Scenario Setup Overview

Scenarios are protected from being updated through Scenario Edit while any user is in Input Mode in a template for that scenario. A lock is put on the scenario until the user saves and exits the template to ensure data integrity. A typical edit might be changing the projection start date in a Forecast Scenario. If there is an open template while this change is being made in the scenario, the template data structure and the scenario data structure may be out of sync; meaning that closed and open periods wouldn't match. Saving the template could cause unknown results in the scenario. If you try to edit a scenario while a template is open in Input Mode, you will get an error message saying "Scenario Setup cannot be updated as the scenario or related artifact is in use. Please try again later". This applies to Offline Planning as well. A lock is placed on a scenario if Offline Planning is used to check out a template. The lock won't unlock until either the user checks the template back in or an admin selects Undo Check Out for the template in the Planning Control Panel. 

A description of fields available on this page is provided:

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Add/Edit Scenarios - Scenarios are protected from being updated through Scenario Edit while any user is in Input Mode in a template for that scenario. A lock is put on the scenario until the user saves and exits the template to ensure data integrity. A typical edit might be changing the projection start date in a Forecast Scenario. If there is an open template while this change is being made in the scenario, the template data structure and the scenario data structure may be out of sync; meaning that closed and open periods wouldn't match. Saving the template could cause unknown results in the scenario. If you try to edit a scenario while a template is open in Input Mode, you will get an error message saying "Scenario Setup cannot be updated as the scenario or related artifact is in use. Please try again later" . This applies to Offline Planning as well. A lock is placed on a scenario if Offline Planning is used to check out a template. The lock won't unlock until either the user checks the template back in or an admin selects Undo Check Out for the template in the Planning Control Panel.
To learn more about Scenarios and their types, click here.

Delete - Delete old and unused scenario and remove it from all the reference scenarios. If a scenario failed or if the status of a scenario is Failed, it will be automatically deleted by the application. You do not need to delete failed scenarios manually. Failed scenarios are deleted once every week on Sunday at 8 AM UTC.
You can delete reference scenarios in addition to deleting unused or inactive scenarios.

To delete a reference scenario:

1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
2. Select the scenario that you want to delete.
3. Click the Delete icon. A confirmation dialog box appears.
4. Click Delete.

If the deleted scenario is used as a reference in any of the following items, the scenario references will be deleted and replaced with the word “None ” on the Edit Scenario page:

• In a Compare Scenario
• In History Scenarios for Cash Flow
• In Data Trends
• In Closed Periods
• In Seeding as a source scenario
• In a History Scenario

For all references except for Data Seeding, a new reference scenario can be selected.

Limitation:

You cannot delete Actual and Default scenarios.

Copy - The copy option allows you to duplicate the current scenario, generating a new one that you can customize to meet your specific needs. Scenarios are copied in the cloud, which means you can continue working while the processing takes place. Once complete, a notification appears in the application and an email is sent. To copy the scenario, follow the steps below:

1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
2. Select the scenario that you want to duplicate and click the Copy icon.
3. Click Ok.
   
   Note:

   Scenarios are copied in the cloud, which means you can continue working while the processing takes place. Once complete, a notification appears in the application and an email is sent.
4. Click Reload after receiving the completion notification to update the list with the new scenario (copied scenario).

Process - As we have added auto synchronization of tasks based on foundational adjustments, you do not need to manually synchronize the information for an existing scenario from the Scenario List page. After you click Save, the application automatically synchronizes the scenarios that have been modified. Ensure that you refresh the Task Manager page to view the updated information. As a safety net, the manual synchronization option is still be available.

Three Verticle Dots

Scenario Actions

• Forward - New scenarios have a status of Scenario being created. These scenarios are not available to budget end-users via the Planning Control Panel for input until forwarded. Forward scenarios to make them available for template mapping or data loads. Actual and Default scenarios do not need to be forwarded.
  

  To forward a scenario:

  1. Access the Scenario List page by navigating to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
  2. On the Scenario List page, select the scenario that you want to forward and click the More (three vertical dots) icon.
  3. Click the Forward option. The scenario will be updated to a status of Scenario Forwarded
• Lock/Unlock - Lock a scenario to prevent data modifications. Administrators typically lock scenarios to prevent budget users from editing them. When templates are mapped to a locked scenario, they cannot be deleted. The Delete button isremoved for locked scenarios to ensure data integrity.

