Message Board

SQL Server permissions

sschro — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 15:00:30 GMT

It is my understanding that all Forecaster Web users need be given some level of permission(s) at the SQL Server level (preferably inherited via a group). Setting aside the application administration and security levels, what permissions on the SQL Server end should users have? db_owner seems far too much permissions necessary...

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users

Tips for Using Microsoft Forecaster's Upgrade Wizard

Noah.Moseley — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 13:55:52 GMT

Microsoft Forecaster has an upgrade wizard that will copy Microsoft Forecaster 6.7 data, convert that data into Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 data and store that data in a new Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 database. Sometimes there are problems during the upgrade process. Here are some tips that might help you during your upgrade:

Wizard Fails: Occassionally, the upgrade wizard will fail to create a new database and close. The error will display in the upgrade log that Forecaster creates. An easy fix may be to create a blank database on the server for the new Forecaster 7.0 database and then re-run the upgrade wizard and pick that new blank database as the target. Try it before you spend a lot of time troubleshooting the error messages.

Backup your Backup: Create a backup copy of the Forecaster 6.7 database. Don't stop there. Also, create a new blank Forecaster 6.7 database and restore your backup to that blank database. Use this new backup database as the source when running the Forecaster upgrade wizard. This way, the upgrade wizard never touches your original Forecaster 6.7 database directly.

Do your Service Packs: Before running the Forecaster upgrade wizard, make sure that Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 is installed successfully including the latest Service Pack and Hot Fixes.

User Security: If the Forecaster 6.7 database used SQL logins instead of Windows Authentication and you have a lot of users, check the box to "Create a SQL user for every Forecaster 6.7 user". It just makes re-setting up security easier (although Windows Authentication for Forecaster 7.0 is the way to go).

The First Time You Log In: Plan for a LOT of processing the first time you log into Forecaster 7.0 as the administrator. Forecaster has a lot of tables to index and it recalculates all of the HR data. Plan for anything from 5 minutes of processing to several hours of processing time depending on how much data you had in Forecaster 6.7. Forecaster 7.0 will recalculate HR for every input set in 6.7. This can take quite a long time in some cases.

More Tips: We will add more tips as they come up. Thanks and call us if we can help with your Forecaster upgrade (877) 456-7632.

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users

Microsoft Dynamics ERP Versions that are Compatible with Management Reporter

Derek.Krebs — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 03:14:10 GMT

We have been asked by many which Microsoft Dynamics ERP versions are compatible with Management Reporter. As of this article posting, the following are:

GP 2010
AX 2009
AX 2012
SL 2011

Forum: Management Reporter Users

Information on using the FRx to Microsoft Management Reporter Migration Wizard

Derek.Krebs — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 17:18:25 GMT

Overview: When you use the Migration Wizard in Microsoft Management Reporter to migrate your FRx reports, not all the information is migrated. The reports and building blocks may be missing some information after they are migrated to Management Reporter.

Migration preparation Tips and Tricks

Note: The Migration Wizard will help you get started with converting existing reports but it not intended to handle all scenarios.

Before you start data migration, remove unneeded or unused specification sets and building blocks (catalogs, rows, columns, and trees).
Browse to the shared SysData directory and make a backup of this folder. Then remove any .F32 files that do not match specification sets that are currently in use in FRx.
Remove any companies that are currently not in use such as FW, FWC, or SolDemo.
Dimension related items such as accounts in rows, account filtering in columns, and masking in trees must be tied to a catalog or they will not migrate.
Remove spaces found at the beginning of building block names.
Remove any unused or potentially invalid companies prior to migration.
Items found in columns, trees, and catalogs cannot have the same name. Change names to prevent gaps in migration.
Simplify the migration process by setting all companies as default in FRx. This will allow Management Reporter to obtain segment data for use during the mapping process.
Rows not associated with a catalog will not migrate. If you want to migrate unassociated row formats, create a new catalog with valid building blocks and save the catalog.
If the option to look for the F32 files in the same directory as the FrxSys32.mdb is selected, be sure to remove any .F32 files other than the specification sets you intend to migrate.
Please follow these steps to Compact the Microsoft FRx system database and each Spec Set database as there could be some data corruption causing the problem.
1. Have all users click File, and then click Exit to log off from Microsoft FRx.
2. Have one user log back in to Microsoft FRx as Administrator.
3. In Microsoft FRx, click File, and then click Compact FRx Database.
4. Click FRx System Database, click Yes, and then click OK.
5. Click File, click Compact FRx Database, click Current Spec Set Database, click Yes, and then click OK.

