Desk Administration Guide

Computing Services
University of Arkansas

Originally published July 8, 1994
by Kathryn Cantrell

Last revised December 19, 2000
by David Wimberly


Table of Contents

Introduction

Concepts

NSM-MS General System Features

Desk Administration Facilities of NSM-MS

How To

Other Issues


Figures

  1. Desk Administrator's Menu
  2. Desk maintenance
  3. Desk Assignment maintenance
  4. List Desks for a Budgetary unit
  5. List Users for a Desk
  6. List Applications for a Desk
  7. List Historical Desk Assignments
  8. List Positions for a BU and Date
  9. List User IDs for a User

Introduction

This guide has been developed by Computing Services to aid departmental desk administrators in maintaining desks and desk assignments for their respective budgetary units. In addition to this guide, documentation for the application used to perform this function, the NSM-MS (Natural Secured Menus Maintenance System) functional specifications, are also available. NSM-MS documentation details all the functions for the setup and maintenance of online Natural applications based upon the Natural Secured Menus (NSM) architecture.

In September of 1993, the University implemented desk-based security for its online Natural applications based upon the proposal of March 17, 1993 and announced via campus memo. Prior to this date, user-based security was in effect. With user-based security, department heads requested that individuals working for them be given access to specific applications such as PSB (Personal Services and Budget System) and DART (Departmental Accounting, Reporting and Tracking system). The application owners responded to these requests by linking the user ID to the application and assigning to it certain security restrictions. Whenever an employee left and was replaced by another individual, user-based security required that the department notify the application owner and request that that user ID's access be terminated from the application (for every application to which the user had been granted access). The new employee would then have to be given access, via his user ID, to each application. Thus, with access defined in terms of user IDs, this transition of personnel and associated application access was very cumbersome and labor intensive.

With desk-based security, the individual is assigned to a desk ID and that desk ID is given access to Natural applications such as PSB and DART. Under this scheme, when personnel turnover occurs, it requires no action by the application owners, and with position based desk assignments (implemented in January 2001) no action by the department. This parallels exactly what happens in real life: a new person fills an old job with an existing office, phone, physical desk, and now a computerized desk complete with the authorization to perform online administrative functions.

Furthermore, with the advent of the University's BASIS (Business and Administrative Strategic Information System) applications, the number of users and the number of online Natural systems has increased significantly. Also, the electronic routing and approval system, TARGET, was developed and is used by BASIS applications. This system requires thousands of transaction routing definitions that must be defined and maintained. If these definitions were based upon user IDs, the amount of maintenance to keep up with employee turnover would be unmanageable. However, since the TARGET definitions are based on desks, when turnover occurs the desk is automatically linked to the new employee and the appropriate TARGET routing definitions remain in affect.


Concepts


Desk Definition

A desk, identified by a Desk ID, represents an individual's job, specifically those tasks related to the use of computerized administrative systems. Desks are associated with and defined within budgetary units. The department heads, or individuals they choose to designate (refered to as "Departmental Desk Adminstrators"), are responsible for the creation and definition of the specific desks within their department. The definition of a desk includes an optional description of the functions or responsibilities of the desk, as defined and to the extent desired by the department. The departmental desk administrators then associate employees within their budgetary units to the desks they created.

The desk concept permits several individuals to be associated with the same desk when they perform the same job (e.g., registration data entry operators). However, the norm is one desk is associated with one individual since most jobs are unique. In addition, one employee is typically associated with only one desk. That desk is the employee's primary desk. An interim desk may be assigned in exceptional cases when an individual is asked to perform two jobs on a temporary basis. A user who is assigned to two desks is required to explicitly identify which desk he will be working at any one time. It is recommended that this dual desk feature only be used in situations where there are true interim assignments.

The association of an employee with a desk is based upon the type of employee and the type of user ID. For appointed employees with one primary user ID this is accomplished by assigning the desk to the PSB position the individual is filling or hired into. Some appointed employees have secondary or temporary user IDs for the purpose of loaning those IDs out to temporary employees on a short term basis. Desks for these IDs are assigned directly to the User IDs. Similarly, desks for hourly employees and non-University employees that require access are also assigned directly to their User IDs.


Desk Function

Application access privileges and required electronic transaction review and approval are determined by the employee's desk assignment. A discussion of these two separate uses of desks follow:

Application Access

Desk-based security allows the access rights to all necessary applications to remain the same, regardless of who is filling a position (assigned a desk). The department head requests access to an application for a desk. The application owner establishes and maintains the access rights for a desk to an application. The department head can assign as many employees as desired to work that desk. When a user signs in with his individualized ID, the system automatically makes the association of that user/employee with the established desk assignment. The access rights and privileges of that user are those established for that desk.

Transaction Approval

For the purpose of routing electronic transactions for approval, a desk may be established as a review point for those transactions. The necessary routing definitions for electronic transactions are determined by the University administration, and are rather complex and voluminous in nature. The use of a desk ID to define a review point for a transaction permits the reassignment of personnel to be accommodated without requiring the redefinition of the routing information.


User ID and its Status

A user of online Natural applications must be issued a CICS ID. This User ID is assigned to the individual employee and should not be shared or assigned to someone else. When your department hires a new University employee who requires access to Natural applications, a CICS ID must be requested from Computing Services. This ID provides an audit trail of the activity performed, such as who updated a record, who initiated a transaction, and who reviewed a transaction.

