Modifying, Scheduling, and Organizing Queries

This chapter discusses how to:

• Modify queries.

• Schedule queries.

• Organize queries

Modifying Queries

This section discusses how to:

• Open existing queries.

• Rename queries.

• Delete queries.

• Update existing queries.

• Automatically repair existing queries.

Opening Existing Queries

Use Query Manager to open and view queries.

To open an existing query from your browser:

1. Select Reporting Tools, Query, Query Manager.

   The Query Manager search page appears.

2. Search for a query using the basic or advanced search functions. Both search types enable you to select from the following search by criteria: access group name, description, folder name, owner, query name, type, uses field name, and uses record name. The basic search enables you to search using the begins with condition. The advanced search enables you to perform a progressively narrower search by using one or more search by criteria and selecting from a choice of conditions for each search by criterion. The following provides instructions on using search by criteria:

   • To perform a basic search by name, enter the name of the query in the Search by field and click the Search button.

     If you do not know the name of the query and want to search through a list of queries, leave the Search for field blank and click the Search button to display a list of up to 300 queries.

     Perform a partial search by entering part of a query name or description in the Search by field. Use the drop-down list to search queries by either name or description. Then click the Search button to display a list of queries that match your search criteria.

     The Search Results page appears and lists all the queries that match the search criteria. The following information appears: query name, query description, ownership (public or private)

   • If you know the name of the query that you want, enter it in the Search by field and click the Search button.

   • To perform an advanced search, click the Advanced Search link. On the advanced search page, select the appropriate search by criteria and conditions and enter a search string in each of the corresponding fields. Then click the Search button to display a list of queries that match your search criteria. The Search Results page appears, listing the query name, description, owner, and folder for all the queries that match the search criteria.

3. Click the Edit link on the row of the query that you want to modify.

See Also

Meta-SQL

Renaming Queries

Access the Admin page (PeopleTools, Utilities, Administration, Query Administration).

To rename a query:

1. On the Admin page, choose a predefined search or a manual search by clicking the respective Search button.

2. Select the Queries from the Query List.

3. Click Rename.

   The Rename Queries page appears, listing the current query names and query owners.

4. Enter new names for the queries in the New Name field.

5. Click OK to save your changes.

Note. Alternatively, you can use the Query Manager search page (Reporting Tools, Query, Query Manager) to rename a query. You must first select a query that you want to rename then select Rename Selected from the Action drop down list box.

Deleting Queries

You can delete any public query that you have access to as well as any private query that you have created.

To delete a query:

1. Access the Admin page (PeopleTools, Utilities, Administration, Query Administration)

2. On the Admin page, choose a predefined search or a manual search by clicking the respective Search button.

3. Click Delete.

   The Query Delete Verification page appears.

4. Click Yes to confirm the deletion or No to avoid deletion.

Note. Alternatively, you can use the Query Manager search page (Reporting Tools, Query, Query Manager) to delete a query. You must first select a query that you want to delete then select Delete Selected from the Action drop down list box.

Updating Existing Queries

At times you might want to update a query to reflect new conditions or copy an existing query and modify it for other uses. You can open a query, examine it to see if it is suitable, and then use the Save As function to save it with a new name.

To update an existing query:

1. On the Query Manager Search Results page, find the query that you want to modify and click its Edit link.

   The Fields page appears.

2. Navigate to the page that you would like to modify (except the Run page).

3. Enter the new information on the page.

4. Click either the Save button to update the existing query, or click the Save As link to save a different instance of the query under a new name.

Automatically Repairing Existing Queries

A record definition used in a query may change. When this occurs, PeopleSoft Query automatically repairs the query when it is opened. A warning message informs the user about the problem and what actions were taken:

Note. If a record has been deleted, the query will no longer appear in the list of queries because you no longer have access to all of the records in that query. To open such a query, you will need to use Query API.

See Also

Setting Query Permissions

Scheduling Queries

Query Manager interacts with PeopleSoft Process Scheduler to let users schedule queries.

This section discusses how to:

• Submit process requests.

• Select process requests.

• Use Process Monitor.

• View output in Report Manager.

• Specify a user’s language.

Submitting Process Requests

A process request enables you to submit a job or process to run. The Process Request page lets you specify such variables as where to run the process and in what format to generate the output based on a run control ID.

To submit a process request:

1. Select Reporting Tools, Query, Schedule Query.

   The Schedule Query Search page appears.