If you are unable to compact the database, contact Microsoft or MSX Group support.

Migrating FRx 6.7 data
In the Management Reporter Migration Wizard, you will be prompted to configure the companies. During the migration process, which includes migration and conversion, the migration copies all data into the Management Reporter database, where it is converted from an account-based system into a dimension-based system.

Migration limitations
The followings items will not migrate:

FRx Report Designer

FRx Security

Reports

Report chains
Locked or password protected rows
Web publishing settings
Page breaks between units
Allow column text overflow
Effective dates
Subtotal and filter account detail
Email
Currency Translation rates

Rows

Account sets
Account Types
Currency format codes
Row linking
XBRL link
Locked or password protected rows

Columns

XBRL column
Locked or password protected columns

Trees

Page breaks
Locked or password protected trees
E-mail/Security (Column P)

Items that need to be manually configured once the migration completes

In the migration of reports, catalogs default options will change so that reports will not open automatically when generated. To modify reports in Management Reporter to automatically open when generated, go to Report Definitions, select the Output and Distribution tab, under Other options, select the option View report when generated.
- To update all Report Defintions run the following SQL Statement

USE MANAGEMENTREPORTE
UPDATE ControlReport SET ActivateBrowser = 1

In row migration, NP DES or NP REM rows in FRx that are not FD, TOT, or CAL will migrate but will flag errors. The error will read "Print control options can only be used if the format code is TOT, CAL, or blank".
Column ranges will not be allowed in calculations.
A WKS or a CALC column with headers will migrate but will not validate. Remove headers.
Period ranges only work with PERIODIC columns. For example, any range such as 1:BASE YTD in a column must be set to 1:BASE PERIODIC.
In the migration of trees, when there is an unknown company message, @ANY will be used for the company.
Different row definitions specified in the reporting tree will have errors. You will need to use the same row format or remove all row formats to use the default specified in the report definition.

Known issues when you use Microsoft Dynamics products

Migrated reports will not open when generated without opening through Report Library. Click the View report when generated option under Output and Distribution tab in the Report Definitions. In the the Specify Connection window of the Migration Wizard, if you type in the wrong SQL Server name for the ManagementReporter database the Migration Wizard will be unresponsive for 10 minutes before being able to be re-entered.
In the Select FRx Data window of the Migration Wizard, you may not be able to see the ellipsis button next to the field Path to the FRx 6.7 FRxSys32.mdb file.
If you choose Only validate building blocks using cached credentials in the Migration Wizard after you have already completed Only migrate and convert your FRx 6.7 data, the conversion will fail. Users will need to re-enter the credentials and attempt validation again.
If the Migration Wizard is not at the same version as the Application Server the Migration Wizard will crash.
BXB and BXC may cause report generation errors in a report migrated from FRx.

Open the associated Row Definition and click File | Save As.

Give the Row Definition a new name and generate the report again with the new Row Definition.

Delete the original Row Definition.

Known Migration issues when you use Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009

A row with all wildcards to represent all accounts will migrate as a blank line.
A column with attribute filters will need those attribute filters removed before migration in order to be able to open the migrated column without error.
A column containing budget book codes in FRx will need their names changed to remove the word "Budget" before the budget name.
The base period can reference different periods in some scenarios and should be validated in migrated reports that span multiple years.
Migrated accounts and dimensions are not trimmed to remove trailing white space.
A row containing all questions marks (??????) will not migrate. After migration the row will need to be manually updated to ?????? for six character accounts, or an asterisk (*) to wildcard all accounts.

