator level.

  • This only applies to SRS Report Printing (server-side and client-side) and has no effect on SRS Document Printing.

Read more...

Integration Support

2021-R2

2021-R1