Sudima Hotel Group digitizes with Infor for Expansion

New Zealand Sudima Hotel Group recently partnered with Infor to deploy the Infor Hospitality Management Solution (HMS) across its hotel chain to streamline its rapidly-growing hotel operations. With hotels in Auckland, Christchurch and Rotorua, and three new hotels across New Zealand set to open in the next fourteen months, Sudima Hotel Group needed a realiable cloud-based solution that scales easily, integrates seamlessly with existing booking platforms and provides on-going service support.  They have embedded Infor HMS which will support a complex ecosystem of software, data and support systems as the business continues its rapid expansion. Michael Chinnery, Group Financial Controller at Sudima Hotel Group, says of Infor, “Infor HMS is a proven property management system (PMS) and we are confident that our partnership with Infor enables our business to spend less time on paperwork, provide greater insights on customers, with the knowledge that we are able to easily scale these solutions as new locations are launched.”

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Setting Up LSF Java User Permissions for IPA

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When working with Infor Process Automation (IPA), code or programs can be executed remotely on the Lawson System Foundation Server through these four nodes:

  1. System Command Node
  2. File Access Node
  3. Resource Query Node
  4. Resource Update Node

These nodes work by making a connection (via RMI call) to a java.exe process running on the Lawson System Foundation Server. Therefore, it is vital that the process owner has the proper access to run these commands.

Follow the instructions below to configure your LSF system so these processes will be owned by a user that has the necessary access:

  1. Create two files (pfrmi.cfg and pfem.cfg) in %LAWDIR%/system directory. The next time the process flow is restarted, the java.exe process will refer to these files to specify which user will start the java.
  2. Both files should be identical and have just two lines each:
    line 1: LAWSONUID DOMAIN\accountname
    line 2: 

LAWSONUID DOMAIN should be replaced with your own domain and accountname should be replaced with your own account name. This is the user you are designating to run the java command. This user needs to have the proper access to run those commands. This domain/accountname combo needs to be a valid user defined in the LSF Environment Service Identity.

The second line needs to be a blank line. (Only if LSF system is running on Windows. No blank second line needed for UNIX)

line 1/line 2 are there to show you the line numbers. The actual words “line 1” and “line 2” should not be in the files.

How to Edit the Infor Initial Portal Log-in Screen

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There are several reasons why one would want to customize the initial Infor portal log-in screen:

Maybe you don’t like the color scheme or would like to replace the logo with your company’s logo. Maybe your users are forgetting their passwords and you would like to include a “Forgot your password?” link on the page. Maybe the log-in box area is too small for your liking.

Whatever the case, you can use HTML to edit this log-in page as needed. The HTML page will be in IBM/Websphere directory. You will be able to locate login.html in the …\sso.war\v4 directory.

Open up login.html in an IDE of your choice and create HTML changes accordingly.

Top Takeaways from “Process Automation – Performance Considerations and Best Practices” Infor Webinar

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This 1 hour, interactive briefing from Infor provides an overview of the best practices for performance tuning your IPA process flows, grid tuning considerations, and tips to leverage the most from your system.

The full webinar can be accessed through a link on this page: (https://technology-blog.infor.com/2015/12/13/recording-now-available-for-ipa-performance-considerations-and-best-practices-webinar/)

Here are some notable takeaways from the video:

  1. IPA Settings Tuning
    Basic tips for improving performance:

    • Ensure you are on the latest release of Landmark Environment.
    • Upgrading your system to a newer release of Java will often result in performance improvements.
    • Core Pool Size: pfi.dispatcher.CorePoolSize setting within Grid determines how many simultaneous workunits can process at a time. Rule of thumb is to start by setting this value to the number of CPU Cores in your Landmark Server. (8 core CPU = 8 max workunits) In order to fully optimize, you can start simultaneous flows equal to your server’s cores and check Task Manager’s Performance tab. For example, if only 50% of your CPU is being used with 8 simultaneous flows in progress, you can probably safetly increase the maximum workunits to 12 or even 16 for improved performance.
    • Max Heap: grid.jvm.maxHeapMB setting within Grid sets the max amount of server RAM a particular Grid Node can use for processing. When setting this value, be aware of how much total RAM is available to use on the server. All the Max Heap sizes for all Grid Nodes, Operating System Memory, and Memory Footprint of other programs needs to be less than the total RAM of the server. The Max Heap should be set as high as possible with these considerations in mind.
    • LmrkDeferred Node: When installing Landmark, some grid deployments create this LmrkDeferred grid gode which combines the functionality of Async and IPA into one node. You should not be running Process Automation with this grid node. Infor recommends that the Async node and IPA node be broken out into their own grid nodes.
    • Configure the system so that there is only one IPA Grid node per Data Area that processes workunits.
  2. Process Tuning
    Basic tips for improving processes/flows:

    • Most important factor is the number of nodes. Try to minimize the number of nodes in your flow as flows take approximately 5-20ms time between nodes and 2-5ms time per variable assignment. An important tip when trying to reduce nodes is to remember that values returned from a query or processing node will automatically be assigned an internal variable name that we can refer to. There is no need for an additional assignment.
    • When using a query to cycle through records and write to a file, using a MsgBuilder versus a FileAccess or Assign node is more efficient as it is keeping the records in memory to write all at once at a later time. FileAccess in between a query is the most inefficient as it requires opening and appending onto a file once for every record encountered.
    • Turning on logging will decrease flow performance so it should only be turned on when troubleshooting flow failure or performance issues. When a flow is failing, turn on Workunit and Activity Logging and turn this off when done troubleshooting. For performance issues, run the flow with Workunit only logging turned on.
    • When creating a large csv file, consider using SysCommand node instead of writing to a file by looping through records.

