Archive Processed Transactions to Speed System Throughput
PowerShift archive programs move data from active transaction files to history files. Archiving can significantly speed day-to-day processing because it reduces the size of transaction files.
Because archive programs require access to files across many parts of PowerShift and the process can be resource-intensive, it's best to run them when other activity on the system is low. This makes archiving a perfect candidate for automation through the Job Scheduler (JOBS).
Archive programs are listed on the ARC menu (released in 4.20.028):
| TEX: Transfer Archive | RMAX: RMA Archive | WEX: Workorderless Receiver Archive |
| OEX: Sales Order Archive | SCEX: Sales Commission Archive | NEX: AP Transaction Archive |
| REX: AR Transaction Archive | VEX: PO-Receiver Archive | IMRBX: Inventory-to-MRB Archive |
You may have many years of data in active transaction files. Each time you look for a particular transaction, the system has to go through all those years of data to find what you're looking for. You can speed transaction processing time considerably by moving to history those transactions that you don't need access to every day. And when you do need to look at something in history? You can access archived data by selecting the Include history option in inquiries and reports.
You'll need to decide how long you want to retain data in active transaction files. If you decide one year is appropriate for sales orders, for example, and you have 10 years of data currently, you may need to run the archive program multiple times (it is recommended that you archive 10,000 or fewer transactions in a single run). When you get to your one-year-and-newer-orders goal, you can set up a job that rolls older orders to history on a monthly or quarterly basis.
Custom ODBC queries and Report Generator reports may need to be updated to consider data in the history files.
