| 1. |
|
| Q.: |
Will CDA run on
my Novell network? |
| A.: |
The CDA Service
Manager program was written to support all MS Windows operating
systems starting with Windows2000. and above. The exception would
be Windows M.E. Although Novell has a windows work station shell
that works fine with all windows operating systems, there are some
differences with the actual server protocols that handle record and
file locking with our software. We do have some companies
successfully running CDA under Novell, however we don't support it.
Also, CDA versions 8.5 or higher will
no longer offer full support for Windows98. There are some new
communications features that require Windows 2000 or higher.
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| 2. |
|
| Q.: |
Does the CDA
Service Manager software support remote access? |
| A.: |
Yes, we have many
service companies running the CDA software using Microsoft Terminal
Server as well as other communications software such as PC Anywhere,
etc. You do not need to purchase an additional license to run
a remote workstation. However, an additional license is
required for CDA to control each additional business location
remotely or independently.
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| 3. |
|
| Q.: |
Why am I
experiencing slow response on some of my work stations? |
| A.: |
Check the amount
of memory on the work stations that are running slow. Although the
system requirements are 128 meg., we recommend 256 or higher. Some
people often multi-task programs which is fine, however that uses a
lot of resources. CDA also uses a lot of resources to cache open
pages allowing for quicker display time. By adding more memory to
your work stations that are heavily used will greatly enhance that
computers performance. Another cause could be the network
interface card. Some low end cards do not respond well with the
type of Client-Server activity that is needed to run CDA.
Another possible cause for slow response could
be your Anti-Virus software. Some AV software, such as Norton's,
have an Auto Protect feature that remains resident checking all
files that are being open on the computer. We recommend disabling
this feature. You are still fully protected through email control
and if you are on a broadband connection, you will have additional
firewall protection as well.
Under proper installation and
configuration, the CDA Service Manager software will perform as
expected. Please contact our Technical Support team if you need
help to correct this problem.
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| 4. |
|
| Q.: |
Occasionally
when I finish making changes to a work order, it doesn't seem to
save. What can I be doing wrong? |
| A.: |
Chances are, your
are not doing anything wrong. When you first installed CDA, there
was a support document included explaining how to properly set the
registry keys on your server and work stations. These setting
handle the concurrency control of the system allowing for data to be
written directly to the database file rather than being cached into
memory. Please check to be sure this procedure has been done
correctly. Our support staff will be glad to assist your with
this. Click the following link to view the Support document.
Technical Support Release 02
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| 5. |
|
| Q.: |
I have upgraded
some of my work stations to Windows XP and 2000. How can I get my
DOS version of CDA to run? |
| A.: |
The DOS version
of the CDA Service Manager does not support any windows operating
system above Windows98! You will need to upgrade to our Windows
version. Please Contact Us for the
current upgrade specials. |
| 6. |
|
| Q.: |
Do I need to
purchase another license to use CDA at another shop owned my me? |
| A.: |
Although a single installation of the CDA Server can handle multiple
locations via remote access such as Terminal Server, you will be
required to enter a License Key to access each additional set up
database for your additional operations. This will require a
license for each one. With the
additional license, you may also install a separate CDA Server for
each if you would like to operate each one independently.
You may however, install an unlimited number of work stations to
each CDA Location Server at no additional charge. Please
Contact Us for more information. |
| 7. |
|
| Q.: |
I often check the
CDA FTP site for new files. Should I download all of the files on
your site? |
| A.: |
NO. The CDA Ftp
site was established to give you a way to download files needed to
patch or upgrade your installation. You should only download the
files that we instruct you to. When you receive files from our FTP,
CDA automatically puts the file into your CDA data folder
overwriting the existing files with the same name. You don't want
to receive a file that was intended for another user running a
different version. Please check with Technical Support before
receiving files from the FTP. |
| 8. |
|
| Q.: |
When I try to
connect to one of the EDI partners using the FTP method through CDA, I get an error
saying "NAME NOT RESOLVED" and the processes is aborted. What
should I do? |
| A.: |
"NAME NOT
RESOLVED" means your User Name and/or Password was not accepted
by the server. Check your communications setup to be sure the
information is correct. This information is case sensitive so be
sure it is typed correctly. If the info is correct, you need to
contact EDI partner and inform them that their server is not allowing your
login. Also, if you are using the FTP method for any of the EDI
processing companies, you must contact each one and have them set up
an FTP account for you. |
| 9. |
|
| Q.: |
Recently, I find
that I have to Re-Index my files a couple of time a day or some of
the work stations can not find records. Could this be a problem
with my server? |
| A.: |
This sounds like
a data corruption problem. There are several causes for data
corruption. The most common is running CDA from a Windows ME
workstation. CDA does not support Windows ME because of it's
instability problems. If you have a Windows ME workstation anywhere
in your network, you must disable it from running CDA or upgrade it.
