E10 - Synchronisation to Civica Education Suite (CES) via Direct Connection

Modified on Mon, 5 Jan at 10:55 PM

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Preamble
Type of sync
Which data is sent to the other system?
Which data can be received from the other system into Tes timetable file?
1. CES set up
2. Configure the timetable sync from E10
3: Perform the sync
4. Publish timetable in CES
Important information

Preamble

Timetabling data that exists in Timetable files are usually sent on to one or more other non-Tes systems, such as student learning management systems, reporting systems, administration systems, and many more. The Tes integration team works with other systems to make sure that the data required to be sent is in the correct format.

This document can be referenced for:

new school file set up
synchronisation processes
synchronisation troubleshooting

The following data sync’s are possible and performed for particular purposes:

Sync timetable file to CES
- Usually done at the beginning of each term or semester, or if not using Timetable Daily, whenever timetable or class list changes need to be sent to CES.
Sync timetable file to Timetable Daily
- Whenever timetable or class list changes are made within the timetable file
Sync Timetable Daily (online)
- On a Daily basis to send through daily organisation type changes, timetable changes or class list changes made through Tes Staff

This article covers the first option only.

Please make sure that you have read the important information section in this document as well before starting the configuration.

The following information has been provided by the Civica team and was correct at the time of publication. Please check the Civica documentation for any changes to the process. Please contact them for any support required in the set up in this system, as Tes consultants are not able to advise.

While Tes takes all care to ensure any mention to the other system is correct and up to date, it is the user's responsibility to check with the other system prior to an initial sync. If the user becomes aware of any changes to the other system, we would very much appreciate this feedback

Type of sync

This sync is performed by a 'LISS' sync, which is a sync that sends and receives data at the push of a button with no need to manually upload data into the other system.

Which data is sent to the other system?

This table lists many of the data and features found in Tes and and whether they are understood by the other system.

Note that Tes builds many excellent features to help users build high quality timetables, and while these features can be sent onto the other system through the synchronisation process, not all systems have built the capability on their end to receive/display these feature

Tes Timetable feature	Notes on feature	Is this feature received by the other system?	Other notes
Bell times	Bell times as per Grid structures	Yes
Campuses	Campuses and their associated rooms	Yes
Classes	Class code, GUID, Faculty, Course Name, Assigned teacher	Yes
Class lists		Yes
Composite classes (linked classes)	One teacher teaching more than one class at the same time	Yes
Duty roster		Yes
Faculty data		Yes
Grid structure codes		Yes
Multi-file	Two (or more) timetable files	Usure
Multi-grid	Multiple grids with different bell times	Unsure
On-call roster		Yes
Priority classes	The priority class that shows on student's timetables where they have class clashes	Yes
Room data	Room Code, Name	Yes
Rotation classes	Classes from particular rotations	Yes
RTO roster		No
Student data	Student Code	Yes
Study roster	Study classes, staffing and rooming roster	Yes
Sub-classes		No
Teacher data	Teacher Code, Name, Faculty	Yes
Teacher days off (Unavailable)		No
Timetable data		Yes
Two (or more) rooms at once		No
Two (or more) teachers at once		No
Year levels (non-numeric)	Year levels such as SPT, LSUP, ROLL, Yr9+10 etc...	Yes

Yes - The data is sent from our end and is being received and processed by 3rd party system.

No - The data is not supported by 3rd party systems and is not sent from the timetable file.

Unsure - The data is being sent from the timetable file but we are unsure if it is being processed and supported by 3rd party system.

Which data can be received from the other system into Tes timetable file?

Tes timetable data	Can this data be drawn down into Tes timetable?	Other notes
Room data	Yes	Matched against code and conflicts are managed in import match screen.
Teacher data	Yes	Matched against code and conflicts are managed in import match screen.
Student data	Yes	Matched against code and conflicts are managed in import match screen. You can set that Timetable should ignore year level and statewide IDs downloaded from Compass.

