Area Code Update Utility
The Area Code utility updates existing Area Codes in Millennium Address, Phone, and Event Guest data rows, to bring them into conformity with changes that have been made to the system of Area Codes for the United States and Canada. The utility utilizes a text file with a listing of the codes that have changed. Community Brands produces such a text file quarterly and makes it available for download on a subscription basis.
This utility examines the data in the Phone Number fields in Millennium Address, Phone and Event Guest data rows and compares them to the text file's list of Exchanges for which the Area Codes have changed. The Area Code portion of Phone Number information will be updated in the Millennium data, as appropriate. If you choose, an audit log of the updated records may be produced as the utility is run.
Utility Classification
This utility irreversibly updates information within the database and is therefore considered a system administrator tool.
Using the Area Code Utility
In addition to the specifications for the text file to be used, there are some preliminary steps involved in running the Area Code utility. The following describes and discusses these procedures and the features of the utility application. Following the descriptions, you will be given instructions for using the utility.
Text File
This utility requires the use of a comma delimited text file containing a listing of the phone exchanges that have new area code assignments. This file must be of the specific layout shown below in order to be recognized by the utility. Community Brands makes such a file available each quarter for a subscription fee. Each file will contain the changes that are put into effect at that time. They are not inclusive of previous changes. To arrange for a subscription, contact our offices and you will be given a password to access the file for download. You may place the text file in any location that is accessible to the machine that will be used to run the utility.
| Field Position | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Effective Date, formatted as either mm/dd/yy or mm/dd/yyyy |
| 2 | Ending Date, formatted as either mm/dd/yy or mm/dd/yyyy |
| 3 | Old Area Code - 3 characters |
| 4 | Exchange - 3 characters |
| 5 | New Area Code - 3 characters |
Workstation and Login
Some of the standard Millennium utilities make use of certain Microsoft applications and associated files. While we ensure that the required applications are present and registered on the IIS machine as part of the installation process, Millennium's thin-client architecture does not install them on every workstation at your institution. Therefore, to ensure success, certain utilities must be launched from the IIS machine, using the system administrator's login and password. The Area Code Utility is one such utility.
The Area Code Utility is run outside of the interface you use to access Millennium, in the utility's own application window. It must be activated by locating the program file (Area Code Update.exe) in the Tools directory, using the Windows Explorer or other appropriate tool, and then double clicking the program name.
You will first be prompted to login to the Millennium Database with ODBC, specifying Web SQL (or another Data Source Name that you may have set up) and a valid Millennium User ID and Password. This utility does not use the SQL Views for the Millennium data tables. Therefore, you must be the database administrator (sa or MILLORA user ID) or a Millennium system administrator in order to execute this utility.
Application Windows
Following a successful login, the first application window for the Area Code utility will open. This window includes the following elements:
- Text File location - A text box is shown and a Browse button appears below it. You will either type in the path to the location of the text file or click the Browse button to navigate to the text file location.
- Audit check box - A check box is available to indicate whether you want to have an audit log produced automatically, showing the changes that the utility makes.
Before executing the utility, you should decide whether or not you want to produce a log of the changes that are made by the utility. If so, click to place a check in the Write an Audit Log check box at the right of the window. This check will cause the utility to automatically create a worktable named aaa.acodelog (where aaa is the login User ID of the operator who is running the utility) and place it in the database. This file will contain the key field, File Number, field name, value before, and value after update for each data row that was updated.
Each time that the utility is run and an Audit Log is created, the new log will overwrite the previous one. If you have a need to preserve the previous log, you should rename the Acodelog table prior to running the utility.
Note: If you choose to produce an audit log, the User ID for the person running the utility must have Create Permissions to the database.
- Address/Phone Type - The entries from the Address Type lookup table are shown in a scrolling list box to the left. You may select any combination of entries from that list, to identify the kinds of Address or Phone Number data that you want to have considered for update. For instance, you would not want the utility to examine email, or internet web addresses, and you may want to exclude other data rows at your option.
