bmc remedy approval server 70 guide for users and administrators

7/22/2019 BMC Remedy Approval Server 70 Guide for Users and Administrators

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May 2006

Part No: 59459

BMCRemedyApproval Server 7.0

Guide for Users and

Administrators


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BMC Software, Inc.www. bmc. com

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BMC, the BMC logo, all other BMC product or service names, BMC Software, the BMC Software logos, andall other BMC Software product or service names, are registered trademarks or trademarks of BMC

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BMC Software, Inc., considers information included in this documentation to be proprietary andconfidential. Your use of this information is subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable end userlicense agreement or nondisclosure agreement for the product and the proprietary and restricted rightsnotices included in this documentation.

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U.S. Government Restricted Rights to Computer Software. UNPUBLISHED -- RIGHTS RESERVED UNDER THECOPYRIGHT LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES. Use, duplication, or disclosure of any data and computer software by theU.S. Government is subject to restrictions, as applicable, set for th in FAR Section 52.227-14, DFARS 252.227-7013, DFARS252.227-7014, DFARS 252.227-7015, and DFARS 252.227-7025, as amended from time to time. Contractor /Manufacturer isBMC Software, Inc., 2101 CityWest Blvd., Houston, TX 77042-2827, USA. Any contract notices should be sent to this address.

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This edition applies to version 7.0 of the licensed program.
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Contents

3

Contents

Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Whats new in 7.0?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Related BMC Remedy documents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Learn more about the AR System Developer Community. . . . . . . . . . 17Why should you part icipate in the Developer Community? . . . . . . . . 17

How do you access the Developer Community? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Chapter 1 Installation and configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Installation notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

AR System server installation notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Approval Web installation notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Licensing the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Installing the Approval Server on Windows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Installing the Approval Server on UNIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Using the Approval Server on the web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Manually starting and stopping the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

WindowsStarting the server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

WindowsStopping the server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

UNIXStarting and stopping the server manually . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Using an AR System server without portmapper. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Configuring the ARSystem server without portmapper . . . . . . . . . . 30

Configuring the Approval Server without portmapper . . . . . . . . . . 31


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BMC Remedy Approval Server

Uninstalling the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Removing a Windows installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Removing a UNIX installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Where to go next . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Chapter 2 Understanding the approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

The basic approval. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

The approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

The BMC Remedy Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Common experience across applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Flexibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Notification plus feedback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Chapter 3 The BMC Remedy model for approvals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Key concepts of the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

The approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Who participates in the approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Acknowledging approvals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Where to go next . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Chapter 4 Working as an approver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Processing an approval request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Viewing approval requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Performing other approval actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Requesting more information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Reassigning an approval request. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Specifying the next approver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Handling approval errors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Designating alternate approvers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49Designating alternate approvers for yourself. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Serving as an alternate approver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Managing alternate approver definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Performing overrides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51


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Guide for Users and Administrators

Chapter 5 Processing approval requests with Approval Central . . . . . . . 53

Logging in to Approval Central with a browser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Logging in to Approval Central with BMC Remedy User . . . . . . . . . . 56

Defining approval details. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Approving approval requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Specifying next approvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Specifying multiple approvers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Reassigning approval requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Processing More Information Requests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Requesting more information about approval requests . . . . . . . . . . 62Viewing and responding to the More Information Requests to you . . . . . 63

Viewing More Information Requests you have submitted . . . . . . . . . 65

Using alternate approvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Designating alternate approvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Acting as an alternate approver . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Managing alternate approver definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Additional options for process administrators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Defining alternates for other approvers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70

Performing overrides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Chapter 6 Using a sample application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Using the Get Agreement sample application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Making a new approval request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Approving a request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Requesting more information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Responding to a more information request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Reassigning an approval request. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Displaying answers to More Information Requests . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Finishing the sample request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81Summary of sample . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Chapter 7 Preparing process administrators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

The role of the process administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Process administrator responsibil ities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Sharing process administration authori ty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Delegating process administration capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85


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Key features of the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Approval data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Common rules and operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Self Check rulesPreventing unnecessary routing . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Approver roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Next approver rulesDetermining who is next . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Approver responseSignature line . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Statistical Decision-Making rulesDo you want to base your decision upon sta-tistical data? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Routing completion checkWho is left? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Process done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Summary of common process elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Approval process types. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Summary of process types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Chapter 8 Working with the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Using the Approval Server Administration form . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Using the Administration form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

Renaming a process or form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Configuring the server settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Setting up administrator capabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125Using approval notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Defining the events to trigger notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Defining an approval noti fication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Configuring business times . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136

Where to go next . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

Chapter 9 Defining an approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139

Using the Process Definition form. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Creating a process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Entering more information escalations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Working with existing processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Modifying processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Deleting processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Renaming processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151


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Chapter 10 Defining approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Using the Rule Definition form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Creating a rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Using the Basic tab on the Rule Definition form . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

Using the Set Fields tab on the rule definition form . . . . . . . . . . 157

Example of the Set Fields tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Working with Auto-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Defining Auto-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Auto-Approval rule example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Working with Self-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162Defining Self-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Self-Approval rule example. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Working with Prep Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Defining Prep Get Next Approve rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Example of a Prep Get Next Approve rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Working with Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Working with a Parent-Child process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Working with a Level process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Working with an Ad Hoc process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169

Working with a Rule-Based process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Defining Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Example of Get Next Approver rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Working with Parameterized Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Defining Parameterized Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Example of Parameterized Get Next Approver rule. . . . . . . . . . . 177

Working with Validate Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Defining validate approver rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

Example of a validate approver rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Working with Get Authority rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Defining Get Authority rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181

Example of a Get Authority rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Working with Get Authority Regular rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Defining Get Authority Regular rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Example of a Get Authority Regular rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184


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Working with Get Authority Self rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Defining get authority self rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Example of a Get Authority Self rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Working with Completion rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187Defining Completion rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Example of a completion rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 188

Working with Signature Accumulator rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Defining Signature Accumulator rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190

Example of a Signature Accumulator rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Working with Statistical Override rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193Defining Statistical Override rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Example of a Statistical Override rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

Statistical Decision-Making approvals in a sample application . . . . . . . 196

Statistical decision making rules in the Get Agreement sample . . . . . . 199

Working with Approval Process Done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Defining Approval Process Done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201

Example of an Approval Process Done rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Working with existing rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Viewing rule stages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203

