Fe2014e Ua Guide

Add Fields & Files Anywhere In Sage 300 ERP!

SYSTRONICS Field ExtenderTM 2014E for Sage 300 ERP User & Administrator Guide

Field Extender User & Administrator Guide 2014E

© SYSTRONICS 2003-2014 1 February 11, 2014

© SYSTRONICS llc 2003-2014. All rights reserved.

No part of this documentation may be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, microfilmed, or otherwise duplicated on any medium without the written consent of SYSTRONICS.

Use of the software programs described herein and this documentation is subject to the SYSTRONICS End User License Agreement enclosed in the software package.

SYSTRONICS, the SYSTRONICS logo, AR-AP Settlements for Sage 300 ERP, BACCPAC for Sage 300 ERP, Cashflow Forecasting for Sage 300 ERP, CashWorks for Sage 300 ERP, Database Manager for Sage 300 ERP, Document Attachment Applets for Sage 300 ERP, Field Extender for Sage 300 ERP, Gulf Utilities for Payroll for Sage 300 ERP, I/C Item Converter for Sage 300 ERP, I/C Multi-Location Cost Averaging for Sage 300 ERP, I/C Stock Aging Report for Sage 300 ERP, Intercompany Utilities for Sage 300 ERP, MyHelp for Sage 300 ERP, PJC Security for Sage 300 ERP, Revenue and Expense Deferrals for Sage 300 ERP, Royalty Payments for Sage 300 ERP, SYSTRONICS iPortal, ToolPac – Subledger Reconciliation Toolsets for Sage 300 ERP, Trade Finance for Sage 300 ERP, Trade Job Costing for Sage 300 ERP are trademarks of SYSTRONICS llc.Sage Software, the Sage Software logos, and the Sage Software product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software, Inc., or its affiliated entities. Used by permission. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.



Table of Contents 1 OVERVIEW............................................................................................................................................... 10

2 WHAT’S NEW IN FIELD EXTENDER 5.5E-2014E ............................................................................ 11

2.1 FRESH, MODERN LOOK AND FEEL ....................................................................................................... 11

2.2 REQUIRED FIELDS ................................................................................................................................ 11

2.3 LAUNCHING FIELD EXTENDER CUSTOMIZATIONS AND DOCUMENT ATTACHMENT APPLETS ............... 11

2.4 FIELD EXTENDER PRO AND LITE EDITIONS .......................................................................................... 11

2.5 HYPERLINKS ........................................................................................................................................ 11

2.6 FILTER BY FIELD SET ........................................................................................................................... 11

2.7 DATA INTEGRITY APPLICATION OPTIONS ............................................................................................ 11

2.8 A NEW TRANSACTIONS SCREEN .......................................................................................................... 11

2.9 INTEGRATION WITH PORTAL ................................................................................................................ 12

3 INSTALLATION, ACTIVATION AND REGISTRATION ................................................................. 13

3.1 INSTALLATION ..................................................................................................................................... 13

3.2 ACTIVATION SCREEN ........................................................................................................................... 13

3.3 UPGRADE FROM PREVIOUS VERSIONS OF FIELD EXTENDER ................................................................ 15

3.4 REGISTRATION ..................................................................................................................................... 15

3.4.1 Field Extender Registration ............................................................................................................ 15

4 FIELD EXTENDER PRO AND LITE EDITIONS ................................................................................ 17

5 FIELD EXTENDER SECURITY ............................................................................................................ 18

6 SETTING UP ............................................................................................................................................. 19

6.1 TRANSACTIONS .................................................................................................................................... 19

6.2 OPTIONAL TABLES ............................................................................................................................... 21

6.3 OPTIONAL FIELDS ................................................................................................................................ 23

6.4 FIELD SETS .......................................................................................................................................... 27

6.5 ASSIGN FIELDS .................................................................................................................................... 28

6.6 MODIFYING SETUP OPTIONS ................................................................................................................ 30

6.6.1 Transactions (Only for F/E Pro) ..................................................................................................... 30

6.6.2 Optional Tables .............................................................................................................................. 31

6.6.3 Optional Fields ............................................................................................................................... 31

6.6.4 Field Sets ........................................................................................................................................ 31

6.6.5 Assign Fields ................................................................................................................................... 31

7 SETTING OPTIONAL FIELD VALUES ............................................................................................... 32

7.1 VALIDATED FIELDS .............................................................................................................................. 35

7.2 READ ONLY FIELDS ............................................................................................................................. 36

7.3 RICH TEXTS ......................................................................................................................................... 36

7.4 STRING AND BINARY FIELDS ............................................................................................................... 36

7.5 ELECTRONIC ATTACHMENTS ............................................................................................................... 37



7.6 HYPERLINKS ........................................................................................................................................ 38

8 OPTIONAL FIELDS ENTRY .................................................................................................................. 41

9 IMPORT/EXPORT OF ATTACHMENTS ............................................................................................ 43

10 REPORTS .................................................................................................................................................. 46

10.1 OPTIONAL TABLES ............................................................................................................................... 46

10.2 OPTIONAL FIELDS ................................................................................................................................ 46

10.3 FIELD SETS .......................................................................................................................................... 47

10.4 ASSIGN FIELDS .................................................................................................................................... 48

11 INTEGRITY CHECK ............................................................................................................................... 50

12 APPENDICES ............................................................................................................................................ 52

12.1 APPENDIX A – LIMITATIONS ................................................................................................................ 52

12.2 APPENDIX B – FIELD EXTENDER VS. TRANSACTION ANALYSIS & OPTIONAL FIELD CREATOR ............ 52



SYSTRONICS END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT AND LIMITED PRODUCT WARRANTY

READ CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU INSTALL OR USE THIS SOFTWARE: This End User License Agreement ("EULA") is a legal agreement between You ("You" and "Your" includes a person and/or an individual entity) and SYSTRONICS llc ("SYSTRONICS") concerning the evaluation, demonstration and/or retail software product(s) (hereinafter collectively referred to as "Software"). The Software includes all component parts, the associated media, any printed materials, any updates, and any "online" or electronic documentation, as applicable. By opening of the Software package, accessing, installing, copying or otherwise using the Software, You agree to be bound by the terms of this EULA. If You do not agree to the terms of this EULA, SYSTRONICS is unwilling to license the Software to You. In such event, You may not access, use or copy the Software, and You should promptly contact SYSTRONICS for instructions on returning the Software and refund. WRITTEN ASSENT IS NOT A PREREQUISITE TO THE VALIDITY OR ENFORCEABILITY OF THIS EULA.

SYSTRONICS provides this Software and licenses its use to You. You are responsible for selecting the Software to achieve the intended result and for the installation, use and results obtained from the Software.

THE SOFTWARE, INCLUDING ITS CODE, DOCUMENTATION, APPEARANCE, STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATIONS, IS A PROPRIETARY PRODUCT OF SYSTRONICS AND IS PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT AND OTHER LAWS. TITLE TO THE PROGRAM, OR ANY COPY MODIFICATION OR MERGED PORTION OF THE PROGRAM, SHALL AT ALL TIMES REMAIN WITH SYSTRONICS.

1. License – The following restricted rights are granted:

License Grant. If You licensed a Software, subject to the payment of all applicable license fees, and the terms and conditions of this EULA, SYSTRONICS hereby grants to You a limited, non-sublicensable, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to install and run one copy of the specified version of the Software and the accompanying documentation, solely for Your individual use. This EULA authorizes You to make one copy of the Software solely for backup or archival purposes, provided that the copy You make contains all of the proprietary notices set forth in or on the original version of the Software. Upon receipt of the appropriate Software registration information, SYSTRONICS will provide You an alphanumeric key (the "Activation Code") to enable You to use the Software pursuant to the terms of this EULA. Documentation shall include, but not limited to, any printed materials, "online" or electronic data provided by or obtained from SYSTRONICS with regard to this Software ("Documentation"). The Software and Documentation are licensed, not sold. Even though copies of the Software may be provided on media of different formats, copies of the Software on different media formats do not constitute multiple licenses to the Software. If the Software is licensed as a suite or bundle with more than one specified Software product, this EULA applies to all such specified Software products, subject to any restrictions or usage terms specified on the applicable product packaging or accompanying documentation that applies to any of such Software products individually.

