Use this program to:
Note: Because so many records must be checked, the processing can be slow. For certain users, this program may have noticeable impact on the performance of other users. Therefore, it is suggested that this program be done during off hours.
User tip: The Process Data De-Duplication program marks each record in the De-Duplication file as having been "processed". As a result, these records will not be processed again on future runs of the program. If, after running the Process Data De-Duplication program, new records are added to the De-Duplication file -- either manually via the Edit De-Duplication program or automatically via the Select Records for De-Duplication program -- only those new records will be processed on a subsequent run. If a formerly processed customer record needs to be processed again, please contact the Thermeon Customer Support Department and request that the Data De-Duplication file be initialized.
To access the Process De-Duplication program, type DEDUP (RET) at any menu "OPTION:" field or the appropriate line number from the Data De-Duplication menu. The screen will display as follows:
| DATA DE-DUPLICATION TO BEGIN MERGE PRESS F1 1BEGIN 2 3 4 5BACKUP 6 7HELP 8 |
When the Data De-duplication program is run, the following processes take place:
1. The program rewrites records in several files that reference the obsolete customer record, replacing the obsolete Customer number with the surviving record's Customer number. These files include the following:
Reservation File
Rental Agreement File
Customer File (Bill-to field)
Deposit/Payment File
Vehicle History File
Quote File
A/R Open Item File
Vehicle File (when foreign locations are owners)
Non-Rev File
2. The fields listed below are updated in the surviving customer's Customer File record:
| Times Rented | Sum of the counts from the two records. |
| Parking Tickets | Sum of the two records; most recent date is used. |
| Accidents | Sum of the two records; most recent date is used. |
| Year to Date/ Period to Date Sales |
Sum of the two records. |
| Modified Date | Most recent date from the two records is used. |
3. Obsolete Customers: The Customer Type for the obsolete Customer Records is changed to the Type Code designated in Field 4 of the Select Record for De-Duplication program, and any balance is wiped out. The drivers license number on the obsolete customer
records is modified. The obsolete customer type is added as prefix to
the license number. Example: If the obsolete customer type is PRG and the drivers license is BT123456, it will become PRGBT123456.
The obsolete customer records can be purged after a few weeks or months.
WARNING: Due to the amount of processing required to merge records, it is suggested that only a limited number of records be included in the first few attempts. After a few runs, you will be better able to judge the number of records that can be processed in the time period desired.
WARNINGS:
1. Once processed, de-duplication CANNOT BE REVERSED!
2. Due to the amount of processing required to merge records, this program may take hours (even a half a day depending on the size of the data files) to run to completion. Running this during the work day may negatively affect the perceived performance of other programs. It is suggested that you start this program at the end of your day so that it can run over night. If your system has automatically scheduled processes that occur at night (such as automatic reboot, back-up, etc.) you may want to reschedule them on the night this process is running.
3. As massive amounts of data will be re-written, users with stand alone systems should do a manual back up before starting this program.
PRESS "F1"AT "OPTION:" TO START THIS PROCESS.
The following messages display:
HAVE YOU REVIEWED ALL RECORDS THAT ARE SELECTED?
Enter: N = abort; Y = continue
PROCESSING CANNOT BE REVERSED. ARE YOU SURE?
Enter: N = abort; Y = continue