PLIF’s Driving You to Drink?:Tips and Tricks for Success in Getting

Patron Info into Aleph

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Andrew Perry and Dave RitchieLiSUG 2008 – “Brewing Up Solutions”SUNY Institute of Technology at Utica

Oct 10, 2008

What's the PLIFing Problem?• ANY duplicate ID causes the person's

record not to load (across all types)– ID sections with ID’s of all 0’s or blanks

won't work–Loading records with NO “01 ID” causes

Aleph to create one – a sequential number – which if left without updating to a real “01 ID” might eventually conflict with another type of sequential number (some Aleph dummy 01's conflicted with incoming real Banner PIDM “16 ID”'s)

What's the PLIFing Problem? continued

• Match ID in PLIF does not exist in Aleph patron data file–QUIZ: What's the result if you load a

garden-variety PLIF record when the match ID doesn't exist in the Aleph patron file? • (a) New Record? (b) No Load?

–ANS: new record if no other problems with the incoming record (e.g., conflict with existing ID already in patron file)

What's the PLIFing Problem? continued

• Poor quality control from data source? • Expiry date(s) missing?

–QUIZ: How many expiry dates are required in v18?• (a) None (b) One (c ) Two (d)

Three–ANS: one for each Address (z304) record

+ one for the Borrower (z305) record• Lack of testing?• Tab31, tab_bor_id.eng - tables not up to

date?

PLIF Process • 1- Create/receive PLIF from data source• 2- Transfer PLIF to DEV server• 3- Review data• 4- If problems: Manipulate data, or make

new PLIF and go back to a previous step• 5- Test & Load via p_file_20 Circ Service• 6- Interpret load report and log (errors?)• 7- If errors: Manipulate data or make new

PLIF, and go back to a previous step• Finished? Now do it on PROD!

Transfer PLIF to server

• Sandbox Upload function – is PLIF file size an issue??

• If so, use Secure FTP to xxx_Dropbox/plifs/ directory – refer to Footprints # 5745

• If use Dropbox, must copy to DEV (and PROD), or OLIS can develop a copy script to look for a PLIF on regular basis

Reviewing Data• Is the data formatted correctly?

– QUIZ: How many places are there to verify the format of a PLIF in Sandbox? • (a) One (b) Two (c ) Three

– ANS: two (listed in the 2 bullets just below:)

• Use Util-F-2-5-1 on PLIF in Sandbox OR

• Open filename.plif in Sandbox OR

• Download & open file in a good editor (EditPlus, UltraEdit, etc.) on your desktop

Sidebar: PLIF Structure

• Match ID } a.k.a.• User Record } z303 section

– Ends with numbers of: ID recs, Address recs, Borrower recs (e.g., 040201)

• ID Record(s) } z308's• Address Record(s)} z304's

– Each includes Start date and Expiry Date

• Borrower Record } z305 section– Includes Sublibrary (xxx50) & Expiry Date

Sidebar: PLIF Structure, User Rec

Sidebar: PLIF Structure, ID Recs

Sidebar: PLIF Structure, Address Recs

Sidebar: PLIF Structure, Bor Rec

Reviewing Data – More Issues

• Is match ID logic correct?– If SSN being used to match, is correct SSN

format used (hyphens or not)?• Do any ID sections contain blank or other

duplicate default characters?– Clashing ID numbers

• Have address dates been included? Valid date?

• Are tab31 and tab_bor_id.eng correct?

Reviewing Data – Even More Issues

• Is there a valid borrower expiration date? [REQUIRED in PLIF]

• Are ‘X’, ‘D’, and ‘U’ used as action codes?

• USER-REC-NO-ID, ADDRESS, BOR (counters can be wrong)

• Is the PLIF for v.18.02 ? (less of a problem now)

Load Patron Records (p_file_20) Circ Service

• Input PLIF filename• Input filename for Report• Testing?: run in “Update=No” mode to

get Report• Load should be iterative process — run

without update, identify and correct errors, run again, ...

• Automating PLIF loads?: Can be run from job_list (get parameters from Log)

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT

• Where is it? --> Circ Client Task Manager!

• REPORT shows each record processed.– Indicates when a record has “successed”

to load– Note that the part of the record “Unable” to

load is NOT the problem part – Scan for words like “Can not” or “Cannot”

–> that indicates the problem field in the record

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT – Task Mgr example, no

problem visible yet

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT – Task Mgr example,

z304 problem causes whole record not to load – but what’s the problem?