Modifying rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Deleting rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Chapter 11 Managing users and roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207Defining roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 208

Defining alternate approvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

Assigning process override capability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211

Chapter 12 Implementing sample application features . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Overview of the Lunch Scheduler application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Key forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

Sample process descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 216

Management cost authorization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Major account level approval . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Special overdue approval . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Previewing approvers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 218


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Chaining approval processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Using a status field in chained processes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Flow between chained processes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Restarting an approval process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222Special techniques . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

More information. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

Show summary and signatures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 224

Show password field if required . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Recommended technique: menu of valid names . . . . . . . . . . . . 225

Sample users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226Sample user approval authority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Chapter 13 Adding approvals to your application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Connecting an application to the Approval Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

Enabling workflow-based notifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

Preparing your application to interact with Approval Central. . . . . . . . 237

Adding your form to the Approval Central application . . . . . . . . . 237

Integrating your form with Approval Central workflow . . . . . . . . . 238

Adding optional navigational aids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Appendix A Worksheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Process worksheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Defining a process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242More information escalations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Signature escalations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 243

Rule worksheets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Auto-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Get Authori ty Self rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Get Authori ty rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246Self-Approval rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Validate Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247

Prep Get Next Approver rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249

Get Authori ty Regular rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Completion rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Parameterized Get Next Approver rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 251


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Signature Accumulator Done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Statistical Overr ide Done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

Approval Process Done rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 253

Appendix B Application commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Basic information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

Specific Approval Server commands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

Add-Sig . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

Add-PGNA-Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Det-Approved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259Det-Cancelled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Det-Error . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Det-Rejected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

MoreInfo-Return . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

New-Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 261

Rename-Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Rename-Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Sig-Approved . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Sig-Cancelled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Sig-Notify . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Sig-Notify-Change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Sig-Notify-State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264

Sig-Reassign . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265Sig-Rejected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Update-Config . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Appendix C Approval forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

Approval Central application . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268

AP:Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269AP:Alternate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

AP:Detail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

AP:Detail-Signature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

AP:Form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284

AP:More information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 285

AP:Notification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

AP:PreviewInfo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 292


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AP:Process administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

AP:Process definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295

AP:Reserved word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301

AP:Role . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301AP:Rule Definition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

AP:Signature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 309

APW:Access Privileges. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 310

APW:Approval Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 312

APW:More info requests. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 313

Business time holidays. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315Business time workdays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

User form xxx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Appendix D Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

Installation concerns. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Previous Approval Server installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Public group permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Application pending form . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 321

Errors not reported . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Approval Web concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

The Approval Central URL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Sample application concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Sample users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322Miscellaneous runtime concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Approver receives request but cannot respond. . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Deadlocked approval server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Error messages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324

Appendix E Installation directory structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 333

Default installation directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Directory structure for Windows installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Approval Server 7.0 fi les for Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Directory structure for UNIX installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335

Approval server 7.0 fi les for UNIX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 335

Glossary. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353


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Contents



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Preface

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Preface

This chapter provides the following introductory information about theBMC Remedy Approval Serverapplication:

Audience (page14)

Whats new in 7.0?(page15)

Related BMC Remedy documents (page16) Learn more about the AR System Developer Community (page17)

Important:The compatibility information listed in the productdocumentation is subject to change. See the compatibility matrix atht t p: / / support web. remedy. comfor the latest, most completeinformation about what is officially supported.

Carefully read the system requirements for your part icular operatingsystem, especially the necessary patch requirements.
http://supportweb.remedy.com/http://supportweb.remedy.com/


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G id f U dAd i i


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Whats new in 7.0?

15


Whats new in 7.0?

The following Approval Server features are new in 7.0:

Generating a list of previewersLets you see a preview list of all approversworking on a request in the Preview Signatures form. For information, seeCreating a process on page140 and Previewing approvers onpage218.

Parameterized Get Next Approver ruleNew rule that lets you addadditional Ad Hoc approvers to anystage in an approval process. Forinformation, seeWorking with Parameterized Get Next Approver ruleson page174.

Workflow-based notificationsIn addition to email and BMC RemedyAlert as notification methods, notifications can be fired when certainworkflow is tr iggered. Applications can now use their custom noti ficationsystems for approval events. Workflow-based notification provides anintegration for approval events to be propagated to their notification

systems. For more information, seeDefining an approval notificationon page129and Enabling workflow-based notifications on page235.

ARDBC Plug-inReplaces approval server Windows service and UNIXdaemon. For more information, see the Acti on Request System 7.0:Integrating with Plug-ins and Third-Party Productsguide.

Process instance IDUnique GUID that identifies each process. This isespecially useful if processes use the same name. All workflow that needs

to see this process can now see the GUID and not just the name. You cannow change process names as needed, without affecting underlyingworkflow. For information, see Working with Auto-Approval rules onpage159.

New application commandsThe Add- PGNA- Val uescommand providesthe variable values for the Parameterized Get Next Approver rule type. Forinformation, seeAppendix B, Application commands.

BMCRemedyApproval Server


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Preface


Multitenancy supportThe 7.0 Approval Server supports multitenancyfor use by application service providers. In the same ARSystem server,you can now include approval processes for applications that are shared bymultiple companies. Field 112 with permissions to the Assignee Grouponly has been added to all Approval Server forms. The field 112 value fromrecords created in the AP:Details form is used automatically in all theother Approval Server forms, for example, AP:Signature, AP:MoreInformation, and so on.

To use with application commands, seeAdd-Sig on page258andNew-Details on page261.For information on access control in the ARSystem,

see theBMC Remedy AR System Form and Applicati on Objectsguide.

Related BMC Remedy documents

title and part number Description Audience Format

Conceptsguide Overview of ARSystem architecture and

features with in-depth examples; includesinformation about other ARSystemproducts as well as a comprehensiveglossary for the entire AR Systemdocumentation set.

Everyone Print and

PDF

Form and Appli cation Objects

guideBasic procedures for creating andmodifying an ARSystem application fortracking data and processes.

Administrators Print andPDF

Workflow Objectsguide Advanced procedures for extending andcustomizing ARSystem applications.

Administrators Print andPDF

Unless otherwise noted, onl ine documentation is available in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format on ARSystemproduct installation CDs or on the Customer Support website.