Single-User. If this Software is licensed as a single user product, You may use only one copy of the Software, by not more than one user at a time, on a total of one computer or workstation, or personal digital assistant, or pager, or "smart phone," or one such other electronic device for which the Software was designed ("Client Device"), unless otherwise set forth herein. The component parts of the Software may not be used individually or jointly in full or in part on more than one Client Device, unless otherwise set forth herein. The Software is "in use" on a computer when it is loaded into the temporary memory (i.e., random-access memory or RAM) of that Client Device.

Multi-User. If the Software is licensed with multi-user or networked license terms, You may use the Software on one server computer, or a greater number as specified in the applicable multi-user license, product packaging or accompanying documentation, within a multi-user or networked environment for connecting, directly or indirectly, to not more than the maximum number of Client



Devices, concurrent users and/or seats, as specified in the applicable multi-user license, product packaging or accompanying documentation. Use of software, hardware or services that bypass any Software license restrictions and/or reduce the number of Client Devices, concurrent users and/or seats, as may be applicable, accessing or utilizing the Software (e.g., "multiplexing," "pooling," or third party add on software or hardware) expressly does not reduce the number of licenses required (i.e., the required number of licenses would equal the number of distinct inputs to the multiplexing or pooling software or hardware "front end"). If the number of Client Devices, concurrent users and/or seats that can potentially connect to the Software exceeds or has the potential to exceed the number of licenses You have obtained, then You must have a reasonable self-enforcing automatic mechanism in place to ensure that Your use of the Software does not exceed the use limits specified for the license You have obtained.

If this Software is designated for use on a network system, You agree that the particular type of network, number of workstations involved, as well as the type of computers and the memory capacity, can all affect its performance. Therefore, SYSTRONICS cannot guarantee the performance of the Software other than on a network specifically supported by it.

2. Term. Regardless of the location of the Software, You are responsible for strict compliance with any and all of the terms and conditions of this EULA. This EULA will terminate automatically if You fail to comply with any of the limitations or other requirements described herein, and such termination shall be in addition to and not in lieu of any criminal, civil or other remedies available to SYSTRONICS. When this EULA terminates, You must immediately cease using the Software and destroy all copies of the Software and the Documentation. You may terminate this EULA at any point by destroying all copies of the Software and the Documentation. This EULA is effective unless and until You or SYSTRONICS terminates the EULA earlier, in accordance with the terms set forth herein.

3. Updates. SYSTRONICS may, at its sole discretion, make bug fixes, updates and/or service packs available. SYSTRONICS' maintenance service, if applicable and offered, is available at an additional cost to You, as Licensee, under a separate written agreement.

4. Ownership Rights.

Ownership of Software. The Software and Documentation are protected by United Arab Emirates and United States patent, copyright laws and other intellectual property laws, and international treaty provisions. SYSTRONICS and its third party licensors, if any, retain all title to and, except as expressly and unambiguously licensed herein, all rights and interest in (a) the Software, including, but not limited to, all copies, versions, customizations, compilations and derivative works thereof (by whomever produced) and all related Documentation; (b) the SYSTRONICS trademarks, service marks, trade names, icons and logos; (c) any and all copyright rights, patent rights, trade secret rights and other intellectual property and proprietary rights throughout the world in the foregoing; and (d) all Confidential Information (as defined in Section 12 below). You acknowledge that Your possession, installation, or use of the Software does not transfer to You any ownership, title, or registrable interest of any kind to the intellectual property in the Software, and that You will not acquire any rights to the Software except as expressly set forth in this EULA. You agree that all backup, archival, or any other type of copies of the Software and Documentation will contain the same proprietary notices that appear on and in the Software and Documentation.

Submissions. Should You decide to submit any materials to SYSTRONICS via electronic mail, through or to SYSTRONICS website, or otherwise, whether as feedback, data, questions, comments, ideas, concepts, techniques, suggestions or the like, You agree that such submissions are unrestricted and shall be deemed non-confidential upon submission. You grant to SYSTRONICS and it assigns a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable license, with the right to sublicense, to use, copy, transmit, distribute, create derivative works of, commercialize, display and perform such submissions.



5. Restrictions. You may not rent, lease, sublicense, loan, sell, distribute, market or commercialize any portion of the Software or its components. You may only install and use the Software on hardware which is (a) under Your exclusive control and (b) in the case of hardware performing any server functions, located at premises where You normally conduct day-to-day business operations. You may not permit any parent, affiliate, subsidiary or any other third parties to benefit from the use or functionality of the Software, either directly or via a facility management, timesharing, service bureau or any other arrangement; provided, however, that You may use the Software, as provided herein, to process the data of an affiliate or subsidiary of which You own more than fifty percent (50%); provided, however, You may not exceed the number of datasets specified on the applicable product packaging or accompanying documentation. You may not use the Software as part of a facility management, timesharing, or service bureau arrangement. You may not transfer any or all of the rights granted to You under this EULA. To the maximum extent this restriction is permitted under applicable law, You may not rename files of, modify, translate, localize, decompile, disassemble, decrypt, reverse engineer, attempt to derive source code from, remove any proprietary notices from, or create derivative works based upon the Software, in whole or in part. You may not duplicate or copy any portion of the Software or Documentation, unless otherwise set forth herein. You may not remove any proprietary notices or labels on the Software, including, but not limited to, the SYSTRONICS and product names wherever they may appear. All rights not expressly set forth hereunder are reserved by SYSTRONICS. SYSTRONICS reserves the right to periodically conduct audits upon advance written notice to verify compliance with the terms of this EULA.

6. Warranty and Disclaimer.

Limited Warranty.

SYSTRONICS warrants that the Program will substantially perform the functions or generally conform to the Program’s specifications published by SYSTRONICS and included in this package under normal use for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of delivery to you. SYSTRONICS does not warrant that the functions contained in the Program will meet requirements or that the operation of the Program will be entirely error free or appear precisely as described in the Program documentation. If the Program does not substantially perform the functions or generally conform to the Program’s specifications published by SYSTRONICS, you may within 60 days after delivery, write to SYSTRONICS to report a significant defect. SYSTRONICS' only responsibility will be to use its best efforts, consistent with industry standards, to cure the defect. If SYSTRONICS is unable to correct the defect within 90 days after receiving your report, you may terminate your license and this Agreement by returning all copies of the Program with proof of purchase and your money will be refunded.

SYSTRONICS warrants that for ninety (90) days from the date of original purchase the media on which the Software is contained will be free from defects in materials and workmanship.

Customer Remedies. SYSTRONICS' entire liability and Your exclusive remedy shall be replacement of the defective media. To receive replacement of defective media, You must receive a return authorization number from SYSTRONICS and return the defective media to SYSTRONICS at Your expense with a copy of Your receipt. This limited warranty is void if the defect has resulted from accident, abuse, or misapplication. Any replacement media will be warranted for the remainder of the original warranty period.

Warranty Disclaimer. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, and except for the limited warranty set forth herein, the Software (and accompanying documentation) is provided on an "as is" basis without warranty of any kind, express or implied. Without limiting the foregoing provisions, You assume sole responsibility for selecting the software to achieve Your intended results, and sole responsibility for the installation of, use of, and results obtained from the software. Without limiting the foregoing provisions, SYSTRONICS makes no warranty that the software will be error-free, virus free, or free from interruptions or other failures or that the Software will satisfy



Your specific requirements. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, SYSTRONICS disclaims all warranties and conditions, either express, implied, or statutory, including but not limited to any (if any) implied warranties or conditions of merchantability, of fitness for a particular purpose, of lack of viruses, of lack of accuracy or completeness of responses, of results, and lack of negligence or lack of workmanlike effort, all with regard to the Software and associated documentation. There is no warranty or condition of title, quiet enjoyment, quiet possession, correspondence to description, or non-infringement with regard to the software. The entire risk of the quality of or arising out of use or performance of the software, if any, remains solely with You. Some states and jurisdictions do not allow limitations on implied warranties, so the above limitation may not apply to You. The foregoing provisions shall be enforceable to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law.