A User ID can have one of three possible codes for its status: active, inactive, or temporary. Active status indicates the user is an active employee on the University's payroll system. (There is an exception for certain individuals who are not employees but have been granted access to University administrative systems.) Inactive status is set for a user who is no longer active on payroll and is therefore no longer authorized to access computer applications. Of course, desks cannot be assigned to inactive users. Temporary IDs are special types of IDs that are designed to fill the need of temporary workers. Temporary IDs are assigned to be the responsiblity of a supervisor in the department. That supervisor then distributes the ID and its password to the temporary worker. When the temporary worker leaves, the supervisor changes the password so that security is maintained. The supervisor is responsible for the actions performed by users of temporary IDs.

Active and temporary User IDs are associated with a budgetary unit based upon their type of employment, either appointed or hourly. Appointed employees are hired into a position which has been allocated to a budgetary unit. Hourly employees must have an active wage rate established for the budgetary unit in which they work. This budgetary unit association plays a significant role in the desk assignment process.


Desk Assignments

A desk is created for and designated as belonging to a specific budgetary unit. It may then be assigned to either a PSB (Personal Services/Budget) position (for appointed employees) or to a user ID (for hourly employees, temporary User IDs, or non-employees) which is associated with the same budgetary unit. These desk assignments are time stamped -- each has a designated beginning point in time and ending point in time (12/31/2099 designates an undefined ending period). Future assignments can be entered or changed, while historical assignments are frozen in order to provide an historical record of all desk assignments. The user's desk for a session is then determined by the system at signon using these desk assignments. This determination is based upon the status of the User ID according to the following steps.

Active users
  1. If the user is not on the University's Employee file, the desk ID (if any) associated with the user is assigned. If there is no desk for the user, the user is only permitted default access.
  2. The system determines if an employee is filling (appointed in) a PSB position on that date.
  3. If appointed, the desk ID assigned to the position at that point in time is assigned to the user. If there is also an interim desk assignment, the user is given the choice of which desk to be assigned. If there is no desk for the position, the user is only permitted default access.
  4. If not appointed, the desk ID associated with the user is assigned as long as the employee has an active hourly wage rate in the BU of the Desk. Otherwise, no desk is assigned and the user is only permitted default access.
Temporary users
  1. If the user is not on the University's Employee file, no desk ID is assigned and only default access is permitted.
  2. The system determines if an employee is filling (appointed in) a PSB position on that date.
  3. If appointed, the BU of the appointment (position) is checked against the BU associated with the desk designated for the user. It these are the same, that desk is assigned to the user.
  4. If not appointed or the BU of the appointment does not match that of the desk, no desk is assigned and the user is only permitted default access.
Inactive users
Normally, inactive user IDs will not be permitted to signon to the administrative system since the user ID should have been inactivated within the operating system. If a user flagged as inactive does reach Natural, it will not be assigned a desk and will only be permitted default access.

This system has the primary advantage that for appointed employees, no maintenance is required when an employee leaves and the position is later filled by another individual (other than obtaining a CICS User ID if necessary). Further, access is automatically discontinued upon termination or transfer within the University, either for an appointed employee no longer assigned to a position or an hourly employee whose wage rate is inactivated.


Role of the Departmental Desk Administrator

The role of the departmental desk administrator is very important. He will create desks for his specific budgetary unit as necessary, maintain the desks defined for his budgetary unit, and assign those desks to his employees (Positions or User IDs). Along with that assignment goes all the application access and review responsibilities that have been authorized for that desk. This role is performed using the NSM Maintenance System.

NSM Maintenance System (NSM-MS)

NSM-MS is the online Natural application that provides maintenance facilities for online Natural applications using the Natural Secured Menus (NSM) architecture. The NSM architecture is a set of standards under which online applications operate. These standards mean that NSM applications provide a common user interface, i.e. all applications look and operate similarly. Also, NSM provides a method for performing security administration in a distributed manner. Users responsible for the applications, application owners, perform the access and security maintenance functions through NSM-MS. Desk administrators use NSM-MS to define desks for their budgetary units and assign those desks to employees. In addition, Computing Services personnel setup Natural applications and their menus using NSM-MS.


NSM-MS General System Features

The following sections describe features and facilities of the NSM Maintenance System which apply to the entire application or are common to all functions.


Online Help

Online help at the application level and the screen or function level is being dicontinued in favor of web based documentation. Some documentation may remain, but web based materials should be referenced when available. (See the BASIS home page.)

NSM applications continue to support online help at the element level. Element level help is accessed by placing the cursor on the field desired and pressing PF1 or by entering a '?' in the field and pressing ENTER. Element level help displays the definition associated with an element from the Predict data dictionary. If an element has specific valid values associated with it, those values will be displayed and a value may be selected and returned to the field where help was requested. Similarly, fields that have their values stored on tables or files may allow specification of a starting value and then provide a list of values to select from. Those fields which use this special form of help include:

BU
Owner ID
User ID
Desk ID
Analyst ID
Security level
Command Security Group
Value Security Group
Menu Command ID
Cmd

In addition to element level help, some functions provide the use of PF4 for DeCode. The de-code function will return descriptions associated with coded values on the screen or retrieve additional associated data. This feature will be described in the command description when it is available, and the PF4 function will be labeled on the bottom of the screen.


Update Confirmation

Data base updates are only performed in response to an explicit request. Pressing the ENTER key will cause all inputs to be validated, but it does not result in any data base change. Any input errors will be reported and the cursor placed on the invalid field. When all inputs are valid, a prompt will be displayed indicating that the entries should be saved by pressing PF10. Pressing PF10 serves as the explicit request to perform an update. Following all updates, a confirmation message is displayed indicating the action that has been performed. This confirmation will override the line of the screen containing the program name, program level, and function title (normally line 2 of the screen).