GuideforUsersandAdministrators


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Learn more about the ARSystem Developer Community

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Learn more about the ARSystem Developer

Community

If you are interested in learning more about AR System, looking for anopportunity to collaborate with fellow AR System developers, and searchingfor additional resources that can benefit your ARSystem solution, then thisonline global community sponsored by BMC Remedy is for you.

In the Developer Community, you will find collaboration tools, productinformation, resource links, user group information, and be able to provide

BMC Remedy with feedback.The Developer Community offers the following tools and information:

Community message board

Community Downloads

ARSystem Tips & Tricks

Community recommended resources

Product information User Experience Design tips

Suggestion box

Why should you participate in the Developer Community?

You can benefit from participating in the Developer Community for thefollowing reasons:

The community is a direct result of AR System developer feedback.

BMC Remedy provides unsupported applications and utilities by way ofCommunity Downloads, an AR System application.

BMC Remedy posts the latest ARSystem product information in theDeveloper Community to keep you up to date.

It is an opportunity to directly impact product direction through onlineand email surveys.

Its free!

How do you access the Developer Community?

Go to www. r emedy. com/ dev_communi t y.

BMCRemedyApproval Server
http://www.remedy.com/dev_communityhttp://www.remedy.com/dev_community


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Preface



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Installation and configuration

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Chapter

1Installation and configuration

The AR System 7.0 Approval Server is available for Windows and UNIX(including Linux). Installation directions for both platforms appear in thischapter.

The following topics are provided:

Installation notes (page20)

Licensing the Approval Server (page20)

Installing the Approval Server on Windows (page21)

Installing the Approval Server on UNIX (page23)

Using the Approval Server on the web (page25) Manually starting and stopping the Approval Server (page27)

Using an AR System server without portmapper (page30)

Uninstalling the Approval Server (page31)

Where to go next (page32)



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20

Chapter 1Installation and configuration

y pp

Installation notes

Updates to other AR System products (such as the BMC Remedy Change

Management application) that are compatible with the 7.0 Approval Serverrelease are being planned. Further information will be available as theseupdates become available.

For the most current information about compatibil ity of various ARSystemproducts with the 7.0 Approval Server, see the Product Compatibility Matrixfound at the following URL:

ht t p: / / support web. remedy. com

ARSystem server installation notes

You must be an AR System administrator to install this product.

You must have AR System server 7.0 or later installed before you proceedwith the Approval Server installation. Approval Server 7.0 is supported on

only AR System 7.0 or later. You must install the Approval Server on your AR System server machine.

If the Application Pending form is not already present on your AR System,you must stop and restart the ARSystem server before you can start usingthe Approval Server.

Approval Web installation notesAll Approval Web components are automatically installed with the ApprovalServer. Before using Approval Web, you must install the AR System mid tiercomponent and you should configure the ARSystem Object List for use withyour browser. For more information, see theInstalling andConfiguringguides.

Licensing the Approval Server

Starting with the 5.1 release, the BMC Remedy Approval Server no longerrequires a purchasable license to operate. The BMC Remedy Approval Servernow automatically comes free with each licensed copy of the AR System. Asa result, you no longer need to call BMC Remedy Customer Support toobtain a license for each ARSystem form that you want to attach an approvalprocess to.

http://supportweb.remedy.com/http://supportweb.remedy.com/


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Installing the Approval Server on Windows

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Installing the Approval Server on Windows

Use the following procedure to install the Approval Server on a Windows

computer with an existing AR System installation 7.0 or later.

Note: If you are upgrading the Approval Server to 7.0, the installationprogram automatically migrates all your Approval Server forms, includingany new fields that you have added. However, you might have to openthese forms in BMC Remedy Administrator and rearrange theirappearance.

You do not need to quit all applications before running the installer.

To install the Approval Server on Windows

1 Insert the Action Request System CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive.

The CD Browser appears. If your computer is not set up to autorun CD-

ROMs, then use Windows Explorer to view the root directory of the CD-ROM and double-click appr oval . exe.

2 Click Install Products.

The Install Products window appears.

3 Click BMC Remedy Approval Server.

A splash screen appears and the installer begins. After a short delay a welcomescreen appears.

4 Click Next.

The Software License Agreement screen appears.

5 Click the I Agree button to accept the software license agreement.

A dialog box appears asking you for the name of the AR System server wherethe Approval Server will be installed.

6 Enter the name of your server and, if needed, the number of the TCP port,and then click Next.

The installer starts the specified AR System server, if i t is not already started.

A dialog box then appears asking you for an AR System Administrator username and password.



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7 Enter this information into the appropriate fields and click Next.

A dialog box appears asking for additional localized views and data to install.

8 Select the localized views and data you want to install and click Next.

A dialog box appears asking if you want to install the Approval Server sampleapplications.

9 Click Next.

A dialog box appears asking for the destination path to install the BMCRemedy Approval Server.

10 Click Next to use the default or click Browse to select another directory.You should use the default to install in the same directory as the AR Systemserver.

11 Click Next to continue.

The installer might prompt you to change the permissions of the Publicgroup from View to Change.

12 Click Yes to continue.

The installer continues installing the Approval Server software and importsworkflow and data. When i t is finished, the Import Completion dialog boxappears.

13 Click OK.

The installer starts the service required for the Approval Server.

The Log File Location dialog box appears, and the installation is complete.

Log files are generated during the installation of this product. Uponsuccessful completion, these files can be removed.

14 Click OK.

Usually you do not have to restart your machine to use the Approval Server.

If a restart is necessary, a dialog box prompts you to do so.

You can now log in to the AR System to start using the Approval Server, orcontinue to the next section to install Approval Web. See the end of thischapter for a road map for fi rst-t ime process administrators.



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Installing the Approval Server on UNIX

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Installing the Approval Server on UNIX

Use the following procedure to install the Approval Server on a UNIX

computer (including Linux) with an existing ARSystem installation 7.0 orlater.

You do not need to quit any applications before running the installer.

To install the Approval Server on UNIX

1 Uncompress and extract the appr oval _. t ar . gz file.

For instructions on using thegunzi p

andt ar

utilities to uncompress andextract the contents of the appr oval _. t ar . gz file, see theInstalling guide.

2 Change your current directory to the directory where you downloaded theinstallation fi le. From this directory, run the script:

ar _api nst al l

3 The installer script asks

On whi ch AR Syst emServer i s t he AR Syst emAppr oval Server t o bei nstal l ed?

and provides a default server name based on the host name. Press Enter ortype the proper server name and press Enter.

