Cloning a Payroll Interface Definition

This chapter provides an overview of the cloning process and discusses how to clone an interface definition.

Understanding the Cloning Process

Rather than setting up an entirely new interface definition, it may be easier to begin an implementation by cloning (copying) an existing interface definition, either a definition that you set up previously or one of the sample data definitions that is delivered with Payroll Interface.

PI Cloning Utility

The Payroll Interface control tables, sometimes referred to as the setup tables, are a set of 10 components that you use to set up an interface definition.

To create a copy of an interface definition, you use the PI cloning Utility to clone five of these components: PS Tables (PS_TABLES), Field Definition Table (INTRFC_FIELD), Group Table (INTRFC_GROUP), Instance Table (INTRFC_INSTANCE), and Definition Table (INTRFC_DEFINITION).

It is not necessary to clone these five components: System Table (SYSTEM_TABLE), Employee Table (INTRFC_EMPLOYEE), Process Table (INTRFC_PROCESS), File Handle Table (INTRFC_FILEHANDLE), and Configuration Table (INTRFC_CONFIG).

The PI Cloning Utility has two sub-utilities, the System ID Cloning Utility and the Interface Definition Cloning Utility. This table lists which components and underlying tables each sub-utility clones:

Cloning Procedure

Use the P.I. Cloning Utility Application Engine process (PI_CLONE) to clone an existing interface definition. The steps that you must perform before and after running the utility are outlined here.

To clone an interface definition:

1. Set up a system ID for the new interface definition using the System Table component.

2. Set up the file handles using the File Handle Table component.

   For each file ID you will clone in step 3, create a file handle.

3. Clone the existing interface definition using the P.I. Cloning Utility process.

4. Update the file definitions using the Definition Table component.

   For each file ID that you cloned in step 3, enter the system ID that you created in step 1.

5. Set up a configuration ID using the Configuration Table component.

   Enter the system ID that you created in step 1, the file handles that you created in step 2, and the file IDs that the cloning process created in step 3.

See PeopleTools: PeopleSoft Process Scheduler PeopleBook

After you have performed these steps, you can manually configure the interface definition following the requirements of the third-party payroll system.

See Setting Up a Payroll Interface Definition (Part 1).

See Setting Up a Payroll Interface Definition (Part 2).

Things to Consider

Verify the system ID after you have cloned the components. You may need to manually change the System ID field in the Definition Table component - Interface Definition File page (this is step 4 in the cloning procedure).

Verify the process IDs after you have cloned the components. Some processes may be specific to certain file types. For example, if you are cloning from a logical (LOG) file type to a comma-separated value (CSV) file type, then you don't want to retain Process ID = 00001 in the Deduction record definition.

Long description fields in the PS Tables component and in the Definition Table component - Interface Definition Record page become blank on the cloned records.

The PI_EMPLID_TBL table maps the PeopleSoft EMPLID to the third-party payroll system employee ID. When the Export process is run, every employee is assigned a row in this table. If the PI_EMPLID_TBL table contains data, you must delete it before running the Export process with the new (cloned) interface definition. If you do not delete the data, you will get a "duplicate rows" error message when you run the Export process.

Note. The PI_EMPLID_TBL table contains five fields: EMPLID, EMPL_RCD, EFFEDT, PI_SYSTEM_ID, and PI_EMPLID. To delete the data from this table, use this SQL statement: DELETE FROM PI_EMPLID_TBL.

See Understanding PeopleSoft Payroll Interface Processing.

Cloning an Interface Definition

This section discusses how to select the cloning options.

Pages Used to Clone an Interface Definition

Selecting the Cloning Options

Access the Clone Payroll Interface page (Set Up HRMS, Product Related, Payroll Interface, Interface Controls, Clone Payroll Interface, Clone Payroll Interface).

Clone System ID

Use the System ID Cloning Utility to copy the PS Tables, Field Table, Group Table, and Instance Table components and system IDs.

Clone Interface Definition

Use the Interface Definition Cloning Utility to copy the Definition Table component and file IDs.

Note. If you are copying more than one file ID (for example, the CSV sample data set includes four export files), set up and run the Interface Definition Cloning Utility separately for each file ID.