Troubleshooting:

1. No General Ledger/Dimension accounts display after the migration can indicate possible corruption in the f32 report file.

Please follow these steps to re-create your F32 reports file as there could be data corruption within the F32 report file causing the error message.

**Note: Have all users close out of FRx.

A. To export the Catalog, begin by going to Company | Specification Set.
B. Select the Specification Set from which you want to export the report.
C. When the Specification Set has been selected, select the Export button.
D. In the Export Selection dialog box, click the Catalogs and select all. Click the tabs for Rows, Columns, and Trees and select all for each tab.
E. Click Export.
F. In the Create Export File dialog box, select the Drive, Folder and File Name where you want to export the Catalog(s). The file has to be saved with a .TDB (temporary database) extension.
G. Click OK.
H. To import the Catalog, begin by going to Company | Specification Set.
I. Click the New button to create a new Specification Set. You must use a different Name. However, this can be renamed later after you delete the old Specification Set. Make sure that the Location points to a new *.F32 called MRFrxrpts.f32. You should leave the path the same merely rename the frxrpts.f32 file.
J. Click the Import button.
K. In the Select Import File dialog box, select the Drive, Folder and File name where the *.TDB file was saved.
L. Click OK.
M. Click Company | Information and select the company that you want to use the new Specification Set with.

**Note: If you are unable to create a new report file, please contact support, your Microsoft Support or MSX Group Support (Support@MSXGroup.com).

Forum: Microsoft FRx Users

Information on using the FRx to Microsoft Management Reporter Migration Wizard

Derek.Krebs — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 17:18:20 GMT

Migration preparation Tips and Tricks

Note: The Migration Wizard will help you get started with converting existing reports but it not intended to handle all scenarios.

Before you start data migration, remove unneeded or unused specification sets and building blocks (catalogs, rows, columns, and trees).
Browse to the shared SysData directory and make a backup of this folder. Then remove any .F32 files that do not match specification sets that are currently in use in FRx.
Remove any companies that are currently not in use such as FW, FWC, or SolDemo.
Dimension related items such as accounts in rows, account filtering in columns, and masking in trees must be tied to a catalog or they will not migrate.
Remove spaces found at the beginning of building block names.
Remove any unused or potentially invalid companies prior to migration.
Items found in columns, trees, and catalogs cannot have the same name. Change names to prevent gaps in migration.
Simplify the migration process by setting all companies as default in FRx. This will allow Management Reporter to obtain segment data for use during the mapping process.
Rows not associated with a catalog will not migrate. If you want to migrate unassociated row formats, create a new catalog with valid building blocks and save the catalog.
If the option to look for the F32 files in the same directory as the FrxSys32.mdb is selected, be sure to remove any .F32 files other than the specification sets you intend to migrate.
Please follow these steps to Compact the Microsoft FRx system database and each Spec Set database as there could be some data corruption causing the problem.
1. Have all users click File, and then click Exit to log off from Microsoft FRx.
2. Have one user log back in to Microsoft FRx as Administrator.
3. In Microsoft FRx, click File, and then click Compact FRx Database.
4. Click FRx System Database, click Yes, and then click OK.
5. Click File, click Compact FRx Database, click Current Spec Set Database, click Yes, and then click OK.

FRx Security

Reports

Report chains
Locked or password protected rows
Web publishing settings
Page breaks between units
Allow column text overflow
Effective dates
Subtotal and filter account detail
Email
Currency Translation rates

Rows

Account sets
Account Types
Currency format codes
Row linking
XBRL link
Locked or password protected rows

Columns

XBRL column
Locked or password protected columns

Trees

Page breaks
Locked or password protected trees
E-mail/Security (Column P)

Items that need to be manually configured once the migration completes

In the migration of reports, catalogs default options will change so that reports will not open automatically when generated. To modify reports in Management Reporter to automatically open when generated, go to Report Definitions, select the Output and Distribution tab, under Other options, select the option View report when generated.
- To update all Report Defintions run the following SQL Statement