  To delete a template from a locked scenario:

  1. Access the Scenario List page by navigating to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
  2. Select the locked scenario associated with the template you want to delete.
  3. Click the three vertical dots and select Unlock.
  4. Navigate to the Template List page (Maintenance > Planning Templates > Template Setup).
  5. Select the template you want to delete and click the Delete button.
  6. To lock a scenario:
  7. 
     
  1. Access the Scenario List page by navigating to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
  2. On the Scenario List page, select the scenario and click the three vertical dots.
  3. Select Lock.
  4. To unlock a scenario:
  5. 
     
  1. Access the Scenario List page by navigating to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.
  2. On the Scenario List page, select the scenario and click the three vertical dots.
  3. Select Unlock.

• Global Data Input - Input data for budget entities into the template. Global fields are budget assumptions used for budget calculations. Global field values are maintained by scenario. The Global Data Input page allows you to input global field values for each budget entity in the yellow shaded cells. The global values will be pulled automatically by system-defined formulas within the budget templates based on the budget entity and scenarios against which the template is opened. This step is optional and may not be required for all the scenarios. Global Field Data Input can be performed at any stage of the budgeting process. The list of Global Fields available is populated from the Global Fields added on the Global Field page accessed by navigating to Maintenance > Templates > Global Fields.  To learn more about Global Data Input, click here.
• Refresh Closed Period Data (Refreshing Actuals)- For Forecast scenarios, synchronize Actuals data with closed periods data. Refreshing actuals is an action performed on a Forecast type scenario to populate the scenario with actual data for closed periods or when the Projection Start Date of the scenario changes. Each Forecast scenario has Projection Start Dates, which is the date in which the scenario starts. If you start a scenario mid-year or mid-period, there will be closed period actual data recorded for the first periods that closed prior to the middle of the year or period. For example, if the Projection Start is the first month of the fiscal year, there will be no closed period(s). If the Projection Start month is Jun-17 for a fiscal year from April to March, closed periods populate until May-17.
  • When to Refresh Actuals?
    Whenever the Projection Start of the current scenario changes, administrators need to perform a refresh of the Actual data to update the closed month(s).
• Refresh Preloaded Data- Synchronize budget data with a Preloaded Budget scenario. You'll need to refresh preloaded data because external budgets change as time goes by and the latest data needs to be displayed in Planful. Preloaded budgets are used to load historical/external budgets to the Planful suite Budgeting application through the Data Load Rules interface for a chosen period in a fiscal year. For example, if a preloaded budget is created for FY-2015. The budget data for 2015 from the 1st of April 2016 to March 2017 (assuming the fiscal year starts from April) can be loaded to the Budgeting application using Data Load Rules.
  • When to Refresh Preloaded Data?
    When external/historical budget data is loaded against the preloaded budget scenario, refresh the preloaded data.
    Note:

    Use the Data Integration interface to load external budgets to the scenario.
• Unprocess/Process WFP Employees - For processed employees, this action returns all processed employees to a state of "unprocessed" in the Workforce template for the selected scenario.
• Reset All- Move a scenario and all its associated templates and budget entities to an In Progress state.

  To reset a Scenario:

  1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
  2. Select the scenario associated with the templates and entities that you want to reset to an In Progress state.
  3. Click the three vertical dots and select Reset All.
• Maintenance - Maintenance allows Admin users to control when Maintenance is performed on a Scenario and/or Template. Template and/or Scenario Maintenance includes any type of modification to the setup. For example, an Admin might want to enable compare scenarios, add additional compare scenarios, or change the scenario due date for a scenario. For templates, an Admin user might want to change the look of the template by adding borders or change the number of decimals displayed. For detailed information, see the Performing Scenario/Template Maintenance topic below.