If a user is confident of his input and speed is essential, input data may be entered, new keys and/or another command specified, and PF10 pressed in the same step. If there are input errors the result will be the same as if ENTER were pressed; otherwise the update will be performed, the confirmation displayed, and the new keys and/or new command processed. If the only error is with a new key specification or command id, the update is performed, the confirmation displayed, and the appropriate error message displayed. This technique provides the power user with an alternative data entry method that supports fast and efficient operation in the production environment.


List Functions

There is a special class of NSM functions designed to list information from the data base. These are inquiry only functions (no update capability) which allow browsing and selecting data online. There are several variations of these list functions, but they all share the following features and characteristics.

  1. Key fields are required to be specified to define what data is to be listed. The key fields may either define specific data to be listed (all employees in BU HIST) or, more commonly, define a starting point from which data is listed sequentially (employees in BU Hist with names starting with Williams).
  2. PF8 (Forwd) is permitted to page forward through the data sequentially and PF5 (Rstrt) will restart the list. Most lists also support PF7 (Back) to page backward.
  3. The screen will display a count of the number of entries displayed from the starting key value, and in some cases will indicate how many total entries exist. This will appear as:
    Employees 11 thru 20 of 39 displayed
    
    The starting keys used to retrieve the data are also displayed immediately below the banner.
  4. Entries from the list may be selected so that they might be operated upon further. The selection may be performed by marking (entering a non-blank character in the input field preceding each entry) or by merely placing the cursor on the line containing an entry and pressing ENTER. The effect of selecting an entry is that the key fields from the entry (those fields which are intensified) will be placed into the banner keys so that they will become the operands of other functions. For example, from the list of employees in a BU, the entry for employee 101202 could be marked. That Emp ID would be placed into the banner key and when a function is accessed that requires an Employee ID, information for that employee would be retrieved and displayed.
  5. The ability to mark entries is very powerful when combined with the suspend feature of NSM. Multiple entries may be marked, a new command entered (one that operates on the keys that will be selected from the list) and PF2 pressed. The effect is that the keys for the marked entries are selected and the new command invoked. Within that command, PF8 is labeled "Q/Nxt" so that it will quit that function and return to the list so that the next marked entry can be selected. This represents a very fast and efficient way to process, in detail, selected entries from a list. To elaborate on the above example, selected employees could be marked from the list and the user could request to suspend to a function enter leave data, enter hourly time, or view detail position information. This data could then be updated or viewed sequetially those selected employees by pressing PF8.

Marking Entries for Selection

List functions are designed to allow selection of one or more entries from the lists provided. Values selected may be placed in the banner key fields so that they may be used to specify additional processing by other commands or the selection may be used to "decode" or explode the entry by displaying additional information about it within a pop-up window. The selection is made by marking an entry by entering a non-blank character in the field that precedes each entry of the list. If only one entry is to be selected, the cursor may simply be placed on the line of that entry. PF4 can then be pressed to decode the selected entries or another command entered to operate on the key fields selected.

Selection of listed entries is very helpful in conjunction with the Suspend feature of the NSM Architecture. Another command is entered, the desired entries are marked, and PF2 is pressed to effect the suspend function. In this case, the first marked entry is placed in the banner for operation by the requested function. PF8 is then used to retrieve the next marked entry until either PF3 (Quit) is pressed or there are no further selections. At that time, the suspended function is again presented.


Suspend

The suspend feature allows a user to access a second or third function while still retaining in a suspended state the activity within the original function, including any data entered prior to the suspend request. The ability to suspend is most useful in the following situations:

The suspend feature is invoked by entering the command and desired keys for the new function and then pressing PF2. The current function will be suspended temporarily, and the new function module will be invoked. PF3, PF10 and sometimes PF8 will return the user to the suspended function and restore the key fields to the values which were previously in effect. A warning message is provided whenever a user's actions would cause a suspended function to be lost (e.g. enter a command without pressing PF2). Three active levels are permitted, but suspending to or from a menu is not allowed. The level at which you are currently operating is displayed on the first line of the screen as the second element (just after the program name).


Screen Selection

On multiple screen functions, there are two ways a user may scroll through the screens. PF7 and PF8 are used to page back or page forward one screen, respectively. Secondly, an explicit screen number can be entered in the field beside the label "Screen," the field directly below the banner that also displays the current screen.


Desk Administration Facilities of NSM-MS

Desk Administration is performed by using the NSM-MS application. There are two maintenance functions, Desk maintenance (D) and Desk Assignment maintenance (DA), that you will use. There are also a number of list functions that will aid you by summarizing data and displaying additional information you may need. The Desk Administrator's Menu figure is an example of the NSM-MS menu for desk administrators, or view an actual image of the desk administrator's menu in a separate window.

Figure: Desk Administrator's Menu


Enter, mark or position cursor to desired command                             
 NSOMENU 1 TEST          Desk Administrator's Menu - DAM         12/18/00 10:59
 Command:      Action: V  Desk:           Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:                                                  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   CMD  Command description                      Required key fields           
   ---- ---------------------------------------- ------------------------------
 _ D    Desk                                     Desk                          
 _ DA   Desk Assignment                          Assignment Type, ID & Time    
 _ LDB  List Desk for a Budgetary Unit           Budgetary Unit & Desk         
 _ LUD  List Users (desk assignments) for a Desk Desk & Time                   
 _ LAD  List Applications for a Desk             Desk & Appl                   
 _ LHDA List Historical Desk Assignments         Assignment TYpe, ID & Time    
 _ LPBD List Positions for a BU and Date         Budgetary Unit, Occ Cd & Date 
 _ LUU  List User IDs for a User                 User                
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help        Quit                                                         

Desk maintenance, D, is used to define new desks, modify the budgetary units, names, and descriptions of existing desks, and delete desks in your budgetary unit(s). Desk Assignment maintenance, DA, is used to specifically assign the desks previously defined for your budgetary unit to positions or users in your budgetary unit. There are also list functions available in NSM-MS that can help desk administrators perform their duties by providing additional information. The following section describes these functions in more detail.