Indemnification. You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless SYSTRONICS, its employees, and agents from and against all claims, defense costs (including reasonable expert and attorneys' fees), judgments and other expenses arising out of or on account of any negligent act, omission, or willful misconduct by You or on Your behalf in (a) the installation or use of the Software or (b) Your compliance or failure to comply with this EULA.

Data. You acknowledge that any data entry, conversion or storage is subject to the likelihood of human and machine errors, malicious manipulation, omissions, delays, and losses, including, but not limited to, inadvertent loss of: data or damage to media that may result in loss or damage to You and/or Your property, and/or Your detrimental reliance on maliciously manipulated data. SYSTRONICS shall not be liable for any such errors, omissions, delays, or losses. You are responsible for adopting reasonable measures to limit the impact of such problems, including backing up data, adopting procedures to ensure the accuracy of input data, examining and confirming results prior to use, adopting procedures to identify and correct errors and omissions, replacing lost or damaged media, and reconstructing data. You are also responsible for complying with all local, state, and federal laws pertaining to the use and disclosure of any data. If You licensed an evaluation product, You acknowledge and understand (a) that the evaluation product may be used for evaluation purposes only, (b) that the evaluation product shall be operable only for a limited time and (c) that, upon expiration of the evaluation period, any data or other information used with, processed by and/or stored in conjunction with the evaluation product may be irretrievable, unrecoverable and/or otherwise unusable.

7. Limitation of Liability. Under no circumstances and under no legal theory, whether in tort, contract, or otherwise, shall SYSTRONICS be liable to You or to any other person or entity for any indirect, special, incidental, or consequential damages of any character whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of profits, loss of goodwill, loss of confidential or other information, for business interruption, work stoppage, computer failure or malfunction, for personal injury, loss of privacy, for failure to meet any duty including a duty of good faith or of reasonable care, for negligence (whether active or passive), and for any other pecuniary or other loss whatsoever) arising out of or in any way related to the use or inability to use the software, or otherwise under or in connection with any provision of this EULA, even in the event of fault, tort (including negligence, and gross negligence), strict liability, breach of contract, or breach of warranty by SYSTRONICS, and even if SYSTRONICS has been advised of the possibility of such damages. In no event will SYSTRONICS be liable for any damages in excess of the list price SYSTRONICS charges for a license to the software. This limitation of liability shall not apply to liability for death or personal injury to the extent that applicable law prohibits such limitation. Furthermore, some states and jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of incidental or consequential damages, so this limitation and exclusion may not apply to You. The foregoing provisions shall be enforceable to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law.

8. Entire Agreement. This EULA expressly supersedes and completely replaces any and all prior end user license agreements. SYSTRONICS shall not be bound by or liable to You for any pre-existing



or contemporaneous written or oral representations or warranties, made by anyone, with respect to the Software product, including any Authorized Reseller or it's respective agents, employees, or representatives, nor shall You be deemed a third party beneficiary of any obligations of SYSTRONICS to any such Reseller.

9. Attorneys' Fees. If any party employs attorneys to enforce any rights arising out of or relating to this EULA, the prevailing party shall be entitled to recover its reasonable attorneys' fees, costs, and other expenses.

10. Severability. If any provision of this EULA is held to be unenforceable, the enforceability of the remaining provisions shall in no way be affected or impaired thereby.

11. High Risk Activities. The Software is not fault-tolerant and is not designed or intended for use in hazardous environments requiring fail-safe performance, including without limitation, in the operation of nuclear facilities, aircraft navigation or communication systems, air traffic control, weapons systems, direct life-support machines, or any other application in which the failure of the Software could lead directly to death, personal injury, or severe physical or property damage (collectively, "High Risk Activities"). SYSTRONICS expressly disclaims any express or implied warranty of fitness for High Risk Activities.

12. Confidentiality. You agree that the Software, including, but not limited to, all source and object code components, screen shots and displays, graphical user interfaces, algorithms, formulae, data structures, scripts, application programming interfaces and protocols, and the Documentation (collectively the "Confidential Information") are trade secrets of SYSTRONICS and are owned by SYSTRONICS or, where applicable, its third-party licensors. You agree to retain all Confidential Information in strict confidence at least with the same amount of diligence that You exercise in preserving the secrecy of Your most-valuable information, but in no event less than reasonable diligence. You agree to: (a) only disclose Confidential Information to Your employees and agents to the extent required to use the Software under the terms of this EULA and not to disclose or disseminate the Confidential Information to any third party without the prior written consent of SYSTRONICS, (b) use the Confidential Information solely for Your benefit as provided for herein and not to allow any third party to benefit from the Confidential Information, and (c) bind Your employees and agents, by terms no less restrictive than those set forth herein, to maintain the confidentiality of such Confidential Information, and not use or disclose such information except as permitted under this EULA. Notwithstanding the disclosure of any Confidential Information for any reason, such Confidential Information shall continue to be owned by SYSTRONICS or its licensors. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to prevent You from disclosing or disseminating Your data, in any format or any report, to whomever You so choose.

13. Miscellaneous. This EULA is exclusively governed by the laws of the United Arab Emirates, without reference to conflicts of law principles. In the event of a dispute or legal action between the parties, they agree to waive any objections to personal jurisdiction, and agree to service of process and exclusive venue in Dubai Courts, UAE. The application of the United Nations Convention of Contracts for the International Sale of Goods is expressly excluded. This EULA sets forth all of Your rights and is the entire agreement between the parties. This EULA supersedes any other communications with respect to the Software and/or Documentation. This EULA may not be modified except by a written addendum issued by a duly authorized representative of SYSTRONICS. No provision hereof shall be deemed waived unless such waiver shall be in writing and signed by a duly authorized representative of SYSTRONICS. You hereby acknowledge a breach of this EULA would cause irreparable harm and significant injury to SYSTRONICS that may be difficult to ascertain and that a remedy at law would be inadequate. You agree that SYSTRONICS shall have the right to seek and obtain immediate injunctive relief to enforce the obligations under this EULA in addition to any other rights and remedies it may have. If any provision of this EULA is held invalid, the



remainder of this EULA shall continue in full force and effect. The controlling language of this EULA is English. If You have received a translation into another language, it has been provided for Your convenience only.

14. SYSTRONICS Customer Contact. If You have any questions concerning these terms and conditions, or if You would like to contact SYSTRONICS for any other reason, please call +971-4-3930153, or write to us at: SYSTRONICS L.L.C., Flat 101, Bin Dhaen Building, Khalid Bin Walid Street, PO Box 50183, Dubai, UAE. You may also find us on the Web at http://www.systronics.com or email to [email protected]

YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ THIS LICENSE AND, BY OPENING THE SOFTWARE PACKAGE, INDICATED YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF ITS TERMS AND CONDITIONS. YOU ALSO AGREE THAT, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY COVERED BY ANOTHER WRITTEN LICENSE AGREEMENT WITH SYSTRONICS, THIS LICENSE IS THE COMPLETE AGREEMENT BETWEEN US AND THAT IT SUPERSEDES ANY INFORMATION YOU RECEIVED RELATING TO THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THIS AGREEMENT.



1 Overview Field Extender allows users to define additional optional fields for transactions in Sage 300 ERP. You can create virtually unlimited number of fields of any data type supported by Sage 300 ERP. Though the number and type of optional fields created is only limited by technical restrictions imposed by the Sage 300 ERP data access layer as described in Appendix A – Limitations, you can evade them by defining multiple records for the same purpose.

The Setting Up section describes all procedures and settings that need to be done in order to start using Field Extender. This section is normally used by administrators. Users only need to refer to the Modifying Setup Options section, which describes the screen utilized to capture values of optional fields.

It should be noted that the Optional Field Values screen will not become available to users upon installing Field Extender. It is mandatory that Sage 300 ERP transaction screens are customized as required, using Visual Basic, so that the Field Extender Optional Field Values screen (ocx) pops up either by clicking a button (conventionally named “FE Fields” or “Attachments”) or some other event, like saving the Sage 300 ERP transaction in question.