USE MANAGEMENTREPORTE
UPDATE ControlReport SET ActivateBrowser = 1

In row migration, NP DES or NP REM rows in FRx that are not FD, TOT, or CAL will migrate but will flag errors. The error will read "Print control options can only be used if the format code is TOT, CAL, or blank".
Column ranges will not be allowed in calculations.
A WKS or a CALC column with headers will migrate but will not validate. Remove headers.
Period ranges only work with PERIODIC columns. For example, any range such as 1:BASE YTD in a column must be set to 1:BASE PERIODIC.
In the migration of trees, when there is an unknown company message, @ANY will be used for the company.
Different row definitions specified in the reporting tree will have errors. You will need to use the same row format or remove all row formats to use the default specified in the report definition.

Known issues when you use Microsoft Dynamics products

Migrated reports will not open when generated without opening through Report Library. Click the View report when generated option under Output and Distribution tab in the Report Definitions. In the the Specify Connection window of the Migration Wizard, if you type in the wrong SQL Server name for the ManagementReporter database the Migration Wizard will be unresponsive for 10 minutes before being able to be re-entered.
In the Select FRx Data window of the Migration Wizard, you may not be able to see the ellipsis button next to the field Path to the FRx 6.7 FRxSys32.mdb file.
If you choose Only validate building blocks using cached credentials in the Migration Wizard after you have already completed Only migrate and convert your FRx 6.7 data, the conversion will fail. Users will need to re-enter the credentials and attempt validation again.
If the Migration Wizard is not at the same version as the Application Server the Migration Wizard will crash.
BXB and BXC may cause report generation errors in a report migrated from FRx.

Open the associated Row Definition and click File | Save As.

Give the Row Definition a new name and generate the report again with the new Row Definition.

Delete the original Row Definition.

Known Migration issues when you use Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009

A row with all wildcards to represent all accounts will migrate as a blank line.
A column with attribute filters will need those attribute filters removed before migration in order to be able to open the migrated column without error.
A column containing budget book codes in FRx will need their names changed to remove the word "Budget" before the budget name.
The base period can reference different periods in some scenarios and should be validated in migrated reports that span multiple years.
Migrated accounts and dimensions are not trimmed to remove trailing white space.
A row containing all questions marks (??????) will not migrate. After migration the row will need to be manually updated to ?????? for six character accounts, or an asterisk (*) to wildcard all accounts.

Forum: Management Reporter Users

No data for Period 13 when you generate a report in Microsoft Management Reporter for Dynamix AX 2009

Noah.Moseley — Thur, 17 Nov 2011 16:32:06 GMT

Management Reporter displays zero balances for Period 13 Year-to-Date (YTD) columns for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009 and AX 2012.

If the "Create closing transactions during transfer" option is enabled in AX2009, there is a transaction created in the Closing period at the end of the fiscal year that zero's out the balance for all accounts. Management Reporter includes these closing transactions when pulling YTD balances. These transactions cause the balance of the last period to display as zero and causes the last period to display a zero balance in a YTD column of the MR report.

There is a solution.

The Column Restriction ADJ in an FD column for Period 13 will pull back the adjusting entries. Income Statement reports will need two hidden columns (FD Period 12 YTD and FD Period 13 Periodic Restricted to ADJ entries). The two hidden columns will need to be referenced in calculated columns to display the Period 13 activity and the YTD balances. Here is an example:

This should resolve missing adjustment entries to period 13 for AX2009 and AX2012.

Email Noah.Moseley@MSXGroup.com with any questions.

Forum: Management Reporter Users

FRx7 SP11 win 7 ...

gpradzin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:08:22 GMT

When i don't run it as administrator i make it all the way to the login screen but then get the follwing error trying to sign in...

Forum: Microsoft FRx Users

FRx 6.7 sp11 on win7

gpradzin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 17:04:42 GMT

if I try running as Adminstrator on my win 7 machine i get the following error...

