Policy Table of Contents
Changes to Colleague Processes (Customization)
All changes to Colleague must be documented in a help desk ticket. The ticket can either be initiated by the end user or by IT on behalf of the end user.
All changes will be assigned one of the following customization impact classifications (category option field in helpdesk when the category is Colleague):
- Low
- Low impact changes have little risk of adverse effects and/or such effects will be easily discovered and fixed. If undiscovered, low impact changes will have no significant impact upon the organization or it’s data. Examples include text updates, small report changes, etc.
- Intermediate
- Intermediate changes carry some risk, but no significant risk to financial data or business processes. Additionally, if an intermediate change contains an error, recovery will be quick and straightforward with no additional risk to data. Examples include more significant report revisions, data extracts, most minor data entry screen changes, etc.
- High
- High impact changes include changes to financial data, significant changes to student records, and anything else from which recovery would be difficult or expose data for further risk. Examples of major changes include data imports, changes that have the potential of impacting financial data, etc.
Based on classification, user testing and approval is required as follows:
- Low
- No user testing/approval required.
- Intermediate
- User testing/approval is optional at the discretion of the person making the change. If done, document in the helpdesk ticket.
- High
- User testing/approval is required and must be documented in the helpdesk ticket.
Date the change was made live and person making it live must be documented in the helpdesk ticket.
Customization will be made through Envision ToolKit and/or Colleague Studio so that versioning will be in effect and LPR will be updated. Exception: existing print routines originally modified via Unidata editor and stored in R16.SOURCE.
All changes to delivered Colleague processes (screen, batch/report or web) will be documented in the white Colleague changes binder and listed in the appropriate document in S:\Colleague Shared\R18. A current printout of this document will also be maintained at the beginning of the appropriate section of the Colleague changes binder.
Custom Development (New)
New custom development may be done using any appropriate tool (Envision ToolKit, Colleague Studio, Unibasic program, Informer report, download utility, etc.)
Custom development must also be tracked with a helpdesk ticket as detailed above. Impact classifications shall be made as above, but with the New Development… category options
User testing and acceptance will be done in accordance with the guidelines above.
If maintenance is done on an existing UniBasic program, a sdiff capture shall be recorded in the PGM.CHGS directory of the live account showing the difference between the live and test version of the program for each change made. The file in PGM.CHGS shall be composed of the program name and date of change.
HR/Payroll Change Procedure
After initial system setup and testing, IT staff will not do data entry or changes in HR/Payroll.
Any custom changes or additions to Colleague will be documented by helpdesk ticket. Before changes are applied to the live account, they will be reviewed by one other Colleague programmer or analyst. This review will be noted as complete by that person in the helpdesk ticket. In the event changes cannot be reviewed in advance due to criticality and/or staffing issues/time off, they will be reviewed as soon as possible after the fact and noted in the helpdesk ticket.
When HR or payroll changes show up in the weekly change report, a notation will be made on the hard copy report referencing the associated helpdesk ticket. A copy of the ticket will also be printed out and appended to the report.
Projects
Projects may be tracked by either a single helpdesk ticket or a ticket for each individual component. If tracked via a single ticket, all components developed or modified shall be included in the description of the ticket.
Visibility of Changes
Weekly (Monday mornings) a job will run to print out all changes to code on the Colleague live account and all Argonaut related accounts for the previous week (two separate lists). It will be posted on the wall for review. All staff with rights to modify code will review the reports, investigate any anomalies, and sign off on the report when satisfied. ITS Director will retain report copies indefinitely.