4 The installer script confirms the server name, asking

AR Syst em Appr oval Ser ver wi l l be i nst al l ed on .

I s thi s corr ect?

Press Enter if the directory is correct, or type Nto return to the previous step.


What i s a val i d AR System Admi ni st r at or I D?

and provides a default if able. Press Enter to use the default, or type a validAdministrator ID and press Enter.

6 The installer script confirms the Administrator ID, asking

i s t he AR System Admi ni st r at or I D t o use. I s t hi s OK?

Press Enter if the ID is correct, or type Nto return to the previous step.


What i s t he password f or t he AR Syst em Admi ni st r ator ?

Type the password for this Administrator ID you provided, and press Enter.



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Pl ease re-ent er t he passwor d f or ver i f i cat i on

Type the password for the Administrator ID you provided, and press Enter.


What i s t he di r ectory t o i nst al l AR Syst em Appr oval Ser ver ?

and provides a default directory. Press Enter or type the proper directory andpress Enter. Without a specific reason, you should use the default values andinstall in the same directory as your AR System server.

10 The installer script then displays information about disk space requirements,

and verifies how much is available. If there is enough disk space, the installerasks

AR Syst em Appr oval Ser ver wi l l be i nst al l ed i n t he

. I s thi s corr ect?

Press Enter if the directory is correct, or type Nto return to the previous step.

Note: If there is not enough disk space available, the installer displays amessage asking

Do you want t o t r y t o i nst al l i n anyway?

Note:Press Enter or typeYto proceed. TypeNto return to the previous step.

11 The installer script displays messages about the forms to install, and asks

Load AR Syst em Appr oval Server f orms i nto t he AR Syst em?

Press Enter to continue, or typeNto proceed with the installation of only theApproval Server executable.

Note: If you do not install the Approval Server forms, the Approval Servercannot function. Answer No only if you are restoring the forms in anotherway.

The installer script displays many messages as it loads definitions of theApproval Server forms into the AR System. Loading might take severalminutes to complete, so please be patient.



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Using the Approval Server on the web

25

12 When the installation is successful, the installer script reports

AR Syst em Appr oval Ser ver i nst al l ed.

The installer starts the daemon for the Approval Server. The Approval Server

is ready to use as soon as the installation is complete.

Log files are generated during the installation of this product. Uponsuccessful completion, these files can be removed.

You can now log in to the AR System to start using the Approval Server, orcontinue to the next section to install Approval Web. See the end of thischapter for a road map for fi rst-t ime process administrators.

Using the Approval Server on the web

The AR System 7.0 mid tier makes it easy for you to administer the ApprovalServer from a browser. You no longer need to create and deploy the ApprovalServer forms for use with browsers.

To use the Approval Server on the web

1 After installing the mid tier and Approval Server, open a browser.

2 Do one of the following steps:

To open the Approval Central application in your browser (as shown inFigure1-1), enter the following URL:

http: / // ar sys/ apps/ / Approval Cent ral



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Figure1-1: Approval Central displayed in browser

To view a list of all Approval Server forms in your browser, enter thefollowing URL to open the AR System Object List:

http: / // arsys/ f orms

Your Approval Web and Administration components are ready for web usersto access.

Note:For more information, see theConfiguring andForm and ApplicationObjects guides.



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Manually starting and stopping the Approval Server

27


Since the Approval Server is an ARDBC plug-in, the installation script starts

the AR System server (and with it, the Approval Server) automatically. Theinstallation procedures should automatically start the Approval Server alongwith the AR System server. But you can stop the server and start it manuallyto verify the installation or troubleshoot problems. For more information,see the Installing guide.

WindowsStarting the server

This section describes how to start Approval Server manually on Windows.

To start the Approval Server on Windows

1 Access the Services screen.

a Choose Start > Settings > Control Panel.

b Double-click Administrative Tools.c Double-click the Services icon.

2 Select the appropriate server.

The first or only server installed on a computer is called Remedy Act i onRequest Syst emServer .

Additional servers are listed asAct i on Request Syst em.

3 Choose Action > Start.

WindowsStopping the server

This section describes how to stop the Approval Server manually onWindows.

You can stop other services using the same procedure. To stop multipleservices, stop them in the following order:

1 AR System server

2 Approval Server Portmapper



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To stop the server

1 Access the Services screen:

a Choose Start > Settings > Control Panel.

b Double-click Administrative Tools.

c Double-click the Services icon.

2 Select the appropriate server.

The first or only server installed on a computer is named Remedy Act i onRequest Syst emServer .

Additional servers are listed asAct i on Request Syst em.

3 Choose Action > Stop.

UNIXStarting and stopping the server manually

This section describes how to start and stop the Approval Server manually on

Windows.

To start the server manually

1 Log in asr oot or, in a non-root installation, log in as the user who starts theAR System server.

Note:Make sure that you have read/write access to the / dev/ consol efilebefore you restart the server as non-root.

2 Enter the appropriate command, as shown in the following UNIX startcommands table.



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29

If you install multiple servers, your directory might be calledarsyst em_.

To stop the server manually

1 Log in asr oot or, in a non-root installation, log in as the user who starts theAR System server.

2 Enter the appropriate stop command:

System Type Command

HP-UX If you added a startup script, use/ sbi n/ i ni t . d/ arsystemstart or, if you acceptedthe default installation directory, use/ usr/ ar/ / bi n st ar t or, if youinstalled into another directory, use / bi n/ ar system start .

IBM AIX If you accepted the default installation directory, use / usr/ ar/ / bi nstart or, i f you installed into another directory, use/ bi n/ ar syst emstart.

Solaris If you added a startup script, use/ et c/ i ni t. d/ arsystemstart or, if you acceptedthe default installation directory, use /usr/ar// bi n/ arsystemstart or, i f you installed into another directory, use/ bi n/ ar syst emstart.

Linux I f you added a startup script, use/ et c/ i ni t. d/ arsystemstart or, if you acceptedthe default installation directory, use /usr/ar// bi n/ arsystemstart or, i f you installed into another directory, use/ bi n/ ar syst emstart.

System Type Command

HP-UX If you added a startup script, use / sbi n/ i ni t. d/ arsystemst op or, if you acceptedthe default installation directory, use sb/ usr/ ar / / bi n/ ar systemst op or, if you installed into another directory, use / bi n/ ar systemst op.