D - Desk maintenance

The following sections document the Desk maintenance function:

"Purpose"
"Key fields"
"Actions"
"Special validations"
"Related topics"

The Desk maintenance figure is an example of the Desk maintenance function, or view an actual image of the desk maintenance screen in a separate window.

Figure: Desk maintenance


Please enter new key fields
 NSOD    1                    Desk maintenance - D               07/05/94 11:43
 Command:      Action: V  Desk: FSTC      Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Action: V  Desk ID: FSTC
 
   Name: Financial Systems Training Coordinator
   BU:   AVCF  ASSO VICE CHAN FINAN
 
   Description of Desk Responsibilities:
   Train everyone and write documentation for BASIS systems. This position
   requires access to all BASIS applications, such as LEAVE, PSB, UPS,
   GJIM. Access to NSM-MS is also included. This position is not an owner
   of any of these applications.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Entered: 08/19/93 Updated: 01/12/94 by: KATHRYN
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit  DCode                   NextR

Purpose

The Desk maintenance function is used to maintain Desk IDs. Desk IDs are associated with a specific budgetary unit. The head of the Department or his/her representative (desk administrator) can add, modify, or delete desk IDs for that budgetary unit. This person can also assign positions and users to the desk IDs under his/her budgetary unit by using the function DA, Desk Assignment.

Key fields

Action Possible values for action include V (View), A (Add), U (Update), and D (Delete). See topic "Actions" for descriptions of these types of processing.
Desk ID A list of Desk IDs can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is positioned on this field. This list is in sequence of the name of the individual assigned to the desk. A list of all Desk IDs for a budgetary unit may be displayed by accessing the function LDB.

Actions

The following actions are possible for this function. Use of some actions may be restricted for some users. No data will be created, modified, or deleted until PF10 is pressed.

View (Display existing Desks)

To view an existing Desk, enter in the banner a 'V' in the Action field and the desired Desk ID.

Add (Create new Desks)

To create a new Desk, enter in the banner an 'A' in the Action field and the new Desk ID. Enter the appropriate values for Desk Name and Budgetary Unit. The Desk Description is optional.

Update (Modify existing Desks)

To modify an existing Desk, enter in the banner a 'U' in the Action field and the desired Desk ID. Enter or replace valid values for the desired fields.

Delete (Delete existing Desks)

To delete an existing Desk, enter in the banner a 'D' in the Action field and the desired Desk ID. In order to delete a Desk, that Desk must not:

Special validations

To add, modify, or delete a Desk, the user's desk must be authorized to the budgetary unit of that specific Desk. If the desk administrator changes the desk's budgetary unit, the new budgetary unit must be one authorized for that administrator. Any user whose desk has access to the Desk function may view any Desk ID in any budgetary unit.

Related topics


DA - Desk Assignment maintenance

The following sections document the Desk Assignment maintenance function:

"Purpose"
"Key fields"
"Actions"
"Special validations"
"Related topics"

The Desk Assignment maintenance figure is an example of the Desk Assignment maintenance function, or view an actual image of the desk assignment screen for a position or the desk assignment screen for a user in a separate window.

Figure: Desk Assignment maintenance


Make changes and press ENTER to validate                                      
 NSODA   1 TEST               Desk Assignment - DA               12/12/00 09:42
 Command:      Action: U  Desk: CHAOS     Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:          Assignment Type: P ID: 08057    Time: 12/12/2000 09:42  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Action: U  Desk Assignment Type: P ID: 08057    Effective: 12/12/2000 09:42  
                                                       thru: 12/31/2099 23:59  
                                                                               
 Position filled by Emp: 128828 Wimberly, David                                
 Appointed Position: 8057  COMP Computing Services        Effective: 07/01/2000
                Loc: FAY  SubLoc: ADMN Appt Period: 12 Type: R thru: 12/31/2099
              Title: Project/Program Director                                  
 Hourly Wage Rate(s):                                       Ends:              
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
 Primary Desk: CHAOS                                                           
 Interim Desk:                                                                 
                                                                       Program 
 Updated: 11/29/2000 15:52 by: wdw                                     NSBDC7  
 Ended:                                                                        
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit  DCode RStrt             NextR       Save               

Purpose

The Desk Assignment maintenance function is used to assign desks to either Positions or User IDs effective at a specific point in time. The budgetary unit of the desk must match the allocated BU of the position as of the effective date of the assignment (for position type assignments) or must match the BU associated with the user based upon the type of User ID. If an active User ID, the user must have an active hourly wage rate in that BU or not be a Unverity employee. If a temporary User ID, the ID must be assigned to an appointed employee and the desk BU must match the allocated BU of his position. The effective time of all assignments must be current or future times (changes cannot be made retroactive). For position type assignments only, two desks may be specified representing a primary and an interim desk assignment. The head of the Department or his/her representative (desk administrator) can add, modify, or delete desk assignments only for his/her budgetary units. The desk administrator can also maintain Desk IDs under his/her budgetary unit by using the function D, Desk maintenance.

