Working with FTP Applications (WFTP)

Purpose: Use this menu option to create an FTP application, and to define the internet address and FTP commands associated with the application.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a communication protocol used to transmit files from one server to another.

Note: FTP applications in the Work with FTP Applications (WFTP) menu option are not company specific.

In this chapter:

• FTP Configuration

- FTP Configuration File

- Creating Your Own FTP Applications

- FTP Troubleshooting

• Work with FTP Application Screen

- Create FTP Application Screen

• Work with FTP Commands Screen

- Create FTP Command Screen

• Process FTP Commands Screen

• Display FTP Log Screen

FTP Configuration

Purpose: Before you can use FTP as a communication protocol between Oracle Retail Order Management System and another system, you need to perform the required setup.

Required setup includes:

• FTP Configuration File

• Creating Your Own FTP Applications

• FTP Troubleshooting

FTP Configuration File

FTP Properties

Use the FTP properties to define the local directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server where flat files are staged to transmit between the Oracle Retail Order Management System server and another server via FTP.

Property Name	Description
CWDIRECTCP_FTP_FOLDER this property is located in the CWDirectCP Server Properties File	The local directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server where flat files are staged to transmit between the Oracle Retail Order Management System server and another server via FTP. An example directory is /usr/local/tomcat01/OMSFiles/FTP, where /usr/local/tomcat01 is the installed location of Oracle Retail Order Management System.
CWDIRECTCP_FTP_FOLDER_SEPARATOR this property is located in Working with Cloud Properties (CPRP)	Defines the separator used in FTP commands that specify a directory on the remote server. For example, the separator \\ is compatible in a Windows environment and the separator // is compatible in a Unix environment. If this setting is blank, the default used by the system is \\.

Creating Your Own FTP Applications

You can create a new FTP application to fit your needs.

• Extracting Information from the Oracle Retail Order Management System Database via FTP

• Importing Information to the Oracle Retail Order Management System Database via FTP

Extracting Information from the Oracle Retail Order Management System Database via FTP

Use the following steps to create an FTP application that extracts information from a table in the Oracle Retail Order Management System database to send to a remote system via FTP.

1.

Use the SQL Server Data Transformation Services (DTS) export wizard, or a similar tool, to extract information from a table in the Oracle Retail Order Management System database to a flat file in the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server. Note: In order for the FTP application that you create to work, you must first extract the information from the Oracle Retail Order Management System database and place it in a flat file in the FTP directory specified in the CWDIRECTCP_FTP_FOLDER property. This step is not part of the Oracle Retail Order Management System FTP process. Contact your Oracle Retail Order Management System representative if you would like assistance in extracting information from the Oracle Retail Order Management System database to a flat file.

2.

Once you have successfully created a flat file that contains the information that has been extracted from the Oracle Retail Order Management System database, create an FTP application to move the flat file from the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server to a specified directory on the remote server. • On the Create FTP Application Screen, create an FTP application code, making sure to define the IP address or name of the remote server and the user ID and password used to connect to the FTP site on the remote server. • On the Create FTP Command Screen, create the FTP command used to send the flat file from the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server to a specified directory on the remote server. Note: The flat file will remain in the remote directory until a program processes it or someone manually retrieves it.

Importing Information to the Oracle Retail Order Management System Database via FTP

Use the following steps to create an FTP application that retrieves a file from a remote system via FTP and imports the file to the Oracle Retail Order Management System database.

1.

Create an FTP application to retrieve a file from a specified directory on the remote server to the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server. • On the Create FTP Application Screen, create an FTP application code, making sure to define the IP address or name of the remote server and the user ID and password used to connect to the FTP site on the remote server. • On the Create FTP Command Screen, create the FTP command used to retrieve the file from the specified directory on the remote server to the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server.

2.

Use the SQL Server Data Transformation Services (DTS) import wizard, or a similar tool, to import information from a flat file in the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server to a specified table in the Oracle Retail Order Management System database. Contact your Oracle Retail Order Management System representative if you would like assistance in importing information from a flat file to a table in the Oracle Retail Order Management System database.

FTP Troubleshooting

If you are having trouble sending messages between Oracle Retail Order Management System and a remote server via FTP, you can use the following steps to troubleshoot where the transmission error occurred.

Errors in FTP Log?