IBM AIX If you accepted the default installation directory, usesb/ usr/ ar/ / bi n/

arsystemstop or, i f you installed into another directory, use / bi n/arsystemst op.

Solaris If you added a startup script, use/ etc/ i ni t. d/ arsystemst opor, if you accepted thedefault installation directory, use sb/ usr/ ar/ / bi n/ arsystemst opor, if you installed into another directory, use / bi n/ ar syst emstop.

Linux If you added a startup script, use/ etc/ i ni t. d/ arsystemst opor, if you accepted thedefault installation directory, use sb/ usr/ ar / / bi n/ arsystemst op

or, if you installed into another directory, use / bi n/ ar syst emstop.



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If you install multiple servers, your directory might be calledarsyst em_.

WARNING:Do not use the ki l l - 9command to stop the server. Doing somight leave your database in an inconsistent state.

Using an ARSystem server without portmapper

Without Portmapper running, an AR System server requires manual port

configuration for communication with the Approval Server. For moreinformation about Portmapper, see theConfiguring guide. The followingsection lists the procedures you must perform for this configuration.

Note:The following procedures use example port number values. Yourconfiguration can use any port numbers that do not confl ict with existingports. You can discover your existing ports in use with the command

net stat - a (Windows) or rpci nf o - p (UNIX).

Configuring the ARSystem server without portmapper

You can use BMC Remedy Administrator to disable Portmapper and toassign one port number to the whole AR System server.

To configure the AR System server without portmapper

1 From BMC Remedy Administrator, log in to the appropriate AR Systemserver.

2 Choose File > Server Information > Server Ports and Multiple queues.

3 Enter a port number in the Server TCP/IP Port field.

The example port number in these procedures is9030.

4 Clear the Register with Portmapper check box.

5 Stop the ARSystem server and restart it.

The AR System server is listening on the ports now.


C fi i th A lS ith t t


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Uninstalling the Approval Server

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Configuring the Approval Server without portmapper

For the Approval Server to communicate with an ARSystem server, oneentry has to be added to the configuration file.

To configure the Approval Server without portmapper

1 Open the file / conf / ar. cf g, (Windows) or ar . conf (UNIX).

Note:You must modify this fi le on each ARSystem server to be used withoutportmapper.

2 Add the following line to specify the port number.

Approval - Speci f i c-Por t : 9 0 3 0

3 Stop and restart the Approval Server.

SeeManually starting and stopping the Approval Server on page27for theprocedures for Windows and UNIX.

Uninstalling the Approval Server

These procedures explain how to uninstall the Approval Server on Windowsand UNIX. Log files are generated during the uninstallation of this product.Upon successful completion, these files can be removed.

Removing a Windows installation

To uninstall the Approval Server for Windows, use the Add/RemovePrograms control panel. Locate and remove the AR System Approval Server.

Removing a UNIX installation

The Approval Server uninstaller, ar _apuni nst al l , is located in the directory/ appr oval / bi n/ .

WARNING:The UNIX uninstaller references other fi les relative to its owndirectory. Set the current directory to the one in which the uninstallerexecutable resides.


E h i t ll di l i t ti t ti T d t t


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Each uninstaller displays instructions at runtime. To proceed, you must entera valid administrator login ID and password. You must also specify whetheryou want to uninstall shared forms.

Where to go next

SeeChapter 2, Understanding the approval process, for basic ApprovalServer concepts. See Chapter 7, Preparing process administrators, forprocess administration concepts.

SeeChapter 5, Processing approval requests with Approval Central, for

instructions on how to approve requests. SeeChapter 6, Using a sample application, for a demonstration of acting

as an approver using one of the sample applications. See Chapter 12,Implementing sample application features,for a demonstration ofprocess administration using one of the sample applications.

SeeChapter 13, Adding approvals to your application, for instructions

on how ARSystem administrators configure the Approval Server to workwith existing applications.


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Understanding the approval process

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Chapter

2Understanding the approvalprocess

This chapter is written for all users and administrators of the ARSystemApproval Server.

The following topics are provided: The basic approval (page34)

The approval process (page34)

The BMC Remedy Approval Server (page35)


Thebasicapproval


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34

Chapter 2Understanding the approval process

The basic approval

An approval indicates agreement or rejection of a request. In business,approvals are generally signatures of key individuals, recorded for thepurposes of providing an audit trail or proof of authenticity.

Approvalexample

When you ask your boss to sign for your vacation or a new computer, you arerequesting an approval. Your signed check is an approval of the transfer offunds from your account, and your signed lease is an approval for livingunder the terms of your landlord.

An approval is always a means to an end. A signature in the previous

examples enables another activity or process: a paid vacation, a computerpurchase, a funds transfer, or promise of l iving conditions. The ApprovalServer is a means to approving ARSystem workflow.

The approval process

An approval process is the set of rules and procedures for selecting people toreview and authorize a request in the proper manner.

A process must have rules to make sure all required approvals occur, noerroneous approvals occur, and sufficient authority is present to enableapproval.

A process must have proceduresto route an approved request to the nextapprover, to stop routing a rejected request, and to notify a person when

a response is required.

Every approval requires a process to obtain appropriate signatures, althoughsometimes the process or signatures are not obvious. For example, even ifeveryone in the company is automatically reimbursed for up to $25 in officesupplies, there is a hidden process with implied signatures that are notactually demanded. The Approval Server handles these hidden processes aswell as those requiring traditional routing to multiple people for sign off.

In the business world, approval processes rarely require only one personsapproval. Business processes often require many people to sign off in orderof their chain of command. Some businesses route approvals to more thanone department at the same time. All business processes need to cope withsubstitutions for unavailable people, holidays, or other complications.


A given request might require one process for completion, or several


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The BMC Remedy Approval Server

35

A given request might require one process for completion, or severalprocesses that work with each other. Often the appearance of a singleoperation involves multiple approvals.

One requestcan generate

multipleapproval

processes

Imagine an office employee requesting a faster personal computer. Therequest to purchasea new computer has to be approved by the employeesmanager. If the manager approves, a separate MIS department approvalprocess then determines themodelof computer to buy. These approvalprocesses are separate, but both must be completed successfully for acomputer to be delivered.

Approval processes must be able to handle a variety of situations without

failing. Imagine a process that skips required people, or gets routed to aperson without authority, or a process that cannot cope with vacationingpersons and other anomalies. When an approval process fails, so does theattached activity. The funds are not transferred, the apartment is leased tosomeone else, or the computer is never delivered.


