“Truth is simple, life is complex” – Anonymous
In the real world, changes happen, and you need to be ready for the “normal” changes that can be ascribed to the life cycle of a system. I recently performed an upgrade that had a set of user management change requests that needed attention. The changes involved the usual requests of adding a new user or two, retiring a few users, and realigning some data. I wanted to review some typical tasks and provide some tactical advice to help others who might be needing answers in similar situations.
1. How to change a user type
Users never change roles, right? Not in the real world; people move to new departments and are promoted and/or transferred. Let’s assume a change in user’s role and walk through a couple of situations. The basics of the changes are the same for both [ remote user to network user] and [remote user to web user].
In Sage SalesLogix, it is an easy procedure to change user types. (Note: Let’s assume the remote user is all synchronized and doesn’t have any TEF files to send to the server.)
Click: Start | Programs | SalesLogix | Administrator
Log into application as the Admin user or a user with an Administrative role
Select the Users button in the Navigation icon.
Note: Now you have two choices in how to perform the user type change.
A. You can highlight the user that needs the change in the list, right-click the user and select Change Type.
B. You can double-click the user and on the first tab use the drop-drop on the Change Type field.
Your user has now been changed from one type to another. It only takes a few clicks, so be careful. The happy result, the change is made and away you go!
2. How to retire a user
Note: When a user leaves your company, the best option is to convert them to a retired user. Retired users do not use a license and cannot log on, but their name is preserved in the database. This prevents history records from displaying “Unknown User” because the user was deleted. Use the following checklist when a user needs retired. When a user is retired it frees up a SalesLogix license and their system history is preserved. We don’t recommend the delete feature except in rare circumstances.
Click: Start | Programs | SalesLogix | Administrator
Log into application as the Admin user or a user with an Administrative role
In the Users view, double-click the user to open the User Profile dialog box
- If the user is active deactivate the user (see below).
- If the user is a remote, then make sure the Sync settings are unchecked, site code is recorded and the synchronization files are cleaned up and managed properly. (If you are a customer, you can ask for the ‘SalesLogix Cleaning Up Remote User TEF files.doc’ document.
Note: It might be necessary to manually remove TEF files from the Outfiles and Archives folders under the Host logging path. This should only be done if a Remote user leaves the company or is out of the office for an extended period of time (after which a new database needs to be created). To delete the TEF files in the Outfiles and Archives folders, sort by File Type (the file extension is the site code) and remove any files that have types that match the current active user’s site code that will be retired.
- If the Manager box is selected, clear it. (You cannot retire a user if he or she is a manager.)
- If the user has other users reporting to them, the other users will need to report to another user (at minimum the Admin user).
- In the Name box, type _RET or something similar in front of the user’s name. This step is not essential; however, it makes it easier to identify the person as a retired user in other areas of SalesLogix.
In the User Type list, select Retired User to change the user’s settings.
Press the F5 (Refresh) icon to refresh SalesLogix Administrator to ensure all changes have been made.
3. How to reinstate a user
Note: Make sure a license is available for the reinstated user. You might need to set up the synchronization settings for the user as well.
Click: Start | Programs | SalesLogix | Administrator
Log into application as the Admin user or a user with an Administrative role
In the Users view, double-click the user to open the User Profile dialog box
Note: You might need to select the Retired Users tab.
Change the user type from retired to the appropriate user type
On the General Tab, clear the Login Active check box
Click OK
Note: It is not a bad idea to have the user’s password reset.
4. How to deactivate a user
Note: When a user is deactivated they can not log in to SalesLogix, but they are still taking up a license. Users can be deactivated for many reasons, such as maternity leave, military leave or extended sickness.
Click: Start | Programs | SalesLogix | Administrator
Log into application as the Admin user or a user with an Administrative role
In the Users view, double-click the user to open the User Profile dialog box
You can highlight the user that needs the change and right-click the user
On the General Tab, clear the Login Active check box
Click OK
-If the user is a remote, it’s a good idea to clear the ‘Synchronize Changes’ and ‘Sequence Files’ check boxes on the remote tabs. This ensures that files will not write out for synchronization and sit on the server without reason.
To keep the Sage SalesLogix system running smoothly, you should perform certain administrative tasks on a regular basis. This is especially true when it comes to managing users. There are other data and user management tasks that might need to be performed along with user management like realigning data and activities. This will be a future blog entry. I hope these tips have been helpful in some way to help perform some common tasks in SalesLogix.
If you would like to learn more tips or have a CRM topic you would like us to write about please contact Simplesoft Solutions, Inc. in one of our Cincinnati/Dayton (OH), Charleston (WV), or Charlotte (NC) surrounding area office locations:
Dayton, Ohio Office:
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc.
550 N. Main St. Suite A
Springboro, OH 45066
Phone: (937) 885-1204 x 3204
Fax: (937) 885-3580
sales@simplesoft.net
Ripley, WV Office:
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc.
710 Random Rd.
Ripley, WV 25271
Phone: (304) 521-2387
Fax: (937) 885-3580
sales@simplesoft.net
Charlotte, NC Office:
Simplesoft Solutions, Inc.
3635 Eastover Ridge Drive
Charlotte, NC 28211
Phone: (704) 910-3872
Fax: (937) 885-3580
sales@simplesoft.net
Who knew?