1. CES set up

Some set up must be done in CES prior to syncing any data from the Timetable file. These include:

Setting up School Settings
1. School Calendar: Teaching Terms, Non Teaching Days, Non Attendance days
2. LISS Configuration: Set up a Username and Password that will later be entered into timetable file to authenticate the user to perform the sync
Timetabling Preparation
1. Timetable Cycle:
  - Set up a cycle.
  - Set up Timetable Cycle Days. The Code must match the Days codes in the E10 grid structure.
2. Timetable Day:
  - Enter the Period codes and times. The Description field must match the Period codes in E10 grid structure.
  * Note that bell times in timetable file do not sync to CES; bell times must be set up correctly in CES.

2. Configure the timetable sync from E10

The syncing details must be initially set up in E10 before a sync can occur. This is often only needed to be performed once.

Go to File > Synchronisation > Configure

Click on the blue plus + button and select Civica Education Suite (LISS)
(The image below shows that the Edval web server sync is also configured for Timetable Daily purposes.)

Click on the Configure button (or go to the Connection tab).
- Enter the details
- For CEONT Schools (Catholic Education Northern Territory) Enter the URL: https://ces-liss.nt.catholic.edu.au (Contact CES if unsure about the URL).
- For CESA Schools (Catholic Education South Australia) Enter the URL: https://cesa-liss.catholic.edu.au or https://cesa-liss.civicaed.com.au/ (Contact CES if unsure about the URL).
- School code, Username and Password: explained in the CES set up above.

Go to the Other tab.
Enter your preferences.

Option	Details
Sync timetable & class lists every time you save	This will send only the timetable and class membership data to Civica each time you save the file
Exclude Yard duties	When ticked Yard duties will be ignored for syncing purposes
Exclude Study classes	When ticked Study classes will be ignored for syncing purposes
Exclude On-calls	When ticked On-calls will be ignored for syncing purposes
Accept StatewideID's that are sent to Tes (Recommended)	Generally, Tes will obtain statewide ID's from the external school information/admin system (SIS), as this is regarded as source of truth for this field. However, some users want this field for different purposes. In NSW for example, some prefer to have the student code field for the 'ERN' number, but the Statewide ID field for the NSW Board of Studies registration number. If so, you may want to untick this, and retain your BOS number in the Statewide ID field.
When downloading the list of students, what format	Depending on how you have configured in Civica, you can select the relevant option.
Which years?	This option allows you to select the specific year levels to sent to Civica. Please leave all of the year levels un-ticked if you want to send everything. Note. This function will only appear if the timetable file has the Multi grid function enabled.

Step 3: Perform the sync

Refer to the Important information section regarding Teacher and Student data before syncing.

Go to File > Synchronise > Sync now

There are two sync options: Basic and Advanced.

Basic sync

The basic sync sends the following information from E10 to CES: Classes, Class lists, the Timetable and Duty Roster, and Room information. Downloads teachers and students from CES into Tes timetable.

Date: Enter the date range of the sync, such as for a term or semester.
Create support log file: Check this box if you are having issues with the sync. It will place a text file of the timetable data into your folder where the timetable file is stored, which can be sent to Tes support for troubleshooting.
Timetable Rotation(s): Select the rotation/s for which timetable rotation is to be sync'd.
Check course codes: This button checks that classes with the same course codes but different subject names are flagged as Schoolbox does not differentiate between them and applies the first subject name it sees for all classes with that course code. E.g. 12ENG1 - English and 12ENGA - Engineering. Course code for both classes is '12ENG' and Schoolbox could label both as either 'English' or 'Engineering'.

Advanced sync

This sync allows full control over what information is sent to and received from CES.

The left hand box (Timetable<-- CES Education Suite) shows options for data transfer from CES into timetable file.

The right hand box (Timetable--> CES Education Suite) shows the options for data transfer from the timetable file into CES.

From: Enter the date range of the sync, such as for a term or semester.
Create support log file: Check this box if you are having issues with the sync. It will place a text file of the timetable data into your folder where the timetable file is stored, which can be sent to Tes support for troubleshooting.
Timetable Rotation(s): Select the rotation/s for which timetable rotation is to be sync'd.

Select Go to perform the sync.

