26 June 2014
© 2014 ReadSoft AG
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This file contains important information about PROCESS DIRECTOR 7.3.
See the PROCESS DIRECTOR 7.3 Release Update presentations for detailed information on the major new features.
Support and certification for HANA
New process type Generic archiving
Drag and drop function to copy field values
External data viewer improvements
Configuration criteria for presets
Performance improvement at logon and start
Performance improvement for document versions
Performance improvement for Worklist generation
Improved navigation between screens
Keyboard shortcuts for Worklist node context menu
Selection screen search in line items
Search payment terms by explanation
Cross links to related customizing transactions
Generate Worklist in background
Configuration options to improve performance when adding/deleting lines in the Web Application
Payment Advice customer determination enhancement
Support for cleared and parked documents in Payment Advice determinations
Payment Advice open item assignment determination
Search help for Payment Advice customer determinations
Improved Payment Advice customer number search help
Enhanced Payment Advice item proposal
Detail screen for Electronic Bank Statements
Payment Advice items display in Electronic Bank Statement
Configuration to limit list of Electronic Bank Statement items
Sold-To party customer information available in header
Automatic assignment of line item number for new line items
Dynamic search help for conditions
Support for releasing credit locks
Sales Order creation BAPI parameters configuration
Support for tax base determination
Separate posting type configuration for G/L Account Postings and Customer Postings
Configure success messages for posting and parking
Additional fields in default field catalog
Checks for scheduling agreements
Document detail screen for Payment Approvals
Vendor name/bank details at Payments level
Check if payment proposal was recreated in SAP
Search help for price conditions
Read UoM and Material group from purchase info record
Pass OCI catalog ID from Web Application to SAP GUI
Visual indicator for attachments and notes
Image icon for line item attachments
Start-up selection screen for Master Worklists
Performance improvement for documents having tables with many lines
New settings for csvDownloadlist parameter
Automatic redirection to specified URL on logging off
Improved attachment URL handling
New parameter pd_search_on_change
Display TIFF images in PROCESS DIRECTOR attachment viewer
Sapsystem ID overrules Master Worklist configuration
Worklist no longer displayed behind start-up selection screen
Start-up selection screen disabled for single document link
Display user profile as Worklist node
Check for installed languages when saving user profile
Delete button for tables with no lines
Leading and trailing spaces in field values
Support for Internet Explorer 10
Switching browser to full screen mode
Extended functionality for SSO ntlmauthenticate parameter
SSO authentication with X.509 client certificate
New parameters for Web Service
Configurable timeout for Web Service
Mobile App for workflow processing
MOBILE APPROVAL for PROCESS DIRECTOR
Substitute icon displayed in workflow status popup
Support and certification for HANA
PROCESS DIRECTOR now runs on HANA and has been certified by SAP as an Add-On Deployment on HANA.
PROCESS DIRECTOR is now fully available in Finnish, Japanese and Norwegian. Previously only part of the interface had been translated for these languages.
New process type Generic archiving
A new process type, ARCH_BUS Generic archiving is available with which it is possible to archive documents without capturing the key data. The assignment to SAP business transactions can be done in PROCESS DIRECTOR.
Drag and drop function to copy field values
Users can copy field values by dragging and dropping lines from one grid to another. For example, when editing a goods receipt document, the user can drag lines from the purchase order line items grid and drop them onto line items in the goods receipt grid. The fields specified in the drag and drop configuration are then copied from the PO item into the goods receipt item. Existing values may or may not be overwritten, depending on the configuration.
In SAP versions ECC600 and higher, attributes such as the file name and a description can be added to attachments. PROCESS DIRECTOR supports attachment attributes in the SAP GUI and the Web Application. Attachment descriptions in the Web Application can be configured to be hidden, mandatory, displayed but not editable, or displayed and editable.
It is now possible to split a single document into several documents based on the values of specific fields, which are specified in the document split condition configuration. The split can be performed automatically or manually by the user.