Use the Display FTP Log Screen to check the FTP log to verify that an error did not occur during transmission. The system updates this log each time the FTP commands for an FTP application are processed. This log indicates:

• Whether a connection was successfully established with the remote server.

• Whether the file was moved successfully between the two specified locations.

• Whether the FTP transfer completed successfully.

Connection Not Established?

If the FTP log indicates that a connection with the remote server was not established successfully:

• Check the connection settings defined for the FTP application on the Change FTP Application screen; see Create FTP Application Screen for field descriptions.

- Verify that the IP address or server name to connect to the remote server is correct.

- Verify that the user name and password is a valid user account for the FTP site in Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager on the remote server.

• Check the FTP configuration settings in Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager on the remote server.

- Verify the FTP user account and password you defined for the FTP application is a valid user account for the FTP site.

- Verify the properties defined for the FTP site, such as the FTP site IP address and the home directory defined for the FTP site.

FTP File Transmission Unsuccessful?

If the FTP log indicates that the file was not transmitted successfully:

• Check the FTP commands defined for the FTP application on the Work with FTP Commands Screen. Verify:

- The FTP command is applicable for the type of transmission. For a transmission from the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server to the remote server, the FTP command should be PUT or APPEND. For a transmission from the remote server to the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server, the FTP command should be GET.

- Verify that the remote directory is correct. Verify that the name of each folder in the directory is correct. Check the spelling of each folder name. Note: The directory path specified for the FTP command is appended to the home directory path defined for the FTP site in Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.

- Verify that the name of the remote file and local file is correct. Check the spelling of each file name.

• Check the CWDIRECTCP_FTP_FOLDER property. This is the local directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server where flat files are staged to transmit between the Oracle Retail Order Management System server and another server via FTP.

• Check the CWDIRECTCP_FTP_FOLDER_SEPARATOR property. If you are in a Windows environment, the setting should be \\ or blank. If you are in a Unix environment, the setting should be //.

FTP Transmission Successful?

If the FTP log indicates that the file was transmitted successfully, but you do not see the expected results:

FTP Transmission from the Oracle Retail Order Management System Application Server to the Remote Server

Determine if the file exists in the specified directory on the remote server. If the file does exist, then you know that the FTP transmission was successful.

If the file does not exist, it could be that a process on the remote server is monitoring the directory for new files to process and has already processed the file.

FTP Transmission from the Remote Server to the Oracle Retail Order Management System Application Server

Check the Date modified field for the file in the local FTP directory on the Oracle Retail Order Management System application server to determine the last time the file was updated. If the date and time are correct, then you know that the FTP transmission was successful.

Verify that the contents of the file are correct and that the format of the file is correct. If the file contains invalid data, or if the format of the file is not correct (for example, data in the file may require leading zeros), then the system may not be able to import the data into the correct table in the Oracle Retail Order Management System database.

CDC Async Job Not Processing Records?

If the CDC async job is not processing records, stop and restart the CDC async job.

If the CDC async job does not end when you stop it: Occasionally, the CDC async job will not stop when you end it; it will remain in an ENDING status. If this happens, it may be because there are multiple IX_CDC jobs running in the same Oracle Retail Order Management System environment, for example, if the CDC async job was manually changed to INACTIVE and then started again, or if the CDC async ended hard because the server was restarted while the job was running.

To eliminate multiple IX_CDC jobs, use the following steps:

1. Manually change the status of the CDC async job to INACTIVE.

2. Verify that the IX_CDC job is not active on the Job Management (My Jobs) screen. Make sure to check across all users and job queues.

3. If you find an IX_CDC job that is in a RUN or MSG status, select End for the job to end it.

4. Use the Purge Active Procedures Across Users (MACX) menu option to check for active procedures. If any active procedures related to CDC async processing exist, delete them.

5. Start the CDC async. Once the CDC async updates to an ACTIVE status, stop and restart the CDC async again to verify that it is working correctly.

See Working with Drop Ship Background Jobs (WPBJ) for more information on working with the CDC async job.

Work with FTP Application Screen

How to display this screen: Enter WFTP in the Fast path field at the top of any menu or select Work with FTP Applications from a menu.