The BMC Remedy Approval Server is a self-contained, shared module thatcan be attached to any AR System application. the Approval Server is anextremely powerful and flexible solution for automating any approvalprocess across any organization. You can have multiple Approval Serversrunning with multiple AR System servers on one machine.

Figure2-1: Using approval server with ARSystem applications


When an AR System application triggers an approval process, the Approval


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36


y pp gg pp p , ppServer routes a request to collect signatures within a defined approvalprocess, handling all notifications and requests for more information as itcollects each response (approving or rejecting). The Approval Server then

reactivates the original application, reporting the result of the approvalprocess.

Finally, the Approval Server includes built-in contingency handling thatmakes sure approvals are completed quickly and properly within the system.

Common experience across applications

With the Approval Server, there is no need to build custom workflow orseparate solutions for each application. All processes can share the sameapproval engine. The Approval Server lets you use one central approvalengine for all applications, and it lets administrators swiftly implement onecommon solution. Consequently, there is no need to look at differentapplications.

Flexibility

Todays diverse demands require the Approval Server to be flexible enoughfor any AR System application. There are often differences in how approvalsshould work between different applications within the same company.

Who needs to sign this next?

Do I have all of the signatures I need? How many is enough?

What happens if there is an error?

The Approval Server provides flexibility so you can easily define or modifyhow each approval process should work. You can quickly set up newprocesses and adapt existing processes as changes appear in yourenvironment. Customization of the Approval Server does not require

programming, for example, when changing approval cycles, models, orapprovers.


Notification plusfeedback


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Notification plus feedback

Although the system is named an Approval Server, it is really more than anapplication that asks for approvals. You can use the Approval Server for any

process where there is a need for agreement or acknowledgment from others.

Acknowledgeor agreement

Imagine you had to turn off an important system for maintenance. It wouldbe helpful to send out approvals to affected customers in advance. Whilethe customers are not really approving the downtime, their approval is anacknowledgment of the coming change and the fact they are prepared for it.If they reject the change, those customers are indicating that they are notprepared, and might need additional assistance.

An alternative process could be a simple AR System notification. There is nofeedback loopdefined with noti fications, however, so it is difficult to know ifeveryone has seen the notice and is ready for the upcoming event.

The Approval Server adds notifications to feedback loops, ensuring yourworkflow has been seen and approved by all the relevant parties.



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The BMC Remedy model for approvals

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Chapter

3The BMCRemedy model forapprovals

This chapter provides an overview of the Approval Serverfrom approachand key concepts through the interaction of both approvers andadministrators.

The following topics are provided:

Key concepts of the Approval Server (page40)

Where to go next (page44)


Key concepts of the Approval Server


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Chapter 3The BMC Remedy model for approvals

y p pp

An approval requires a process for people to acknowledge. This chapterdiscusses process, the people, and the acknowledgment.

The approval process

An approval processis the set of rules and forms that generate data toauthorize specific ARSystem workflow. An approval process consists ofsome definitions for the operation itself, rulesthat define what happens ateach specific stage in the process, and a place to store signatures. These rules

need to be understood by process administrators, but are transparent toapprovers. The types of rules and how they interact are described underCommon rules and operations on page88.

The data generated by an approval process, such as sign-off signatures,requests for clari fications, and time stamps for audit trails, is stored in theDetail Record and other supporting forms. For more information aboutdata, see Approval data on page85.

Complex processes

Sometimes a single operation actually involves multiple approval processeschained together, such as when a manager has to approve a new computerpurchase, but MIS has to pick out a specific model of computer. Processadministrators need to set up these chained processes carefully. Properly

designed, a chained approval process is transparent to the approvers andpeople requesting approval, so that it appears as one smooth operation.

Who participates in the approval process

Three kinds of people are involved in the approval process: those requestingapproval, those approving requests, and process administrators who set up

and modify the Approval Server configuration.Most approval processes are transparent to the requester, who therefore doesnot need to understand the Approval Server. This guide is wri tten forapprovers and process administrators.


Requesters


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Requesters are the people who want something to be approved. Requesterswork within an application that starts an approval process. They enter

requests within the application and at some stage their application requestmust be approved. Their requests are routed to all required approvers andthe results returned without further action by the requesters.

The Approval Server allows requesters two interactions besides initiating arequest:

Requesters can check on the status of their requests.

An approver can ask for more information from the requester, who willhave to respond with the information to allow the approval process tocontinue.

Approvers

Approvers are people with the authority to approve or reject a request in agiven process.

Once you approve a request, you never see it again, and haveno chance tochange your mind. The request is routed only to the remaining approvers.Likewise, once you reject a request, you cannot change your mind. No oneelse sees it; the routing stops and the request is closed.

Valid approvers for each process are set up in the Approval Server, and theyare used to form a specific Approver List for each request. Different

requesters can have different approver lists for the same process.An approver list specifies the exact list of signatures required for a specificrequest. A signature can come from an individual, or it can come from a rolecontaining multiple individuals. The Approval Server allows you theflexibili ty to work with any combination of individuals and roles to create anApprover List for a particular process.

Individualapproverversus role

Franks company rules say he can get the signature of any manager toauthorize reimbursement for office supplies. However, company rules sayFrank must get his direct supervisor to authorize reimbursement for travelrelated expenses.

Jack, Larry, and Samantha have the roleof manager, so any of them canapprove Franks office supplies.

Jack is the individualwho supervises Frank, so only Jack can authorize

Franks travel expenses.


Approvers interact with the Approval Server more than requesters. Theyneed to reviewoutstanding requeststhat areassigned to them and takeaction


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need to review outstanding requests that are assigned to them and take actionon those requests. Approver actions are performed using one central form,called Approver Central. The actions they can take include:

Approving

Rejecting

Reassigning

Holding

Requesting and responding to More Information Requests

Checking status

Approvers have access to the details of the item being processed as well as tothe history of the approval detail record itself. This history includes allapprovers who have had the request, and the actions they took. Also, anycomments that have been entered by other approvers are available for review.

As an Approver, you can definealternatesto act as you for any approval

process in which you participate. This substi tution occurs during a timeperiod you must specify.

Alternate

Approvers are not always available. When vacations or business trips occur,someone needs to cover for the individual who is out. Approvers can define

an alternatewith exactly their own capabil ity and authority within anapproval process.