The Optional Field Values screen will also be available for the users who use Document Attachment Applets, which are packaged customizations easy to install and use. You can find more details about Applets in Document Attachment Applets UA Guide that is available on the SYSTRONICS web site.

However, if you do not want to customize Sage 300 ERP transaction screens, you can enter optional fields for any transaction by using the Optional Fields Entry screen. This screen facilitates capturing Optional Fields for transactions that are already entered in Sage 300 ERP. In F/E Lite edition the list of transactions, for which the optional fields can be entered, is limited by the acquired Applets.

Field Extender complements the optional field functionality of the Sage 300 ERP “Transaction Analysis & Optional Field Creator” module. Refer to Appendix B – Field Extender vs. Transaction Analysis & Optional Field Creator for the list of features that are unique to Field Extender and are not available in the “Transaction Analysis & Optional Field Creator” module.



2 What’s New in Field Extender 5.5E-2014E

2.1 Fresh, Modern Look and Feel

Starting from version 2014, F/E screens are redesigned the same way as it is done in other Sage 300 ERP modules.

2.2 Required Fields

Similar to other Sage 300 ERP modules, the required fields are marked with an asterisk on the F/E screens, starting from version 2014.

2.3 Launching Field Extender Customizations and Document Attachment Applets

Starting from version 2014, F/E customizations and Document Attachment Applets can be launched only using shortcuts on the Sage 300 ERP desktop. Opened F/E customizations and Document Attachment Applets appear on the Current Users screen.

2.4 Field Extender Pro and Lite Editions

Starting from F/E 6.0E Product Update 2, Field Extender is available in Pro and Lite editions. Both Pro and Lite editions offer identical features. However, the Lite edition can be used only with Document Attachment Applets. In addition to the Lite edition functionalities, the Pro edition allows you to create and work with your own customizations.

2.5 Hyperlinks

Starting from F/E 6.0E PU3, a new Hyperlink field is added on the Assigned Fields screen that allows defining text type optional fields as hyperlinks. On the Optional Fields Entry and Optional Field Values pop-up screens, the description of these optional fields is shown in blue color, as a hyperlink, allowing to open the link by clicking on it.

2.6 Filter by Field Set

Starting from F/E 6.0E a new “Filter by Field Set” option, which allows filtering the records by a specific Field Set, is added on the Optional Field Values screen. When the “Filter by Field Set” check box is selected, a Finder button appears next to the navigation buttons of the Record Number field. This Finder opens the Record List screen and allows selecting the required record easily.

2.7 Data Integrity Application Options

Starting from F/E 6.0E, Field Extender allows choosing settings for the data integrity process on the F/E Integrity Checker screen. You can select to check not only setup tables but also orphan records and delete them if required.

2.8 A New Transactions Screen

Field Extender 5.5E-2014E contains a new screen for editing the list of transactions. This reduces manual work needed to set up the application. You can add, view, or modify transaction records through a user-friendly screen, instead of manually modifying the FETRNS.INI file. While working with transactions, you can specify the relevant Sage 300 ERP tables using a finder. This screen is not available in Field Extender Lite edition and the list of transactions is limited by the acquired Applets.



2.9 Integration with Portal

Field Extender 2014E is integrated with Portal and all its screens are accessible in Portal. However, F/E customizations and Applets cannot be used in Portal.



3 Installation, Activation and Registration In order to begin using Field Extender 2014E, you need to install, activate and register the application. This section describes the installation, activation and registration process.

3.1 Installation

Follow the steps below to install the application:

1. Download FE_Pro_2014E.msi or FE_Lite_2014E.msi, Setup.ini, and Setup.exe files and put all of them into the same folder. The files may be available individually on the SYSTRONICS site, or as part of a ZIP file. In the latter case, extract the ZIP file into an empty folder.

2. Log in to your computer as an administrator. 3. If your operating system is Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista, right-click on the

Setup.exe file and select "Run as Administrator". 4. If your operating system is Windows XP or earlier, start Field Extender installation by double

clicking the Setup.exe file. 5. Follow the prompts of the Install wizard.

The programs for Field Extender add-on are installed in the following folder: “Y:\Program Files\Sage\Sage 300 ERP\FE62E”, where “Y:\Program Files\Sage\Sage 300 ERP” is the directory where your Sage 300 ERP programs are located.

The Field Extender reports for Sage 300 ERP are installed in the following folder: “Y:\Program Files\Sage\Sage 300 ERP\FE62E\ENG.”

If Sage 300 Portal is installed after the Field Extender installation, you need to uninstall and reinstall Field Extender to include it in the list of applications shown in Portal.

3.2 Activation Screen

To activate Field Extender, launch Data Activation from within Administrative Services. The following screen will appear.



Figure 3-1 Activation - Screen 1

Select the Field Extender 6.2E check box from the applications list and click the Next button to start the activation. The following screen will appear.



Figure 3-2 Activation - Screen 2

Click the Activate button to complete the activation process. The activation adds a new program group to the Sage 300 ERP desktop named Field Extender. All the features of the application are accessible through icons in that folder.

3.3 Upgrade from Previous Versions of Field Extender

F/E 2014E supports upgrade from F/E 5.6E, F/E 6.0E and F/E 2012E only. Upgrade from earlier versions should be done in two steps. First, you have to upgrade from your running version to 5.6E, then from 5.6E to 2014E.

3.4 Registration

3.4.1 Field Extender Registration

When you open the Field Extender Pro for the first time, it asks for registration as shown on the figure below.



Figure 3-3 Registration Screen for Field Extender

Selecting the “I need an activation code” option opens the Request Activation Code screen with a link to SYSTRONICS web site where you can submit an activation code request. SYSTRONICS will generate the activation code and send them back to you in an e-mail.

When you receive the activation code, open the application and select the “I have an activation code” option on the registration screen. This will open the Activate Application screen asking you to enter Company Name, Serial Number, and Activation Code information.

Selecting the “Use the application in trial mode” option lets you use the application for up to 30 days for evaluation purposes. Once the evaluation period is over, you need to activate the application to continue using it.

Field Extender Lite edition does not require a registration. However, you must register Document Attachment Applets that you plan to use with F/E Lite.



4 Field Extender Pro and Lite Editions Starting from F/E 2012E Product Update 2, Field Extender is available in Pro and Lite editions. The Pro edition maintains the full functionality of the product while the Lite edition is limited by the transactions for which separate licenses are acquired.

Field Extender Pro edition requires a registration while Field Extender Lite edition is free and does not require any registration. F/E Lite is a special edition intended to be used only with Document Attachment Applets. More details about using Applets are available in Document Attachment Applets UA Guide.

The clients who want to upgrade Field Extender from the previous versions can do this to either Pro or Lite versions. Those who upgrade to Pro edition will not see any functional differences. Those who upgrade Field Extender to Lite edition must use Document Attachment Applets provided by SYSTRONICS. These Applets are Sage 300 ERP screen customizations, which require a registration and allow creating default setup automatically. Document Attachment Applets works with both F/E Pro and Lite editions.

F/E Pro edition works with all types of customizations including Document Attachment Applets developed by SYSTRONICS and the ones developed by the clients

F/E Lite edition works only with Document Attachment Applets



5 Field Extender Security Field Extender follows the same security model as Sage 300 ERP. Sage 300 ERP uses security groups to restrict user access to data. Use Administrative Services to define security groups for Field Extender and assign them to users. First, you select the tasks that members of each security group can perform, and then you assign individual users to the security groups you defined. The following tasks can be assigned to security groups.

Optional Tables Inquiry allows you to view the Optional Tables screen, but you cannot create new optional tables or modify the existing ones. It allows printing the Optional Tables report.

Optional Tables Maintenance allows you to access the Optional Tables screen. This lets you create new Optional Tables or modify the existing ones. It allows printing the Optional Tables report.

Optional Fields Inquiry allows you to view the Optional Fields screen, but you cannot create new optional fields or modify the existing ones. It allows printing the Optional Fields report.

Optional Fields Maintenance allows you to access the Optional Fields screen. This lets you enter Optional Fields for a selected transaction. It allows printing the Optional Fields report.

