bodnar/hopwood ais 7th ed1 chapter 2 u systems techniques and documentation

Bodnar/Hopwood AIS 7th Ed 1

Chapter 2

Systems Techniques and Documentation


Compliance vs Substantive Testing

Compliance Testing confirms assesses checks

the continuity of operation of internal controls (IC)


Compliance vs Substantive Testing

Substantive Testing verifies

financial statements


Types of Flowcharts

IPO and HIPO Systems and Program Analytic and Document


IPO and HIPO

primarily narrative in nature used primarily by systems development

personnel


Commonly Used Flowcharts

• Document Flowcharts

• Systems Flowcharts

• Program Flowcharts

• Data Flow Diagrams


Document Flowcharts Flowcharts are pictorial representations of

transaction processing systems that portray flows of some type.

A Document Flowchart emphasizes the hardcopy inputs and outputs and their flows through organizational units.

Auditors and accountants may use document flowcharts when analyzing a current system for weaknesses in controls and reports.


A Sample Document Flowchart

Requesting Department Central Supplies Department

Goods RequisitionForm

A

A

Goods Requisition Form

1 2

File

1


Systems Flowchart

a pictorial or graphical representation of the overall flow of work, documents, and operations in a system

systems flowcharts are used by both auditors and systems development personnel


System Flowcharts They use symbols that are industry

conventions standardized by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

Flowcharting symbols are grouped as input-output symbols, processing symbols, storage symbols, data and information flow symbols, and miscellaneous symbols.


Invoice

(A)Single

Document

1

2

3

4

Shipping Receipt

(B)Overlapping symbols-

same documentSalesInvoice

4

(C)Two overlappingsymbols - same document

SalesOrder

3

Invoice2

(D)Two overlapping symbols -different documents

Flowchart Symbols: Documents


(A)On-line Manual

Device

(B)TerminalDisplay

(C)I/O

(Input/Output)

(D)ManualProcess

(E)On-line

ComputerProcess

(F)Off-line orNoncomputerProcess

(H)On-lineData

Storage

(J)Magnetic

Tape Storage

PermanentFile

(G) Off-linePaperFile

TemporaryFile

NA

(I)Disk

Storage

Flowchart Symbols


(E)Annotation

(F)Decision

(G)Calculator/Register

Tape

(H)PhysicalObject

----------------

(I)FlowLines

(J)Communication

Link

(A)Enter/ExitSystem

ToCustomer

FromBank (B)

Start (or end)Process

Start

(C)On-page

Connectors

1

1

Indicates the flow will continueat the on-page connector #1

Indicates where the flow continuesfrom the on-page connector #1

(D)Off-page

Connectors

p.41

1

p.2

on page 2:

on page 4:

to page 4connector #1

connector #1from page 2

Flowchart Symbols


Systems Flowcharting Guidelines

Sketch a flowchart before designing the final draft.

Use annotated descriptions and comments in flowcharts for clarification.

Within a file symbol, (a) may be placed to show alphabetic storage or documents, (c) for chronological, and (n) for numeric.


Systems Flowcharting Guidelines Flowcharts should read from top to bottom and

left to right. Use appropriate symbols; the variety should be

limited for clarity. Sandwich rule - a process symbol should always

be found between an input and an output symbol. Use connectors to avoid crossed lines and

cluttered flowcharts.


Flowchart Element : Flow Lines Flow lines are used to connect the symbols

on the document flow chart. A solid line indicates the flow of a

document or object A dotted or dashed symbol indicates a flow

of information rather than the physical document


Flowchart Element : Flow Lines

Arrows are used when the documents or information flow is not left-to-right or top-to-bottom

Some flowcharts also show communication flows such as by telephone modem or satellite


Flowcharting Element: Area of Responsibility

Areas of responsibility are displayed to enable the flowchart reader to clearly identify changes in responsibility as the documents flow through the system.

They are represented on flowcharts by segmenting and labeling columns.