The utility will consider data rows of the types that are shown in the list box to the right of the window. When the application window is opened, that list box will be blank. You may move entries to that listing by clicking to highlight an individual name in the list to the left and then clicking the Add button between the boxes. You may also move all entries at once by using the Add All button. Likewise, entries can be removed from the list at the right individually by highlighting and using the Remove button, or by using the Remove All button.
- Next button - When the other options in this window are set as desired, you will click the Next button to move to the next step in running this utility.
When the Next button is clicked, the display is replaced with a new set of information, used to monitor the progress of the utility as it is running. Below its menu bar, it shows a Localities to Process listing, with an entry for each Area Code update to be performed. The following information is shown for each entry.
- Effective Date - the date on which the new Area Code is effective.
- Stop Date - the date on which the old Area Code will no longer be effective.
- Old - the Area Code prior to the update.
- New - the Area Code following the update.
- Count - a count of the number of rows that contain data to be updated.
- Completed - a count of the rows that have already been processed.
The File item in the menu bar includes options to Print a listing of all of the phone exchanges that are affected, and Exit (to close the utility). The Update button is used to start the run of the utility. The Back button returns you to the first screen.
Back
If you need to make any changes to the Utility settings, click Back to return to the utility's first screen. Make the changes, as desired, and then click Next.
Update
To run the utility, click the Update button. You will be given a reminder message regarding the order in which you should use Area Code text files. After you OK that message, the utility will begin processing. You will be given a percentage flood bar to inform you of the status of the utility, as it processes each table. The Count and Completed fields in the display will begin to show information on the progress of the utility. The Address table will be processed first, followed by the Phone Number table.
When the utility is running, the File item in the menu bar changes to Stop. If you want to halt the run of the utility, you may do so by clicking that item. A message box will appear with the instructions to click Yes if you want to stop the run of the utility, and No if you want the utility to continue processing.
A list of all phone exchanges that have changed within each Area Code may be printed by using the command from the menu bar. When you do so, you will be given a new window showing the same set of entries that are shown in the previous window but with a Print button shown below the list.
From this window, you may highlight any combination of the changed area codes, using standard Windows techniques, and then click the Print button. When you do so, the utility will print a list of each of the phone exchanges within the selected area codes that now have new area codes. (Remember that this is a generic list of the affected codes and exchanges. A log of the specific changes made to the Millennium data is contained in the ACODELOG file, if you activated the Write an Audit Log option when you ran the utility.)
Running the Utility
The following instructions assume that you have either downloaded an appropriate text file (available from Community Brands by subscription) or that you have created one of your own, according to the required layout, and that the file is in a location accessible by the workstation and known to the user who will run the utility. For more information about any procedure, click the relevant hyperlink.
- Make and verify a backup of your data!
- Use the Windows Explorer or other tool to locate the Area Code Update.exe program file and double click it to launch the utility.
- As prompted, login to your Millennium database with ODBC. Select Web SQL (or another data source you may have set up) as the data source. Use either a database administrator (sa or MILLORA ) or a Millennium system administrator User ID and password. After a successful login, an application window will be presented.
- From the first utility window, either type in the path to the location of the text file you want to use OR use the Browse button to navigate to the file's location.
- If you want to generate an Audit Log, click that check box. (Your User ID must have create permissions on the database.)
- Select the desired Address Types that you want to process by clicking to highlight individual entries and then clicking the Add button, OR click Add All and then highlight and Remove those that you want to exclude from the process.
- Click the Next button.
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From the resulting window, if you want to print a listing of the phone exchanges that are affected by an Area Code change, click File, Print. You will be shown a pop-up window with a listing of the Area Codes that have changes in the current text file. Click to highlight any set of items from the list and then click Print.
OR
Click Back to return to the previous window.
- Click Update to initiate the updating. The window will display information that allows you to monitor the progress. When complete, a message will be given stating, "AreaCode Update utility is complete." Click OK.