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT , continued

– QUIZ: What’s the biggest DISadvantage to viewing the Report in the Task Manager or in xxx50/print/ directory in Sandbox?• (a) Takes a long time to load (often large file) • (b) Cannot easily search for errors

• How else can I get at it, and read it?– Task Mgr: Right-click on table, “Export to …

Excel”, & use “Find” to search– Sandbox: Download into editor, use “Find” to

search

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT – downloaded file to Editor (z308 ID ERROR example)

<section-02><line-number>004247</line-number><table-name>z308</table-name><action>REWRITE</action><match-id>1818607249</match-id><patron-id>ID55668</patron-id><msg-code>5003</msg-code><msg-desc>Unable to process record due to problems in other records.</msg-desc></section-02><section-02><line-number>004247</line-number><table-name>z308</table-name><action>REWRITE</action><match-id>1818607249</match-id><patron-id>ID55668</patron-id><msg-code>5037</msg-code><msg-desc>Cannot update/delete record. Login record belongs to other patron</msg-desc></section-02>

Interpreting p_file_20 REPORT, continued

• ID problem?: COUNT the ID's in the Report for that individual until you come to the problem one (“Can not...”)– e.g., you load 4 ID's – an 01 (“barcode”), a 16

(Banner PIDM), an 07 (local ID), & an 05 (SUNYCard number) in that order – and in the Report for this individual all the z308 sections say “Unable...” except for the THIRD one = the 07 ID is the problem

• Failures can be deceptive—errors may point to one record (e.g., ID) but the problem may be another one– Wrong spacing results in problems in LATER fields

• Often resolving errors involves contact with data source (e.g., registrar, student systems support, PLIF creator)

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG• Where is it? -->

alephe/scratch/xxx50_p_file_20.nnnnn !–QUIZ: What are the advantages of the

LOG file?• (a) Often can quickly review in Sandbox• (b) Smaller size than REPORT – downloads

easily (1 MB vs. 15 MB)• (c) Gives “actual” error message• (d) All of the above

– ANS: (d)

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z304 problem part of PLIF – as viewed in Sandbox

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z304 problem part of PLIF – as viewed in editor

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG

• Useful sections:–1st: gives p_file_20 program call with

parameters did you load it the way you thought?

–2nd: shows loading of tables needed to run PLIF table as possible source of error?

–3rd: Record listing benchmark recs & ERROR recs

• Scan for “Error” (download to desktop, open in editor)

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z305 has 3 problems

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z305 borrower expiration date missing

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z305 after adding borrower expiration date, now 2 problems

Tab 31 – what does it do?

• Table includes Patron statuses and default permissions / privileges of each, including default borrower expiration date

• See these in Circ client Local Information part of patron record, in tabs at bottom

• Tab31 Problem: if first line has ALEPH ## or XXX50 ##, remove that first line! – Karen Gardner-Athey

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z305 comparing PLIF bor-rec-sublibrary w/tab 31 sublibrary

Interpreting p_file_20 LOG, z305 replacing PLIF bor-rec-sublibrary w/tab 31 sublibrary

Tab_bor_id – manages patron ID types

• Problem: make sure that all the verifications are “N” (= verification optional) EXCEPT for the patron login ID type (usually the “barcode” 01 ID type) which you want to be “Y” (= mandatory) –Karen Gardner-Athey

Manipulating Data - examples

• Date(s) – including or replacing• Sublibrary replacement: BOR-REC-SUB-LIBRARY

– QUIZ: Where is the above sublibrary parameter?• (a) Borrower section (b) z305 (c ) Both (d) None

– ANS: (c) since Borrower section = z305

• Creating test PLIF or isolating problem records• Footprints request: example – for clashing

sequential numbers Aleph-assigned-01 and 16 ID’s, request OLIS to add a CAMPUS PREFIX with the utility (Util-G-2) which governs Aleph assignment of dummy 01’s for records added without an 01, [AND assign that prefix to existing Aleph-assigned-01’s]

Manipulating Data - steps• 1- What's the problem? And what do we know about

it? And can it be solved by either REPLACING or INSERTING data?– Does the problem affect a certain class of records

(i.e., only those with 1 address record/section)?– Where in the PLIF record is the problem located?

• 2- [Download PLIF to desktop] & Load into editor• 3- Use Find to scan for first instance; continue

through several patron records • 4- Use Find & Replace [exact same data!] to scan for

potential number of problems– Example: Find A01% ; Replace A01%

• 5- Use Find/Replace [different data] CAREFULLY!!!

HELP Resources

• v18 PLIF documentation: “How to Use the Patron Loader Interface – PLIF (file-20) – v.18.01” – find it at OLIS Documentation site

• Footprints to OLIS staff• SUNY LMS listserv message • Aleph CRM db and/or problem report

Discussion & Questions

Extra: What’s the PLIFing problem here?

Extra: Rec 5993 z304 & z305 “unsupported action”: usually caused by a formatting problem or extra spaces

(but we don’t see it here)