Another cause for this problem could be that you have the START IN
properties of the CDA Icon set to a Windows Path instead of a Mapped
Drive. For more reliable and stable data handling, we require
your work stations to have a Mapped Drive to the server and
reference that drive in the START IN properties of the CDA Icon.
Please contact Tech support if you need help with this. Some other causes could be
power surges, turning off the computer while CDA is performing a
task with an open file, viruses, mixing CDA versions on work
stations, etc. The first approach to
working with data corruption would be as follows . . .
1. Make sure everyone is completely logged
out of CDA.
2. Make a current backup
of your CDASERV folder on your server.
3. Open CDA on one computer and select to
RE-Build Database Structures from the Utility Menu.
4. When the Re-Build is completed,
Re-Index All Files from the Utility Menu.
Next, check for unwanted Index files as
follows . . .
Index files should ONLY be located in your
CDASERV folder on your server. When data base files become corrupt,
it is possible that some index files were written to the local C:\CDAWIN
folder if the RE-Index procedure was run from a workstation. Check
each of your workstation's
C:\CDAWIN
folder for files having an .NTX extension. For CDA
versions 8.5c and older, there should not be any files with an NTX
extension so please remove any found. For CDA versions 8.5d
and newer, there should only be two files and they are "JOBSLOG.NTX"
and "JOBSDATE.NTX". Please remove any
other
files found with an NTX extension..
Finally, if you have History files, look
in your History Default folder for files having an .NTX
extension. There should be less than 10 all beginning with "HIS".
Example: HISNAME.NTX
Be sure you have a
Current and Valid Backup of your History Files before proceeding
Remove any file with an .NTX
extension that does not begin with "HIS"
If unwanted NTX files were found and
removed, please run the re-indexing utility again.
If the problem still exists, contact our
support team for assistance.
|
| 10. |
|
| Q.: |
Why do all of my
workstations print to the same printers even though I have set the
printer assignment different for each one? |
| A.: |
The printer
assignments are controlled in a database named PRNDRV.DBF. This
database should be located in each workstation's
C:\CDAWIN
folder and SHOULD NOT reside in the CDASERV folder on
the server. If for some reason this file got installed in the
CDASERV folder on your server, every workstation will be using the
same database for their printer assignments making it impossible to
set up the workstations independently. To correct this problem,
remove the PRNDRV.DBF file from the CDASERV folder and reassign the
printers on each workstation. If for
some reason you did not install the CDA Work Station in the default
C:\CDAWIN
folder or if you have installed multiple work stations on a Terminal
Server using different folder names for each login account, please
contact our technical support for instructions on adjusting the
environment to support this. |
| 11. |
|
| Q. |
The CDA Scheduler
won't load from my Windows 98 work stations. Is this an
installation problem? |
| A. |
No. The CDA
Scheduler module requires Windows 2000 or higher to run. You
cannot use the Scheduler on a Windows 98 Operating System. |
| |
|
| 12. |
|
| Q. |
Can I design my
own custom reports with CDA? |
| A. |
CDA has dozens of
built-in reports that were carefully designed to handle all areas of
the program. However, if you have the need to design your own
custom reports, there is a 3rd. Party product available called
"Report Pro". This product is 100% compatible with CDA.
You can find more information about Report Pro at the following
link.
http://grafxsoft.com/rpro3.htm |
| 13. |
|
| Q. |
Recently, when I
run the "Assign Technicians to Work Orders" function, I am getting
mixed tech's on the printed assignment sheet. Is this an
indexing problem? |
| A. |
No. This is
caused by a damaged report file. The file name is
"WOASSN.DBF". This file can be downloaded from the CDA FTP
site via the following instructions . . .
1. Open the
Communications Menu.
2. Click on
"CDA FTP SITE"
3. Click on
the "CONNECT" button
4. Scroll
down the "Remote File" list and locate "WOASSN.DBF"
5. Right
Click on the file and Click "RECEIVE"
This will replace the damaged file.
Re-indexing is not necessary.
|
| 14. |
|
| Q. |
How do I setup CDA
to work with MicroSoft Terminal Server. |
| A. |
The following
Technical Support link will address the proper installation of CDA
Service Manager workstation clients Version 8.6 or later using MS Terminal
Server. The CDA Server software must be installed on the
Terminal Server prior to installing the workstation software.