Forum: Microsoft FRx Users

Trying to Run FRx6.7 sp11 on win7 but...

gpradzin — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 16:59:01 GMT

keep getting the error...
I am able to log on a win xp sp3 with no problem

Forum: Microsoft FRx Users

Management Reporter Training Classes

Noah.Moseley — Thur, 08 Sep 2011 18:43:21 GMT

The MSX Group offers two separate classes for Management Reporter. Each is about 5-hours long and can be taken online or onsite.

Using Microsoft Management Reporter's Migration Wizard to Convert FRx Reports to Management Reporter Reports

http://msxgroup.com/microsoft-management-reporter-migrating-frx-management-reporter

Microsoft Management Reporter - Report Building Basics

http://msxgroup.com/microsoft-management-reporter-report-building-basics-training-class

Forum: Management Reporter Users

Forecaster 7 and Email Client Support

Rob.Diaz — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 21:09:26 GMT

I have been asked a number of times recently about Forecaster 7's support for email, with many folks thinking the only supported email client is Microsoft's Outlook.

The reality is that Forecaster 7 can utilize any MAPI-compliant email client. There are many MAPI-compliant email systems out there, but the ones I have used with Forecaster include:

Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft Outlook Express
Microsoft Windows Live Mail
Lotus Notes
Eudora
Pegasus Mail
Thunderbird
(old) Netscape Messenger
MSN Hotmail

Forecaster 7 only supports MAPI-compliant email clients and only supports client-based email, although it has worked with web-enabled, MAPI-compliant email systems (such as Hotmail) in the past.

GMail is not MAPI-compliant and therefore is not compatible with Forecaster.

In order for Forecaster to utilize the email client installed on users' workstations, the mail client must be configured as the default mailto: handler - in other words, it must be configured within Windows as the default application to handle mail requests. This can be managed via the internet browser (at least from Internet Explorer or Firefox).

The exact steps vary based on the operating system. Users can go to their browser and go to the Tools | Options menu item. There should be a tab called "Applications" or "Programs". In Internet Explorer, there will be a subsection on this tab that says "Internet Programs."

The following information may be more accurate for Internet Explorer:

In the Internet Programs area is where the differences are. On Windows XP, there will be 6 individual drop-down boxes. The box for "Email:" needs to reflect your default email client. Set this option and also ensure that a default browser is selected (in the Default web browser section), then click OK.

In Windows 7, the "Internet programs" item is a single button (Set Programs) which opens up a Windows dialog. Click on the Set Associations link and it will display a list of extensions and protocols. Scroll down to the
.url (Internet Shortcut) option and make sure the current default specifies "Internet Browser". This means it will use the default browser. Next, scrop to the MAILTO protocol and make sure the default email client is selected. You may also need to set a value for the "mailto" protocol, but only do this if setting the .url and MAILTO options don't work to make Forecaster work with your email client.

You need to at least close all instances of Forecaster and restart them after making the above changes. You may need to restart your email client and internet browser and/or reboot the computer for the changes to take effect.

As I said, Forecaster 7 utilizes the email CLIENT in order to send email. This design decision was made to allow for a "paper trail" for workflow emails (for example). Prior versions of Forecaster utilized server-based email which did not allow for any tracking of what was sent to whom and made troubleshooting much more difficult.

As always, MSX Group is here to assist with your Forecaster installation, configuration and usage questions. Please contact us with any questions you may have.

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users

Forecaster 7 SP4 Has an Undocumented Change in Pre-Requisites

Rob.Diaz — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 14:33:10 GMT

Forecaster 7's recently released service pack (Service Pack 4) appears to have a change in pre-requisite dependencies related specifically to ExpressLink and the Database Wizard. These two components now require three (3) specific SQL Server 2008 client components to be installed, even if you are using SQL Server 2005 as your database. Forecaster's installation does NOT install these components and these are not currently listed in the supporting documentation or system requirements from Microsoft.

