Changes

{{IMSMANG}} is designed to support information management in a decentralised context involving many users and groups at various sites. These users can include implementing partners, mine action Mine Action operators and regional or decentralised mine action authorities. Decentralising information management within {{IMSMANG}} is easy and allows information managers to expand the scope and impact of information on mine action activitiesMine Action Authorities. While {{IMSMANG}} supports nearly any conceivable patterns for decentralised information exchange including multilateral exchange, peer-to-peer exchange and one- and two-direction exchange, the most prevalent pattern is that of a central mine action authority (CMA) Central Mine Action Authority and subordinate regional mine action authorities (RMAs)Regional Mine Action Authorities. Much of the discussion of maintaining a decentralised {{IMSMANG}} system refers to this typical example; however, many points apply to other information exchange patterns as well.

The decentralised model is characterised by one or more non-overlapping regional sites or authorities that conduct data entry and data quality control for their region. Regional sites also typically perform some regional data analysis designed to support regional operations management and planning. By contrast, the central authority Central Mine Action Authority manages the overall data set for the entire country, collecting all regional information in order to perform national planning and produce national statistics.

Establishing {{IMSMANG}} with the correct configuration in this complicated context An important part of multiple users and asynchronous data establishing decentralised information exchange is important to trouble-free operations document the information management workflows so smooth data exchange and high-quality information management. The first step in ensuring the correct configuration is to document the information management flowsobtained.

In the following example, mine action Data Entry Forms are reconciled, entered , linked and approved at each regional site for the ongoing operations in that region. Using the Export Data Entry Forms are reconciled, linked and approved according to the regional operations needs. Using functionality in the export functionalityAdvanced Search, the regional sites export data on a regular basis (for example, monthly) and send it to the central authority (regional information managers can use the search functionality to export the Data Entry Forms entered since the last data exchange)Central Mine Action Authority. The central authority Central Mine Action Authority then imports the maXML files from each site and resolves any issues with the imports as well as performs quality control. When the import is complete, the central authority Central Mine Action Authority compiles a set of national statistics and then distributes a complete dataset (in the form of a database backup) to each of the regional sites. The regional sites restore the dataset and then import any data entered since the last export was sent to the central authorityCentral Mine Action Authority. When the backup is restored, regular data entry and exchange can continue, based on a common dataset.

Using the example of the central authority Central Mine Action Authority and regional sites, the following principles for user account creation and permissions should be considered:

* <b>'''Central Mine Action Authority''':</b> Ensure central authority Central Mine Action Authority has exclusive control over user accounts and roles, Data Entry Form templates, the Data Inventory Manager and auxiliary data.* <b>'''Regional Sites''':</b> Ensure that regional sites have data entry, approval and import/export permissions. Remove permissions for user accounts and roles and auxiliary data.

By establishing a set of limited permissions for the regional sites, information managers can prevent the accidental or intentional creation of new data elements not available at the central authority Central Mine Action Authority that could affect the ability of the central authority Central Mine Action Authority to import Data Entry Forms and cause the dataset to become fractured.

==Creating New Auxiliary Data at the Central Mine Action Authority Level==__NOEDITSECTION__By limiting auxiliary data permissions to the central authorityCentral Mine Action Authority, information managers can prevent complications when synchronising Data Entry Forms. Because Data Entry Forms often refer to auxiliary data (places, ordnance, organisations, etc.), it is important that each site have a common set of auxiliary data to facilitate exchange. If the auxiliary data is not properly synchronised, the exchange of Data Entry Forms can result in import issues which must be manually resolved. While {{IMSMANG}} provides an interface for resolving these kinds of issues, it is recommended to reduce the occurrence of these issues by limiting any creation of auxiliary data to the central authority Central Mine Action Authority who can then distribute an updated dataset as necessary. Likewise, limiting the creation of Data Entry Form templates, data elements and country structure levels to the central authority Central Mine Action Authority improves the ease of information exchange.

The easiest way to ensure that each site is working from a common dataset is to distribute a full backup of the {{IMSMANG}} dataset to each site on a regular basis. This can occur weekly, monthly or quarterly, but the key is to distribute an official dataset to each site regularly to ensure that auxiliary data is up to date and that any changes made to other parts of the dataset are distributed. In this way, organisations can maintain a common set of national statistics and the dataset reflects the decisions made by the central authority Central Mine Action Authority to resolve errors or issues in importing and exchanging Data Entry Forms.

* Make a complete backup prior to restoring the central authority’s Central Mine Action Authority’s backup.* Export all Data Entry Forms that have been entered since the last exchange with the central authority Central Mine Action Authority before restoring a backup.

* Request that any searches or other non-exportable elements that are important for regional site use be created in the central authority’s Central Mine Action Authority’s dataset prior to distribution so they do not need to be recreated regionally each time a new backup is distributed.