Your Top 6 FDMEE Scripting Questions, Answered

by | 06 17, 2014 | EPM, FDM, FDM Classic, FDMEE | 1 comment

One of the great things about FDM is scripting.  Sometimes certain actions cannot be performed by standard application functionality alone.  That’s where scripting comes in.  You can customize and enhance your FDM application with scripts.  Scripting is vital to nearly all FDM Classic applications I’ve worked on.

So, when it comes to FDMEE, you keep hearing about this new scripting language called “Jython“.  You’ve got other questions, too.  Here are answers to your most common FDMEE scripting questions.

 

1) When we upgrade from FDM Classic to FDMEE, will we need to rewrite our scripts?

Yes, some of your scripts will need to be re-written.

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Unlike FDM Classic which exclusively uses VBScript, FDMEE offers various scripting options depending on the type of script. The following diagram shows a breakdown from Old World (FDM Classic) to New World (FDMEE). It’s possible to leverage existing FDM Classic event scripts and custom scripts when upgrading to FDMEE. I’ve done it before. But you’ll have to re-develop your import scripts, mappings scripts, and custom scripts.

FDMC_vs_FDMEE_Script_Types

2) So, the de facto scripting language for FDMEE is Jython. What is Jython?

Jython is the Python scripting language integrated with the Java platform.

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You can find plenty of resources out there for Jython programming.  Check out Jython.org for starters.  Also, the FDMEE Administrator’s Guide has several Jython script examples to get you started.

3) For our upgrade, we have to transform some of our existing FDM Classic scripts from VBScript to Jython.  How difficult will this be?

It shouldn’t be too hard.  To precisely gauge the level of effort requires an audit of your existing FDM Classic application.  Reach out to me and we can discuss.

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Re-writing your FDM Classic scripts in Jython shouldn’t be too tough for a resource with an intermediate level of programming experience.   If you’re an ace at VBScript and SQL, you’ll get the hang of it.

I recommend engaging an experienced consulting professional (yours truly, for instance).  The right consultant will speed up the conversion process and conduct constructive knowledge transfer sessions with your FDMEE administrator.

In terms of estimates, I can typically convert mapping scripts and import scripts in short order. For complex event and custom scripts, plan on more time and effort to convert.  Below is an example of a FDM Classic import script and its FDMEE equivalent using Jython.

FDMC_vs_FDMEE_Import_Script

4) When upgrading FDM Classic event scripts and custom scripts to FDMEE, should we use Jython instead of Visual Basic?

This decision is subject to your project deadline and budget.

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Anytime you can re-use existing application objects during an upgrade you’re going to save time and money. Therefore, leveraging your FDM Classic event scripts and custom scripts can represent overall cost savings. However, Jython is clearly the go-forward scripting technology for FDMEE. Here’s why.

  • Like HFM, Planning and other Oracle EPM applications, FDMEE is written using the Oracle Application Development Framework (ADF). ADF is based on Java.
  • Oracle owns Java.
  • Jython is a hybrid of Python and Java.
  • The FDMEE Java API is more extensive than the Visual Basic API.

You can see the common thread here – Java.  It doesn’t take a crystal ball to predict that the Visual Basic API will be retired in a future release of FDMEE.  Still, Oracle wants to make your move to FDMEE as painless as possible.  I think the retirement of VB in FDMEE is an eventual reality, versus an immediate reality.

5) How does the FDMEE API differ from the FDM Classic API?

The FDMEE API is significantly different from the FDM Classic API.

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The FDM Classic Application Programming Interface (API) allows you to programmatically customize and extend application functionality using Visual Basic. FDMEE has two APIs: the legacy Visual Basic API and a new Java API for use with Jython.

Important – The FDMEE Visual Basic API is a subset of the FDM Classic API. The Java API is more extensive than Visual Basic API.  Also, the Visual Basic API implementation for FDMEE differs slightly from the Visual Basic API for FDM Classic. Migrating FDM Classic event scripts and custom scripts in Visual Basic to FDMEE will require some modification.

6) We have several Batch Loader scripts for lights out automation.  Can we re-use these?

Like FDM Classic, you can create batch scripts for FDMEE.  But with the new Batch Definition feature, you may not need to.

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In FDMEE, you can define a basic batch job using a Batch Definition, with zero scripting. From there, you can schedule the batch using the Batch Execution feature.  It’s all user interface driven.  See the Batch Definition screenshot below.

FDMEE_Batch_Def

 

Have more questions about scripting in FDMEE?  Please send me a note or submit a comment on this post.

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