Field Sets Inquiry allows you to view the Field Sets screen, but you cannot enter new field sets or modify the existing ones. It allows printing the Field Sets report.

Field Sets Maintenance allows you to access the Field Sets screen. This lets you enter new field sets. It allows printing the Field Sets report.

Assign Fields Inquiry allows you to view the Assign Fields screen, but you cannot assign new fields to the field set. It allows printing the Assign Fields report.

Assign Fields Maintenance allows you to access the Assign Fields screen. This lets you assign fields to field sets. It allows printing the Assign Fields report.

Optional Fields Values Inquiry allows you to view the optional field values from the customization (Applet) screens, but you cannot enter new values or modify the existing ones.

Optional Fields Values Maintenance allows you to view and modify the optional field values from the customization (Applet) screens.

Import/Export of Attachments allows you to import and export electronic attachments.

Optional Fields Entry allows you to access Optional Fields Entry screen. In addition to this right, you also need either Optional Fields Values Inquiry or Optional Fields Values Maintenance, or both. If you have Optional Fields Values Inquiry security right, you can view the optional field values for different transactions. If you have Optional Fields Values Maintenance security right, you can enter optional field values for those transactions.

Transactions Inquiry allows you to view the Transactions screen, but you cannot create (as well as import) new records or modify the existing ones.

Transactions Maintenance allows you to access the Transactions screen. This lets you create new or modify the existing records. This security right is not available in the Field Extender Lite edition.



6 Setting Up Once Field Extender is installed and activated, there are several things that must be done by the administrator before Field Extender can be used. Installing Field Extender alone does not enable the optional fields’ functionality automatically. Sage 300 ERP screens must be customized to make them prompt for optional fields. The Field Extender Lite edition is restricted to Document Attachment Applets developed by SYSTRONICS only, while Field Extender Pro edition can also work with customizations that are developed by advanced users. To help in the customization development, SYSTRONICS posted some samples on its web site.

However, apart from customizing Sage 300 ERP screens, there is a certain amount of setup work to be done, in order to tell the system which optional fields to create for each transaction, specify data types of the fields, etc. These procedures are described in the following sections.

6.1 Transactions

The Transactions screen is not available in the Field Extender Lite edition and the list of transactions is limited by the acquired Applets.

The Transactions screen below shows all the transactions that are currently defined in the application. Essentially, it defines the list of Sage 300 ERP tables to which Field Extender can add optional fields. You can add/remove transactions in the list at any time. You can use optional fields only with transactions that are defined in the Transactions screen.

When Field Extender Pro is activated, the default list of transactions is created automatically. You can add new records in the list for the transactions that you want to customize using Field Extender. If Field Extender is upgraded from a previous version, the list of transactions from the previous version is inherited.

The following figure shows an example of the Transactions screen.



Figure 6-1 Transactions

The following fields and buttons are available on the Transactions screen.

Field / Button Description

Transaction This is the name of Sage 300 ERP table you want to add optional fields to. You can type the table name manually, or use the finder to select from the list of available tables. The table must exist in the database in order to be added.

Description Enter any description for the transaction. This description is used in other Field Extender screens, for example, in Optional Fields screen, Assign Fields, etc. The description can be different from the physical table description. It can be up to 30 characters long.

FE Table Specify a table name to be used to store the Field Extender fields. The table is created using the Optional Fields screen. The table name can be up to 8 characters long.

FE File Table Specify a table name to be used to store electronic attachments and rich-text fields. You need to specify a table name here even if you are not planning to use electronic attachments or rich-text fields. The table is created using the Optional Fields screen. The table name can be up to 8 characters long and must be different from the “FE Table” name.

Save Saves the information.

Refresh Refreshes the list of tables available in Sage 300 ERP. You need to refresh the list if you know that a particular table exists in the database, but you cannot see it in the Transaction finder. This can happen if, for example, a new module is



Field / Button Description

activated in Sage 300 ERP after Field Extender activation.

Close Closes the screen.

Click the Insert button on the keyboard to add a new transaction to the grid. To delete an existing transaction, highlight the record you intend to delete and press the Delete button on the keyboard. Note that you cannot delete the records that are in use within Optional Fields screen and have created or saved optional fields.

We strongly recommend that you define all table names starting with the “FE” prefix. This will simplify identifying Field Extender related tables.

6.2 Optional Tables

The figure below shows an example of the Optional Tables screen.

Figure 6-2 Optional Tables

Optional Tables serve two purposes. The one is that they provide a list of predefined values for optional fields that are linked to them. The other is that the optional fields can be forced to validate against values in an optional table. If a value in an optional field is not in the optional table associated with it, the value is rejected. However, SYSTRONICS Field Extender allows this validation to be disabled. In such cases, if the field is linked with an optional table, but validation is not



enforced, the user can not only utilize the list of values from the optional table, but also enter a value that does not exist in the table.

Unlike Sage 300 ERP optional fields, Field Extender includes Validate from Sage 300 ERP option that allows validating the field against values of any field in any available Sage 300 ERP table. When you choose the Validate from Sage 300 ERP option, the appearance of the screen changes allowing you to choose a Sage 300 ERP table and a related field:

Figure 6-3 Optional Tables with Validate from Sage 300 ERP Option

The following fields are available on the Optional Tables screen when the “Validate from Sage 300 ERP” option is selected:

Field Description

Optional Table A code representing a table that contains the valid data for optional fields. The code can be up to 8 characters and can consist of letters or numbers.

Validate from Sage 300 ERP An option allowing validation of fields against values of any field in any available Sage 300 ERP table.

Table Type any Sage 300 ERP table name or select it from the Finder. When this field is populated for the first time, relevant information from Sage 300 ERP tables is updated in the system.



Field Description

Key Field Type any field name from the selected table or select it from the Finder. This field will be used to validate the data entered in the F/E field.

Description Field Type any field name from the selected table or select it from the Finder. Values in this field will be used as field descriptions.

The following buttons are available at the bottom of the Optional Fields screen:

Button Description

Saves the Optional Table.

Deletes the Optional Table.

Select a criterion for the Sage 300 ERP table. It opens a pop up window allowing you to enter criteria for the fields of the chosen table. Setting selection criteria can be useful if you do not want all records in the selected table to be considered as valid records.

The refresh button is used to update entries in the finder of the Table field. It opens a pop up progress bar showing the number of updated records.

Closes the window.

When a new Sage 300 ERP module is installed and the database is changed, you must update the information from Sage 300 ERP tables by using the Refresh button. It opens the following pop up progress bar:

Figure 6-4 Updating Information from Sage 300 ERP Tables

6.3 Optional Fields

Use the Optional Fields screen to define a list of optional fields available for each transaction. The following figure shows an example of the Optional Fields screen.



Figure 6-5 Optional Fields

You can define a number of different optional fields for each transaction. For F/E Pro the list of transactions for which you can specify optional fields is defined in the Transactions screen (see Transactions) while For F/E Lite the list is limited by the acquired Document Attachment Applets.

The following fields are available on the Optional Fields screen.

Field Description

Transaction Select a transaction for which you want to create optional fields.

Bytes Used This is a read only field showing the number of bytes used for the table. This number cannot exceed 4000 bytes.

Bytes Used includes the size of all the fields defined in the table, in addition to that of the key field(s), Audit Fields and the Field Set.

Optional Fields This grid is used to define the optional fields you want to create.

The Optional Fields grid has several columns that are used to specify information about each optional field defined for the transaction. The following columns are available in the grid.



Column Description

Field Name The name of the field in the database. This name is used internally by the database.

Field Type The type of data contained in the field. You can select from the following data types:

String

Binary

Boolean

Date

Time

Integer

Long

Money

Real

Number

Rich Text (Unlimited Size)

Electronic Attachment (Unlimited Size)

Field Size The size of the field. Depending on data type, the size can mean different things. For String and Binary data types, the size indicates the number of characters that can be stored in the field. For Number, it indicates the number of bytes allocated for the number, etc.

Field Precision Used only by Number data type to indicate the number of digits after the decimal point.

Optional Table Optional fields can be linked to optional tables. If this field is left empty, then there is no link to optional tables and any value can be entered. If the optional field is linked to an optional table, you can specify that the field must be validated against values in that table. In that case, the field will only accept values that exist in the optional table. If validation is not enabled, the field accepts any value, even though the user can still use the list of values from the optional table.

Limit to List If an optional table is specified for the field, then the “Limit to List” column can take Yes or No values. If it is set to Yes, the field can only accept values that are defined in the optional table. If it is set to No, you can still use the list of values from the optional table, but you can also enter a value that does not exist in the optional table. If an optional table is not specified for the field, the “Limit to List” value is ignored.

Hidden If a field is marked as hidden, it is not available on the F/E Optional Field Values screen and can only be populated programmatically.

Comments You can optionally type any comments for the field.

The following buttons are available at the bottom of the Optional Fields screen:



Button Description

Saves the entered information. After saving, you can either create a table or close the window. In the latter case, you will receive a warning message: “You must create the table before you are able to use the optional fields. Do you want to create the table now?”

Options are Yes/No/Cancel. Yes – creates the table and closes the screen. No – closes the screen without creating the table. Cancel – keeps the screen open. If a table has not been created yet, you can make changes.

Creates a table in the database. After creating the table you cannot make changes in the table.

Deletes the table from the database. If there is a need to edit the fields or add new ones, you must drop the table. After dropping the table, you can edit the fields only if they have not been used in the Assign Fields window.

Allows viewing the relationship between the new table and the master table in Sage 300 ERP

Closes the window.

Starting from FE5.4D version a new “View” button is added, which allows viewing the relationship between the F/E Optional Fields table created by Field Extender and the corresponding Sage 300 ERP table. When you create an optional fields table, you are asked if you want to view the relationship between the new table and the master table in Sage 300 ERP.

If you answer “Yes”, the View Relationship screen is displayed.



Figure 6-6 View Relationship Screen

6.4 Field Sets

Field Sets are used to group optional fields. You can create as many field sets as required, but you must define at least one before you can assign optional fields and enter optional field values. Field Sets are defined globally, without any link to any transaction. The advantage of field sets is that they facilitate the selection of a specific set of fields during data entry in optional fields.



Figure 6-7 Field Sets

Field Sets are used to group optional fields for addressing specific business requirements. When populating optional fields, you can select an appropriate Field Set. You can use only one field set for each record of optional fields, but you can use different field sets for different optional field records or for different transactions. For example, you can use Set 1 for record 1 of invoice number INV000001, and Set 2 for record 2 of the same invoice, or for the first record of optional fields for invoice INV000002. Once a transaction and its optional fields are saved, you cannot change the field set for that transaction, but you can create a new record with another field set and delete the unnecessary record.

6.5 Assign Fields

Once optional fields are defined for a transaction and at least one field set is created, you can assign optional fields to field sets. If you choose not to assign any optional fields to any field set, you will not be able to enter values for them. Use the screen in the figure below to assign fields to field sets.



Figure 6-8 Assign Fields

The following fields are available on the Assign Fields screen.

Field Description

Transaction Select a transaction for which you want to assign fields.

In the Field Extender Pro edition, you can select a transaction from the list that you have defined in the Transactions screen.

The Transactions screen is not available in the Field Extender Lite edition and the list of transactions is limited by the acquired Applets.

Field Set Select the Field Set for which you want to assign the fields.

Fields Grid Select fields that should appear in this Field Set.

The following columns are available in the Fields grid.



Column Description

Field Name The name of the field. You cannot type in this field, but you can select fields from the Finder. All the optional fields defined for the selected transaction will appear in this list.

Field Caption The caption of the field. This caption will be used at the time of entering values for optional fields. You can specify different captions for the same optional field in different field sets. This way, you can reuse the same optional field for different purposes in different field sets.

Mandatory This field can have two values: Yes or No. The default is No. If you change it to Yes, you will not be able to save or post corresponding Sage 300 ERP transactions until you enter a value for this field in the Optional Field Values screen.

Read Only This field can have two values: Yes or No. The default is No. If you change it to Yes, you will not be able to enter values for it.

If a field is selected as mandatory, you cannot set it to Read Only. In that case, this field will be disabled.

Hyperlink This field can have two values: Yes or No. The default is No. If you change it to Yes for the String type optional field, you will be able to use this optional field for entering hyperlinks.

You are allowed to define an optional field as a hyperlink only if its type is String.

Default You can specify default field values in this column. If a value for an optional field is entered here, by default it is populated with this value in all new records.

If this field is validated by an optional table, then the default value must agree with this validation. For this purpose and for user’s convenience, a Finder is available in this field to help you select a default value from the list of values defined in the optional table.

Group The group of the field. You can enter an appropriate group name in this column. At the time of entering values for optional fields, the fields are grouped by values specified in the Group column, so that fields with the same Group appear together.

6.6 Modifying Setup Options

6.6.1 Transactions (Only for F/E Pro)

A transaction line can be deleted if it is not used in other screens.

A transaction description can be changed any time and the new name will appear in other screens.

New transactions can be added any time.



6.6.2 Optional Tables

Optional Tables cannot be deleted if they are used in the Optional Fields screen.

New Optional Tables can be added any time.

6.6.3 Optional Fields

Optional Fields cannot be deleted if the F/E tables have already been created and the optional fields are used in the Assign Fields. You need to drop the tables and from the Assign Fields screen delete all the detail lines where these optional fields are used.

After dropping the F/E tables you can create new optional fields and recreate the tables.

When you drop F/E tables for a transaction, all information entered for optional field is deleted and cannot be restored any more. To keep the entered information, you can export the data, drop and recreate the tables, and then import the data back.

6.6.4 Field Sets

Field Sets cannot be deleted if they are used in Assign Fields.

New Field Sets can be added any time without any restriction.

6.6.5 Assign Fields

Assigned optional fields cannot be deleted from this screen if optional field values have already been entered for them. However, all other options related to them, such as Field Caption, Mandatory, Read Only, Default Value, and Field Group , can be edited.

New optional fields can be assigned any time.



7 Setting Optional Field Values If a transaction has optional fields defined for it, you need to use a customized version of this transaction in order to be able to enter the field values (use Optional Fields Entry screen if you want to add optional fields for transactions that have already been entered). The Field Extender Lite edition is restricted to Document Attachment Applets developed by SYSTRONICS only, while Field Extender Pro edition can also work with customizations that are developed by advanced users.

When you use F/E customizations or Document Attachment Applets, it is important not to use the corresponding Sage 300 ERP screens; otherwise, the validations defined for Field Extender optional fields will not be performed and the F/E optional fields will not be initialized. Later, this may result in integrity check errors.

In customized transactions, an additional “Attachments” (or “FE Fields”) button is available. Clicking this button launches the F/E Optional Field Values screen, shown below. You can enter the optional field values using this screen.

Figure 7-1 Optional Field Values – without Field Sets

If more than one Field Set codes are used in the Assigned Fields screen for a particular transaction, the Field Set selection option becomes available and different Field Set codes can be used in different records.



Figure 7-2 Optional Field Values – with Field Sets

The “Filter by Field Set” option allows filtering the records by a specific Field Set. When you select the “Filter by Field Set” option, a drop-down list appears next to it, listing the Field Sets that are used in F/E records related to the selected transaction. When you select a Field Set from the list, the first record using this Field Set is shown on the Optional Field Values screen. You can navigate through the records filtered by the selected Field Set only. The “Record x of y” label shows the position of the displayed record in the filtered selection, where x is the position of the displayed record and y is the number of the records using the selected Field Set. The drop-down list and the “Record x of y” label are visible only when the “Filter by Field Set” check box is selected.

Below is a sample screenshot of the F/E Optional Field Values screen, where the “Filter by Field Set” option is selected.



Figure 7-3 Optional Field Values – with Field Sets and “Filter by Field Set” option selected

When the “Filter by Field Set” check box is selected, a Finder button appears next to the navigation buttons of the Record Number field. Clicking the Finder opens the Record List screen, where F/E records are filtered by the selected Field Set and displayed along with the corresponding optional field values; listed in the order by which they have been entered. The F/E optional fields are displayed in the Record List screen by the names assigned to them under the Field Caption on the F/E Assign Fields screen. Highlighting a record and clicking the Select button takes you back to the F/E Optional Field Values screen, where the highlighted record is displayed.