External data viewer improvements
The external data viewer (menu Go to > External data) now displays a message if no external data is available, and also supports EDI data.
Configuration criteria for presets
It is now possible to use configuration criteria with presets, so that a preset is only applied if it meets the specified conditions.
It is now possible to replace specific messages with other messages. This can be useful, for example, if standard SAP messages (such as those returned by the posting interface) are not understandable to the user and should be replaced with more user-friendly versions.
Performance improvement at logon and start
Measures were taken to improve system performance when PROCESS DIRECTOR is started, and when logging on to the Web Application.
Performance improvement for document versions
System performance when using the document versions feature was improved by reducing the number of selects made on the Version numbers table (/EBY/PDBO_VEV).
Performance improvement for Worklist generation
Several measures were taken to speed up Worklist generation, for example, by reducing the amount of memory used in the process.
Improved navigation between screens
The functionality to navigate between documents using hotspots has been improved. For example, the same subgrids are displayed when navigating forward to a new document, or back to the previous document; and if the user makes changes and returns to the previous document without saving, he is prompted to save the changes.
Keyboard shortcuts for Worklist node context menu
Unique keyboard shortcuts (Fastpaths) are now available in the Worklist node context menu, enabling users to access the menu entries with the keyboard instead of the mouse.
Selection screen search in line items
It is now possible, for all process types, to configure the selection screen to search for values in both header and line item data. Previously this functionality was only available for Requisitions and Payment Approvals.
Search payment terms by explanation
It is now possible to search for payment terms using the Own explanation field.
It is now possible to upload files in which header and item data are in the same column, but on different lines. Previously a strict separation of header and line item data in the upload file was necessary.
Cross links to related customizing transactions
In the following configuration views, a button is available to jump to the related transaction: From Document status/substatus to Status/substatus icons; from File upload to Mapping configuration; from EDI profiles to Mapping configuration.
Generate Worklist in background
If static Worklist nodes must be regenerated, Worklist generation can take a long time and in extreme cases may lead to a "time limit exceeded" error. To avoid this problem, it is now possible to run the Worklist generation program in the background.
Configuration options to improve performance when adding/deleting lines in the Web Application
New options are available in the view model grid layout screen that can help to improve performance when adding or deleting lines in the Web Application. If the options are activated, the Web Application does not call the backend when the Add or Delete button is pressed.
A new BAdI, User logon, is available to implement custom logic to modify the behavior of the application during logon to the Web Application. A standard implementation, /EBY/ICWC_USER_LOGON, is available for Accounts Payable that should be activated if using User Exit 923, User check during logon to the Web Application.
Payment Advice customer determination enhancement
The Payment Advice customer determination has now been enhanced with additional searches to determine the customer number based on amount, document numbers and document dates.
Support for cleared and parked documents in Payment Advice determinations
Payment Advice determinations can now search for values in cleared and parked documents as well as in open items.
Payment Advice open item assignment determination
A new Payment Advice determination is available that determines the document number, item number and fiscal year of a line item by searching in open items, cleared and parked documents for the amount, document number, document date, posting date, item text, billing document or reference number.
Search help for Payment Advice customer determinations
A search help is now available that displays all customers found by the Payment Advice customer determination.
Improved customer number search help
The search help for Payment Advices has been improved; it now allows the use of an asterisk (*) to display all payment advices that match the customer number as well as payment advices that contain * in the account number field.
Enhanced Payment Advice item proposal
A button is now available on the toolbar to manually perform item proposal for Payment Advices. This adds open items for the given customer to the Payment Advice document. Users can select which type of items to propose (all, currently due, overdue, or a unique combination). These selections are can also be defined as searches in the determinations configuration.
It is now possible to link a Payment Advice document to an existing SAP payment advice. This function checks if the open items of the document are already cleared and links the PROCESS DIRECTOR Payment Advice document to the clearing posting. Items that are not assigned are ignored. The program /EBY/PDPA_FINALIZE_DOC automatically links Payment Advices to SAP clearing documents.
