APPLICATION INTEGRATION
In an attempt to keep pace with changing technological environments, enterprises are increasingly seeking superior applications to solve their complex problems. This often translates into solutions being supplied by multiple vendors. In an effort to reduce the deployment complexity, integration time, and cost associated with these higher end solutions, enterprises need a sophisticated integration tool to connect these applications. To meet this application integration objectives, Cetec has developed a data exchange engine (DEX) within its TOS foundation suite of software. DEX offers seamless integration of its product with ERP production planning, project accounting, financial costing, material management, human resource, and payroll systems. In addition to this Cetec has recognized the need for its product to exchange data within an enterprise legacy or internet based system in use by multiple vendors with incompatible interfaces. Enterprise systems supported by Cetec include such vendors as Oracle, SAP, Lawson, PeopleSoft and ADP.
DEX OBJECTIVES
Nearly 20% of any given enterprises IT budget is spent on the integration of incompatible applications. DEX was created to provide the tools necessary to define and execute simultaneous data exchange cycles in a multi-event environment. The DEX objectives include:
1. Provide asynchronous data exchange between applications in an event driven cycle.
2. Provide an easy method to define and execute events within the data exchange cycle.
3. Accommodate execution logistics for any program within a network-operating environment.
4. Execute first level events in a primary DEX cycle, preceded or followed by pre-process or post-process events.
5. Utilize a content and format process script defined in a template to compile or extract data from one or more systems,
Modeled with these objectives, the command functions set within DEX allow the user to schedule cycle events, such as executing a program, running a batch, extracting or importing data records or performing database queries.
DEX FRONT END APPLICATION
The DEX application typically resides on an Enterprise Application Server where scheduled events, such as imports, exports, batches and SQL calls are executed. The DEX application uses a front-end template that displays the log of events that the application writes to the DEX Log File. As the application cycles through events scheduled within its Configuration Settings file (PFSDEX.INI), event descriptions will be logged to the front-end screen on the application server. The DEX process can be interrupted. The interruption is initiated by selecting the function MANUAL RUN command button on the DEX front-end. Once this function is selected, any event scheduled within its configuration may be executed immediately. These events, Imports, Exports, Batches or SQL calls are listed on the Manual Process screen.