Field	Description
App Application	A code that identifies the FTP application. Enter a full or partial FTP application code and select OK to display FTP applications in alphanumeric order, starting with your entry. Alphanumeric, 3 positions; display-only.
Description	A description of the FTP application. Alphanumeric, 30 positions; display-only.
Internet address	The FTP Internet address, commonly known as an IP address. Alphameric, 17 positions; display-only.

.

Screen Option	Procedure
Create an FTP application	Select Create to advance to the Create FTP Application Screen.
Change an FTP application.	Select Change for an FTP application to advance to the Change FTP Application screen. At this screen, you can change the description, IP address, user ID and password of the FTP application. See Create FTP Application Screen for field descriptions.
Delete an FTP application.	Select Delete for an FTP application to delete it.
Display an FTP application.	Select Display for an FTP application to advance to the Display FTP Application screen. You cannot change any information on this screen. See Create FTP Application Screen for field descriptions.
Display the output log for an FTP application	Select Display output log for an FTP application to advance to the Display FTP Log Screen.
Define the FTP commands for an FTP application	Select W/W FTP commands for an FTP application to advance to the Work with FTP Commands Screen.
Process the FTP commands for an FTP application	Select Process FTP commands for an FTP application to advance to the Process FTP Commands Screen, where you can process the FTP commands associated with the application in Batch or Interactive mode.

Create FTP Application Screen

Purpose: Use this screen to create an FTP application.

How to display this screen: Select Create on the Work with FTP Application Screen.

Field	Description
FTP application code	A code that identifies the FTP application. Alphanumeric, 3 positions. Create screen: required. Change screen: display-only.
Description	A description of the FTP application. Alphanumeric, 30 positions; required.
Internet address	The IP address or server name for the FTP application. An IP address is an identifier for a computer or device on a TCP/IP network. Networks using the TCP/IP protocol route messages based on the IP address of the destination. The format of an IP address is written as four numbers separated by periods. Each number can be zero to 255. For example, 1.160.10.240 could be an IP address. How to identify the IP address on a server: Enter IPCONFIG at a command line to display the server’s IP address. Alphanumeric, 17 positions; required.
User ID	The user ID used to connect to the FTP site on the remote server. Alphanumeric, 25 positions; optional.
Password	The password for the user used to connect to the FTP site on the remote server. When you create an FTP application, the system encrypts the password; the encrypted password displays as asterisks (******) on the Change and Display FTP Application screens. Note: If the password does NOT display as asterisks (******) on the Change and Display FTP Application screens, it means that the password is not encrypted. You must run the FTPENCR Encrypt FTP periodic function to encrypt all passwords in WFTP. Alphanumeric, 25 positions; optional.

Work with FTP Commands Screen

Purpose: Use this screen to create, change, or delete an FTP command for a specified FTP application.

How to display this screen: Select W/W FTP Commands for an FTP application at the Work with FTP Application Screen.

Field	Description
FTP Code	The code and description for the FTP application for which you are reviewing FTP commands. FTP code: Alphanumeric, 3 positions; display-only. FTP description: Alphanumeric, 30 positions; display-only.
IP Address	The IP address or server name for the FTP application. An IP address is an identifier for a computer or device on a TCP/IP network. Networks using the TCP/IP protocol route messages based on the IP address of the destination. The format of an IP address is written as four numbers separated by periods. Each number can be zero to 255. For example, 192.168.255.255 could be an IP address. Alphanumeric, 17 positions; display-only.
Seq Sequence number	The sequence number assigned to the FTP command, indicating the order in which the system processes the FTP commands. Numeric, 3 positions; display-only.
Command	The FTP command to process. Valid values are: • APPEND = Appends a local file to a file on the remote machine, where Local file is the name of the file on the local machine that is copied and Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine where the copied data is appended to the end of the file. • DELETE = Deletes a file on the remote machine, where Remote file is the file to delete. • GET = Copies a remote file to the local machine, where Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine to copy and Local file is the name of the file on the local machine where the copied data is placed. • PUT = Copies a local file to the remote machine, where Local file is the name of the file that is copied and Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine where the copied data is placed. • RENAME = Renames the file. Alphanumeric, 10 positions; display-only.
Local File	The name of the file on the local machine. Alphanumeric, 25 positions; display-only.
Remote File	The name of the file on the remote machine. Alphanumeric, 25 positions; display-only.