For more details and the most recently updated KB articles, refer/subscribe to:
KB 1671693 – IPA Support Best Practices

Infor Positioned as a Leader in the 2019 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Warehouse Management Systems

Gartner Inc. has positioned Infor in the Leaders quadrant of the 2019 Magic Quadrant for Warehouse Management Systems. The tech giant is being recognized for completeness of vision and ability to execute. Rod Johnson, EVP & GM, Manufacturing and Supply Chain, Infor, said, “We believe that Infor’s position as a Leader in this Gartner Magic Quadrant reaffirms our belief that a single, unified, global warehousing solution built to take advantage of business value of the cloud, provides a strong foundation for sustainable growth in the age of customer-driven supply chains.” The newest member of the Infor Cloudsuite products, Infor Cloudsuite WMS, us the evolution of Infor SCE (Supply Chain Execution), which combines Infor’s enhanced capabilities in warehouse management with the computing power of the cloud. Infor CloudSuite WMS also brings the agile, flexible and proven performance Infor cloud customers have come to expect. Visual warehousing, labor management, and open API framework come standard with CloudSuite WMS. This helps reduce the need to add additional features or customization and paves the way for advanced warehousing capabilities.

 

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Favorite Filters for Admin Users in ServiceNow

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When first logging into ServiceNow as an admin, it can be a bit overwhelming.

To narrow this down, you can “favorite” a few key filters to focus in on what’s important.

 

Simply go to the All Applications Tab and STAR a filter that works best for you as shown below:

My favorite filters are My Groups Work – Active and Closed, which show all tickets assigned to my group that are either Active and or Closed:

When you have your filters selected, go to your favorites tab and click a filter to see what results it narrows down:

This is one of the most useful features ServiceNow offers. Enjoy!

How technology has transformed workplace communication

Thanks to technology, the way we communicate with others on a daily basis in both the personal and professional level has dramatically evolved. With the advancements in the workplace, office work, business transactions, meetings, and data/information transfers are being done faster than ever. First, computers transformed the way we worked. Then, the internet enabled real-time collaboration between workers in every corner of the world. Today, smartphones help us work from anywhere, at any time, in what has become known as the always-on economy. Let’s take a look at how communication in the workplace has evolved, thanks to technology.

  • It all started with a memo – In the business world, letters were formal, descriptive messages usually meant for clients and customers. Memos, short for memorandums, were the informal, yet professional enough, means of communication among colleagues, superiors, and other personnel within an organization. As useful as these hand written and somewhat confidential messages were to the workplace, they were “slow” in means of communication for a busy workplace.
  • Then came the e(lectronic) mail – With the help of the internet, email become the primary means of workplace communication. Not only was it a money and time saver, emails were also capable of sending mass messages to groups or people. Even with new advancements such as phones or messaging (which will be further discussed in the next bullet), email is still a very strong asset in business communication. Email, however, can be a bit slow if a person does not constantly check their inbox. Thanks to technology, there came another solution.
  • Instant messaging reigns as king – Since most people carry smartphones, businesses have tapped into their pocket sized computers and created the world of instant messaging as the primary and fastest means of communication. Workplace collaboration tools enable efficient business communication and foster learning-friendly cultures. Messaging, video and conference apps all fall under this instant messaging phenomena and have advanced business communication for the better.

Workplace communication has come a long way, all thanks to technology. There’s a right type of communication for everyone, and using multiple means of communication would be even more efficient. It’s exciting to wonder what next great tool will come along for workplace – and personal – communication.

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Resolving “Cannot run this program while GL 190 is running” error when trying to release journal entries in GL40.1

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You may run into this error at some point in GL40.1:

Fortunately, there’s an easy fix to this. First login to Lawson portal and search GLMONITOR:

In GLMONITOR, type “GL190” and select Inquire. If you get results and notice the run time, the process is in fact still running and causing the issue with GL40:

Go to job scheduler by opening LID and typing in jobschd >> F7 + A to select all users >> Then W to go to waiting screen.

Look for any GL190 jobs running and verify the User Name is the same one in GLMONITOR when inquiring on GL190 program. Check the error and if its safe to recover, recover it and let the job complete.

Go back to GLMonitor and inquire on GL190 to verify the job is no longer running:

Go to GL40.1 and release your Journal Entries. This should solve the error. Good luck!

IFS Security Role Mass Assignment

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To mass assign security roles to users in IFS, first go to Manage > Master Data. Select “Security Role” and click “Details”. Choose the Security Role for which you want to assign multiple users. On the right side of the screen, click the “Add” button. A list of all users will be displayed. Select the users who should be in that role and click Apply and/or Ok. Click Save at the top.

Upload Users to IFS

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After your AD FS configuration, you will need to load users into IFS from LDAP. There is an option to search for each user and add them manually, but if you have a large group of Lawson users this can be time consuming. IFS also offers a mass upload using a CSV file. The CSV file needs to have a header, and the only value required is the samAccountName.

Create your CSV file, then go into Manage > Users in IFS. Click “Upload” and browse to your CSV file. Click Open and the users will be added into IFS.