Detail screen for Electronic Bank Statements
A detail screen is now available for Electronic Bank Statements. In addition to general information about the statement, it displays the total value and number of unassigned and uncleared items.
Payment Advice items display in Electronic Bank Statement
If an SAP or PROCESS DIRECTOR Payment Advice is assigned to an electronic bank statement, the corresponding Payment Advice line items are displayed in a new grid.
Configuration to limit list of Electronic Bank Statement items
It is now possible to configure for each bank account which bank statement items are displayed in PROCESS DIRECTOR. This ensures that only bank statement items that are relevant for the process and can be handled by PROCESS DIRECTOR are available in the interface.
Sold-To party customer information available in header
The current Sold-To party customer number is now available in the header data. This field can be used for selecting documents of a single customer.
Automatic assignment of line item number for new line items
When a new line item is added to a Customer Order document, the Item field is now automatically populated in accordance with the Item no. increment setting in transaction VOV8.
Dynamic search help for conditions
A dynamic search help is now available that displays the conditions available for the combination of document type, sales organization, distribution channel, division and customer.
It is now possible to link a PROCESS DIRECTOR Customer Order document to an existing SAP sales order.
Support for releasing credit locks
If credit management is configured in SAP, PROCESS DIRECTOR can check credit limits for the customer and flag the PROCESS DIRECTOR Customer Order document accordingly if the credit limit is exceeded. Users can release credit locks on Customer Orders in PROCESS DIRECTOR.
Sales Order creation BAPI parameters configuration
It is now possible to customize the sales order creation BAPI parameters via configuration.
PROCESS DIRECTOR now delivers a method to assign the order items to corresponding scheduling agreements during posting.
Customer field information on item and partner level remains after posting.
By setting a flag during the BAPI call, it is possible to specify that internal item numbering does not overwrite dynamically created items.
It is now possible to change the posting type of G/L Account and Customer postings. Sometimes fields must be cleared when the posting type is changed; these fields can be specified in the configuration. A new action CHANGE_PT_CHK can be used to run checks when the posting type is changed.
Support for tax base determination
PROCESS DIRECTOR can now automatically determine the tax base amount and add the corresponding tax lines to the accounting document.
Separate posting type configuration for G/L Account Postings and Customer Postings
Previously there was only one configuration area for configuring both G/L Account Posting (FI) and Customer Posting (FIC) posting types. This has now been split into separate areas, so that in the FI IMG only G/L Account posting types and in the FIC IMG only Customer posting types can be configured.
Configure success messages for posting and parking
It is now possible to configure which posting interface messages should be considered successful for posting, parking and other actions.
It is now possible to enter the movement type at header and item level. Item proposal then uses this information to propose the corresponding items. Currently, only order-related movement types are supported.
A Process Automation Package is now available for Goods Receipts, comprising: IMG; Too Early/Late indicator; Material determination by any field in MARA; Delivery Note creator validation; Workflow recipient determinations.
Additional fields in default field catalog
Additional fields such as KUNNR_CC, KUNNR_SA and KUNNR_BLOCK have been added to the default field catalog for Customer Master Data Maintenance.
A new button Item proposal is now available to manually generate new line items for an order confirmation using the data from the purchase order.
It is now possible to link an Order Confirmation to an existing SAP purchase order. The acknowledgement number from the header of the order confirmation is entered in the SAP PO line items.
Checks for scheduling agreements
The confirmed quantity and confirmed delivery date checks are now able to check confirmations for scheduling agreements.
A Process Automation Package is now available for Order Confirmations, comprising: IMG; Delivery date calculation; Dispute type classification; Workflow recipient determinations.
Document detail screen for Payment Approvals
A document detail screen is now available for Payment Approvals in the SAP GUI and the Web Application.
Vendor name/bank details at Payments level
Vendor name and bank details are now displayed in payment line items.