2. Search for and select an existing Run Control ID, or select the Add New Value tab to enter a new ID.

   The Schedule Query page appears.

3. Select the query for which you want to schedule and update any prompt parameters.

   Use the Update Parameters link to select or change the value required for each available prompt. When values have been selected, they appear in the Prompt Name and Value fields.

   Note. If the query does not have any prompt, the Update Parameters link will not appear.

   Note. If you have one or more Asian languages installed, select the desired language from the Asian Font drop-down list box. This drop-down list box appears only if you have one or more Asian languages installed.

4. Click the Save button to save changes and remain on the Schedule Query page.

5. Click the Run button to display the Process Scheduler Request page.

   When scheduling queries from Query Manager or Query Viewer, the Run button is replaced with an OK button.

6. Click the Process Monitor link to view the status of your request; click the Report Manager link to view the output of your request.

See Submitting and Scheduling Process Requests.

Selecting Process Requests

The Process Scheduler Request page enables you to set the server, run date and time, how often the process runs (the recurrence of the process), output type, and format.

To select a process request:

1. Open the Process Scheduler Request page.

2. Complete the fields on this page.

   Server Name	Select the name of server on which you want the process to run.
   Recurrence	Select the recurring time intervals for the process to run. For example, to run a process every weekday at 5:00 P.M., select the predefined recurrence definition M-F at 5pm.
   Time Zone	Select the time zone in which the process will run. For example, you might be in Eastern Standard Time (EST) and schedule a process to run in Pacific Standard Time (PST).
   Run Date	Select the date on which you want the process to run.
   Run Time	Select the time at which you want the process to run.
   Reset to Current Date/Time	Click to reset the run date and time to the present date and time.
   Select	Select a job or process to run. You can select multiple jobs and processes.
   Description	Identifies a process or job. Jobs are listed as links. Click the link to display the Job Detail page, which shows all of the individual processes and jobs that are associated with the selected main job.
   Process Name and Process Type	Identifies the name and type (such as COBOL or Crystal) of the process as it appears in the process or job definition.
   Type	Select the output type for this job or process: An output type selected for a process at the process definition level overwrites the output type and the output type drop-down list box becomes unavailable. An output type selected for a job at the main job level carries through to the job items. An output type selected for individual job items overwrites the output type that is entered for the parent job. File: Writes the output to the file that you indicate in the Output Destination field. Note. For PS/nVision, the Output Destination must contain the full path and the name of the file. Printer: Sends the output to a printer. You can enter a custom printer location in the Output Destination field if you have the appropriate security access. If the Output Destination field is left blank, the printer that is defined on the Process Profile Permissions page is used. If that printer is undefined, the default printer defined for the process scheduler is used. Email: Sends the output through an email. To distribute a report to an email list, enter the appropriate information on the Distribution Detail page by clicking the Distribution link. By default, the output is sent through email to the person running the process. This option is available for SQR, PS/nVision, and Crystal reports. Web: Sends all output of the process to the report repository, including log and trace files. The format of the report is specified by the format list. Window: Sends the output to a new browser window. The status of the process now appears in the new browser window before displaying the results. The different states can be Queued, Initiated, Processing, Success, Error, or Warning. All output for the process is also sent to the report repository, including log and trace files. The format of the report is specified by the format list. When multiple processes are requested, a new browser window is opened for each request. Note. This output type is not available if the user does not have REN Server Report Window permission, or there is no active REN Server cluster available for Reporting. To grant access to the new browser window, the permission lists of the users must include full access for the Realtime Event Notification for Reporting Window and the WEBLIB_RPT web library with full access.
   Format	Select the output format for this job or process. When an output format is selected for a process at the process definition level it cannot be changed. Therefore, output format drop-down list box becomes unavailable. Note. An output format selected for a job at the main job level carries through to the job items. The format selected for individual processes or jobs that are attached to a job override the format entered for the parent job.
   Distribution	Click the Distribution link to access the Distribution Detail page, where you enter additional distribution information when the output type is Web, Window, or Email. Also use this page to select a folder name to which the output should be distributed when the output type is Web or Window.

3. Click OK to run the query.

   The system displays the Schedule Query page. The process instance number appears below the Run button.

4. Click the Process Monitor link to view the status of your request.

   The Process List page appears. The Run Status field reveals the status of your scheduled or running process.

