The PriceManager collaboration synchronizes price-list line information between applications. Typically you use this collaboration to maintain price-list items centrally in an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) application and synchronize that information with SFA (Sales Force Automation) and front-office applications that are used for placing orders.
PriceManager uses the PriceRecord business object and its child business object, PriceRecordPriceBreak.
Although it synchronizes only price-list line information, PriceManager can be configured to call the appropriate collaborations to verify or synchronize the following related business objects:
Business object | Related collaboration properties | Called collaborations |
---|---|---|
This section includes information on port bindings and required steps for setting up collaboration objects based on PriceManager. For information on standard features, ports, and configuration properties for collaboration templates, and for general information on creating collaboration objects refer to the documents listed in Collaboration Development Guide.
Figure 1 illustrates PriceManager's ports, as they are displayed in System Manager. The tables that follow the figure provide information about each port.
Figure 1. PriceManager collaboration ports
Note: To prevent the collaboration object from using a port, bind that port to the Port connector. Binding the port indicates that the port is unused without causing the collaboration object to provide additional functionality.
Business object | Bound to | Function | Verbs used |
---|---|---|---|
PriceRecord | The destination application's connector | Sends a reference-valued business object to retrieve the full-valued business object. The result determines the verb to use when synchronizing the PriceRecord. |
Retrieve |
Business object | Bound to | Function | Verbs used |
---|---|---|---|
PriceRecord | Source application's connector or calling collaboration. | Receives the triggering business object. At the end of a synchronous call, this port also returns the triggering business object to the source application when the collaboration ends successfully. |
Create Retrieve Update Delete |
Business object | Bound to | Function | Verbs used |
---|---|---|---|
PriceRecord | The destination application's connector |
Sends the triggering business object out of the collaboration |
Create Update Delete |
Business object | Bound to | Function | Verbs used |
---|---|---|---|
Any of the generic item business objects, such as Item, ItemBasic, or ItemPlanning |
The From port of ItemWrapper (if verifying or synchronizing) Port connector (if not verifying or synchronizing) |
Used to send a reference-valued Item business object for verification or synchronization |
Sync Exists |
To verify or synchronize Items as part of the PriceManager process, set up one of the following collaboration-object groups:
Verify Synchronize Required collaborations Items PriceManager, ItemWrapper Items PriceManager, ItemWrapper, ItemSync
The following procedure describes setting up PriceManager as part of a collaboration-object group.
This section illustrates the process logic for this collaboration template:
Figure 2 illustrates PriceManager's process logic.
Figure 2. PriceManager collaboration process logic
This collaboration template uses the following standard collaboration business processes:
For information on these processes, see the Collaboration Development Guide.
Figure 3 illustrates PriceManager's process for verifying or synchronizing related items when VERIFY_SYNC_ITEM is set to either "sync" or "verify". If VERIFY_SYNC_ITEM is set to "neither", PriceManager synchronizes the triggering PriceRecord business object without performing the process illustrated below.
Figure 3. Verification or synchronization of items
Note: For a collaboration to process ItemBasic, ItemOrder, and ItemPlanning successfully, your installation's repository must contain the following business objects:
InterChange Server Express can roll back a transaction when any step in a transactional collaboration fails. For example, when PriceManager is a member of a collaboration-object group that participates in a transactional collaboration, its actions are one subtransactional step of a larger transaction. If any step in the collaboration-object group's business process fails, the transactional collaboration details how InterChange Server Express will roll back the processing of every collaboration in the group.
When a PriceManager collaboration object is used independently of other collaboration objects or the collaboration object's From port is bound to a source application rather than to another collaboration, its process comprises a single transactional step. In such a situation, it is not necessary to perform rollback.
To cause a collaboration object or a collaboration-object group to perform rollback requires modifying the collaboration template. For information on adding transaction processing to the collaboration template, see the Collaboration Development Guide.
To extend the collaboration object to handle transaction processing, complete the following steps:
This section describes the standard properties and collaboration template-specific properties for this collaboration template:
This collaboration template uses the following standard configuration properties for collaboration templates:
For information on these configuration properties, see the Collaboration Development Guide.
In addition to its standard configuration properties, this collaboration template has the configuration properties described below.
Property name and explanation | Possible values | Default value |
---|---|---|
ITEM_TYPE Set to the type of generic Item whose existence must be synchronized or verified before the collaboration synchronizes the PriceRecord business object. If its VERIFY_SYNC_ITEM property evaluates to "sync" or "verify", PriceManager uses the value of this property to determine the type of item to be synchronized or verified. |
Item, ItemBasic, ItemOrder, ItemPlanning | Item |
VERIFY_SYNC_ITEM Set to "sync" to cause PriceManager to synchronize related items in the destination application. PriceManager copies the ItemId from the PriceRecord business object and creates the type of generic business object specified in the ITEM_TYPE property. PriceManager sends the business object with the Sync verb to ItemWrapper. In turn, ItemWrapper retrieves values for all attributes from the source application and sends the business object with the Create verb to ItemSync. If ItemSync fails to create the related item, PriceManager handles the error as specified in its INFORMATIONAL_EXCEPTIONS property. Set to "verify" to cause PriceManager to verify related items in the destination application. PriceManager copies the ItemId from the PriceRecord business object and creates the type of generic business object specified in the ITEM_TYPE property. PriceManager sends the business object with the Exists verb to ItemWrapper. In turn, ItemWrapper retrieves the business object from the destination application. If ItemWrapper fails to retrieve a related item, PriceManager handles the error as specified in its INFORMATIONAL_EXCEPTIONS property. Set to "neither" to cause PriceManager to synchronize the triggering PriceRecord business object without first synchronizing related items or verifying existing related items in the destination application. |
neither, verify, sync |
neither |
To view an explanation of the messages of this collaboration template, launch the Log Viewer and open the collaboration template's message file. To launch the Log Viewer and open the collaboration template's message file:
To upgrade to newer version of the collaboration template, perform the following steps: