, , , , ,

Notification Mailers


A notification mailer is a Java program that performs e-mail send and response processing for the Oracle Workflow Notification System, using the JavaMail API. You need to implement one or more notification mailers only if you want to have your workflow users receive their notifications by e-mail, as well as from the Worklist Web pages.
The notification mailer program is defined as a service component type in the Generic Service Component Framework. This framework helps to simplify and automate the management of background Java services.
Oracle Workflow provides one seeded notification mailer service component, called Workflow Notification Mailer. Most of the configuration parameters for this mailer are set to default values. You can enter several of the remaining required parameters using AutoConfig. After installation, you then only need to enter the e-mail inbox password
in order to complete the configuration of this mailer. Alternatively, if you only want to send outbound messages and do not need to receive inbound messages, you only need to disable inbound processing in order to complete the configuration of this mailer. If the mail servers and Business Event System components used by the notification
mailers are set up, and the Workflow Mailer Service container to which the Workflow Notification Mailer belongs is started, the seeded notification mailer automatically starts running once its configuration is complete.
You cannot delete the seeded Workflow Notification Mailer or edit its name, assigned agents, correlation ID value, or container. However, if necessary you can optionally update other configuration parameters, schedule control events, or manually choose control commands to start, stop, suspend, resume, or refresh this notification mailer.

Note: Oracle Alert also uses the Workflow Notification Mailer to send and receive alert e-mail messages. If you use Oracle Alert, ensure that the configuration of the Workflow Notification Mailer meets your alert requirements.
Custom Notification Mailer
You can also optionally create additional notification mailer service components. For example, you can create a notification mailer that processes only messages that belong to a particular workflow item type, or create additional mailers that process the same types of message to increase throughput.

The correlation ID for a notification mailer determines which messages it can process. To dedicate a notification mailer to processing messages from a particular item type, set that item type as the correlation ID. To create a general notification mailer that can process messages from any item type, leave the correlation ID blank. The seeded Workflow Notification Mailer has a blank correlation ID so that it can run as a general mailer.
Note: If you run a general notification mailer and a dedicated notification mailer for a particular item type at the same time, a message from that item type may still be processed by the general mailer if that mailer is the first to access the message. If you want only the dedicated notification mailer to process messages from that item type, disable any general mailers. In this case, however, ensure that you define dedicated mailers for all item types used in your Oracle Applications installation.
You can also configure any notification mailer service component to process only inbound messages, or only outbound messages. You associate inbound and outbound mailers with each other by assigning them the same mailer node name. The mailer node name indicates which inbound mailer can process incoming responses to  outbound messages sent by a particular outbound mailer.
/by
, , , ,

Oracle Workflow Manager


Oracle Workflow Manager is a component of Oracle Applications Manager that allows system administrators to manage Oracle Workflow for multiple Oracle Applications instances from a single console.
Using Oracle Workflow Manager, administrators can control Workflow system services, such as notification mailers, agent listeners, and other service components, background engines, purging obsolete Workflow data, and cleanup of the Workflow control queue.
Administrators can also monitor work item processing by viewing the distribution of all work items by status and drilling down to additional information. Additionally, they can monitor event message processing for local Business Event System agents by viewing the distribution of event messages by status as well as queue propagation schedules. With this ability to monitor work items and event messages, a system administrator can identify possible bottlenecks easily.
Navigation: Applications Dashboard > (pull-down menu) Workflow Manager > (B) Go
Gathering Oracle Workflow Statistics
Some Oracle Workflow Manager graphs and lists may summarize large volumes of data, depending on the level of activity in your Oracle Applications instance. To enhance performance in displaying these statistics, Oracle Workflow Manager periodically runs concurrent programs to gather the statistics and displays the graphs
and lists based on the latest data from the concurrent programs.
1.  Workflow Agent Activity Statistics Concurrent Program (FNDWFAASTATCC) –
Gathers statistics for the Agent Activity graph in the Workflow System status page and for the agent activity list in the Agent Activity page.
2. Workflow Mailer Statistics Concurrent Program (FNDWFMLRSTATCC) –
Gathers statistics for the throughput graph in the Notification Mailer Throughput page.
3. Workflow Work Items Statistics Concurrent Program (FNDWFWITSTATCC) –
Gathers statistics for the Work Items graph in the Workflow System status page, for the Completed Work Items list in the Workflow Purge page, and for the work item lists in the Active Work Items, Deferred Work Items, Suspended Work Items, and Errored Work Items pages.
These concurrent programs are scheduled to run every 24 hours by default. They do not require any parameters. You can optionally cancel the default scheduled requests and run the programs with a different schedule if you want to gather statistics at a different frequency.
Each of these graphs and lists displays the date and time when its statistics were last updated, as well as a refresh icon that you can select to refresh the statistics immediately if necessary. However, note that if your Oracle Applications instance contains very large volumes of workflow data, you may encounter delays or page timeouts when refreshing the data.
Note: Oracle Workflow Manager statistics that typically represent smaller volumes of data, such as work item details and work item activity details, are queried directly rather than through the concurrent programs.
/by
, , , ,