Key fields

Action Possible values for action include V (View), A (Add), U (Update), and D (Delete). See topic "Actions" for descriptions of these types of processing.
Assignment Type The assignment type is either P for a position type or U for a user type assignment.
Assignment ID The assignment ID is either a 5 digit PSB position number for a position type assignment or an active or temporary User ID for a user type assignment. An error will occur if the operator is not authorized for the BU associated with the position or user.
Time The date and time the assignment is to begin must be specified for adds and updates. For viewing or deleting this date and time is used to locate the desired assignment. The time value may be entered in several formats including: mm/dd/yyyy hh:mm, mmddyyyyhhmm, mm/dd/yy hh:mm, or mmddyyhhmm.

Actions

The following actions are possible for this function. Use of some actions may be restricted for some users. No data will be created, modified, or deleted until PF10 is pressed.

View (Display existing Desk Assignments)

To view an existing assignment, enter in the banner a 'V' in the Action field and the desired Assignment Type, ID, and date/time.

Add (Create new Desk Assignments)

To create a new assignment, enter in the banner an 'A' in the Action field and the Assignment Type, ID and the future date/time you wish the assignment to be effective. Enter the appropriate values for Desk.

Update (Modify existing Assignments)

To modify or change an existing assignment effective at a future time, enter in the banner a 'U' in the Action field and the desired Assignment Type, ID and the future date/time you wish the assignment to be effective. Enter or replace the Desk.

Delete (Delete existing future Assignments)

To delete a future assignment, the desk ID must be blank (it must have been previously removed). Enter in the banner a 'D' in the Action field and the desired Assignment Type, ID and the future date/time identifying the assignment to be deleted. In most cases it is not necessary to delete assignments, rather you only need to remove the desk (leave it blank) within a new assignment. After removing the desk, you can then delete the future assignment if desired.

Special validations

To add, modify, or delete an Assignment, the operator must be authorized for the budgetary unit associated with the assignment either based upon the position or the employment status of the user. Further, the budgetary unit of the desk being assigned must likewise match the BU of the position or of the user.

Related topics


LDB - List Desks for a Budgetary unit

The following sections document the List Desks for a Budgetary unit function:

Purpose
Key fields
Related topics

The List Desks for a Budgetary unit figure is an example of the List Desks for a Budgetary unit function, or view an actual image of the LDB screen in a separate window.

Figure: List Desks for a Budgetary unit


Select an entry, PF7 to page back, PF8 to page forward, or enter new keys     
 NSOLDB  1 TEST       List Desk for a Budgetary Unit - LDB       12/15/00 10:42
 Command:      Action: V  Desk:           Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:           BU: COMP                               
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   List for BU: COMP  Computing Services                                       
         starting from Desk:                                                   
                                                         Appl  Appl    Target  
   Desk     Desk Name                          Assigned Access Owner  Reviewer 
 _ ATLAS    Don Barnett                           X       X      X       X     
 _ ATREUS   BASIS development desk                X       X      X             
 _ ATROPOS  Converted for Elmond Orwig            X       X      X             
 _ AURORA   Converted for Eugenia Schein          X       X      X             
 _ AUSTER   BASIS II Programmer Analyst - MF              X              X     
 _ AVERNUS  Programmer Analyst on BASIS           X       X      X       X     
 _ BACCHUS  BASIS Programmer for LEAVE            X       X      X       X     
 _ BOREAS   Converted for Paula Waters                    X                    
 _ BRIAREUS Warlock for the Wizard                X       X      X       X     
 _ BRISEIS  Converted for Polly Croak             X       X      X             
                                                                               
                 Desks    11 thru    20 of    54 are displayed                 

Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit        RStrt       Back  Forwd                          

Purpose

The List Desks for a Budgetary unit function is used to display desks assigned to a specific budgetary unit. These desks are listed in sets of ten and include the desk ID and name, as well as indicators that show if the desk is assigned to a user, has access to an application, is an application owner, and is a Target reviewer. Use PF8 to scroll forward through the list of desks. The display near the bottom of the screen indicates which set of desks is displayed and the total number of desks. PF5 will restart the list with the first set of desks. Desk IDs may be marked for selection and further processing.

Desks are created, modified, and deleted through the Desk maintenance (D) function.

Key fields

BU Budgetary unit. A list of Budgetary units can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field.
Desk ID Desk ID is used as a starting value. A list of assigned Desk IDs displayed in user name order may be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field.

Related topics


LUD - List Users for a Desk

The following sections document the List Users for a Desk function:

The List Users for a Desk figure is an example of the List Users for a Desk function, or view an actual image of the LUD screen in a separate window.

Figure: List Users for a Desk


Select an entry, or enter new keys                                            
 NSOLUD  1 TEST  List Users (desk assignments) for a Desk - LUD  12/15/00 13:33
 Command:      Action: V  Desk: CHECKIT   Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:          Assignment Type:   ID:          Time: 12/15/2000 13:33  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 List of Desk Assignments as of: 12/15/2000 13:33                              
            for Desk: CHECKIT  for changing bu security in HMRS                
                                                                               
       Assignment                                       User    Employment     
   Cmd Typ ID       Name or Title                       Status  Status and BU  
 _ DA   P  02301    Carey, Jennifer C.                          Appt'd in HMRS 
 _ DA   P  03312    Shoemaker, Becky                            Appt'd in HMRS 
 _ DA   P  07714    Ray, Richard G                              Appt'd in HMRS 
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
               Desk Assignments     1 thru     3 are displayed                 
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit        RStrt                                            

Purpose

The List Users for a Desk is used to display the desk assignments (and users) for a Desk ID as of a specific point in time. These assignments are listed in sets of ten and include the assignment type and ID, user's name (or title if an unfilled position), user status if a user type assignment, and employment status and BU for the user or position. Use PF8 to scroll forward through the list. The display near the bottom of the screen indicates which set of users is displayed. PF5 will restart the list with the first set of desk assignments/users. Desk assignments may be marked for selection and further processing, navigating to the DA function by default.