Without these SQL Server 2008 components, the Database Wizard will crash when you click "Next" on the first screen, and ExpressLink fails to run. The only visible error message (in the Windows Event Log), states that Forecaster failed with a .net framework (2.0) system.io.filenotfound error.

Microsoft has been made aware of this issue and is investigating updates to product documentation to describe the situation.

To take care of this scenario, do the following:

Navigate to: http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=16978
Select the appropriate 32-bit or 64-bit versions of the following three client installations:

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Native Client
Microsoft SQL Server System CLR Types
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Management Objects

Please note that this issue directly impacts ExpressLink and the Database Wizard only. The full Forecaster client and Forecaster Web Access are unaffected by this issue and will function as expected with either the SQL 2005 or SQL 2008 client components.

As an additional note, this requirements change appears to resolve the issue described here: http://boards.msxgroup.com/post?id=4856519. It is not yet clear if SP4 renders the workaround described in the referenced post unnecessary, but preliminary testing indicates that no additioanl effort is necessary to connect to SQL Server 2008 databases after applying Forecaster Service Pack 4 and following the above pre-requisite installation steps.

Microsoft posted the following KB article relating to this issue on August 30, 2011: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2607590

As always, the MSX Group is here to help you with your Forecaster needs. If you have questions or problems with this solution or Forecaster, please feel free to contact us.

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users

Installing / Deploying Microsoft Forecaster 7.0 Web Access

Derek.Krebs — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 15:39:19 GMT

A question came up today worth sharing:

Question: How do you deploy the Forecaster Web Access client msi without using the browser to do so?

Answer: You may use the file "MicrosoftForecasterWebClient.msi". This file is located on the web server and you can get to it as follows (assuming a default installation): c:\program files\Microsoft Forecaster 7.0\WebAccess\Cabs\Files

If this is a 64-bit server, look in program files (x86). You only need to deploy MicrosoftForecasterWebClient.msi

In addition to the above-mentioned MSI file, there is a bootstrapper that may need to be deployed. This is located in the same location as the MSI and is called fcbootstrap.cab. This file actually controls the check to see if there are updates to apply. If there is a reason that this file cannot be manually deployed, you can circumvent Forecaster Web Access's use of it by including "forecaster.asp" at the end of your bookmarked URL. By specifying this specific page, Forecaster Web Access will not attempt to load or use the bootstrapper. I recommend that fcbootstrap.cab be deployed, but if there is a reason it cannot be, you can work around it by including the page in the URL.

This reply compliments of Rob Diaz, Director of Software Development at MSX Group.

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users

Management Reporter Version Numbers and Release Dates

Noah.Moseley — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 09:02:44 GMT

MR RTM Release - 2.0.1662.37 (May 2010)
MR SP1 (Full Install) - 2.0.1663.3 (September 2010)
MR FP1 - 2.0.1664.19 (December 2010)

Microsoft Dynamics Management Reporter FP1 (Need to install SP1 installer first) 2.0.1664.19
SL2011 Provider for FP1 2.0.1664.19 (April 1,2011)
AX2009 Provider for FP1 2.0.1664.19 (April 23,2011)
GP2010 Provider for FP1 includes Analytical Accounting Hotfixes 2.0.1664.19 (April 27, 2011)

Microsoft Forecaster Data Transfer Tool (Optional) MFDTT v 2.0.0.0(February 2011)
MR SP2 - 2.0.1700.31 (June 2011)

Forum: Management Reporter Users

Microsoft Forecaster Support Life Cycle

Noah.Moseley — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 14:45:12 GMT

Microsoft has extended Microsoft Forecaster's Mainstream Support to 7/8/2014 and extended its Extended Support to 7/9/2019. It is great to see Microsoft's continued commitment to Forecaster as their budgeting solution and that Forecaster is not going away. Our expectation is that sometime before 2019 Forecaster's functionality will be built into Management Reporter with a clean upgrade migration path.

Microsoft publishes Forecaster's Support Dates on the following location:

http://support.microsoft.com/lifecycle/?LN=en-us&p1=12750&x=16&y=18

Forum: Microsoft Forecaster Users