2.1.1 Application assessment

(1) Selecting applications for automation

Decide which applications to automate. Using JP1/AJS3, you can automate not only routine applications that run on a set daily or monthly cycle, but also applications in which the processing changes dynamically depending on the results of the preceding process. JP1/AJS3 also supports automation of irregular or ad hoc applications executed when some event occurs.

Examples

• Create and print account forms automatically on the 5th, 10th, 15th, 20th, and 25th of every month. If the date falls on a non-working day, hold the processing over until the following day.

• Calculate daily sales at each branch office at the end of the day, and count up the sales total for all the branch offices at head office at night. Update the database when the computations are completed. Do not update the database if the computations fail.

• During the day, automatically update the database and print an order form only when the operator enters an order and price. At night, register the data entered during the day into separate databases created for each of the items on the order forms.

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(2) Determining the processes involved in the application

Work out the processes needed to run a selected application automatically. Consider the program in which each process runs and their execution sequence. Also consider the access permissions needed at the processing side: Determine which users are allowed access, and whether they can execute, or also define and edit, each process.

Example

Preparation of a daily report: At 6 p.m. every day, calculate sales data from the total number of orders and purchases that day, and collate the results in a daily report.

Required processes

• Process to calculate the total number of orders received (program: juchu.exe)

  Calculate total orders and output the result to a file.

• Process to calculate the total number of purchases (program: shiire.exe)

  Calculate total purchases and output the result to a file.

• Process to create a daily report (program: nippou.exe)

  Calculate sales data from the total orders and total purchases, and collate in a daily report.

Process execution sequence

It does not matter whether the orders calculation or the purchases calculation is performed first. Therefore, run the two processes in parallel. To prepare the daily report, the sales data has to be computed from the results of the first two calculations. Therefore, run the report creation process after both the orders calculation process and purchases calculation process have completed.

Process permissions

Permit only the system administrator and the manager and operators in the Sales Department to access the automated application. The Sales Department manager can define and edit processes; operators are permitted only to run processes.

Other requirements and considerations

• End judgments

  Consider the threshold for determining the end status of each process. For example, normal terminations return a return value is 0, warning terminations return return values 1 to 4, and abnormal terminations return return value 5 or above.

• Error recovery

  Consider what processing to execute in the event of an error.

• Delay monitoring

  Monitor for any delays in starting or ending a process that would cause difficulties.

• Process timeout and termination

  Consider the sorts of situations in which a process should be forcibly terminated, and what action to take after termination.

• Job rerun

  Consider the sorts of situations in which to rerun the job (following an error or other problem, for example). Also consider which process the rerun should be started from.

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(3) Setting an operations calendar

Define a calendar for JP1/AJS3 operations. Like an ordinary calendar that shows weekdays, Sundays, and public holidays, in JP1/AJS3 you can set enterprise-specific or application-specific working days (open days) and non-working days (closed days). You can also specify various information appropriate to the processing being carried out. For example, you can specify a month by start and end dates, and you can set the time at which the working day begins. You must therefore consider how the processes in the application are to be carried out against these operational requirements.

Examples

Open days and closed days

• No work is carried out on Saturdays, Sundays, or public holidays. Set these as closed days.

• Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays are closed days at the company, but you want to execute a particular process on a Saturday. So, make Saturday an open day.

• Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays are closed days as a general rule, but the second Saturday is each month should be an open day.

Monthly start day and daily start time

• Accounts are settled on the 25th of each month. Therefore, set the 26th as the first day of the month. For example, regard the period from August 26 to September 25 as the month of July.

• A process will actually start at 6:00 a.m. the next day. But you want the system to handle that process as completed on the current day. So, consider a day as running from 7:00 a.m. until 6:59 a.m. the following day.

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(4) Determining the execution time and execution cycle

Consider the date and time at which the application is to start, and the cycle at which it is to be repeated. For an ad hoc process without a set start time, consider the criteria governing when the process is to start.

Examples

Execution time and execution cycle

• Start execution on a specific day of the year (August 10, 2009).

• Start the process at 9:00 a.m. every day.

• Start the process at 5:00 p.m. every Friday.

• Start the process at 8:00 a.m. on the second Monday of every month.

• If the date of execution falls on a closed day, execute the process on the following day instead.

Start conditions

• Execute the process whenever a data file is updated.

• Execute the process 10 minutes after the preceding process has completed.

• Start monitoring the file at 17:00 every Friday and execute the process whenever the file is updated.

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(5) Selecting JP1/AJS3 users and their access permissions

Select the users who are able to use JP1/AJS3 (JP1 users). Consider the operating privileges (access permissions) to be granted to each user for the application in question.

To set access permissions, select them from the permissions already set up in JP1/AJS3. The following access permissions are used:

• Administrator permission, and permission to define, execute, and edit a jobnet

• Permission to define, execute, and edit a jobnet

• Permission to define and edit a jobnet

• Permission to execute and reference a jobnet

• Permission to reference a jobnet

Examples

• The work flow controller in the Accounting Department is allowed to define and modify departmental jobs, but not to execute them. The controller has no authority to operate on jobs related to the Personnel Department.

• Operators in the Accounting Department are allowed to execute departmental jobs, but not to define or modify them. Operators are permitted only to reference jobs related to the Personnel Department.

• The work flow controller in the Personnel Department is allowed to define and modify departmental jobs, but not to execute them. The controller has no authority to operate on jobs related to the Accounting Department.

• Operators in the Personnel Department are allowed to execute departmental jobs, but not to define or modify them. Operators are permitted only to reference jobs related to the Accounting Department.

• Employees in the Sales Department are permitted only to reference departmental jobs.

• The system administrator has all permissions for all jobs regardless of which department they belong to.

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