Using Process Monitor

Process Monitor consists of two pages: the Process List page and the Server List page.

• The Process List page lets you monitor the process requests you have submitted.

  You can select filtering options (for example, process type and run status) to view only selected process requests. And you can click the Details link to view details associated with particular process requests.

• The Server List page lets you monitor the PeopleSoft Process Scheduler server agents within your system.

User ID	View the processes submitted by a particular user ID. Usually, you view by your own user ID.
Type	View by a particular process type (for example, Application Engine).
Last	Specify an interval of time by which to limit the process requests that appear in the list. Enter a numerical value in the edit box preceding the drop-down list, and then select a unit type from the drop-down list. Values are: Days, Hours, or Minutes.
Refresh	Click to check the current status of a process. This button refreshes the list.
Server	Select to view processes run on a particular server.
Name	View processes by a process name.
Instance	Specify a range of instances by which to limit the process requests that appear in the list. To limit the view to a single request, enter the required instance ID in the first text field.
Run Status	Select if you want to view processes by a specific status, such as Success or Error.
Distribution Status	Displays the distribution status for each individual job and process. Valid states are: N/A, None, Generated (OS390), Not Posted, Posting, and Posted..
Save on Refresh	Select the check box to save filter criteria changes when you select the Refresh button.
Instance	Displays the process instance; that is, the order in which the process appears in the queue. This number is automatically generated.
Sequence (Seq.)	This field is blank; it is not used for query processes.
User	The ID of the user who submitted the process.
Details	Click to open the Process Detail page.

Viewing Output in Report Manager

Report Manager is like your own personal inbox of reports and process output. It provides a secure way to view report content, check the posting status of your output, and see content detail messages.

View all of your reports by opening your Report List in your browser.

Select Reporting Tools, Report Manager, or click the Report Manager link on the Schedule Query page.

See Also

Using Process Monitor

Working With Processes and Reports

Specifying a User’s Language

For scheduled queries, the system uses the language specified in the user’s profile, not the language that is selected during sign-on. The system also uses the international and regional settings that the user has specified using My Personalizations. If you have not specified personal settings, the system uses the default installation international settings.

Note. Most PeopleSoft components can default to international settings from the browser if the user has not set any user specific settings. However, this is not available for scheduled queries or any PeopleSoft Process Scheduler processes.

See Also

Administering User Profiles

Organizing Queries

This section discusses how to:

• Add queries to the My Favorite Queries list.

• Copy a query to another user's list of queries.

• Move a query to an organization folder

Adding Queries to the My Favorite Queries List

The Query Manager and Query Viewer search pages can include a list of queries called My Favorite Queries. If you use certain queries often, you can put the queries in this list for easy access.

Note. Although you can view a list of favorites, you can't create a list of favorites in the Query Viewer.

To add a query to the My Favorite Queries list:

1. On the Query Manager Search Results page, select the query that you want to add to the My Favorite Queries list.

2. Select Add to Favorites from the Action drop-down list box.

3. Click Go.

   The query appears in the My Favorite Queries list group box .

Note. You can add multiple queries to the My Favorite Queries list at once just by selecting several queries before choosing Add to Favorites and clicking Go.

Copying a Query to Another User's List of Queries

The Query Manager allows you to copy a query from your list of queries to another user's list of queries.

Note. You can only copy nonpublic queries to another user's list of queries.

If the target user does not have permission to access all of the records in a copied query, that query will not appear in the target user's list of queries. Once permission has been granted, the query will then appear in the list.

To copy a query to another user's list of queries:

1. On the Query Manager Search Results page, select the query or queries that you want to copy.

2. Select Copy to User from the Action drop-down list box.

3. Click Go.

   The Enter User ID page appears.

4. Enter the user ID of the user to whom you would like to copy the query.

5. Click OK.

Moving a Query to a Folder

Organizing queries in folders can help you more easily access the queries. To move a query to a folder:

1. On the Query Manager Search Results page, select the query or queries that you want to move to an organization folder.

2. Select Move to Folder from the Action drop-down list box.

3. Click Go.

   The Move to Folder page appears.

4. Select one of the following:

   • Select an existing folder to move to: From the drop-down list box, select the folder to which you want to move the queries.

   • OR enter a folder name to move to: Enter the name for a new folder to which you want to move the queries.

5. Click OK.