Having an alternate is not the same thing as having a peer with authority toapprove the same process as you. An alternate is someone who substitutes foryou and acts with your authority and privileges for a duration of your choice.

Approvers have the option to set up any number of alternates, and eachalternate might be set up to substi tute within one or more approval

processes.


When approvers designate you as an alternate, the Approval Server gives youtheoption to seeyour own approvals, or to seethisother personsapprovals


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the option to see your own approvals, or to see this other person s approvalsas his or her alternate. You are always logged in as yourself, but you mustspecify whether you are acting asyourself or as an alternate.

Acting as analternate

Jack is a regular approver for technical reviews.

Samantha designates Jack as her alternate for technical reviews.

Brigid designates Jack as her alternate for legal reviews.

After Jack logs in to the Approval Server, he must select whether he wants toact as Jack, to act as Samantha, or to act as Brigid. Although Jack can switch

between three approver identities, Jack can act as only one identity at a time.Because Jack must specify one identity before he sees any approval requests,there is no possibility that Jack can sign Samanthas requests with Brigidsauthority, or his own. When Jack acts as Samantha, it is irrelevant that he alsohas authority within the technical review process when acting as himself.When Jack acts as Samantha, he sees only Samanthas technical reviewrequests and approves or rejects them with Samanthas authority. Likewise,

when Jack acts as Brigid, he has Brigids authority within the legal reviewprocess, and cannot act as Brigid for technical reviews.

Process administrator

To automate approval processes, one person or authority must define eachprocess. TheProcess Admini stratoris the person with the ability to defineprocesses for the Approval Server.

A second ability of the Process Administrator is the override. Sometimesemergencies require someone to override the normal flow of a process.

The third ability of the Process Administrator is to grant others limitedauthority, allowing specific individuals an ability to configure a process, tooverride a process, or both.

The Process Administrator also has the ability to designate alternates for anyapprover.

Process Administrator actions are performed using one central form, calledAP:Administration.


Note:An Approval Server Process Admini stratoris not the same as your BMC


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Remedy Action Request System Administrator. SeeChapter 7, Preparingprocess administrators, for an explanation of the Process Administrators

responsibilities.

Acknowledging approvals

The Approval Server has three methods to allow AR System users who arenot approvers to track, or interact with, an approval process.

Notification

For every stage of the approval process, AR System notificationscan bedefined to inform interested parties of the status of an approval request.

More Information Requests

An approver who has questions can send a more information request to therequestor (or any other AR System user). More Information Requests andtheir responses are handled by the Approval Server.

Audit trail

All activity within the system is recorded within thedetai l record. TheAR System captures approver activity, the time an activity occurred, and

what that activity was. This allows you to track the progress of the entry andsee which activity was performed at each stage.

Where to go next

Now that you understand the basic concepts of the AR System ApprovalServer, you can review the following chapters covering approvers,

installation, and process administrators. Chapter 1, Installation and configuration,contains installation

instructions for AR System administrators.

Chapter 4, Working as an approver through Chapter 6, Using a sampleapplication,contain concepts, procedures, and examples for approvers.

Chapter 7, Preparing process administrators, and later chapters contain

information for Approval Server Process Administrators.


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Working as an approver

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Chapter

4Working as an approver

This chapter discusses the approval process as it pertains to approvers. Thefollowing topics are provided:

Processing an approval request (page46)

Viewing approval requests (page46)

Performing other approval actions (page47)

Handling approval errors (page49)

Designating alternate approvers (page49)

Performing overr ides (page51)

Chapter 5, Processing approval requests with Approval Central, coversprocedures for acting on approvals.


Processing an approval request


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Chapter 4Working as an approver

Approvals typically follow this sequence:

Step 1 Someone submits a request that requires your approval.

Step 2 You receive notification of the approval request.

Step 3 You review the approval request and take one of the following actions:

If the request appears to be in order, you can approveit.

If you needmore information, you can enter a question or comment for theApproval Server to route to the requester or other individual.

If the request appears unacceptable, you can rejectit. Rejection typicallyends the process for this request.

Note:The exception to the rejection outcome is statistical rules, introducedwith the 5.1 release. For more information, see Get authority on

page104.

If you feel that you are not the appropriate person to approve the request,you can reassignit.

For procedural information, seeChapter 5, Processing approval requestswith Approval Central.

Viewing approval requests

The Approval Central form is the primary form for approvers. ApprovalCentral lets you view approval requests and More Information Requests.Approval Central allows you to display your own requests, or the requests forwhich you can respond as an alternate for someone else.


Figure4-1: Approval Central in browser


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Performing other approval actions

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You can also view the Detail-Signature record for requests that have you asan approver. This is useful if you need historical information about acompleted request, or if you want to verify the status of a current approval

request that you have already approved.

Performing other approval actions

For some approval requests, you might need to perform additional actionssuch as the following procedures:

Requesting more information on page48

Reassigning an approval request on page48

Specifying the next approver on page48


Requesting more information

Asking for clarification is more friendly than rejecting a request for which


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Asking for clarification is more friendly than rejecting a request for whichyou have insufficient knowledge. For example, you might want clarification

of dates or other details. Within the Approval Server, you can create a MoreInformation request before acting on an approval request.

Note:A More Information request creates an independently routedAR System form, separate from the original approval request.

As an approver, you can use the More Information request to ask a questionregarding the original request. The original request then pausesuntil yourespond to it. Others can see that the request is paused in a More Informationstatus.

Your response to the original approval is independent from the MoreInformation routing. You never have to wait for the More Informationanswer. However, if you do approve or reject the original approval request,

the Approval Server immediately closes your outstanding More InformationRequests.

For procedural information, seeProcessing More Information Requestson page62.

Reassigning an approval request

If you feel you are not the correct person to act on an approval request, manyprocesses allow you to reassign a request to a different approver. In suchcases, a Reassign field is displayed on the approval form. When you reassignan approval request, your obligation to act on it ends.

For procedural information, seeReassigning approval requests on page61.

Specifying the next approverSome approval processes allow you to specify the next approver instead ofautomatically routing the request. Other approval processes might actuallyrequireyou to provide the next approver.


For example, you receive an approval request for a piece of equipment thatwill be shared with another workgroup, and you need a signature from thatworkgroup in addition to your own You can specify the approver in the


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Handling approval errors

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workgroup in addition to your own. You can specify the approver in theother workgroup to whom the request is routed after you act on it.