Flowcharting Element: Area of Responsibility

Areas of responsibility may be departments, sections within a department, or individual employees within a department.

Judgment must be used in choosing the level of subdivision that one column should represent.


Preparation Conventions Left-to-right, Top-to-bottom All documents must have an

origin and termination indicate origin by darkening

one corner of the symbol each copy of the document

must flow to a permanent file symbol a symbol denoting an exit from

the system, or

Keep flowcharts uncluttered place areas with frequent

interchange in adjacent columns

enter narrative only in symbols

Make sure progress of a document is clear. Diagram a document


Preparation Conventions

an off-page connector a document destruction

symbol (small black box)

“cradle to grave” documentation

before and after each process entering or leaving a

file entering or leaving a

page or area of responsibility

Make sure the flowchart is complete


Program Flowchart

a flowchart indicating detailed processing functions

program flowcharts are used primarily by systems development personnel


Logical Data Flow Diagrams

Shows the system’s processes and the flows of data into and out of the processes, i.e., provides a logical view of the system.

Represents what tasks the system is doing, without emphasis on how, where, or by whom the tasks are being performed.

Appropriate for a macro-view of the system.


Data Flow Diagrams (DFD) Data flow diagramming symbols are used for a

variety of system analysis purposes, including graphically displaying the logical flows of data through a process.

Unlike flowcharts which represent the physical components of an information system, data flow diagrams can provide a more conceptual, nonphysical display of the movement of data through a system.


Data Flow Diagrams (DFD)

Data flow diagrams disregard such things as organizational units, the computer on which the data are processed, and the media on which the data are stored.

The movement of data across offices or departments within a particular system environment are not represented.


(A)Process

(B)Data inflow sources,information outflow

destinations

(C)Data store

(D)Data flow lines

Data Flow Diagram Symbols


(A)Process

Data Flow Diagram Symbols Process

Circles are used to represent processes that take data inflows and transform them to information outflows.

The circle contains two labels. The first label is a process number

(explained later) and the second is a process name.

Some use rectangular boxes with rounded corners.


Data Flow Diagram Symbols Data Sources and Sinks

Rectangles (or squares) represent data (inflow) sources and (information outflow) sinks

The rectangle is labeled with the name of the data source or sink/destination (e.g. Customer, Vendors, Government Agency).

The sources and sinks play an important role in the data flow diagram.

(B)Data inflow

sources,information

outflow destinations



The sources and sinks are agents external to (i.e. outside the scope of) the system represented on the diagram.

They delineate the boundaries of the system.


Data Flow Diagram Symbols Data Stores

Two parallel straight lines are used to display a store or collection of data.

Some people refer to data stores as data at rest.

A description of the data store contents is entered on the symbol.

Data stores are used anytime it is necessary to store the output from a process before sending it on to the next process.

(C)Data store

Inventory



Some use a rectangular box that is open at one end.



Data Flow Lines Data flow lines display the route of data inflow and

information outflow. They can be straight or curved lines. The data flow is generally labeled with the name of the

data (e.g. a customer order, a bill, a financial analysis) and the arrow indicates the direction of the data flow.

(D)Data flow lines


Constraints: General Rules

All processes should have unique names. If two data flow lines (or data stores) have the same label, they should both refer to the exact same data flow (or data store).

The inputs to a process should differ from the outputs of a process.

Any single DFD should not have more than about seven processes.


Constraints: Process Rules

No process can have only outputs. (This would imply that the process is making information from nothing.) If an object has only outputs, then it must be a source.

No process can have only inputs. (This is referred to as a “black hole”.) If an object has only inputs, then it must be a sink.

A process has a verb phrase label.

Incorrect

Correct

Incorrect

CorrectEdit


Constraints: Data Store Data cannot move directly from one

data store to another data store. Data must be moved by a process.

Data cannot move directly from an outside source to a data store. Data must be moved by a process that receives data from the source and places the data in the data store.