Technical
Support Release 03
This installation
only supports CDA Service Manager version 8.6 or later. If you are
using MS Terminal Server Client and an older version of CDA, you
must upgrade. Please Contact Us for
upgrade information.
If you need
additional help setting up environment variables on your TS server,
please consult your network administrator. |
| |
|
| 15. |
|
| Q. |
What can I do to
keep up the performance of my CDA Software. |
| A.
|
There are many
things that can have an effect on performance. Some of the
basic problems are work stations with insufficient memory to handle
multi tasking. Most people often open multiple applications
and have other software running in the background doing other tasks.
This uses a lot of resources and requires fast computers with a lot
of memory. Although we require a minimum of 256 meg, you
should install as much as you can on each work station.
The CDA
server computer shares the data files with all of the clients.
Therefore network traffic can be extremely high with a lot of CDA
work stations requesting data. The speed of your network
cards, hubs, and other network related hardware is also very
important.
Regular
maintenance is also required to keep the performance maximized.
Your CDA Data files should be re-indexed every day. We suggest
setting up a scheduled task to handle this using the CDAINDEX.EXE
file located in your server's CDASERV folder. It is also very
important to make sure that all users are out of CDA while
re-indexing. If CDA data files are open, the indexing will not
complete. CDA support will be happy to help you set this up.
As time
passes, your CDA data files are growing in size. Oversized data
files will have an effect on performance as well. There are
various methods provided in the CDA software to help you manage
this. First, the work order file should be archived at the end
of each fiscal year. This moves all of the PAID-IN-FULL work
orders from the main data file into an archived data file.
Once archived, the work orders can be located through the HISTORY
menu. The archived records are only available to view.
You will not be able to include these records in reports.
However, you will be able to restore a record back to the
active data file if needed.
Another file
that should be purged on a regular basis is the Purchase Order data
file. There is a selection in the Purchase Order menu to
handle this. This procedure will only remove purchase orders
that have been completely filled and no longer need to be in this
file.
Also, the CDA
Scheduler should be purged on a regular basis. After the
scheduled day has passed, the system no longer needs to track the
data. Old data will slow the Scheduler down quickly, so keep
it purged.
If you have a
large service center with 20+ work stations we recommend moving to a
TS server using remote desktop work stations. This environment
removes the excessive network traffic because all the processing is
done on the server. With a powerful server and the proper
configuration, you will not experience any performance issues.
The CDA
Service Manager software is a very large and powerful data base
management program developed to provide all the functions to handle
a demanding service business. Your hardware and network must
be good enough to take advantage of all the CDA's capabilities.
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|
16. |
|
|
Q. |
How often should I re-index my CDA files.
Is there a way to set the system to re-index automatically. |
| A. |
You should re-index your CDA files daily.
|
|
You can create a Windows Scheduled Task on
your server to run the CDAINDEX.EXE utility automatically every
night. This file located in your CDASERV folder on your
server. If you setup a task to re-index automatically after
hours, it is important to be sure that all users are logged out of
CDA when they leave at the end of the day. If any data files
are open, they will not be re-indexed. When the CDAINDEX
utility runs, it creates a log file named CDAINDEX.LOG also located
in the CDASERV folder on your server. You can open this file
with any text editor and see the results of every time the utility
runs. Please contact CDA technical
support if you need assistance with this feature. |
|
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|
17. |
|
|
Q. |
I am running CDA version 8.7 and I have a
scanner that is connected to another computer in the network that
has been shared. I cannot get CDA to recognize this scanner.
Is there a separate set up for this? |
| A. |
CDA doesn't know where
scanners are or how they're connected, it just enumerates the TWAIN
drivers it finds on the local computer. To make any scanner
appear in the TWAIN device list, there has to be a locally installed
TWAIN driver for that scanner. Most network scanners have a
remote TWAIN driver that you can install on a client PC. For
example, Canon has a driver called Network ScanGear that works with
their ImageRunner models. Xerox, Fujitsu, Ricoh also have something
like this. There are also 3rd Party products available that
makes any TWAIN scanner sharable across a network. Search the
web for "Remote Scanning Software". |
|
18. |
|
|
Q. |
I am having a problem with the CDA Scanning
Module. I receive the error message "File Open Failed (Invalid
path or name, or access denied)" when scanning a document in to CDA.
This happens only when I scan multiple documents. The initial
document will scan without a problem. How do I resolve this
error? |
| A. |
This error can be caused by your Anti-Virus
Autoprotect features such as those from Symantec Antivirus.
