Understanding ChartField Combination Editing

The following are general recommendations concerning efficiencies and ChartFields, rules, and trees.

PeopleSoft uses several types of tables to support combination editing. The following compares their advantages and disadvantages:

The following provides additional details about the tables and their advantages.

In general, master selector tables when compared with the other tables:

• Require less time to build and maintain.

• Take up less space in the database.

• Can be built for date ranges or periods that encompass any number of effective dated PeopleSoft trees.

If you use detail values in the trees, you must rebuild the selector tables each time that you make changes to the detail values that are in the trees. However, the build for the master selector tables is much faster than that for the COMBO_DATA_TBL.

In PeopleSoft General Ledger feeder systems you can build a permanent set of static master selector tables that support both batch and subsystem online editing.

You have the option to use static master selector tables or dynamic selector tables in batch edits for General Ledger. If you do not run Combo Build by using the master selector table build option, the combination editing program then builds the dynamic selector tables during the batch edit process.

The system must explode the ranges of ChartField values defined in the tree nodes when you use static selector tables and store the values in additional temporary tables. The explosion process to populate the temporary tables is repeated each time a new transaction is edited. In addition, these temporary tables are not maintained by the system beyond the current edit; however, you can elect to retain the generated combinations for the detail values in a permanent table named PS_COMB_EXPLODED for use in subsequent combination edits. When using the PS_COMB_EXPLODED table, the build process might take longer but batch combination editing performance can be greatly improved because repeated exploding of values and creation of temporary tables is avoided.

You can also configure and maintain a user defined combination data table. Because this method gives you complete control over the population of the data table, you might be able to reduce the size of the table over other table types and increase efficiency.

However, over time user-defined tables usually require more attention to analysis and maintenance in a changing ChartField environment than either the COMBO_DATA_TBL or the master selector tables. PeopleSoft provides you with functionality to maintain the COMBO_DATA_TBL and master selector tables, however, you have complete responsibility for detecting or noting changes to the applicable ChartFields or values and cleaning out the old and adding new combinations for the user-defined tables.

You can combine these table approaches with different combination edit groups to increase efficiency. When ChartField combination definitions and rules do not change often, they are candidates for a user-defined data table, because you can afford to trade flexibility for the prospect of additional speed in processing. For situations when you expect periodic changes in combination definitions and rules, using master selector tables may improve both speed and flexibility. Exploding the COMBO_DATA_TBL is desirable when the volume of the table does not burden the system or unduly increase processing time and you only occasionally need to update the table for ChartField combination changes.

Both batch combination editing and online PeopleCode editing support your choice of combo editing option. Although you run a process to populate both types of tables, the advantage of using the master selector tables is that the process to rebuild them is much faster than the COMBO_DATA_TBL explosion. Also, if you use tree ranges, you do not need to build the dynamic selector tables when you add ChartField values or delete them from the chart of accounts as you do with the COMBO_DATA_TBL.

Both batch and online PeopleCode editing support multiple combination groups that are attached to a business unit, each using a different choice for the combo editing option.

PeopleSoft applications can use ChartField combination editing online or in background (batch) processing, as shown for various applications in the following table.

* Combination edits for online journal entries that are in General Ledger are performed when the journal is edited. Journal edit can be performed immediately after saving an online journal entry. The difference between General Ledger and the other applications is that General Ledger uses the background editing program while the other applications use the online routines to perform online editing.

** Because PeopleSoft Enterprise Learning Management (PeopleSoft ELM) and PeopleSoft Human Capital Management (HCM) run in a different database from that of Financials, you use the delivered web service to perform combination editing. You can use the combo edit request service that calls combo edit online validation logic and returns the results to ELM before ELM sends entries to General Ledger for posting.

*** While Commitment Control is not an application, it is a major optional functionality that is used by several of the PeopleSoft applications. You can use combination editing in commitment control for budget journal editing. Combination editing of budget journals is discussed in the commitment control documentation.

For specific information on how ChartField combination editing is used and how errors are researched and corrected within those applications previously listed, as well as other PeopleSoft applications, see the application-specific product documentations.

In order to increase process efficiency, PeopleSoft Financials provides the ability to perform combination editing for a process group by transaction source. Transaction sources include Asset Management transactions, Payables accounting lines, Receivables items, General Ledger journals, and so on. You can associate a Transaction Source with a process group so that during combination edit processing, only the data for the designated transaction source is processed for that group of rules rather than processing all data for all sources.

See Defining Combination Editing by Transaction Source.

Typically, you click either an edit or a save button to initiate PeopleCode that starts an online edit for transactions that you enter in a particular application. For example, when you save Accounts Payable vouchers, many edits and processes occur automatically, including online combination editing if you implement this option.