Desk assignments are maintained using the Desk Assignment, DA, function.

Key fields

Desk ID Identifies the desk for which the list of users/desk assignments is to be generated. A list of the Desk IDs for a BU can be viewed using command LDB. A list of Desk IDs that have been assigned can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field. This list is in sequence of the name of the user assigned to the desk.
Time Identifies the point in time for which the list of desk assignments is to be generated.

Related topics


LAD - List Applications for a Desk

The following sections document the List Applications for a Desk function:

The List Applications for a Desk figure is an example of the List Applications for a Desk function, or view an actual image of the LAD screen in a separate window.

Figure: List Applications for a Desk


Select an entry, PF8 to page forward, or enter new keys                       
 NSOLAD  1 TEST        List Applications for a Desk - LAD        12/15/00 15:13
 Command:      Action: V  Desk: CHAOS     Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:                                                  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   List for Desk: CHAOS     Wizard of the Realm                                
              starting from Appl:                                              
                                              Sec Command    Value    Job Sec  
   Appl ID  Application Name                  Lvl Sec Grp   Sec Grp    Class   
 _ BIS      Balance Inquiry System             5  DCCF      NO04              
 _ CS-ACCT  Computing Services Accounting      9  ALL                 ABC     
 _ DA-GRADS Dev & Alumni - Gift Recording & D  9  ALLTBL              AD      
 _ DART     Departmental Accounting            9  ALL       COMP              
 _ FMLIB    Facilities Management System Lib   9  ALL                         
 _ FORUM    Feedback Or Request from Users of  7  ALL                         
 _ GJIM     General Journal Interface Module   6  ALL                         
 _ HRLY-TS  Hourly Time Sheets                 9  ALL       ALL               
 _ INRS     Institutional Research Applicatio  9  ALL                 A       
 _ JOBS     Job Submission Application         9  COMPUSER                    
                                                                               
          Applications 1     thru 10    of 30    are displayed                 
                                                                               
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit  DCode RStrt             Forwd                          

Purpose

The List Applications for a Desk function is used to display applications to which a specific Desk has been granted access. These applications are listed in sets of ten and include the application ID and name, as well as the desk's security level, command security group, value security group, and job security class for that application. Use PF8 to scroll forward through the list of applications. The display near the bottom of the screen indicates which set of applications is displayed and the total number of applications. PF5 will restart the list with the first set of applications. Application IDs, command security groups, and value security groups, may be marked for selection and further processing.

Desks are granted access to applications through the Application-Desk (AD) function. Some applications provide "default access". This means that any user may access the application without his desk being explicitly granted access to the application and even without being assigned a desk. The default access grants the user a specific level of security within the application, usually view-only. A user's desk may, however, be granted access to the application with a greater level of security and perhaps to more commands than default access provides. Applications defined as "default access" may not be listed by LAD because this lists only those applications to which the desk has specifically been granted access. To see if an application provides default access, use the ADA, Application Default Access, command.

Key fields

Desk ID Identifies the desk for which the list of applications is to be generated. A list of Desk IDs by user name can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field. This list is in sequence of the name of the individual assigned to the desk.

Decode processing

PF4 is used to decode selected entries. To obtain additional information about the application, mark the desired application and press PF4. The application's total number of desks, command security groups, and value security groups and the date of the last notice for the application are displayed in a window.

Related topics


LHDA - List Historical Desk Assignments

The following sections document the List Historical Desk Assignments for an assignment type and ID function:

The List Historical Desk Assignments figure is an example of the List Historical Desk Assignments function, or view an actual image of the LHDA screen in a separate window.

Figure: List Historical Desk Assignments


Select an entry, or enter new keys                                            
 NSOLHDA 1 TEST      List Historical Desk Assignments - LHDA     12/15/00 16:33
 Command:      Action: U  Desk: NEWBIE    Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:          Assignment Type: U ID: EBRYANT  Date: 12/15/2000        
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 List of Historical Desk Assignments on or after: 12/15/2000                   
   of Type: U for ID: EBRYANT  Evelyn Bryant                                   
                                                                               
   Cmd  __Period Begin__ ___Period End___         Desk ID                      
 _ DA   11/29/2000 15:52 12/15/2000 16:32 Primary CARS                         
 _ DA   11/29/2000 15:52 12/15/2000 16:32 Interim NEWBIE                       
 _ DA   12/15/2000 16:33 12/31/2099 23:59 Primary CARS                         
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
               Desk Assignments     1 thru     3 are displayed                 
                                                                               
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit        RStrt                                            

Purpose

The List Historical Desk Assignments function display the desk assignments for an assignment type and ID on or after a specified date. These assignments are listed in sets of ten and include the beginning and ending time period for each assignment and the primary and/or interim desk. Use PF8 to scroll forward through the list. The display near the bottom of the screen indicates which set of assignments is displayed. PF5 will restart the list with the first set of desk assignments. Desk assignments may be marked for selection and further processing, navigating to the DA function by default.

Desk assignments are maintained using the Desk Assignment, DA, function.

Key fields

Assignment Type The assignment type is either P for a position type or U for a user type assignment.
Assignment ID The assignment ID is either a 5 digit PSB position number for a position type assignment or a User ID for a user type assignment.
Date Identifies the date for which the list of desk assignments is to be generated -- those effective on or after that date.