Tablespace Model and Migration Utility


The Oracle Applications Tablespace Model (OATM) uses twelve consolidated tablespaces^(including three system tablespaces: temporary, system and undo segments) and provides support for locally managed tablespaces. OATM was introduced in Release 11i.10. In prior 11i releases of the E-Business Suite, each product was allocated two tablespaces, one for data and one for indexes.
The Migration Utility is a menu-based PERL program and a series of sizing estimate reports that enables conversion of E-Business Suite applications schemas either in a single comprehensive migration or a phased, schema-by-schema migration. In general Oracle recommends performing a single comprehensive migration, however this requires a sufficient amount of down time and disk space. Oracle does not support partial migration of tablespaces. You must still migrate all schemas when performing a phased schema-by-schema migration.
With OATM, each database object is mapped to a tablespace based on its Input/Output characteristics, which include object size, life span, access methods and locking granularity. This model allows for easier maintenance, and reduced space usage for the E-Business Suite.
Migrating database objects to OATM provides the following benefits:

  1. Fewer and more consolidated tablespaces
  2. Locally Managed Tablespaces
  3. Accounts for the I/O characteristics of an object
  4. Reclaims space after migration
  5. Real Application Cluster (RAC) Support

The advantages of OATM’s product tablespaces are best understood in terms of the tablespace model that preceded it. This model contained two tablespaces for each Oracle Applications product. One tablespace was allocated for tables and one for indexes. In this model, the standard naming convention for tablespaces contained the product’s Oracle schema name with a suffix of either “D” for “Data” tablespaces or “X” for “Index” tablespaces. For example, the tablespaces APD and APX were the default tablespaces for Oracle Payables tables and indexes, respectively.
In contrast to the previous tablespace model, OATM contains nine default tablespaces for applications objects in addition to Undo, Temp and System database tablespaces. Indexes on transaction tables are held in a separate tablespace dedicated for transaction table indexes whereas all other indexes are held in the same tablespace as the parent/base table.
All Oracle Applications product schemas now have a default tablespace set to point to the TRANSACTION_TABLES tablespace type for data objects and the TRANSACTION_INDEXES tablespace type for index objects.
^A tablespace is a database storage unit that groups related logical structures together. The database data files are stored in tablespaces.

/by
, , ,

Measure Supply Chain Performance

Given the increased attention and scrutiny your investors are applying to the supply chain’s impact on a company’s financial performance, you need a yardstick to clearly measure your Supply Chain performance. One of the most followed and detailed performance metrics are encompassed in the Supply Chain Operations Reference (SCOR) model. The SCOR model provides an industry-standard approach to analyze, design, and implement changes to improve performance throughout five integrated supply chain processes — plan, source, make, deliver and return

Plan
Assess supply resources; aggregate and prioritize demand requirements; plan inventory for Distribution, production, and material requirements; and plan rough-cut capacity
Source
Receive, inspect, store, hold, issue, and authorize payment for raw materials and purchased finished goods
Make
Request and receive material; manufacture and test product

Deliver
Execute order management processes; generate quotations; configure product; create and maintain a customer database; maintain a product/price database; manage accounts receivable, credits, collections, and invoicing; execute warehouse processes, including pick, pack, and configure; create customer-specific packaging/labeling; consolidate orders; ship products; manage transportation processes and import/export
Return

Process defective, warranty, and excess returns, including authorization, scheduling, inspection, transfer, warranty administration, receiving and verifying defective products, disposition, and replacement

/by
, , ,

CRM For beginners

CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. It is a process or methodology used to learn more about customers’ needs and behaviors in order to develop stronger relationships with them. CRM helps businesses gain insight into the behavior of customers. This in turn can help businesses to Provide better customer service, Increase customer revenues, Discover new customers,
Cross sell/Up Sell products more effectively, Help sales staff close deals faster,Make call centers more efficient and Simplify marketing and sales processes. CRM is more than just technology, its a strategy. It is about the interactions of the entire business with your customers.

Typically a CRM solution would cover broad areas of Marketing, Sales and Service.

Things are looking bright for CRM professionals over the next year, according to a number of recent reports, job boards and industry developments. Year 2007 has seen couple of postponement of CRM projects just for the simple reason of unavailability of skilled consultants. That shortage of skills seems to be translating into increased pay for those that have them. Last year, the financial services industry had the most demand for CRM jobs, followed by manufacturing and healthcare & then services.

Major players in the CRM domain are SAP, Oracle and Microsoft. With Siebel, Oracle CRM and Peoplesoft CRM customers to serve, it seems that Oracle would be busy in serving the huge client base as well as getting them togther.

Oracle’s acquisition of Siebel will hit SAP hard and make it more difficult for Microsoft to make inroads into the enterprise market. So its all going to be interesting !

/by