Creating new function extensions

Function Extensions setup allows you to create your own menu items based on the system default functions.

  1. Log on as an administrator user.
  2. select Settings > SunSystems > Function Extensions.
    Note: You can sort the list of functions in order of any of the columns, by clicking the relevant column heading.
  3. Select the function item to use as a template.
  4. Click Extend. The Add Function dialog is displayed. A copy of the function is created to be used as a template, listed below the original system menu, with the system language displayed.
  5. Amend the properties as required. Only those properties that are appropriate for the currently selected item are displayed. Some properties are read-only.
    Function Type
    Classification of the selected menu item.
    Function Id
    The SunSystems internal function ID.
    Parent Node
    The location of the function within the menu tree used to display functions in User Manager. Use the Parent Node browse button to save the function to a location other than the system default folder. This function now appears in this location when you set function permissions for a user group.
    Icon Type
    The icon that is used to represent the function.
    Form Name
    The name of the SunSystems form you want to use for this function. You must enter a name if you want a specific form on the server to be invoked, or if the form currently resides on the client machine, that is, a locally compiled form. However, if you leave this blank, SunSystems automatically opens the form for this function. When there is more than one form for the function, SunSystems prompts you to select a form during run-time.
    Actual Budget
    A budget code for the ledger, if required, for example A-Actuals.
    Business Unit
    The code of the business unit to be used with this function. If you leave this blank, the user is prompted to select a business unit when he/she activates the function.
    Executable Name
    The full path to an external application.
    Command Line Arguments
    Any command line arguments.
    Working Directory
    The path of your working directory.
    URL Link
    URL to a specific web page.
    Language Specific Text
    The language specific text area displays the new name underneath the original name with the language you currently have set in the Language Code column.

    Click in the Function Text area and enter the name of the function. This is displayed in SunSystems exactly as you enter it for users whose language is set to the language you currently have set.

    Note: The original function has System Language set as the language code. This is used if the function text has not been translated into the correct language and therefore must be provided for all menu items created for the function.

    Click in the suffix area of the extended function and enter a unique set of characters. These are appended to the function code in the User Group Menu Designer (UGM). You can enter up to 5 alphanumeric characters.

    Note: The OK button is not activated until this is done.
    Note: A row in the language text area is only saved if both the text and the suffix have been specified for the language code. It is not valid to only specify the text or the suffix and this cannot be saved.
    Parameters
    Use the parameters area to preset options or values that relate to the function.
  6. Click OK; the newly created function extension is located under the function extensions folder you specified. System functions have an associated red function icon, extended functions have a blue function icon.
  7. Click OK.
  8. Once function extensions have been created, you must set permissions on these function extensions to specify to which user group menus these items can be added.