Related topics


LPBD - List Positions for a Budgetary Unit and Date

The following sections document the List Positions for a Budgetary Unit and Date function:

The List Positions for a BU and Date figure is an example of the LPBD function, or view an actual image of the LPBD screen in a separate window.

Figure: List Positions for a BU and Date


Select an entry, PF7 to page back, PF8 to page forward, or enter new keys     
 NSOLPBD 1 TEST      List Positions for a BU and Date - LPBD     12/18/00 11:33
 Command:      Action: U  Desk:           Appl: NSM-MS    Cmd Sec Grp: DM-ONLY 
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:           BU: COMP Occ Cd:      Date: 12/18/2000
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
   List Positions for BU: COMP effective 12/18/2000 starting from Occ Cd       
                                                                               
   ____________Occupation__________ ________Position_________                  
   Code             Title           Number Begin      End     Emp ID Desk ID   
 _ D051 Comp Support Spec III - Ins 2653  07/01/00 12/31/2099 101451           
 _ D059 Systems Programmer I - Inst 733   04/01/98 12/31/2099                  
 _ D060 Systems Programmer II - Ins 4667  07/01/00 12/31/2099 104038 ARTEMIS   
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7089  07/01/00 12/31/2099 101123 POKER     
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7090  07/01/00 12/31/2099 101190           
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7091  07/01/00 12/31/2099 116352 CHAPTER   
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7092  07/03/00 12/31/2099                  
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7093  07/01/00 12/31/2099 105937 ARES      
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7094  07/01/00 12/31/2099 115000           
 _ D062 Systems Analyst III - Inst  7095  07/01/00 12/31/2099 105245 BRIAREUS  
Default command selected: DA                                                   
 Position records    51 thru    60 displayed;   72 accessed but not effective  
                                                                               
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit  DCode RStrt       Back  Forwd                          

Purpose

The List Positions for a BU and Date function displays the PSB positions for a budgetary unit as of a specified date starting from an occupation code (optional). The occupation code, title, position number, and beginning/ending effective date of the position entry are displayed. If the position is filled as of that date, the Employee ID is displayed. If the position has a desk assignment as of that date, the primary desk ID is displayed. This information is displayed in sets of ten. However, since not all records accessed are effective on the specified date the list may be interrupted periodically and only a partial set displayed. The message indicating this has occurred is: Processing interrupted after nn records accessed; press PF8 to continue search. PF8 may be pressed to continue accessing additional positions and is also used to scroll forward once the screen is full. The display near the bottom of the screen indicates which set of positions is displayed. PF5 will restart the list with the first set of positions. Positions may be marked for selection and further processing (as a desk assignment type of P and assignment ID of the position number), navigating to the DA function by default.

Key fields

BU The Budgetary Unit for which positions are to be listed. A list of Budgetary units can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field.
Date Identifies the date for which the list of positions is to be generated -- those effective on that date.
Occ Cd An optional starting occupation code within the selected budgetary unit. PF1 may be used to select an occupation code from the table of allowable values.

Related topics


LUU - List User IDs for a User

The following sections document the List User IDs for a User function:

Purpose
Key fields
Related topics

The List User IDs for a User figure is an example of the List User IDs for a User function, or view an actual image of the LUU screen in a separate window.

Figure: List User IDs for a User


Select an entry, PF8 to page forward, or enter new keys                       
 NSOLUU  1 TEST       List User IDs for a User (SSN) - LUU       12/15/00 15:27
 Command:      Action: V  Desk: CHAOS     Appl:           Cmd Sec Grp:         
 Val Sec Grp:           Parm:           User: PCAMPBE                          
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 List User IDs for a User (SSN): PCAMPBE  Campbell, Pete                       
  Employee ID: 133552 Name: Campbell, Pete                                     
  Appointed Position: 8185  BU: PW   Pete's World             Eff: 12/01/2000  
            Loc: FAY  SubLoc: ADMN Appt Period: 12 Type: R   Thru: 12/31/2099  
          Title: Project/Program Manager                                       
  Hourly Wage Rate(s):                                       Ends:             
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                                               
                                                      Assignment               
   Cmd  User ID  User Name                       Stat Type ID                  
 _ DA   PCAMPBE  Campbell, Pete                    A    P  08185               
 _ DA   GLTST01  Campbell - GL Temp ID I, Pete     T    U  GLTST01             
 _ DA   GLTST02  Campbell - GL Temp ID II, Pete    T    U  GLTST02             
 _ DA   GLTST03  Campbell - GL Temp ID III, Pete   T    U  GLTST03             
              Desk IDs     1 thru     4 of    21 are displayed                 
Enter-PF1---PF2---PF3---PF4---PF5---PF6---PF7---PF8---PF9---PF10--PF11--PF12---
      Help  Suspd Quit        RStrt             Forwd                          

Purpose

The List User IDs for a User displays all User IDs assigned to the same individual based upon the social security number associated with each user ID. (An individual can have one active ID and several temporary IDs.) Any current desk assignment is displayed along with each ID, plus basic employee and current employment information for the individual.

Key fields

User ID Identifies the user for which the list of user IDs is to be generated. A list of User IDs ordered by last name can be obtained by pressing PF1 (Help) while the cursor is on this field.

Related topics


How To


Add a new desk

If you have a new employee and there is not a desk available or one that fits his job responsibilities, you need to add a new desk. To do that, use the command D, Desk Maintenance, and the action of A, Add, and the new desk ID for your new employee, associating it with the same budgetary unit as assigned to the employee. See the section on Desk maintenance for further details. The next step is to assign the desk to the appointed employee's position or the employee's User ID.


