Table of Contents
Overview
How Data Appears in Coursedog
Viewing Attribute Mappings
Maintaining Attribute Mappings
Saving Mappings
PeopleSoft
Troubleshooting
Related Articles
Overview
This article provides an overview of the mechanism in Coursedog that allows administrators to configure attribute mappings and populate the list of options available in select type questions.
Attribute mappings are often necessary in integrated environments so that the values exchanged with the SIS are presented to the end user in a friendly manner.
For example, a “Status” field may display the options "Active" and "Inactive" in Coursedog instead of the SIS codes of "A" and "I". For integration purposes Coursedog must know how to map “Active” to “A” and “Inactive” to “I” to display the appropriate selection and communicate any updates back to the SIS.
Attribute Mappings might be needed for fewer fields in PeopleSoft, due to the integration functionality for PeopleSoft customers; please see the PeopleSoft section below for more information.
How Data Appears in Coursedog
Overview
The available templates in Coursedog (e.g. Section, Instructor, Room and Course in Academic Scheduling) contain various pre-built and custom questions.
There are many types of questions to choose from, and some question types are intended to present the user with a set of options to select from. These questions will appear as a drop-down in the corresponding screen. Go here to learn more about configuring questions.
Although we're showing the Section Template here, the templates aren't where you manage Attribute Mappings. Rather, we're showing these here to demonstrate how the fields appear in Coursedog. The next section, "Attribute Mappings", will show how these exact Question Settings are mapped to your SIS.
Example
In the example below, the Instruction Mode prebuilt question has been configured to include three options that end users can select from the “instructor mode” dropdown menu: Online, Face to Face, and Hybrid.
The configuration was accomplished through the Section Template editor, under Question Settings for Instruction Mode.
Section Editing Modal (What End Users See)
Section Template (Where Admins Configure Options)
Viewing Attribute Mappings
Overview
Coursedog users with administration (admin) permissions can review Integration Attribute Mappings.
Navigate to Admin > Integration Attribute Mappings.
You will see headers for each of the major entities applicable to your environment (e.g. Courses, Relationships, etc.). These vary by SIS and licensed product set.
Example
Continuing the example used in the section above, the Sections tab includes an attribute mapping definition for the Instruction Mode field. Clicking on the field row displays the details of the mapping.
The below screenshot shows how the "Online", "Face to Face", and "Hybrid" options displayed to users map to "O", "F", and "H", respectively, through the integration.
Without this information, Coursedog would send the display values ("Face to Face") to the SIS which, in turn, would cause integration errors.
Maintaining Attribute Mappings
Overview | Creating a New Attribute Group | Modifying Attributes in an Existing Group
Overview
The Coursedog onboarding process includes a discovery phase in which your project team works to catalog the various data elements and mappings needed for a successful deployment.
Over time options might change as entries in the SIS are added, deprecated, or modified. This section discusses how the Coursedog administrators at your institution can maintain Integration Attribute Mappings.
Creating a New Attribute Group
Overview
If a prebuilt, integrated question is added to a template after go-live, it may require configuration of attribute mappings in order to capture and display information appropriately.
We recommend submitting a Freshdesk ticket for assistance from your CSM to properly evaluate and test the change.
How to Do It
Step 1: Navigate to Admin > Integration Attribute Mappings.
Step 2: Select the tab for the entity in question (e.g. Sections).
Step 3:
Click “+ Add new attribute group”.
This will add a "New field" record to the table.
Step 4: Click on “New Field” to open its settings.
Step 5:
Select the appropriate field from the “Field Name” drop down.
The options in this drop-down correspond to the pre-built questions in the system.
For custom questions, please reach out to your CSM.
Step 6:
Select “Associated Types” from the “Associated Types” dropdown.
Use this dropdown if an entity of a different type needs to use the same attribute mappings when syncing with your SIS.
Step 7 (Optional/Not Recommended):
The “Selectable within Template Field Options” button is a default value; in almost all cases it should not be touched and should be kept as-is.
Step 8:
Enter values for Coursedog Field Option and its corresponding SIS Code.
Coursedog Field Option – This is what should be displayed as an option in the dropdown menu. E.g. "Online"
SIS Code – This is what should be communicated to the SIS. E.g. "O".
Step 9: Click the “More Options” toggle for more granular control of the field (options are outlined below).
CUSTOM FIELDS
The “New Custom Field Key” is used to append custom fields to each attribute. This is rarely needed unless there is a specific exception that warrants it.
If you input a value for “New Custom Field Key”, the “+ Add Custom Field” button will highlight, giving you the option to click to add another.
SELECTABLE WITHIN TEMPLATE FIELD OPTIONS
This button indicates if this attribute should be visible when the attributes are dynamically loaded into a form or template.
This defaults to “Yes”.
It should only be set to “No” for attributes that are required for the integration, but a user should never be able to select.
EFFECTIVE DATING
This allows you to add an effective start and end date; however, those are rarely required and should not be set unless there is a specific exception needed.
Step 10:
If you wish to enter additional options, click “+ Add New Attribute” and repeat Steps 8-9.
Step 11: Once you are done entering options, click “Save” at the top of the page.
Modifying Attributes in an Existing Group
Navigate to Admin > Integration Attribute Mappings.
Select the tab for the entity in question (e.g. Sections).
Click on field name to open its settings
Edit the option values as needed.
Click “Save” in the upper right corner.
Deleting Attributes in an Existing Group
Follow steps 1-3 in the previous section.
Hover over the option you wish to delete; this will cause a trash can icon to appear on the right edge of the option.
Click the trash can icon.
Click “Save” in the upper right corner.
Saving Mappings
Editing the attribute mappings configuration within the Admin panel is only the first step to updating the options displayed to users. Once you have added, edited, or removed fields and options using the instructions above, it is very important that you click “Save” in the upper right-hand corner to persist your changes.
PeopleSoft
Coursedog applications integrated with PeopleSoft have the ability to automatically merge the options for certain fields as part of the integration mechanism. Coursedog administrators should review their merge settings ahead of managing attribute mappings prior to making any changes.
As an administrator, navigate to Admin > Merge Settings. Review the status of the "Merge Types" displayed under "Merge Settings". If the toggle is set to “Yes”, that means that the integration is automatically pulling in values and their mappings and there is no need to configure them within Coursedog.
To make any changes to question options and attribute mappings for a field that is retrieving options through the integration, please make those updates within PeopleSoft and execute a merge in Coursedog. See How Merges Work in Coursedog for more information on that process.
The below table summarizes the fields that this is available for. The entity column captures what templates and entities this field is available in.
Troubleshooting
Updated mappings are not reflected in existing data
This likely means there hasn’t been a merge since you updated mappings, as changes to the attribute mapping configuration are not reflected in the section editing modal until a merge is executed.
It is during the merge process that Coursedog will retrieve the latest mapping configuration, compare it to incoming data, and adjust its display to end users.