Various underlying tables that are available to the Combination Editing process do support online editing. These underlying table options are described in a separate topic in this topic

After you decide on the table type and build the underlying table, the system can use the table to validate accounting and voucher lines against combinations in the table while online if the application supports online combination editing. This enables PeopleSoft General Ledger feeder systems, such as PeopleSoft Accounts Payable, to capture and correct errors as a standalone application before running the journal generator and performing journal edits. By performing the combination edit in the feeder system, you can correct errors promptly at the source before you post journals to the general ledger.

The online edit process edits one transaction line at a time. Each line is edited against all the process groups that are attached to the business units. The online edit process cannot dynamically build the tables, so you must build the COMBO_DATA_TBL, the master selector tables, the PS_COMB_EXPLODED table, or the user-defined table prior to using online edits in the feeder system applications.

The online combination editing process in the feeder systems does the following:

• If the combination exists in the table, it marks the line as valid or invalid depending on the Combination Group Defines option that you select.

• It analyzes transaction lines that are not found on the table to determine if the anchor ChartField has a value for which you have defined a combination rule.

  • If the anchor ChartField value has a combination rule that is defined for it and if the entire combination is not found, the combination fails.

  • On the ChartField Combination Group page, you can select a value for the Anchor Values Not in Rules field. This option determines if the system marks valid or invalid those journal lines having an anchor ChartField value that has no combination rule that is defined for it.

Feeder systems have three ways to initiate online logic:

• Use the edit_combo function in FUNCLIB_FS.EDIT_COMBINATION FieldFormula record PeopleCode.

• Use the ComboEdit application class in the FS_COMBO_EDIT application package.

• Use the combination edit service operation to perform edits on data originating from other than the financial database. The Web service calls ComboEdit to perform combination editing and returns the results to the requesting application whether PeopleSoft or third party application.

Every page component that uses the edit_combo function must include the COMBO_EDIT_WRK page. When you select the Save button, the system first populates the work page with information from combination editing groups and rules. Combination editing online uses the information that is on the work page to process the transaction lines. The system refreshes the work page when the business unit changes.

Components that use the ComboEdit application class do not need the COMBO_EDIT_WRK page. The ComboEdit application class should be instantiated at the component level so that the combination editing groups and rules that are stored in the class object can be reused for all transactions that are going to the same business unit. PeopleSoft recommends that feeder systems use the ComboEdit application package instead of the edit_combo function.

To make combination editing background processing generic to all PeopleSoft applications, combination editing uses a ChartField Combination Editing template, which is discussed in a separate topic in this topic. The template defines the table structure of the various application transaction records. The combination editing process uses this structural information to perform its edit.

Record templates have a unique name that is applicable to a particular PeopleSoft application. You supply that name for your application to enable background combination editing.

Select the name of the combination edit template on the ChartField Combination Template page, in the Template field. The template is used only for background, or batch, editing.

Various underlying tables are available to combination editing that support batch editing. These underlying table options are also described in a separate topic in this topic.

The system performs batch, or background, combination editing at the time of journal editing or during accounting line and voucher line edits in the various PeopleSoft General Ledger feeder systems. In any case, editing occurs before posting journals to the general ledger.

Combination editing also validates whether a combination group is associated with a business unit and ledger group during a batch combination edit process.

When using master selector tables and trees to specify ChartField combination values, the build process for static master selector tables stores only the range of values described by the tree nodes. The build process does not store the detail values encompassed by the nodes. It is when transactions are edited during combination editing batch processing that the range of values for each ChartField is exploded and stored in temporary tables for each editing request. Because the process deletes the temporary tables when the edits are complete, the temporary tables must be rebuilt for each separate edit request.

However, if you select the Retain Detail Values option for master selector tables on the ChartField Combination Editing Group page, combinations for the detail values are retained in a permanent table, PS_COMB_EXPLODED, after the values are generated during the build process. This precluding the repeated generation of combination detail values that were previously generated.

The Retain Detail Values option is of particularly value if the tree nodes encompass large numbers of ChartField values. When you use this option, the build process might take longer but batch combination editing performance is greatly improved because repeated exploding of values is eliminated.

However, if a new value is added within a ChartField range that is setup for a tree node, it does not cause the new value to be automatically included in the permanent ChartField value combination table even if the Increment option is selected on the ChartField Combination Editing Group setup page. Addition of a new value to a range does not in itself cause a rebuild of the detail values for the master selector table because the tree version is not changed.

If you add a new ChartField value within a range of values in a tree node and if you have selected the Retain Detail Values option and have already built the combination data, you must run the combination build process again to include the newly added values in the PS_COMB_EXPLODED table.

Using a PeopleSoft synchronous web service, COMBO_CF_EDIT_REQUEST, systems and products that run outside of the financials core database can validate ChartField combinations. The service exposes ChartField combination editing as a black box service to the other systems. This is provided to third party and PeopleSoft products running outside of the financials database, such as PeopleSoft Enterprise Learning Management (PeopleSoft ELM).

