Is It Time to Take Your Workflow In For a Checkup?
Almost every business has documents that go through some kind of work process such as expense reports and application processing that uses some kind of Business Process Management [BPM]. BPM is generally defined as a systematic approach to improving and automating an organization’s business processes and workflows. These workflows may be core to your business process and over the years as rules, regulation, and other external factors alter the original flow it is critical to to plan on performing regularly scheduled checkups of your BPM processes.
While supporting systems that have little or no changes to their BPM workflow maps in over a decade it is very common to run into issues and complications caused by knowledge workers who have devised workarounds for changes that have occurred over time. One of the biggest problems I see with not revisiting and performing analysis and research to get a current picture on a regular basis is User Acceptance.
When we run into this type of a situation the knowledge workers are often frustrated and highly irritated with the software and how the system works. The user feels that their performance is based on rules and regulations that no longer apply and will complain stating “I had nothing to do with how this was configured”, “this is how we do it because it has always been like this” and “I don’t understand why we have to do it this way.” The user is often very negative about the inefficiencies and wants to tell everyone and anyone willing to listen. This can have an immense impact on the work environment and acceptance of your ECM system and future applications.
Where to start: The efficient flow of documents through your organization is critical to remaining competitive and document management and workflow solutions are proven to cut cost and improve efficiencies. If you have been using a rules based electronic workflow for over 3-5 years it is a good practice to review the “as is” state of the workflows and update them on a regular basis. BPM workflow updates should be visible to upper management and budgeted for the future along with software upgrades. Most importantly involve the knowledge works in the discovery and development process. “Because we have always done it this way” does not need to be the number one comment about your ECM system. The success of BPM is rooted in starting with the right process and continuing best practices for regular checkups and maintenance.
Leigh Woody
Program Manager
Listening to the Machine
I was chatting with Sophia Marchi, the director of sales for the Americas for BÖWE BELL + HOWELL Scanners at our recent Nexus event. She had just delivered a great break-out on scanner selection criteria and we started talking about how the users need to have input on scanner selection – they really know what they like and what works for them. Often, these aren’t the people consulted when purchase decisions are made, and it’s a shame. She related how at FedEx, there were 13 identical scanners deployed, and the staff had names them all – Annabelle, Karina, Chloe, Hannah, and so forth. Workers bonded with their machines, and would line up for their favorite – even to the point of coming in early to get their machine. Or switching to it the second in came available. Well what’s the attraction — they are all the same machines, right? Then I recalled my brother and I had the same Schwinn 2 speed bikes as kids, then in college we bought the exact same motorcycles (I stuck to silver, he to purple). 3K miles down the road, I’d borrow his bike. Felt a bit funny, compared to mine with the same mileage. Fast forward to when we had put over 45K miles – what a difference. Rider habits with braking, acceleration, maintenance, even storage – added up to make these bikes ride with distinct differences. I do remember mine being faster – I guess my throttle was used to more demands. It’s the same story with scanners. Properly maintained scanners – the ones that are doted on and listened to carefully – are bound to last longer with fewer unexpected breakdowns. Sophia learned from the users that with their favorite scanners, the operators can hear roller wear, hear double feeds, even hear the need for a cleaning. Scanning shops that listen to their operators, allowing them to use a particular machine when possible, and reward regular maintenance and cleaning will outperform shops that neglect these steps.
Peter Lang
ImageSource, Inc.
How To Perform Basic Web Troubleshooting for IPM Web
Web troubleshooting can be difficult and searching through Oracle Metalink to get information can be even worse. I found this record in the Oracle Archives and thought it may help out other Acorde/Stellent/Oracle IPM/UCM users. The following is a general guide for troubleshooting issues with the IPM Web service. Hopefully reviewing the installation checklist and going through this troubleshooting guide will resolve most configuration issues with the web service.
Solution
Installation Phase
This phase encompasses all steps outlined in the install doc. If problems occur during or immediately following the installation, please review these steps:
1. How was the installation done?
At the console or through terminal services?
Terminal services has been known to cause serious issues in our installation of the web. It appears that when the install is done in this way, some files are not registered properly. Typically, you will see errors pointing to COM (login errors, plugin errors, etc.).
2. Were all the installation steps followed?
Check permissions, and verify that objects under the IBPMWeb and IBPMData folder all have the correct permissions. Reset all child objects under IBPMWeb and IBPMData. Make sure the correct web extensions are enabled.
3. Has the current problem been happening since the system was installed?
If yes, then you may need to review the install documentation.
4. Check the HKLM/Software/Optika/TRANSPORT/MANAGER_ADDRS
Make sure it points to the actual Request Broker machine (either the hostname or IP address). Also make sure the webserver can ping that address or hostname.
5. Is there a client or other services installed on the webserver?
If so, please understand that this is not a recommended configuration. In the event it is unavoidable, make sure that the services, (client and web) are all installed into the same location. For IPM web, the DLLs should be installed into C:\Program Files\Stellent\IBPM.
Startup Phase
This phase encompasses the process after installation or after an IISRESET.
1. Do the clients get the login screen?
If not, then we’re failing prior to getting all the ASP\DLLs loaded. Typically this points to either a permissions issue or a corruption in the IBPMWeb\OTInfrastructure\AcordeObjectHeaders folder. Delete all the files in that folder and do an IISRESET from a command prompt.
2. Can the user successfully login?
If not, this means that we are not getting a COM connection open to validate the user. Typically we will see a 29515 error appear stating we were not able to reach a service. In this case look at the permissions on the HKLM\Software\Optika registry key. Another item to look at is to make sure that if for some reason we have a client on the webserver that it is installed into the same folder as the IBPMWeb. Installing elsewhere will cause the web problems when it goes to register DLLs.
3. Is the error in the workcenter or elsewhere?
If after login we see an error on the workcenter, this points to an issue with the AcordeObjectHeaders folder. Rebuild that directory.
If the error happens in another window or frame then we’ll need to investigate those individually.
4. Is the client machine following a shortcut that points to a file below IBPMWeb?
In the past we have seen issues where a client will follow a shortcut that they created when at the login screen of the IPM Web. Doing so causes certain startup processes to be bypassed and can cause problems later because they may be using outdated connection information or other bad data that can cause varied problems.
Post Startup Phase
This phase encompasses any issues that occur after a successful installation and login. These errors typically come from problems with COM or from the connection to the backend servers. If these errors occur after an upgrade to the OS then check to make sure that any firewall or antivirus changes have been deactivated temporarily until we can determine if one of them is the cause.
Plug-in related Problems
For issues related to the plugin, look at the following:
1. Does the Messenger virtual directory contain an ISAPIMsgr.dll?
If not, then the Messenger virtual directory is pointed to the wrong location. Delete and re-create the Messenger virtual directory and point it at C:\Program Files\Stellent\IBPM
2. Does IUSR/IWAM have full control to the IBPMData folder?
If not, correct the security settings and then reset all child objects on that directory.
3. Are the users accessing the web with the hostname or IP address?
If they are using the hostname, you may want to adjust the Web Settings so that it uses hostname over IP (Login with a Web Administrator, click Administration -> Choose Web Settings -> Change the first section to use hostname and specify hostname.domain.com in the text box->Save the settings.)
4. Is there a proxy between the clients and the webserver?
If so, use the explanation for #3 and change the setting to hostname.
5. Are we seeing a *.opt file get created in the IBPMData\IBPMSessionData\<sessionid> folder?
If so, is the file larger than 4k? If so, open the file in a test editor and see what the message is. If it is larger than 4k we can assume that the images are getting to the webserver from export. This would indicate an issue with the plugin loading the image from IBPMData.
6. Check the IIS log and see if ISAPIMsgr.dll is listed as being accessed.
The log can be found at C:\Windows(orWINNT)\System32\LogFiles\W3SVC(number of website)\ and will be named after the date in which it was created. This file is helpful in troubleshooting different problems when you need to see if certain items are being requested from the web server.
How to do a complete uninstall of the IPM Web:
1. Use Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the web
2. Delete the Program Files\Stellent folder
3. Open Regedit and delete HKLM\Software\Optika and HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Optika
4. Remove the entries in the IIS Administrator for IBPMWeb, IBPMData and Messenger virtual Directories.
When all else fails…
o When all else fails, get another machine and install the web on it temporarily. Does it exhibit the same issues?
o Was the web installed via Terminal Services? If so, re-install from the console.
o Was the IPMWeb uninstalled and re-installed, or just updated over the older version?
o Was the web installed over a network share? If so, try installing from the CDROM.
If you are still unable to resolve the issue, get the following information:
1. What OS version and service pack does the webserver have installed?
2. Does the webserver also have other applications installed (besides IBPMWeb) and are they running under the same website?
3. What version of IBPMWeb are they installing/using and does that version match the backend IPM servers?
4. Is the customer using custom web applications? Were these recently implemented or altered?
5. Does the customer have Antivirus scanning the IBPMWeb and IBPMData folders? If so, have them exclude these directories for the real time scan.
6. What version of IE is installed on the clients?
7. What version of the J2RE is installed on the clients?
8. How many users are accessing the IBPMWeb at any given time?
9. How much RAM is installed, and how fast are the CPUs along with how machine CPUs are present.
10. Enable IBPMWeb logging. Login into the web with a user which has been granted the Web Administrator Policy; Click Administration; Choose Web Defaults; Check m_AcordeWebLogging; Save, and do an IISRESET. A log will be produced at the root of C drive called AcordeWeb<date>.log. After the error is reproduced and a log is created, turn web logging back off because logging is not thread safe. Supply this log to ImageSource tech support and it will be analyzed for it any info it can provide.
Leigh Woody
Program Manager
ImageSource, Inc.
Tuning ECM Capture Systems – Is It Optional?
Recognizing forms and then performing successful OCR and ICR is a result of careful planning. Then comes plenty of testing during development, exploiting every advantage you can discover. Once rolling, are the results what you expect? All of that testing should ensure the answer is YES. But if they are falling short of expectation, it’s time to tune. Are image enhancement/preprocessing settings set optimally (or are they in place at all?). Are alphanumeric fields defined in such a way that the OCR engines aren’t trying to discern zeros from letter O’s? For handwriting, do forms have text instructions coaching the users how to write ‘between the lines’? Are you matching expected data with available dictionaries encompassing all possible entries? These are just a few of the questions to ask while tuning a paper capture system. At ImageSource, we’ll work to resolve recognition problems you are experiencing to maximize your ROI and data throughput.
Peter Lang
ImageSource
Enterprise Content Management (ECM): Best Practices for Backfile Conversion
The 2 main aspects of Backfile Conversion are Security and Quality. Security within the document scanning process is tracking and maintaining records for each document through the workflow. If a conversion workflow is tracked and accounted for efficiently, a quality product will be the result.
In addition to maintaining records of documents it is not uncommon that someone will want to view one of the documents that are in the workflow. If an itemized inventory list (tracking log) was created at the beginning of the conversion workflow and an entry to the tracking log was made every time the document was processed, it should take minutes to locate where the document is and provide either the hard copy or the imaged copy of that document for the individual looking for the document.
The conversion workflow process usually consists of incoming inventory, preparation of documents for scanning, scanning of documents, indexing, releasing of images into the Document Management System and outgoing inventory. When an entry is made to the tracking log, the name and date should be included in the entry. This will assign that technician the responsibility of the document during this stage in the workflow. The goal with assigning responsibility is to add incentive for the technician to make sure the document is imaged clearly and indexed accurately. Accountability ensures quality of work being produced.
Through the use of a tracking log documents are secure in that they know where they are at all times. Technicians are held accountable for their work.
Jeff Martin
Conversion Services Project Coordinator
ImageSource, Inc.
Kofax moves to a pay-per-incident (PPI) system. What are your options?
As of August 3, 2009, worldwide technical support via telephone for all versions of Kofax’s VRS has been convert to a pay-per-incident (PPI) system. Fujitsu offers a toll-free technical assistance support line for all Fujitsu scanners and software during the warranty period. The scanner warranty includes phone support for Kofax VRS products provided with the purchase of Fujitsu Scanners. Contact ImageSource for Fujitsu Scanners with VRS and post sales support.
Leigh Woody
Program Manager
Monitoring Server Performance
Does your ECM server seem to have performance related issues? Are requests to your ECM software taking longer than normal? If so then you may have a few choices:
- You can always add some extra physical ram, this may help but may not get you to the root of the problem.
- You could maybe add a processor or two and hope for the best, or you can figure out why your ECM server is running so slowly.
There are several different things that can cause ECM system performance degradation. In this article we will explain how you can use Performance Monitor aka “PerfMon” a Microsoft Windows built in diagnostic tool to help determine the cause of your ECM server’s bottle neck.
As with any other diagnostic tool Performance Monitor is a running process and like any other process, Performance Monitor may consume things like CPU cycles, system memory, and potentially hard disk resources. This will slightly lower the amount of available system resources reported by Performance Monitor then when performance monitor is not running. Even with that Performance Monitor is still accurate enough that it can be used to help IT staff determine system bottle necks that are causing performance related issues.
When running Performance Monitor we recommend turning off all of the default counters. This will allow you to add the counters and attributes that we are going to discuss below.
- % Processor Time
- This counter will show you what percentage of the available CPU cycles that are being consumed by the system. For example if the % Processor Time counter reads 40, then the CPU is working at 40% capacity. If your processor is exceeding 65% capacity then this will be a problem area.
- % Disk Time
- This counter’s average value should be as low as possible. An average value of 70% or above indicates that the hard disk can’t keep up. Adding more spindles or faster hard disks may be required.
- Current Disk Queue Length
- This counter will show you how many I/O operations are waiting for the hard disk to become available. Our recommendation is that the average disk queue length should be 4 or less. Adding more spindles or faster hard disks may be required.
- Cache Bytes
- This counter monitors the amount of memory being used for the file system cache. Anything over 10 MB would be considered too much. If this is the case it is recommended that you add more physical memory.
- Pool Non-paged Bytes and Pool Non-paged Allocations
- Another way to test for memory leaks is to monitor these two counters. The Pool Non-paged Bytes counter counts pages of memory that can’t be moved to virtual memory, these will stay in physical RAM. Most likely, if this value is too high, you’ll have to add more physical memory to the system. You can also watch the Pool Non-paged Allocations counter to see how many calls are being made to that portion of the memory. If the number of calls does not seem to correspond with the number of memory pages, you may likely have a memory leak rather than an insufficient amount of physical ram.
- PAGES/SEC
- This value counts the number of times per second that the system is accessing virtual memory rather than physical memory. A value above 20 is considered to be high, and it may indicate a problem with the way your virtual memory is configured rather than a problem or shortage of physical memory.
We recommend monitoring these counters over a day or more to document and establish a baseline.
Co-Authered by:
Jon Sutherland
Senior Systems Engineer
ImageSource, Inc.
Bryan Wilhelm
Senior Systems Engineer
ImageSource, Inc.
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Does Your Scanner Like to Pull Multiple Pages or None at All?
Public Access to Records in Oracle UCM Can Make Web Sites Vulnerable
I was recently surprised to find a lot of companies running Oracle UCM systems that were exposed in a way that someone could hijack the website. We were looking for documents related to generic properties forms on the internet and quickly found 4 large government and corporate companies with systems left wide open with material relating to their websites. We logged on as a guest user and we could have deleted the web content or checked out the content and checked in new content giving us control of what is on their websites. I was able to get the emails of the contributors from the system and emailed them to let them know that they need to lock down their site. It was interesting that I never got a response from any of the people and that the web sites are still exposed. When mixing critical business content and public access you can’t take security and rights issues lightly. In this case, a simple checkbox can make the difference between fast access to important ECM records and becoming a victim of HTML theft.
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