PCP
Product Configuration Package
Problem Description
- Operators face difficulties in configuration of new products, change of existing products (rate plans, rating packages, free unit packages, promotions, system scenario) in multiple environments (Development, Test, Preprod, Production) frequently, especially when short time-to-market is required.
- Challenge: Configure products in a simplified way with possibility to replicate the configuration between different environments while keeping consistency in BSCS.
Answer: PCP
- PCP : Product Configuration Package
- It is an Oracle PL/SQL package having simplified functions to allow operator perform product configuration operations
- It simplifies release/update of products without the need of using online modules PX and MI
- It generates rollback scripts to automatically remove configuration deployed in case of any need
- It has extensive logging which stores the parameters used to call procedures
- It is installed in a separate schema allowing an intact SYSADM schema
- “Product” in PCP terms is any of the following elements : services, service packages, rating interval packages, extended GL code packages, free unit packages, promotion packages, cost control packages, system scenarios, rate plans
PCP – Strengths
- Reduces Amount of work for product configuration
- Proven set of procedures for performing and deploying the same configuration in multiple environments
- Use of public keys to avoid problems of different ids (i.e. SNCODE, TMCODE, SVCODE) in different environments
- “BSCS like” behavior:
- Follows the MP logic : Create a “work version”, check consistency and release to production
- Granularity of procedures:
- granularity spanning from configuring most simple elements to most complex within a product
- Logging & security
- PCP keeps a log of each procedure call in the system helping operations teams in problems tracking/analysis
- use of “select for update” to support multi-user operation, avoiding any deadlocks therefore providing a responsive system
- Additional Safety with “Rollback script” creation for each operation
- creation of SQL statements to remove any configuration operation performed via the package in a specific environment
- Useful for removing/changing configuration during test and development phase
- Documentation
- Full documentation and best practise examples using SQL coding
PCP – Weakness
- Need of PL/SQL experience and training
- creation of batch scripts to call procedures in the package needs some basic PL/SQL skills and some training
- Initial training is needed (delivered as part of the product)
- Additional trainings can be provided any time in case of need
PCP – Details
- PCP functions are available for “creation” of all products and “update” of select products
- A product is one of the below in PCP-R1:
- services (not updateable)
- service packages (updatable)
- rating interval packages (updatable)
- extended GL code packages (updatable)
- promotion packages (updatable)
- system scenarios (updatable)
- rate plans (updatable)
- Creation can be done in two ways
- Copy from existing product
- Create from scratch
- “update” is done via changing the work version and consequently releasing a new version
PCP – Functionalities
- Services
- create service
- copy service (limitations exist for basic services)
- Service packages
- create sp
- copy sp
- add service to sp
- remove service from sp (consistency check is already in)
- Rate plans
- create rp as work version
- copy rp as work version
- refresh work from production
- update rp in work
- release rp to production
- Rating interval packages
- create rip as work version
- copy rip as work version
- refresh work from production
- update rip in work
- release rip to production
- Extended GL Code packages
- create extglcp as work version
- copy extglcp as work version
- refresh work from production
- update extglcp in work
- release extglcp to production
- System scenarios
- create ss as work version
- copy ss as work version
- refresh work from production
- release ss to production
- update ss in work
- create/copy/change complex conditions
- create/copy/change prebusiness scenario
- create/copy/change business scenario
- Promotion packages
- create promo as work version
- copy promo as work version
- refresh work from production
- release promo to production
- update promo in work
- create/copy/change selection criteria
- create/copy/change item qualifiers
- create/copy/change mechanisms
- create/copy/change model elements
- create/copy/change model
PCP – Technical Requirements
- An active BSCS installation
- An admin user in the BSCS dB who has privileges to create tables and stored procedures and has access to resource tables of BSCS
PCP – Official Approval
- Process for getting official approval from E/// (first contacts made in Apr.2017) for the package is ongoing
PCP – Roadmap
- New features in Release 2 (Q1-2018) :
- interfaces available as non-kernel cms functions
- usage package handling
- tariff zone handling
- tariff time handling
- time package handling
- zone package handling
- zone origin handling
- zone destination handling
- free unit package handling
- cost control package handling
Professional services for PCP
- Trainings offered on customer site for educating the personnel on the module
- Remote support for configuration and troubleshooting
PCP Value Proposition
- PCP enables you to save costs by fast delivery of products to development, test and production systems
- PCP provides short time-to-market for new products
- PCP provides additional safety by rollback mechanism
- PCP comes from a company with extensive BSCS consulting experience, in case of urgencies we’ll be there for you
- No other comparable tool in the market