For procedural information, seeSpecifying next approvers on page60.

Note:Specifying the next approver is not the same asreassigningan approvalrequest. The option to specify the next approver requires you to approveor reject the request first. Use the option to reassign a request if insteadofyou, you want someone else to approve or reject a request.

Handling approval errors

If you enter an invalid name when you specify the next approver, a properlydesigned process generates a signature li ne error.The approval process stopswith an error status until you correct the error by specifying a valid next

approver.

Note:Errors from an improperly designed approval process cannot becorrected by an approver. Process administrators can see Get nextapprover automatically on page93, for information to make sure aprocess validates the next approver properly.

Designating alternate approvers

Alternate approvers are approvers, assigned either by you or by the ProcessAdministrator, to serve in your place if you are unavailable.

You can assign alternates for yourself, or you can be asked to serve as analternate for another approver.

Designating alternate approvers for yourself

If you will be unavailable for approving processes, you can designate otherpersons to fill in for you as alternate approvers to prevent delays in theapproval process.


Typically, one alternate is chosen for all approval processes, but you candesignate more than one alternate approver, and you can also specify specificapproval processesfor each alternate


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approval processes for each alternate.

You must specify both a time period and the processes for which the alternate

can grant approvals. For example, you can designate one alternate for threedays, and another for four. You can designate one alternate with approvalauthority for all processes, and another alternate with authority to processyour vacation requests but not your purchase requisitions.

Note: If your alternate designates an alternate, authority to sign yourapprovals is notpassed on. Only the specific person you designate can actas your alternate.

Alternateauthority is not

transferable

Violet is out of the office for a week and designates Larry as her alternate.Larry departs on a surprise business trip, and designates Jack as his alternate.Jack does not have signature authority for Violets requests. Jack cannot seeViolets requests.

For procedural information, seeDesignating alternate approvers onpage66.

Serving as an alternate approver

If you have been designated as an alternate approver, you have signaturerights and responsibilities identical to those of the original approver for as

long as you serve as an alternate.

Your authority as an alternate approver exists for a specific time period. Yourauthority can be defined for all processes, or a specific process.

Alternateapproverscenario

Jack goes out of town to a trade show August 18. Jack designates Samanthaas alternate for all his approval processes from August 15. However, fromAugust 68, Samantha is limited to acting as alternate for only the office

supply approval process, because the district manager Larry is going to beonsite acting as Jacks alternate for Jacks other processes.

When you have been designated as an alternate, you see and respond toapprovals in the same manner as when you are a normal approver, but thesystem knows you are acting as another person. The Approval Server showsyou only approval requests for one person at a time.


Acting as analternate

The Approval Server reinforces the separate identities Larry can assume, byasking him to choose for whom he is acting: as himself, or as an alternate.

If B i id d i t L lt t h L t hi lf h i


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If Brigid designates Larry as alternate, when Larry acts as himself, he reviewsonly his own approval requests. When Larry acts as Brigids alternate, he

reviews requests only within processes where she has designated Larry asalternate. Acting as Brigid, Larry responds to Brigids requests with herauthority in that process, even i f Larry normally has weaker or strongersignature authority.

For information about processing approvals, seeProcessing an approvalrequest on page46. For specific procedural information about serving as analternate, see Acting as an alternate approver on page68.

Managing alternate approver definitions

With the 7.0 release, you now use the Approval Central application todesignate (create), veri fy, and modify alternate approver information. Forexample, with this application you can create a new alternate, change analternate to someone else, modify the time period during which an alternatewill serve, or cancel an alternate so this person can no longer approverequests in your name.

Note:Although you can use the Alternate Approver form to designate andchangeinformation regarding alternate approvers, it is now best to useApproval Central for all alternate approver information.

For procedural information, seeManaging alternate approver definitionson page68.

Performing overrides

Overridescan be thought of as a special power to correct unexpectedsituations. An override is performed by a process administrator instead of thenormally defined approver, to move a request forward when the normalapprover is not responding.

An override is useful for emergencies such as when an approver is absent orunable to respond, and no alternate approver is designated. The processadministrator can override that signature line so the process can continue.


An override closes one approver signature, similar to acting as an alternateapprover for one signature line, allowing the approval request to move onwithin the regular process.


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g p

An override rejection terminates the request just as if the normal approver

had rejected it.

An override approval moves the request forward just as if the normalapprover had approved it. If there are more approvers, the request isrouted to them.

Note:A process administrator can give out override-only administrator

privileges to any user without granting other approval processadministrator privileges.

Global overrides

An advanced global override closes all open signatures, stops routing therequest, and terminates the approval process for that request. This global

override is useful for emergencies, such as ending an approval process for arequest that is no longer necessary.

Example ofglobal override

Imagine Sue makes a time-sensitive request that requires the approval ofSamantha and Ned, in that order. Samantha is delayed by traffic and will notarrive in time to approve the request before it is required, therefore thesympathetic process administrator performs an override, immediately

approving the request, which routes the request to Neds desk.Should it happen that Samantha and Ned are both delayed in traffic, theprocess administrator can perform a global overri de, approving or rejectingthe request for all approvers at once, so Sue can react before her time limitexpires.

For procedural information about overrides, seeAdditional options forprocess administrators on page70.


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Processing approval requests with Approval Central

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Chapter

5Processing approval requestswith Approval Central

This chapter shows how to use the Approval Central application to processapproval requests with both web clients and BMC Remedy User. For the 7.0Approval Server release, there is now a consistent look and feel between the

web and BMC Remedy User views of Approval Central. Nearly all theexamples in this chapter use the web client.

The following topics are provided

Logging in to Approval Central with a browser (page54)

Logging in to Approval Central with BMC Remedy User (page56)

Defining approval details (page58)

Processing More Information Requests (page62)

Using alternate approvers (page65)

Additional options for process administrators (page70)


Logging in to Approval Central with a browser

The following procedure outlines the basic steps for processing an approval


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Chapter 5Processing approval requests with Approval Central

e o o g p ocedu e out es t e basc steps o p ocess g a app o arequest using browsers. For information about additional approval actions

you might need to perform, see Defining approval details on page58.

Note: the Approval Server web views allow approvers to process approvalrequests from a browser once an administrator has installed ApprovalWeb using the steps in Using the Approval Server on the web onpage25. Process Administrators must use BMC Remedy Administratorand BMC R

bmc remedy approval server 70 guide for users and administrators

Documents