Other Actions

• User Access - Manage user access for each scenario.
  To manage the user access for a Scenario, follow the steps below:
  1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
  2. Click the three vertical dots and click User Access.
  3. Select a Scenario from the drop-down list on the User Access page.
  4. Click the User or User Group radio button.
     Note:

     If the scenario access is inherited from user groups, you cannot update the access for individual users.
  5. Select/deselect the checkboxes to update the access.
  6. Click Save.
  7. Note:
     Alternatively, you can update the Scenario Access by Navigating to Maintenance > Administration > User & Role Management. Now select the user, click on the Security Options icon, and then click Scenario Access.
• Documents- You can upload documents for the scenario which might include Instructions, assumptions in the currency budget cycle, and a summary of targets.
  To upload the document to a scenario, follow the steps below:
  1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
  2. Select the Scenario for which you want to attach documents and click the More icon (three vertical dots).
  3. Click Documents. The Document List page appears.
  4. Click Choose File to upload a document. You can upload documents in various formats such as Text, Word, PDF, Excel, PowerPoint, and Images.
  5. Click Save. The attached document will be displayed in the list.
  
  Additionally, you can also download or delete the document added to a scenario, by following the steps below:
  1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
  2. Select the Scenario for which you want to download or delete the document and click the More icon (three vertical dots).
  3. Click Documents. The Document List page appears.
  4. To download the document, click the document's title to download it. (or) To delete the document added to the scenario, click the Delete icon next to the document name.
• Seeding Exception Report - The application logs the cases when formulas could not be transposed and provides this information in the form of an Exception report. This report contains details such as Scenario, Entity, Template, Initiative Name, Sub Template Name, Main Row, Subline Row, MonthQuarter, Year, Source Formula, Source Value, Target Formula, Target Value, Formula, Error, Sheet Name, and Mode. This report specifies details about the Values in the Source Scenario and the replaced Value and Formula in the Target Scenario.
  To export the seeding exception report for a Plan Scenario, follow the steps below:
  1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
  2. Select the plan scenario for which you want to attach documents and click the More icon (three vertical dots).
  3. Click Seeding Exception Report.

Output

You can download the list of Scenarios using the Print and Export to Excel option. The exported data will closely resemble the information displayed on the Scenario List page.

Print - This option allows you to print the scenario list.
To print the Scenario list, follow the steps below:

1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
2. Click the More icon (three vertical dots).
3. Click the Print Setup option, you will see the entire scenario data in the sheet for printing.

Print Setup  - This setting allows users to adjust the page layout, including paper size, orientation (portrait or landscape), page order, scaling (adjusting the size of the content to fit the page), and margins. Users can also choose Show Gridlines, Repeat row header on each page, Include document title, Include page number, Save this setting, Repeat column header on each page, and Include sheet name.
To update the Print Settings, follow the steps below:

1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
2. Click the More icon (three vertical dots).
3. Click Print Setup. The Print Settings dialog box appears, where you can modify the settings.

Export as Excel - This option allows you to export the Scenario data list in the Excel format.
To export the Scenatio list in the Excel format, follow the steps below:

1. Go to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup to access the Scenario List page.
2. Click the More icon (three vertical dots).
3. Click Export as Excel..
4. Click Ok.

Admin users have the ability to perform Maintenance on a scenario and/or template without having to track down every user and ensure each user has exited the template and/or scenario. Admin users control when Maintenance is performed on a template and / or scenario.

In Practice: Scenario / Template Maintenance

Follow the steps below to perform Maintenance on a scenario and/or template:

1. Navigate to Maintenance > Administration > Scenario Setup.

2. Select the scenario that you want to perform maintenance on.

3. Click the More list-box and select Maintenance.
   

4. Select the amount of time (in minutes) prior to the start of Maintenance.

5. Enter a message to application users in the Message text box.
   

6. Click Trigger Maintenance. The message is sent to all users who are working with the scenario. It will display on their screen informing the users about the upcoming maintenance activity. Users will be asked to Save and Exit the scenario prior to the commencement of Maintenance.

   Once Maintenance starts, the scenario is locked preventing users from performing additional actions. The icon shown in the image below indicates that the scenario is under Maintenance.

