Understanding Processing Modes

PeopleSoft applications can run in two different processing modes: interactive and deferred.

Interactive Mode

In interactive mode (formerly called standard), when the user exits a field that has a field-level event (for example, FieldChange, FieldEdit, or RowInit PeopleCode; prompt validation; related display; and so on):

A transmission to the application server occurs immediately so that it runs the field-level event.
The system refreshes the information.

Deferred Mode

In deferred mode, the application enables you to temporarily delay many of the conditions that need server processing until you encounter an event or condition that requires immediate processing or until you request processing manually. For example, when a user exits a field that has a field-level event (like FieldChange or FieldEdit PeopleCode, prompt validation, related display, and so on), that event is not processed until the next transmission to the application server. When the next transmission to the server occurs, PeopleTools determines which fields have changed since the last transmission. Then, logic on the application server runs the appropriate system edits and PeopleCode events (in field layout order).

Deferred processing is the default mode at the field, page, and component levels. However, you can select interactive processing at the field, page, and component levels. Setting a page field to interactive affects that field only. Setting a page to interactive affects all page fields on that page, regardless of whether they are set to deferred. Similarly, setting a component to interactive affects all pages and all page fields within the component, regardless of their individual settings.

Transactions that are designed using deferred mode reduce traffic to the application server but do not operate interactively.