Below is a sample screenshot of the Record List screen.



Figure 7-4 Record List

You can assign multiple F/E records per Sage 300 ERP record. Create a new record by clicking the “New” button. You can create as many records as you wish. You can specify different field sets for each record. When the optional field values are saved, you will not be able to change the field set.

1. When the “Filter by Field Set” check box is selected, the “New” button is hidden and the “Delete” button is disabled. Consequently, a new F/E record cannot be created and an existing F/E record cannot be deleted in this mode.

2. The content of “Rich Text” and “Electronic Attachment” type fields cannot be viewed using the Record List screen.

Depending on the selected field set, you will see a different list of fields in the Field Values grid. The Fields are grouped according to the field groups specified in the Assign Fields screen. The Groups and the fields within groups are sorted in alphabetical order. Field Groups are shown in bold.

The Groups can be collapsed by clicking the minus sign to the left of a group name. In case of a large number of groups and fields, it may not be convenient for you to keep all groups open. You can keep open only the groups where you want to enter values. If you close the screen, Field Extender remembers the current state and resumes from that state the next time you launch the screen.

7.1 Validated Fields

If a field is linked to an optional table, you can select the field value from the Finder. If a value is from an optional table, you can see the description of the value in the Description column. Otherwise, the Description column is empty. If the field is linked to an optional table and the Limit to List is set to “Yes”, you can only select a value from the list; you cannot enter a new value.



7.2 Read Only Fields

If a field is defined as Read-Only in a specific field set, you cannot enter any value for it from the Optional Field Values screen, and this field appears grayed out, thus restricting changes in important information. However, this field can be edited from another field set, where it is not set as read-only.

The Read Only attribute is defined in the Assign Fields screen, and is associated with a specific Field Set and Transaction combination. For example, you wish to group your customers by region and need to report sales by region. To implement this, define a “Region” optional field in Customer records and Order Entry Invoices. To ensure steady control and accuracy in data entry, you should set the “Region” field as read-only when accessed from O/E Invoices. Thus, Field Extender ensures that all sales are unambiguously associated with the customer’s region.

Mandatory fields cannot be Read Only.

7.3 Rich Texts

If a field is defined as Rich Text type, select it and click the Zoom button . The Rich Text Editor is launched (See Rich Text Editor). In order to save a rich text: type the required data, format it and click the Save button.

Figure 7-5 Rich Text Editor

7.4 String and Binary Fields

If the text you enter in the Value column of a String or Binary type field is larger than the column itself, a popup window opens automatically to let you edit the whole text. The popup window is launched for string and binary field types that are not validated against Optional Tables (or for those fields that are validated by Optional Table but “Limit To” List is set to No).

The following figure shows an example of the pop-up screen.

Figure 7-6 Pop-up Screen for Entering Text



You can launch the pop-up screen manually by selecting the Value column of the String or Binary field and pressing F9. You can also resize the Value column in order to be able to see more text.

7.5 Electronic Attachments

Field Extender supports Electronic Attachment field types. Such fields have three dots “…” at the far right of the Value column. By either right-clicking an attachment field or left-clicking the three dots, the following pop up menu is displayed:

Field Description

Attach Opens a browse window and allows attaching any type of file.

Open Opens the attachment.

Detach Allows you to save the attached file to a folder specified by you.

Delete Deletes the saved attachment from the database.

The same attachment options are available under the File menu:

Menu items are enabled/ disabled depending on whether the selected field has attachments. If you have already attached a file, Open, Detach, and Delete items are enabled, while Attach is disabled. If nothing is attached, then Attach is enabled and other items are disabled.

Double-clicking an attachment field in the Value column opens the attachment, if any. Otherwise, if nothing is attached yet, it opens the Browse screen that lets you select a file to attach. When a file is



attached, “<EXT> File” is displayed in the Value column, where <EXT> is the file extension. In the Description column, the file name is displayed with extension, but without the full path.

You can export and import optional field values by using the corresponding options available in the File menu. Field Extender 2014E supports import and export from/to the following file formats: Excel 2000, Excel 2007 Binary Workbook, Single CSV, CSV, Access, Access 2007, Excel 5.0, dBase 5.0, ODBC and XML.

7.6 Hyperlinks

If a field is defined as a hyperlink, the <Hyperlink> caption is shown in its Value field on Optional Fields Entry and Optional Field Values pop-up screens.

Figure 7-7 Optional Field Values screen

To enter the link information, click the <Hyperlink> displayed in the Value field. If this is the first time you enter the link, the <Hyperlink> caption disappears, and you can enter the required value in the blank field. If you click the <Hyperlink> caption for a field that has an existing value, the <Hyperlink> caption is changed to that value allowing you to edit it.



Figure 7-8 Entering a Hyperlink on the Optional Field Values screen

After entering a link on the Value field, the Description field becomes a hyperlink allowing to open the link by clicking on it.



Figure 7-9 Using the Description field as a hyperlink



8 Optional Fields Entry The Optional Fields Entry screen facilitates capturing Optional Fields for transactions that are already entered in Sage 300 ERP. The Optional Fields Entry screenshot below shows the F/E Optional Fields Entry screen for O/E Invoice Entry transaction.

Figure 8-1 Optional Fields Entry

To enter Optional Fields, you must select a transaction type and then a record under that transaction. As in the Optional Fields and Assign Fields screens, here also you are restricted by the list of transactions defined in the Transactions screen (F/E Pro edition) or by the acquired ones (F/E Lite edition).

In the above example, the optional fields related to the first invoice in the list are entered in the lower part of the screen.



The Refresh button updates information about Sage 300 ERP tables and their fields. You may want to refresh that information if some of Sage 300 ERP transactions are missing from the Transaction combo box, or if some of the transactions that are in the list are not working properly. Refreshing may take a while and you will see the progress as shown below.

Figure 8-2 Updating Information from Sage 300 ERP Tables

Upon completing the update, you can continue using Field Extender normally.

When a record is selected in the upper grid of the Optional Fields Entry screen, Field Extender can either show the relevant optional fields automatically, or can wait until it is instructed to do so. If there are many optional fields defined for a transaction, the retrieval of information may take some time, so you may want to retrieve the information once you have found the record you want to work with. The Auto Refresh option serves that purpose. If the option is selected, each time you navigate to a new record, the optional fields’ information is shown. If the option is not selected, you will have to click the Go button (>>) to show the optional fields information. When the option is not selected, scrolling through records is much faster.



9 Import/Export of Attachments Import and export of Electronic Attachments and Rich Text type fields is performed in Field Extender using a special icon available on the Sage 300 ERP Desktop under the Field Extender folder. Clicking this icon launches the “F/E Import/Export” screen shown below.

Figure 9-1 Import/Export of Attachments

Since Electronic Attachments and Rich Text type fields are not standard features of Sage 300 ERP, they cannot be imported or exported along with other field types. Therefore, the above screen is specially developed to serve this functionality.

While exporting or importing Electronic Attachments and Rich Text fields you need to specify a file name with FEI extension. This file is used to store technical information about the exported electronic attachments and rich text fields. Electronic attachments themselves are stored in individual files, in a folder with the same name as the FEI file. The rich text fields are also stored in separate files in Rich Text format (.RTF).

You can create your own FEI files, or read FEI files generated by F/E and edit them.

The FEI file stores the following comma-separated fields:

1. The primary key of the Sage 300 ERP transaction. If there are multiple fields in the primary key, they are separated by commas.

2. The name of the field in the F/E table, where the attachment is stored. 3. The actual name of the attachment. Example: Report.doc, Report.doc, etc. 4. The virtual name of the attachment. Example: Report.doc, Report(1).doc, etc.

See the figure below for the FEI file sample:



Figure 9-2 FEI File

When importing Electronic Attachments and Rich Text fields, Field Extender will find their actual file names from the FEI file and will link them to the appropriate transactions.