The following is the processing logic using PeopleSoft Enterprise Learning Management (ELM) as an example:

• ELM initiates ChartField Combination Editing from its transactions by sending a synchronous request COMBO_CF_EDIT_REQUEST service to the financials database for General Ledger and waits for the reply.

• General Ledger listens to the service and calls the Combo Edit application class to validate the transactions that it receives.

• General Ledger returns the results in a synchronous reply to the ELM process that is waiting for the reply.

• ELM then proceeds with its transaction according to the Combination Editing result.

See PeopleSoft Enterprise Learning Management: Managing Person and Organization Data, Setting Up Financial ChartField Data

See General Ledger Integrations.

Commitment Control is an optional functionality providing commitment accounting and budget control and is available to many PeopleSoft applications. If you are using commitment control you can also use combination editing for budget and budget adjustment journal entries.

Combination editing for commitment control is fully discussed in the commitment control documentation.

See Combination Editing for Budget and Budget Adjustment Journals.

See Using Combination Editing with Budget, Transfer, and Adjustment Journals.

As an alternative to the COMBO_DATA_TBL, you can build static or dynamic master selector tables. Make the decision about the combination build option based on the nature of the combination rules. Consider both the number of rules and expected changes in the relationships of the underlying values.

You build a static set of master selector tables to support online and batch PeopleCode editing that is done in general ledger feeder systems when it is not practical to build the COMBO_DATA_TBL. This is usually due to the number of combinations that are generated or due to the time it takes to clear and rebuild the COMBO_DATA_TBL when you make changes in the combination values.

Static master selector tables are not maintained dynamically by the online PeopleCode or the batch editing process and must be rebuilt each time that you change a tree or a combination rule. However, they still have an advantage over the COMBO_DATA_TBL, which must be built every time you add a ChartField value to the system. You do not need to rebuild the master selector tables when you add a ChartField value if it falls within a range of values that are defined in a tree that is used by the combination rules.

When you use trees to define the combination rule, the system stores the ranges of values in the tree that you specify for the master selector tables when you build the tables. You only need to rebuild the tables when certain data on which they are based changes. For example, rebuild the tables when you change the combination rule to reference a different node of a tree, or if you change a tree originally having a range of accounts from 100001-100099 to a new range of 100004-100099 in a particular node.

You can build master selector tables for a range of time spanning a period as long as you want. The transactions during the specified date range are correctly edited. The tables contain data from the PeopleSoft trees you referenced in your combination rules. If you do not have many effective dated versions of trees, you can build the Master Selector Tables for a very large date range, for example January 1, 1900 to January 1, 2999.

However, if you change the trees often and create new effective dated versions of trees when you make changes to the trees, you can build the master selector tables more often, and have the tables span shorter periods of time. The amount of data that is in the master selector tables grows according to the number of effective dated trees in the time period that you specify. It is best practice to build master selector tables only for the time period for which journals or transactions are most actively being edited. For example, build them for one or two accounting periods or for one fiscal year at a time.

Batch editing, such as for journal edits, use the master selector tables if they are built for a time period that includes the date of the journals or vouchers being edited. If they are not built, batch edit builds the tables dynamically. You may want to build the master selector tables even if you are only using batch editing to improve the performance of the edits.

The ChartField Combination Editing Template page defines the structure for each transaction record for each PeopleSoft application that uses the background, or batch, ChartField Combination Editing process. The ChartField Combination Editing Template is not used in online processing.

PeopleSoft delivers specific templates that are needed to run background combination editing . For example, the JOURNALS ChartField Combination Editing Template is used in the PeopleSoft Journal Edit process in general ledger, and the VCHREDIT template is used in the voucher edit process that is in PeopleSoft Accounts Payable.

The following is a list of delivered templates:

Combination editing groups define a set of combination rules. You can use the Combination Group page to associate multiple combination rules with a combination group definition. The system then applies the rules as a group during the journal edit process.

For example, if you create a combination definition in which you specify ACCOUNT as the anchor ChartField and DEPTID and PRODUCT as the nonanchor ChartFields for the rules, all the rules that are in a common group must use this combination definition. If you create a combination definition for PROJECT_ID and AFFILIATE, you must create another group for the rules with this combination definition.

See Defining Combination Editing by Transaction Source.

Before examining the various representative examples that are presented, keep in mind the following:

• Combination definitions define the ChartFields that are involved in the combination editing.

• Combination rules define the valid ChartField values for the combination definitions.

• Combination groups require that all combination rules that are within a group have the same combination definition.

  Also, when the same anchor ChartFields are specified in different combination rules that are within a combination group, careful consideration is required to avoid problems.

• Combinations that are found to match the rules and definitions can be marked valid or invalid at your option.

• Combinations that do not match the rules and definitions are invalid and they cannot be marked as valid.

The following examples illustrate some logic and functional considerations when you define the combination groups and apply the various parameters.