Data matching screen in Timetable

A data check will occur between the two systems when a basic sync is done, or if you choose to download data from other system into the Timetable file in the Advanced sync. The data checking includes Rooms, Teachers and Students.

If there is mismatching data, a pop up screen will display the mismatching data. There will be the option to correct the data or to proceed without fixing.

Download Rooms:

The screen displayed here shows the list of rooms that exists in Timetable file, but does not in other system. You have the option to delete these rooms from Timetable file, or keep them.

Download Students:

If there is a mismatch in student data, the following matching screen will display.

Options	Details
Open action log	This will open all the mismatching data in the log format which will then allow you to copy to clipboard or even comparing with 'Show old logs' from previous syncs.
Help	This will open the help window that will explain the matching between two systems
Delete from timetable file	This will allow user to delete any data from timetable file if it does not exist in other system
Match to SIS records (manual match if needed)	This will open the window that will show the Timetable file record on left column and other system on right column where it allows you to drag the data to match between two systems. Remember if any data is not matched and you click on 'Done" it will inactivate the data in the Timetable file.
Mark as inactive	This will inactive the students in the Timetable that does not match with other system
Leave them as is for now	This will not match up the data but will download the new data from other system. In Timetable both old and new will be kept.

Download Teachers:

If there is a mismatch in teacher data, the matching screen will display.

The matching screen allows you to drag and drop the entries in each column to match the teacher data between the Timetable file and the other system.

If there is any unmatched data left and you click on 'Done', a message will pop up asking if you wish to delete the entry or leave it as it is. This means it will download the new teachers and leave the existing unmatched teachers in the Timetable file as is.

Syncing class lists only

It is common to make regular changes to student's classes, without changing the actual timetable. In this case, you might like to do the following:

Go to the Advanced sync
Select only 'Publish class lists'
Sync

In this case, there is no need to complete Step 4 below, as the student's timetables in CES reflect with the change without the need to Publish timetable in CES.

4. Publish timetable in CES

The incoming timetable must be 'published' in CES after every sync from the Timetable file.

Go to Timetabling > Timetable (External)
Select Publish
Select the Edit icon on the right of the External Calendar
Check the Timetable Cycle, Start and End dates that the incoming timetable should display for, and the Cycle start day (the first day of the calendar year, usually a date in January)
Save

The timetable sync is now complete. It is wise to check some teacher and student timetables to make sure everything looks as expected.

Important information

Teacher data

CES is the source of truth for teachers, therefore, teachers must first be entered into CES. They can then be either downloaded into the Timetable file through the Advanced sync option in the Timetable file, or entered manually into the Timetable file using the same teacher details. There are a few fields in CES that must have specific information for a sync to occur.

Authority Staff ID: This code will be downloaded into the Timetable file and used for matching purposes.
Staff type: There are only two types of teachers who will be downloaded into the Timetable file: Teacher and Extra curricular.
FTE: Must be greater than zero (decimals are accepted for part time staff).

Teacher details downloaded are: Authority Staff ID, First name, Surname, gender, school email address and home phone number.

Student data

CES is the source of truth for students, therefore, students must first be entered into CES . They can then be either downloaded into the Timetable file through the Advanced sync option in the Timetable file , or entered manually into the Timetable file using the same student details.

If an entry exists in the Student ID field in CES , this will be used as the Student code in the Timetable file when downloading the details. If no entry exists in the Student ID field in CES , the student SIF code will be used instead (The SIF code for a student cannot be found in CES ).

Student details downloaded are: Student ID, First name, Surname, Gender, House, Email address and Phone number.

When a student has an exit date entered in CES, and a further sync between the Timetable file and CES occurs, the student will remain in the Timetable file but will display as inactive.

Class data

Classes should have numeric class identifiers, as CES will only accept classes with numeric identifiers.

For example:

Accepted: 9MAT 1 9MAT. 1 9MAT. 01 9MAT- 01
Not accepted: 9MAT A 9MAT. 6B

Functionality not yet supported

Some Tes Timetable features are not yet supported in CES. These include;

Two teachers at once
Two rooms at once
Meetings set up in the Meetings year
Priority classes

Tes support can offer alternatives to these features that may achieve the desired outcome.