(Autoprotect provides constant scanning of files as they are
accessed or modified). To prevent the error, Autoprotect
needs to be disabled. or modified to ignore PDF files on the
computer where the CDA server files reside. |
|
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|
19. |
|
|
Q. |
When I scan a barcode, I have to press the
Enter or Tab key to get the system to process the scan. Why
doesn't the system process the scan automatically? |
| A. |
Your barcode scanner must be programmed to
issue the "TAB" character after each scan. Programming
instructions should be included in your products manual. You
can also contact your products technical support team for additional
help.
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20. |
|
|
Q. |
I have upgraded some of my workstations to MS
Vista. Will this have an effect on the CDA program? |
| A. |
Support for MS Vista was included in CDA
starting with version 8.7. If you are running any Vista
workstations with a CDA version lower than 8.7 you must upgrade.
Lock-ups and possible data corruption can occur when running older
CDA versions on a Vista workstation. |
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21. |
|
|
Q. |
Since I upgraded to CDA version 8.7, I have
had some problems with data corruption. What should I look for
to correct this? |
| A. |
We have found the most popular cause for this
problem is running mixed version of CDA throughout your network.
It is very important that after you upgrade your server, you must
upgrade all of your work stations including your Terminal Server if
you are using remote access clients. Accessing an 8.7 server
with an older version workstation can cause many problems.
Also, CDA version 8.7 and higher no longer supports Windows 98.
You must upgrade your Windows 98 computers to XP or VISTA.
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22. |
|
|
Q. |
How do I setup CDA to handle The Encompass
Parts Group? |
|
A. |
Please click on the following link:
Encompass Parts Group Setup |
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23. |
|
|
Q. |
Why are my Sharp claims being rejected from
Service Bench? |
| A. |
It appears that the standard I420 EIA code will not work with
Service Bench. You will need to make some changes. Please follow
these instructions…
Step #1: Change the code in the MFG EIA data table.
-
Click on the MFG menu and then click on Edit MFG EIA Database and
then Locate By EIA Code.
-
Type in I420 then click Edit.
-
Change the code to SHRP and click Ok.
Step #2: Re-assign the existing Sharp assignment in the EDI
Processor Setup.
-
Click on the Communications menu and then click on EDI Processor
Setup.
-
Locate your Sharp Assignment and Delete it.
-
Click the Add button
-
Click on Add New MFG and select your Sharp code.
-
In the Service Bench box, click on Account #1.
-
Scroll through the list of Manufacturers and select Sharp.
-
Click Create. This will create a new link for the new Sharp code.
-
Close the EDI Processor Window.
Step #3: Re-Submit the claims for Sharp.
Locate the Work Order for each Sharp claim. Go into the Billing
Window and click the Re-Submit button.
You can now re-transmit the claims to Service Bench.
Please contact technical support if you need further assistance
with this issue. |
|
|
| 24. |
|
| Q. |
I am having
problems receiving dispatches from Service Bench through the CDA
Scheduler. I get an error saying that the Dispatch File may be
too Large. How do I correct this? |
| A. |
CDA has a
limitation to the size of an XML file that can be received. If
you don't pickup and Accept the dispatches from Service Bench on a
frequent schedule throughout the day, the XML file can grow beyond
the size allowed by CDA. To correct this, follow these
steps...
1. When you
click on the Satellite Icon for Service Bench, select
All Dispatches Including Previously Received.
Then select a
date range for only one day. Repeat this process for each day you
need to receive dispatches. This will limit the number of
dispatches for each request so the file will not be too large to be
received by CDA. If this doesn’t work, proceed to the next steps.
2. Pick up and Accept all your
pending dispatches manually from the Service Bench web site and
enter them into CDA.
3. Next, you will need to contact Aparna Patel from Service
Bench (AAPatel@newcorp.com)
and tell her that you are using CDA and you need all of your
dispatches flagged as
DOWNLOADED. This will
release them and will not include them in the next request made by
CDA.
4. To prevent this, you will need to pick up and Accept your
dispatches through CDA more frequently so the file will not become
too large to be received.
CDA has developed a Real-Time interface with Service Bench that will
eliminate this from happening.
The Real-Time interface will automatically pickup and process your
dispatches directly into CDA every 15 minutes, 24 hours a day
without user intervention. Work orders are automatically created
and the dispatch is entered directly into the CDA Scheduler.
Service Bench will also have real-time visibility into your CDA
Scheduler. Any changes to the CDA Scheduler for zones, zip codes,
routes, etc. are updated to Service Bench in real-time. Status
changes to work orders are updated to Service Bench in real-time as
well.
This is an
optional module.
If you would like to order it please contact CDA Sales at (800)
451-0137. The cost for this interface is $400.00. |
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