Integration Manager still has its traditional connectors, based on OLE Server technology, where Great Plains user interface should be running to provide OLE functionality. At the same time IM has tradition with eConnect connectors since version 8.0 and even earlier
eConnect was introduced as new technology (back in around 2004), helping to open integration interface to generic C# or VB programmer, as well as provide various interfaces, including Web Services (here you can interact with GP transactions and master records calling web service shell, which in turn calls eConnect encrypted stored procedures in GP SQL Server databases). Regarding OLE based traditional integrations there is not much to worry about, be sure that you used Convert integration database to update it to 2010/11.0. eConnect based integrations require more attention. Let’s come through some details:
1. eConnect needs to be installed first. Prior to installing IM, where you know that you will use eConnect connectors, or you need to update integrations from the earlier versions with eConnect (10.0, 9.0, 8.0) – you need to install eConnect from GP 2010 DVD. Usually you do not need to go to your CD archive and get the DVD from the keeper, as service packs are issued several times a year. Currently (we are writing this paper in April 2011) we recommend you to use GP 2010 with Service Pack 1 DVD, which could be downloaded from Customer Source, Partner Source or even from MSDN (obviously MSDN doesn’t give you registration key for your company, registration keys are available on Customer Source or check with your Partner)
2. Known issue installing eConnect on user workstation. You can install this tool on the server without issues, specifying your domain user (domain admin group rights might be the easiest way to accomplish the job, as this user is not restricted to SQL calls only, it does other routines on the server or local computer, related to this SDK interface technology). However when you are installing it on the user workstation, you may get error message: ‘Unable to Add user to SQL’. Currently Customer or Partner Source knowledge base is not very helpful. The work around is this. Create new user in your Active Directory. Add it to Domain Administrators group (be sure that nobody knows its name, as if somebody will try to use it and by misspelling the password the account is disabled – eConnect will stop working). And then install it with this user credentials specified. The user will be added to SQL. We believe that the reason of the error message is related to the possibility that installation script is trying to add the user to the SQL Server Security, and if user is already there (for example Administrator account for your domain) – it is giving the error
3. Updating the integration. In earlier versions, such as 8.0 eConnect based integration required SQL login, password and Database name to be provided. Version 10.0 used COM+ container, where credentials were specified (if you changed password for the account, please update it in Com+ components). In 2010 it seems to be decoupled from COM+ realm (and it is now .Net assembly, so if the account password was changed the procedure to update it for each workstation is to open Add/Remove programs in Windows XP or Programs and Feature in Windows 7). Very good! Now it is time to open each integration (except the one, where traditional connector OLE Server is deployed) and double click on Destination Settings – here be sure that you specified SQL Server computer name and company database name. At this point your Integration metadata should be ready. In some cases you may have such complications as ODBC DSN, based on the text driver (used in Simple or Advanced ODBC data sources), VBA scripts deployed as Shortcuts, where IM is called with parameters from the command string. If you recognize your case, the next paragraph is for you
4. Advanced ODBC data sources are required, where you have to parse text data in SQL Select statements. It is especially popular when you are using Union construction, allowing you to create several lines from one Excel row. Let’s assume that your Excel document should be integrated (and you have no control over the document format, which might be a collective work of your Purchasing or Sales department, where initial data sits in something like Oracle, IBM DB2, MySQL or something else in Linux, FoxPro, Microsoft Access, Progress, etc; and you are just poor SQL DBA). Your Excel (probably CSV) document has several legitimate SOP Sales Invoice lines sitting in columns D, F, G (this is just an example – in real life you may have hundreds of columns). Apparently such CSV text file is not ready as is. However Integration Manager has Advanced ODBC Query, where you can unionize the records from the same CSV line (to split this single line into multiple)
5. VBA scripts in Shortcuts. When you are doing upgrade, chances are high that you plan to decommission your old server. The scripts typically have direct names of the server (maybe in UNC Path), you need to review the script and make changes accordingly. Plus, if script is calling IM application with command line – review the code and change when required
6. For further information, please call us 1-866-304-3265 or email help@efaru.com. We provide service in USA and internationally via web sessions. Local service is available in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Dallas, Western Michigan
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