Check if payment proposal was recreated in SAP
A new check, /EBY/CL_PDPR_EVT_CHK_CREA_DATE, is available to check whether the payment proposal has been deleted and recreated in SAP with the same identification. If this is the case, a warning message is issued to the user.
Search help for price conditions
A dynamic search help is now available that displays the conditions available for the combination of purchase organization and vendor.
Three new presets are available to preset material data from the material master, preset vendor data from the vendor master, and preset the company code from the purchasing organization.
Read UoM and Material group from purchase info record
PROCESS DIRECTOR now reads not only the price, but also the UoM and material group from the purchase info record, and fills these fields when the user enters a material number in a line item and presses ENTER or saves.
Pass OCI catalog ID from Web Application to SAP GUI
When a user adds items to a requisition using an OCI catalog, the catalog ID is now passed to the SAP GUI.
Visual indicator for attachments and notes
If attachments or notes have been added to a document, the Attachments and Notes buttons in the Web Application now display a green border to indicate the presence of content.
Attachments can now be deleted in the Web Application. It is possible to configure which type of attachments can be deleted, as well as whether the archive document itself is deleted or only the link to the document. Users need the authorization object S_WFAR_OBJ with the activity 06 Delete in order delete attachments.
Image icon for line item attachments
If a line item has attachments, an attachment icon is now displayed. The user can click on this icon to open the attachment.
A new parameter, pd_print_full_text, determines how much of the text typed into a Textlines field is shown in the printed document. The entire text can be printed by setting this parameter value to 1.
Start-up selection screen for Master Worklists
The start-up selection screen is now available for Master Worklists, which display data from several systems in a single Worklist. This applies only to Master Worklists configured with the SYSTEM_FIRST display mode. The start-up selection screen is displayed when the user clicks the selection screen icon next to a system node. Access to this system is then only possible via the start-up selection screen.
Performance improvement for documents having tables with many lines
A number of measures have been taken to improve system performance for documents containing tables with many lines.
New settings for csvDownloadlist parameter
Two new settings are available for the csvDownloadlist parameter in the pdweb-app.properties file. Adding a + sign to the %sep setting specifies the separator in the first line of the exported CSV file; for example, %sep{;+} shows sep=; in the first line of the file. The %quote{x} parameter adds the specified character x before and after each field value; for example, %quote{"} displays field values like this: "1000" "120.00" "EUR".
Automatic redirection to specified URL on logging off
A new parameter, logoff_redirect_url, is now available that allows the user to be redirected to a specific URL on logging off from the PD Web Application.
Improved attachment URL handling
Previously, the data of attachments without a URL was saved locally on the server and a server URL was used to call the attachments from the Web Application. As this approach had some considerable disadvantages, all attachments are now streamed to the PD client via a DownloadServlet, thus improving attachment availability and security. With the parameter pd_client_download_url, it is possible to specify a list of URL exceptions that will not be streamed via the servlet.
New parameter pd_search_on_change
If the parameter pd_search_on_change is set to yes, when the user enters data in a field and then presses TAB or clicks in another field, the search help for the field in which the data was entered is triggered. If the parameter is not entered or set to no, the search help is only triggered when the user presses the ENTER key.
Display TIFF images in PROCESS DIRECTOR attachment viewer
A new parameter, pd_show_tif_embedded, is available to enable the display of TIFF images in the PROCESS DIRECTOR attachment viewer. A TIF viewer browser plug-in such as AlternaTIFF is required.
Sapsystem ID overrules Master Worklist configuration
Previously, if a Master Worklist was configured, it was not possible to connect to a single system rather than the Master Worklist using the init.do?sapsystem= parameter in the Web Application URL. This is now possible, as the sapsystem parameter has a higher priority than the Master Worklist configuration.
Worklist no longer displayed behind start-up selection screen
Previously, if a start-up selection screen had been configured, the Worklist was also displayed in the background. Now, the Worklist is displayed only according to the values provided in the selection screen. If no values are provided or the selection screen is not defined, the full Worklist is displayed.
