Integration Manager/SQL

[flimpo1234]

I am trying to import some payroll data from an ODBC source(I could also do it from a file, excel, access or otherwise) into Great Plains Dynamics on a regular basis. I would like to know what Integration Manager does exactly, and if it can be run automatically on a schedule. I also would like to know if Integration Manager is a feature I have to pay(how much) for since I don't seem to have the option available currently. I would like to do this without any middle man program which I am guessing Integration Manager is. I want to update my data right through Pervasive.SQL, but reading some posts suggest that direct access via SQL is not advised. I really don't want to pay an extra for this feature since I am pretty confident that I can program the SQL, but if Integration Manager is cheap or free then I would use it. Anyone have any wisdom on this?

 

[DaveXYZ]

Integration Manager depending on options will run in the $10,000 to $20,000 ballpark. It doesn't currently work with all modules/objects so you need to ask very specific questions when evaluating the product. For example, it does financials but won't integrate sales territories.

I think you can schedule it using Windows scheduler, but it runs as an app, not a service. It is a dexterity application and Great Plains must be running at the same time on the same machine.

What it does: it is a screen-level integration tool. It validates all of your data as it is entered using the dexterity-level triggers.

Can you write your own sql: sure. Some module/items are very simple to enter, like receivables or customers. Some are extremeley complex like Project Accounting Timesheets. You will need to be a functional expert in the module you are importing to and an expert in sql and dynamics database structures.

You can also use a third-party macro product to do your own screen-level integrations. I use macro express

http://www.macros.com.

It can read a text file and enter the correct data, keystrokes and such to enter alot of data into a Great Plains screen.

 

[flimpo1234]

Thanks for the reply. I am currently using time sheets and manually importing, which isn't really a big issue, but I would like to create my own time sheet (DTS) file using SQL queries, rather then actually click a button to export, etc. I would like to do this on a schedule, then send out my time sheets to my clients. When they are done witht the time sheets, I'd like them to email them back, where I can automatically put all the files in one spot for processing. From that one spot, I'd really like to do automatically. Also, some of my small clients simply use Excel for their in house time sheets. If I could generate a simple CSV file, they could use that in Excel. I'd also like to import everything on a schedule without user intervention. I think doing it in SQL would be the cleanest way of doing this, but I have heard otherwise.