Extender Modules

The Extender Modules enables you to create a Module – which associates Custom Tables, Events, View Events and scripts into a single module which can be exported/imported in a single file for ease of deployment.

How to use

You use the Modules screen to import an Extender module developed by your Sage 300 partner or exported from a development database. You can also create new Extender modules if you are configuring Extender.

Create a module

You make the association between the Events, Scripts, View Events and scripts by the use of a unique ID (module name).

Tip: It is suggested to use your company name in the Module ID for ease of maintenance.

All Events, Scripts and Tables to be included in the Module must be named as follows :

[ModuleID].[TableName], [ModuleID].[ScriptName], [ModuleID].[EventName]

Components of an Extender module

You can view all the components of a module in the panel below the list of modules. You can double click on the individual component to open the relevant screen for checking and editing.:

For example, double-click

the Event to open the Event Screen, the Message Templates to open the email template, the custom table to view the table definition and open the custom table editor.

Tip: If you have a long list of modules, you can use CTRL-F to filter by module ID or module name

Double-click on the Table name to view and edit the Extender Custom Table definition. You can also open the Table Editor to maintain records.

In Extender Scripts, you can right click on a script that displays a screen to edit records and choose "Add to Desktop". This adds a menu item to the Sage 300 classic desktop.

In the Modules > Menu Items Tab, you can view where the shortcuts have been added.

Field List and controls

To create a new module, use the INSERT key to add a new Row and enter the Module details.

Detailed Field Description

Enter the development company name (e.g. Orchid)

Enter the Module name (e.g. CommentTemplates)

Enter the Module description (e.g. Comment Templates associated with the Item, copied to the OE Order Detail when the item is added to the order)

The date created/imported will be displayed

Enter the company website

Enter the Module Version

Enter the Module ID.  You can include a Company Code to ensure the Module ID is unique.

Important! The module ID must be used to name the Events, Scripts and Tables to be included in the module.

This is populated automatically the first time you import a module file. Use Check for updates to highlight modules with a different version in the installed from folder.

Python packages

The PIP Tab on the Modules lists all the Python packages Extender has installed as a result of @pip lines in scripts.

  • When pip is run it now records a log file in the site_packages\.. folder - right click on the PIP grid and select ‘Open folder’ - go up one level and the log files will be there.

  • If you right click on a module on the PIP page you can select ‘Remove ‘{xxx}’ from this computer'. It will delete the pip module and the next time a script is run, it will reinstall the missing pip modules.

Note: If you delete %shareddata%/Company/%orgid%/excache.ver then ALL workstations will recheck pip modules. This can be used to download the latest version of the package.

Enable/Disable

The buttons applies to view scripts configured in View Events, Scripts and Workflow only. It sets the Active flag to No.

if you need to disable a screen script, refer to the Scripts topic. Writing a OCX screen script name:

Export modules

Use the Export button to export Extender configuration to a file saved on a network folder. This will create a file with a .VI extension, including all the components named with the module ID.

You can then import the file into another database.

Import modules

Use the Import button to import an Extender module saved on a network folder. This will create and update all the components included in the module. It is recommended to restart the Sage desktop after importing a module.

Note: It doesn't delete any components. If you need to delete some events or scripts, you need to do this manually.

Check for Updates

Updating modules

On the Extender Setup > Modules screen, you can "Check for Updates". If there is a file with a newer version in the "Installed from" folder, the module is highlighted.

Select the module and select "Update"

Example: Check for updates, select the Workflow module and Update. The latest file is imported automatically from the VIXXA folder.

Examples

You can use the link below for an example of an Extender Module.

Comment Templates Module Example

Tip: The Modules screen is written using a Python script and can be used as starting point to create a custom screen that displays Sage 300 records in a grid. Look at the VI1011.py file in the VIXXA folder of your Sage 300 installation.