   

   If a user tries to perform an action on a template that is under Maintenance, a message is displayed.:

7. The Admin user can now perform Maintenance on the scenario selected and/or mapped templates as needed.

8. Once updates are complete, save all changes and adjustments, and return to the Scenario List page.

9. Select the scenario and click More > Maintenance.

10. A message is displayed asking if you want to end scenario maintenance. Click STOP MAINTENANCE. Ending maintenance unlocks the Scenario / Template. At this point, users can work on the Scenario / Template.

This feature is for customers with applications where Shared Mode is enabled. For information on what Shared Mode is, click here. If you are not sure if your application has Shared Mode, please contact Planful Support.

To prevent the Consolidation Process and a Data Load Rule from executing on the same scenario simultaneously, Scenario Lock functionality is in place.

How It Works

When a Data Load Rule and the Consolidation Process are executed, the first one to be initiated will acquire a lock at the Scenario level preventing the second process from executing on the same scenario until the first process is complete. For example, let's say a second process is initiated before the first one completes, the system will wait 10 minutes before canceling the second process. Note that information on status (canceled, completed and queued processes) is available in Cloud Scheduler. During the 10 minutes, the second process will automatically attempt to execute every 30 seconds to acquire a hold on the scenario. If the scenario lock is acquired by the second process (meaning that the first process completes within the 10 minutes) then it will execute and complete. If the scenario is not acquired by the second process within 10 minutes (meaning that the first process takes longer to complete), then it will be canceled and you can retry the process later.

Application Behavior

You can run Data Load Rules synchronously and/or asynchronously.

Behavior When Running Asynchronous Data Load Rules

Asynchronous Data Load Rules run in cloud and are executed via Cloud Scheduler.

Asynchronous Data Load Rules have a limit of one process per application. So when two Data Load Rules are executed by the same or different users (on the same or two different scenarios), they are queued in the Cloud Scheduler and executed one after another.

Behavior When Running Synchronous Data Load Rules

• Synchronous Data Load Rules run instantaneously and you cannot continue to work in the application until completion.

• You will not see entries in the Cloud scheduler. You will see entries in the Data Load History.

• Two different users can run a Data Load Rule independently at the same time as long as each is run for a different scenario. If the same scenario, subsequent process will fail and result in an error.

Behavior When Running a Combination of Synchronous and Asynchronous Data Load Rules

• You can run Data Load Rules asynchronously and synchronously within the same application. If an asynchronous is running and a synchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for a different scenario, both will be executed.

• If an asynchronous Data Load Rule is running and a synchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for the same scenario, the synchronous Data Load Rule will fail immediately.

• If a synchronous Data Load Rule is running and an asynchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for the same scenario, the asynchronous Data Load Rule will be queued in the Cloud Scheduler (the Status will be ‘running’ while waiting). The wait time is ten minutes, after which the application cancels the queued process.

Behavior When Running Consolidation Process Scenarios

• If a Consolidation Process is running and a synchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for a different scenario, both will be executed.

• If a Consolidation Process is running and a synchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for the same scenario, the synchronous Data Load Rule will fail immediately.

• If a Consolidation Process is running and an asynchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for a different scenario, both will be executed immediately in Cloud Scheduler.

• If a Consolidation Process is running and an asynchronous Data Load Rule is initiated for the same scenario, the asynchronous Data Load Rule will be queued in the Cloud Scheduler (the Status will be ‘running’ while waiting). The wait time is ten minutes, after which the application cancels the queued process

• If an asynchronous or a synchronous Data Load Rule is running and a Consolidation Process is initiated for the same scenario, the Consolidation Process will be queued in the Cloud Scheduler (Status will be ‘running’ while waiting). The wait time is ten minutes, after which the application cancels the queued process.

Use the Simulation process when there is a change in Scenario Seed/Seed Scenario Changes.

Simulation processing is an automated way of saving templates. This process helps to re-compute and save template data based on changes to the reference data or other global drivers. For example, salary is often referenced from the Workforce template in the department operating expense template. If there are any changes to employee position, the changes in the Workforce template must propagate to its dependent template(s). The Simulation Engine processes templates automatically instead of manually opening and saving the templates in order of dependency.

For information, see Simulation Engine