Data cannot move directly to an outside sink from a data store. Data must be moved by a process.

No

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

No


Constraints: Data Store

A data store has a noun phrase label.

CUSTOMER


Constraints: Source/Sink

Data cannot move directly from a source to a sink. It must be moved by a process if the data are of any concern to the system. If data flows directly from a source to a sink (and does not involved processing) then it is outside the scope of the system and is not shown on the system data flow diagram DFD.

A source/sink has a noun phrase label.

Correct

Customer

Incorrect


Constraints: Data Flow A data flow has only one direction between

symbols. It may flow in both directions between a process and a data store to show a read before an update. To effectively show a read before an update, draw two separate arrows because the two steps (reading and updating) occur at separate times.

A fork in a data flow means that exactly the same data goes from a common location to two or more different processes, data stores, or sources/sinks. (This usually indicates different copies of the same data going to different locations.)

No

Yes

A

B

A

A

No

Yes


Constraints: Data Flow. A join in a data flow means that

exactly the same data comes from any of two or more different processes, data stores, or sources/sinks, to a common location.

A data flow cannot go directly back to the same process it leaves. There must be at least one other process that handles the data flow, produces some other data flow, and returns the original data flow to the originating process.

A data flow to a data store means update (i.e., delete, add, or change).

A data flow from a data store means retrieve or use.

A data flow has a noun phrase label. More than one data flow noun phrase can appear on a single arrow as long as all of the flows on the same arrow move together as one package.


Context Diagram

The highest level of data flow diagrams is the context context diagramdiagram.

A single systemsingle system is represented on a context diagram and it provides the scope of the system being represented identified in a process symbol in the center of the diagram labeled with a 0.

The context diagram shows one processone process (representing the entire system) and the sources/sinkssources/sinks that represent the boundaries of the system.

The highest level of data flow diagrams is the context context diagramdiagram.

A single systemsingle system is represented on a context diagram and it provides the scope of the system being represented identified in a process symbol in the center of the diagram labeled with a 0.

The context diagram shows one processone process (representing the entire system) and the sources/sinkssources/sinks that represent the boundaries of the system.


Context Diagram

The data flow linesdata flow lines into the process represent the input data to the system (provided by sources) and the data flow lines from the process represent the output information from the system (going to the sinks).


InternalDepartments

Customers Management

Investors and

Creditors

0Events Driven System

Reports

Financial Statements

Internal Events

External Events

Context Level Diagram Events Driven System


Level Zero DFD Example

CustomersDecision Makers

1.0Process

CustomerOrders

2.0Deliveries toCustomers

3.0Process

Payments

Desire

d

Info

rmati

on

Bill

OrderDesired

Information

Payments

Accounts Receivable

Shipping Request


External event: Record Sale of Merchandise

Prepare

Sales Invoice

1.1

Sale Event Data

Review Customer Credit

1.2Sales Invoice Data

Record

Sales

Event Data

1.3

Approved Sales Invoice Data

Level One - Record Event Data


Factory supervisor

Reviewtime

cards

Record weeklywages

Time cards

Reviewed time cards

Employee Earnings Records

Time card file(alpha)

Example Data Flow Diagram Example Flowchart

Version 1

FactorySupervisor

AccountingPayroll Clerk

1

2

N

Timecards

Reviewtime

cards

A

Recordwages

Employee EarningsRecords

1

2

N

Timecards

A= alphabetic


Analytic Flowchart

charts the flow of documents and processing between different entities - which are represented by separate columns in the flowchart.

Examples of analytic flowcharts


Analytic flowcharts and Internal Control Analysis

the grouping of functions facilitates analysis of segregation of duties

interfaces between entities are emphasized interfaces are important control points in a

system

bodnar/hopwood ais 7th ed1 chapter 2 u systems techniques and documentation

Documents

bodnarhopwood ais

document slide

u flowcharting symbols

system u systems flowcharts

u auditors

nature u

checks u

hipo u systems