Assign a desk

When an employee is appointed and you want to make an assignment for his active User ID (the most common situation), you will be making a position type assignment (type P) for the employee's PSB position number. LPBD will display the appointed positions for a BU, or LUU will display the position an employee is assigned based upon the user ID -- either one can be used to locate the position number. When an employee is hourly or you are dealing with a temporary ID of an appointed employee, you must assign a desk directly to the User ID (assignment type U).

If you do not know what desk should be assigned to this user, assess his application access and TARGET review responsibility needs. If he is replacing someone who just left a position, no new assignment is required since the new employee will fill the old position and be assigned the same desk as the former employee. If this is a new position or a new job that has been created, use the list functions to see if there is already a desk defined for his budgetary unit that fits his needs. LDB, List Desks for a Budgetary Unit, will show you if a desk has any application access, if it is a TARGET reviewer, if it is an application owner, and if it is assigned to at least one user. LAD, List Applications for a Desk, will show you the applications that a desk has been granted access, along with the security restrictions placed on that access. If you need to know further information about the desk's TARGET review responsibilities, you may contact the TARGET administrator ("Find out who's an application owner" will tell you how to determine the owner of the TARGET Maintenance System (the application ID is TARGET) and that person is the TARGET administrator).

Once you have determined the desk to be assigned to the user, use the command DA, Desk Assignment Maintenance, with an action of A, Add, the appropriate type of P or U, the Desk Assignment ID of the position number or the user ID, and a future date/time (even 5 minutes is okay, but this cannot be effective for a past point in time). If an assignment previously existed for the position or user, the action will need to be U, Update. See the section on Desk Assignment maintenance for further information.


Remove a desk assignment

If an appointed employee leaves your department and the appropriate PSB change has been made (termination or position change), no update regarding desk assignments is required since the system makes this assignment based upon the employee's appointed position. Similarly, if an hourly employee leaves and the Hourly wage rate has been inactivated, no change in desk assignments is required because the system will not grant access to the user assigned desk without the employee having an active wage rate in the same BU.

However, you may wish to remove a position or user type assignment when it is no longer needed or is no longer appropriate for the employee to have access to a desk. To do this, you use DA, Desk Assignment Maintenance. Similar to the process you go through when you assign a desk, you Update the assignment specifying a future date/time. But instead of typing in the ID of the desk, you remove the specific desk by blanking out the Desk ID field. This desk removal will be done automatically by a monthly batch program for user type assignments in the following situations.

  1. For active user IDs of employees that no longer have an active wage rate in the same BU as that defined for the desk.
  2. For temporary user IDs of employees that are no longer appointed in the same BU as that defined for the desk.

Remove a desk

If you want to delete a desk, it must not:

LDB, List Desks for a Budgetary Unit, is very useful in determining if the desk may be deleted, and, if not, what steps you may need to take to accomplish the desk removal. If the desk is assigned inappropriately, remove the desk assignment for that position or user. If the desk has application access, you can use LAD, List Applications for a Desk, to determine the applications for which access should be deleted. To request the removal of application access, contact the owner of each application. If you do not know the application owner, see "Find out who's an application owner". If the desk is defined as a TARGET reviewer, contact the TARGET administrator to determine if the desk should be removed from the routing definitions. If the desk is an application owner and you determine that it should not be, contact Computing Services to have the desk removed as an application owner. If your department is not the primary administrator for the application, the removal should be requested by that department.

Find out who's an application owner

If you need to know the owner(s) of a Natural application, you can try to sign on to that application. If you do not have access to it, a window is displayed that identifies an owner's name to contact if you desire application access. Another method is to use the NSM-MS function Application maintenance, A. The first screen shows the desks that have been set up as owners. If you do not know who is assigned to an owner desk, use LUD, List Users of a Desk.


Request change in application access/TARGET routing

If you are the designated person to request changes in application access and/or TARGET transaction routing definitions, you should contact the individual application owners for changes in access and the TARGET administrator (the owner of the TARGET application) for changes in transaction routing definitions.


Find the desk assigned to a user

There is a very easy way to find a user's desk. Anywhere in the NSM-MS application, you may press PF1 when your cursor is on the Desk field in the banner. This special field help will give you first a definition of the Desk ID field and allow you to enter a starting value for a user's name (last name first). After you type that value and press ENTER, the window will list each user and his primary desk ID in user name sequence starting with the specified name.

Other Issues


Automatic Maintenance of User's Status/Budgetary Unit

Computing Services runs a monthly batch update program that validates that the user IDs are active on the University's Payroll system. If a user ID's SSN is not an active employee via either an appointed PSB position or an active hourly wage rate, the user ID status is set to inactive and any user type desk assignment is removed. Further, if a user type desk assignment exist and the BU associated with the desk does not match the employee's current employment the desk assignment is also removed. This update program is run after the monthly appointed payroll run.


Interim Desks

Most individuals will only require one desk. However, a position may be assigned a second desk on an interim basis. For example, when an employee in your department terminates, usually another employee in your department takes on the job responsibilities of the terminated employee until a replacement is hired. This employee is performing these job duties on an interim basis in addition to his regular duties. Therefore he should be assigned the desk of the terminated employee. At the time a replacement is hired, this interim desk assignment should be removed. This is the reason two desk assignments may be made on DA, Desk Assignment maintenance, for position type assignments. (Interim desks are not permitted for hourly employees or temporary user IDs.)