Document Management ('View Order Documents' and 'View Bid Documents')

Post date: Jun 27, 2011 1:57:42 PM

The SMCP system implements a complete document management system, allowing users to view scanned images, photos, copies of proposals, vendor acknowledgments, contract documents, etc.

ALL of the data in the system - from sales through collections, is grouped, first by bid number, then by order number.  Accordingly, the document management system is grouped in the same way.  All of the BID documents are saved in folders numbered with the corresponding bid number, and all of the ORDER documents are saved in folders numbered with the corresponding order number.  Here's an example:

You create TWO folders on a file server: one called 'BidDocuments' and one called 'OrderDocuments'.  Under each of these folders, you create subfolders: the name of each subfolder under 'BidDocuments' is simply the number of each of your bids, and under 'OrderDocuments' you create a subfolder for each of your order numbers.  If you currently have bids 1 to 1000, you create subfolders under 'BidDocuments' number 1, 2, 3, . . . . , 1000. (This can be done with scripts or batch files automatically).  If your order numbers run from, say, 100,000 to 150,000, you create folders named 100000 (no commas!) through 150000.

When a BID is sold and becomes an ORDER, you can move the documents from the BID folder (let's say folder 755) to the new ORDER folder (let's say 149123).  That way, all of your original proposals, drawings, etc., can become part of the order documentation.

Now, to make it accessible to the SMCP Document Manager, the two 'parent' folders have to be accessible by FTP to the program (these should be READ ONLY ftp sites, user and password protected.  This means that you have to have an FTP server running, 'serving' those two folders.  In the SMCP 'Edit System Options' menu (numbered 1005), you'll find fields for 'Order Documents FTP Url' and 'Bid Documents FTP URL'.  In these, enter the full 'URL' path to the FTP link into those folders.  (an ftp URL looks something like this: 'ftp://ftpuser:ftppassword@fileserver.com/OrderDocuments' - you can test your URL by entering it in this exact form into the address box of your web browser and make sure it works).

So if your server is at 'fileserver.com', and your Order Documents 'parent' folder is 'OrderDocuments', and the authorized ftp user is 'ftpuser', and the password is 'ftppassword', then you'll enter this URL (ftp://ftpuser:ftppassword@fileserver.com/OrderDocuments) into the 'Order Documents FTP Url' field in the 'Edit System Options' screen.