Spring 2012 MR User Forum – Questions and Answers
The following questions were brought up during the Spring 2012 MR User Forum sponsored by the MSX Group. We have provided both the questions, answers and related links for more information on a certain topics.
QUESTION: Must the segment names match between FRx and Management Reporter when Mapping Segments during migration?
ANSWER: The names can be different.
QUESTION: Does the Wizard handle FRx reports with unit accounts?
ANSWER: Yes. The FRx Migration wizard will convert reports utilizing unit accounts.
QUESTION: If Effective Dates are utilized in an FRx catalog, will the multiple rows/columns migrate or does only the building block assigned to the catalog migrate?
ANSWER: Only the building block assigned to the catalog migrates completely. The others will be copied to Management Reporter, but the references to dimension IDs will be dropped.
QUESTION: I noticed that passwords were removed during the migration process. Are passwords used in Management Reporter?
ANSWER: New passwords may be used in Management Reporter.
QUESTION: Does FRx need to be installed on the desktop where Management Reporter is being installed in order to utilize the Migration wizard?
ANSWER: No. However, the shared SysData files must be accessible via the network.
QUESTION: Do you need to use the ODBC settings that were setup for FRx?
ANSWER: No more ODBCs!
QUESTION: Are the spaces in formulas impacted during migration?
ANSWER: Any spaces in formulas (Rows or Columns) are problematic in Management Reporter. These should be cleared in FRx before migration if possible. Formulas will migrate with spaces and are not flagged as errors, but do not work properly until spaces are removed.
QUESTION: Do the links to Excel worksheets migrate from FRx to Management Reporter?
ANSWER: Links to Excel files and cell references do migrate to Management Reporter from FRx.
QUESTION: Is it necessary to delete Forecaster companies before migrating?
ANSWER: It is recommended to delete Forecaster companies in FRx prior to migration but this may not be practical if FRx will continue to be used after the migration, especially for budgeting.
QUESTION: Can Management Reporter use reports set up in Forecaster to create new reports in Management Reporter?
ANSWER: No, Management Reporter does not integrate with Microsoft Forecaster. However, some parts of reports in Forecaster may be copied and pasted from Forecaster to Management Reporter 2012, such as Labels and account IDs from Line Sets.
QUESTION: What data does the Forecaster Data Transfer Wizard copy?
ANSWER: The Forecaster Data Transfer Wizard copies account balances from the Forecaster database to the Microsoft Dynamics general ledger database. This transfer wizard only transfers the main GL dimensions/segments and not Analytical Account data.
QUESTION: Will the budget functionality be added to MR in future releases? How will Forecaster be affected?
ANSWER: Microsoft has said that they will be moving ahead with the next-generation budgeting tool for Dynamics customers, but have not determined if that will take the shape of expanding Management Reporter to include the necessary budget functionality or as a stand-alone application. In either case, Microsoft has pledged to provide a mechanism to allow customers using Forecaster to migrate to the new Budget tool.
QUESTION: Were there any changes to the export to Excel options from the Report Designer (as opposed to the Viewer)?
ANSWER: Export to Excel options are available only in Report Viewer. Management Reporter 2012 no longer has an option to export directly to Excel. Reports must first be generated to the Report Library.
QUESTION: For Row Definitions, can the “NP” Print Control be used in rows to include explanations?
ANSWER: Use the “REM” Format Code to designate non-printing rows which can be used for notes or remarks. Management Reporter is a little less forgiving when applying format codes to rows not linked to the GL.
QUESTION: Would the Management Reporter user who has access to a report via Sharepoint be able to drill down for details?
ANSWER: Yes. As long as the Management Reporter report includes Account and/or Transaction level detail, users may see that detail in a Management Reporter report, Excel file or XPS file. There is also a new feature available to further drill back to the source ERP which will require the ERP (like AX or GP) to be open on the user’s computer and that person must be a licensed user in the ERP system.