When importing different types of optional fields, this should be done in two steps. First, usual optional fields (the type of which is not attachment and rich text) are imported from the File menu of Optional Field Entry or the customizations (Applets). Second, attachments and rich text fields are imported from Import/Export of Attachments. This sequence of importing is mandatory because attachments and rich text files can be imported only for the saved F/E records (which are created during importing of usual optional fields).

Alternately, if you need to import only attachments or rich text files, you may save F/E records manually from Optional Field Entry or customizations (Applets) and then do the required importing.

The following fields are available on the “F/E Import/Export” screen.

Field Description

Transaction Select a transaction for which you want to import or export electronic attachments and rich texts.

Import Select this option if you want to import electronic attachment and rich text files.

Export Select this option if you want to export electronic attachment and rich text files.

Documents You can select to import /export either electronic attachments or rich texts at a time.

Import Options There are three import options: Insert, Update, Insert and Update.

Insert:

During the import, the system only inserts new attachments and rich texts. If there are attached files or rich texts with the same keys, the files are not replaced.

Update:

During the import, the system only replaces the existing files or rich texts. New items are not attached.

Insert and Update:



Field Description

During the import, the system inserts new attachments and rich texts, as well as updates the existing ones.

Export File… Specify the name and location of the FEI file. For export operation, an FEI file will be created and all attachments will be saved in the same folder as the FEI file. For import operation, the system reads the names of files to be attached from the FEI file.

Clicking the Open button lets you choose the FEI file name and location using a standard Open File dialog.

Set Criteria Select a criterion for the files to import or export. Clicking this button opens the screen shown below.

OK Click this button to start the import or export operation.

Cancel Allows canceling your selection and closing the window.

The following figure illustrates the Set Criteria screen.

Figure 9-3 Set Criteria

This is a standard Sage 300 ERP screen that lets you limit the set of records selected for importing or exporting.



10 Reports Four reports are available in Field Extender 2014E: Optional Tables, Optional Fields, Field Sets, and Assign Fields.

10.1 Optional Tables

A sample Optional Tables report is shown in the figure below.

Figure 10-1 Optional Tables Report

The following information is available in the Optional Tables report:

1. System date and time. 2. Company Name from Sage 300 ERP Company Profile (in Common Services). 3. Page number. 4. Report and “rpt” file names. 5. Optional Table range. 6. Optional Table name. 7. Maximum code length of the Optional Table. 8. Code of Optional Table. 9. Description of the data that the optional code represents. 10. Sage 300 ERP Table name. 11. Key Field of Sage 300 ERP Table. 12. Description Field of Sage 300 ERP Table. 13. Name of application. 14. User name.

10.2 Optional Fields

A sample Optional Fields report is shown in the figure below.



Figure 10-2 Optional Fields Report

The following information is available in the Optional Fields report:

1. System date and time. 2. Company Name from Sage 300 ERP Company Profile (in Common Services). 3. Page number. 4. Report and “rpt” file names. 5. Transaction Number range. 6. Transaction name. 7. Optional Field name 8. Optional Field type. 9. Optional Field size. 10. Optional Field precision. 11. Validation by Optional Table. 12. Hidden. 13. Comments.

10.3 Field Sets

A sample Field Sets report is shown in the figure below.



Figure 10-3 Field Sets Report

The following information is available in Field Sets report:

1. System date and time. 2. Company Name from Sage 300 ERP Company Profile (in Common Services). 3. Page number. 4. Report and “rpt” file names. 5. Field Set range. 6. Field Set code. 7. Field Set name. 8. Field Set comments.

10.4 Assign Fields

A sample Assign Fields report is shown in the figure below.



Figure 10-4 Assign Fields Report

The following information is available in Assign Fields report:

1. System date and time. 2. Company Name from Sage 300 ERP Company Profile (in Common Services). 3. Page number. 4. Report and “rpt” file names. 5. Transaction Number range. 6. Field Set range. 7. Field Set code. 8. Field Name. 9. Field description. 10. Mandatory Saving option. 11. Read-Only 12. Hyperlink 13. Default values. 14. Field Group name.



11 Integrity Check You can run the Integrity Check for F/E from the Data Integrity screen in the Sage 300 ERP Administrative Services folder. On the Data Integrity screen, choose Field Extender 6.2E from the list of available applications and click the “Include” button to add F/E to the list of applications to be checked for data integrity errors. Use the “Check” button on the screen, to start the data integrity checking process.

Figure 11-1 Data Integrity

Optionally, you can choose settings for the data integrity checking process on the F/E Integrity Check Options screen. The screen can be opened by highlighting Field Extender 6.2E in the Check Applications list on the screen and clicking the “Application Options” button. The following figure and table describe the fields available on the screen.



Figure 11-2 F/E Integrity Check Options

Field Description

Check Setup Tables Select this option if you want to check integrity in Setup Tables.

Fix Setup Tables Select this option if you want to fix the integrity errors in Setup Tables.

Check for Orphan Records in Setup Tables

Select this option if you want to check for orphan records in Setup Tables.

Delete Orphan Records in Setup Tables

Select this option if you want to delete the orphan records found by the Integrity Check in Setup Tables.

Check for Orphan Records in Optional Field Values

Select this option if you want to check for orphan records in Optional Field Values.

Delete Orphan Records in Optional Field Values

Select this option if you want to delete the orphan records found by the Integrity Check in Optional Field Values.



12 Appendices

12.1 Appendix A – Limitations

The following limitations are imposed by the Sage 300 ERP database access layer and can partially be circumvented by the addition of Multiple Records.

Limit Value

Maximum length of field names 10 characters

Maximum number of fields per table 511

Maximum length of fields 255

Maximum number of keys per table 15

Maximum number of segments per key 10

Maximum number of key segments per table (total for all keys of a table)

60

Maximum length of a key (sum of segment lengths) 127 bytes

Maximum record length 4000 bytes

12.2 Appendix B – Field Extender vs. Transaction Analysis & Optional Field Creator

The following table lists the features of Field Extender that are unique to this application and are not available in the “Transaction Analysis & Optional Field Creator” module of Sage 300 ERP.

No Description

1. In addition to optional fields made available by the Sage 300 ERP Transaction Analysis and Optional Fields Creator module, Field Extender allows adding an unlimited number of optional fields to ANY Sage 300 ERP screen. Moreover, Field Extender works with most 3rd Party SDK applications.

2. Field Extender allows attaching electronic files to ANY Sage 300 ERP screen. For example, you may attach scanned vendor invoices to AP transactions, images to Inventory Items, or employee photos to US/Canadian Payroll records.

3. Field Extender allows validation of captured optional fields against any Sage 300 ERP table. In addition to saving time by eliminating the requirement of updating validation tables manually or by macros, this feature allows keeping validation tables updated at all time.

4. By offering the “Field Sets” feature, Field Extender allows using different sets of optional fields for the same Sage 300 ERP screen. For example, different sets of optional fields may be assigned to different types of businesses.



No Description

5. The “Field Groups” feature in Field Extender allows sub-grouping optional fields. In case of a large number of optional fields, this facility makes data entry more convenient to the user. As per user preferences, each sub-group may be expanded or collapsed.

6. In Field Extender, the maximum length of a “String Type” field is 255 characters. This length is limited to 60 characters in the Sage 300 ERP Transaction Analysis and Optional Fields Creator module.

7. When the length of the captured text exceeds the column width, Field Extender opens a text box automatically, to display the full contents and make data entry user friendly.

8. Field Extender allows attaching Rich Text files with unlimited sizes to ANY Sage 300 ERP screen. For example, you may attach complete production procedures or safety measures to MISys screens.

9. Field Extender supports multiple optional field records per Sage 300 ERP record. For example, you may capture multiple sets of vendor related optional fields for each IC Item.

10. Field Extender facilitates optional fields capturing for already entered transactions by using the Optional Fields Entry screen.

11. Field Extender allows defining String type optional fields as a hyperlink. On the Optional Fields Entry and Optional Field Values pop-up screens, the description of these optional fields is shown in blue color, as a hyperlink, allowing to open the link by clicking on it.