Start-up selection screen disabled for single document link
Previously, when accessing the document detail from a single document link, the start-up selection screen was displayed on top of the document and had to be closed in order to edit the document. The start-up selection screen is no longer displayed if the single document link is executed successfully and the proper document is shown.
Display user profile as Worklist node
With the parameter pd_user_profile_as_node, it is possible to display the user profile as a Worklist node instead of a popup window.
Check for installed languages when saving user profile
When a user changes the language in his profile, the system checks whether the chosen language is available. If it is not installed, an error message is displayed to the user.
If the tooltip for a field contains a lot of text, it is now displayed in a popup area with scrollbars.
Leading and trailing spaces in field values
If the user enters a field value with spaces at the beginning or end, the field value is now trimmed, with all the unnecessary spaces removed.
Delete button for tables with no lines
The Delete button is now not displayed for tables that do not have any lines that can be deleted.
Full support for Internet Explorer 10
PROCESS DIRECTOR now provides full support for Internet Explorer 10. Previously it was necessary to run Internet Explorer 10 in compatibility mode.
The amount of memory required when working with many users has been reduced by streamlining the cache that stores user details for retrieval by the Web Application.
Switching browser to full screen mode
The system behavior has been changed when the user switches the browser window to full screen mode using F11. This precludes potential duplicate entries in the document list if the user performs actions in the Web Application while the updated document list is still being loaded from the server.
Extended functionality for SSO ntlmauthenticate parameter
With parameter values -2 and -3, the standard logon page is now displayed if the user credentials are retrieved but incorrect, and the user can log on manually. Previously this situation resulted in an error message.
SSO authentication with X.509 client certificate
PROCESS DIRECTOR now supports SSO authentication using an X.509 client certificate.
New parameters for Web Service
New parameters have been introduced for the RESTful Web Service, which is required for alternative PROCESS DIRECTOR clients such as ReadSoft Mobile. These parameters must be set in order to display images correctly. imageconvertpng and imageconvertjpg convert PDF or TIF documents to a series of PNG/JPG images. pd_ignore_att_url ensures that attachments are read using binary data.
Configurable timeout for Web Service
With the parameter sessionAlive in the _default.json file, it is possible to configure a "timeout" for the PROCESS DIRECTOR Web Service, that is, specify how long the session will be maintained before it expires. If this parameter is not set, the session automatically expires after 10 minutes. This parameter applies only to the Web Service, not to the normal PROCESS DIRECTOR Web Application.
Mobile App for workflow processing
A mobile application, ReadSoft Mobile, is now available that allows users to perform workflow activities, such as approving and rejecting PROCESS DIRECTOR documents (of any process type), from their phone. It is available for Apple, Android, Blackberry and Windows phones and can be downloaded from the respective App Store. Fields and layout in the ReadSoft Mobile App can be configured in the PROCESS DIRECTOR view model, using the new environment setting MB Mobile Application. The Worklist for mobile applications is configured in the usual way. A new Worklist node setting Not visible in Mobile Application, which is activated by default, must be deactivated for mobile application Worklist nodes.
MOBILE APPROVAL for PROCESS DIRECTOR
MOBILE APPROVAL enables users to approve, reject or add a note to a PROCESS DIRECTOR document via email. Previously this feature was only available for Accounts Payable.
The layout of the workflow status window has been changed to resemble the new PROCESS DIRECTOR Web Application.
Substitute icon displayed in workflow status popup
If a user is processing a workflow step in his capacity as substitute for another user, the substitute icon is displayed in the workflow status popup to indicate for which processor the user is performing the substitution.
The process of sending emails in now performed in the background.
If you have questions or problems, please contact your local ReadSoft representative. Information on how to reach the local support channels is available at http://www.readsoft.com/services/support.htm.
Authorized ReadSoft customers and partners can obtain upgrades from the ReadSoft home page at the following locations: