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Hello PDL pals, let's talk about creating custom PDL staging tables!

How PDL Staging Tables work 

Why would we want to create custom staging tables? 

• Allow us to expand beyond some limitations with current delivered processes, ex:
  • Add multiple student groups from the same file, and to use the current date value
  • Add multiple service indicators from one file
• Consolidate several processes together, ex:
  • Add applicant affiliations and student groups using the same PDL as the application load
• Post to custom tables via PDL

This is a collaborative effort between functional and technical users, as it involves several steps that require access to Application Designer.

Steps:

1. Build the custom staging record in Application Designer with the SCC_TEMP_ID field as a key, remove EMPLID as a key (Application Designer). 
2. Display the custom staging table data in staging (Application Designer)
3. Add the new custom staging table to the Entity Registry so you can establish a parent and link it to the production record (within PeopleSoft)
4. Add to Context (within PeopleSoft)
5. Add to Data Update Rule (Within PeopleSoft)
6. Add the File Mapping (within PeopleSoft)

Building the custom staging record in Application Designer:

1. Locate the production record that you’d like to write to using PDL and do a Save As to create your own copy.
   • This will become your staging table
2. Add the SCC_TEMP_ID field.
   
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3. Set the SCC_TEMP_ID field as a key.
   
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4. Remove EMPLID as a key 
   
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5. Do a Build on your record.
   
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Adding our custom staging record to a page so it’s visible in staging:

We’ve added some to delivered pages, and some to a new page we’ve created. We’ve added to both Constituent and Application Staging

Adding the new custom staging table to the Entity Registry: 

Steps:

1. Check 'Apply Data Update Rule’.
2. Associate with Parent staging table
3. You are now ready to add this to your Context, File Mapping, and Data Update Rule Entry to start using it!

Build:

1. Go to Set Up SACR → System Administration → Entity → Entity Registry and Add a new value
   • Fill out a Name. It'll generate an Entity ID for you when you save
   • Entity Type = Staged Entity
   • Prod Record = the production record
   • Stage Record = the new record you created
   • Element (XML) = the new record you created
     
     
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2. If you select Edit Properties, you can view what displays in staging for this table, what is required in order to map to the table, etc.
   
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3. To associate your new entity with Parent Record Entity, go to the parent entity and add your new Entity Name as a child
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4. If you want to be able to set up how to update this record for existing IDs, you’ll want to select Apply Data Update Rule and Sync
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Adding to Context:

1. Add the new Staging Record, and the Parent you associated it with in the Entity Registry

Adding to Data Update Rule:

1. You’ll need to refresh in order to see your new table:

Adding to File Mapping:

• You'll map as you would any other table!

Things to keep in mind:

• PDL doesn’t do updates to application data easily – it doesn’t update an existing application number, it can only add new application rows