Screen Option	Procedure
Create an FTP command	Select Create to advance to the Create FTP Command Screen.
Change an FTP command	Select Change for an FTP command to advance to the Change FTP Command screen. At this screen, you can change all fields except the FTP application code. See the Create FTP Command Screen for field descriptions.
Delete an FTP command	Select Delete for an FTP command to delete it.

Create FTP Command Screen

Purpose: Use this screen to create an FTP command for the specified FTP application.

How to display this screen: Select Create at the Work with FTP Commands Screen.

Field	Description
FTP Application code	The code for the FTP application for which you wish to create an FTP command. FTP code: Alphanumeric, 3 positions; display-only.
Sequence #	The sequence number assigned to the FTP command, indicating the order in which the system processes the FTP commands. Numeric, 3 positions; display-only.
FTP Command	The FTP command to process. Valid values are: • APPEND = Appends a local file to a file on the remote machine, where Local file is the name of the file on the local machine that is copied and Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine where the copied data is appended to the end of the file. • DELETE = Deletes a file on the remote machine, where Remote file is the file to delete. • GET = Copies a remote file to the local machine, where Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine to copy and Local file is the name of the file on the local machine where the copied data is placed. • PUT = Copies a local file to the remote machine, where Local file is the name of the file that is copied and Remote file is the name of the file on the remote machine where the copied data is placed. • RENAME = Renames the file. Alphanumeric, 10 positions; required.
Local file	The name of the file on the local machine. You must specify a local file for the following commands: • APPEND • GET • PUT Alphanumeric, 25 positions; required depending on the FTP command.
Remote file	The name of the file on the remote machine. You must specify a local file for the following commands: • APPEND • DELETE • GET • PUT Alphanumeric, 25 positions; required depending on the FTP command.
Remote directory	The directory on the remote machine where the file is located. Note: The directory path specified for the FTP command is appended to the home directory path defined for the FTP site in Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager on the remote server. Alphanumeric, 60 positions; required.

Process FTP Commands Screen

Purpose: Use this screen to process the FTP commands defined on the Work with FTP Commands Screen for an FTP application.

To process:

1. In the Batch/Interactive field, select how you wish to process the FTP commands.

2. Select OK. The system displays a Confirm checkbox.

3. Select the Confirm checkbox to continue and select OK.

4. A message similar to the following displays:

- If you process the FTP commands in batch mode: Job (FTP_TRANSM) has been submitted to batch.

- If you process the FTP commands in interactive mode: FTP commands completed (use F7 to display log).

5. Select Display Output Log to advance to the Display FTP Log Screen, where you can review the status of the FTP commands that were processed.

How to display this screen: Select Process FTP commands for an FTP application at the Work with FTP Application Screen.

Field	Description
FTP Application code	The code and description of the FTP application for which you wish to process FTP commands. FTP code: Alphanumeric, 3 positions; display-only. FTP description: Alphanumeric, 30 positions; display-only.
Internet address	The IP address or name of the remote server associated with the FTP commands you wish to process. Alphanumeric, 17 positions; display-only.
Batch/Interactive	Defines whether you wish to process the FTP commands in batch or interactive mode. • Batch = Process the FTP commands in batch mode. The system submits a job to the My Jobs screen. • Interactive = Process the FTP commands in interactive mode.

Screen Option	Procedure
Display the output log for the FTP commands that were processed	Select Display Output Log to advance to the Display FTP Log Screen.

Display FTP Log Screen

Purpose: Use this screen to review the FTP log generated when you process the FTP commands for an FTP application.

If an error exists in the log, see FTP Troubleshooting for information on how to correct the error.

How to display this screen:

• Select Display Output Log after running the FTP commands for an FTP application on the Process FTP Commands Screen.

• Select Display Output Log for an FTP application at the Work with FTP Application Screen.

Field	Description
FTP Code	The code and description of the FTP application whose log you are reviewing. FTP code: Alphanumeric, 3 positions; display-only. FTP description: Alphanumeric, 30 positions; display-only.
IP Address	The IP address or name of the remote server associated with the FTP commands. Alphanumeric, 17 positions; display-only.
Log	The log for the FTP commands processed for the specified FTP application. This log indicates if the FTP commands processed successfully or if an error occurred during processing. Alphanumeric, 80 positions per line; display-only.