[Wactclc-alma] Quarter Blocks set yesterday have disappeared today

[Guidry, Wade]

There is actually a conversation going on on Alma-L right now (copy attached) that I think relates to Kim's question. (unless, Kim, you were marking those blocks as external, which would also explain what happened)

A change in the May release of Alma is causing blocks with no expiration date to be removed by the nightly "remove blocks" job, that removes blocks from user accounts after users have returned their books or paid their fines.

The job has apparently started deleted some user blocks that don't have an expiration date associated with them (of the kind that Kim is likely creating).

Ex Libris is currently working to resolve the issue, and restore blocks that have been erroneously removed.

Kim, if you look at your job history, and look in the fulfillment jobs for the "Users - Remove Blocks" job report, you can get a list of the primary id's that had blocks deleted last night.

You could use that list to create a managed set, and then use the "update / notify users" job on that set to add a block back to those records.

Or, just wait overnight, and we can see if Ex Libris is able to restore those blocks.

That's the best info I can give at the moment.

I'll watch Alma-L for updates from Ex Libris on this issue.


Wade Guidry
Library Consortium Services Manager, WACTCLC
wadeg at bigbend.edu<mailto:wadeg at bigbend.edu>
(509) 760-4474


From: Wactclc-alma [mailto:wactclc-alma-bounces at lists.ctc.edu] On Behalf Of Whittaker, Shellie
Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2018 2:30 PM
To: WACTCLC Alma Discussion <wactclc-alma at lists.ctc.edu>
Subject: Re: [Wactclc-alma] Quarter Blocks set yesterday have disappeared today

Right, what Kirsti said.  :)

Shellie Whittaker
WACTC Library Consortium
shelliew at bigbend.edu<mailto:shelliew at bigbend.edu> | (360) 452-5264

From: Wactclc-alma [mailto:wactclc-alma-bounces at lists.ctc.edu] On Behalf Of Thomas, Kirsti
Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2018 2:26 PM
To: WACTCLC Alma Discussion <wactclc-alma at lists.ctc.edu<mailto:wactclc-alma at lists.ctc.edu>>
Subject: Re: [Wactclc-alma] Quarter Blocks set yesterday have disappeared today

One of the things I've run into is that patrons blocks can be created as "internal" blocks or "external" blocks.

If you import your patron records from an outside source (like I think all of us do), then you have to make sure that the block is an "internal" block to protect it from being overwritten.

If you create the block as an "external" block, than Alma expects the block to exist somewhere in the incoming record during your daily load and will delete the block when it doesn't show up in the incoming patron record.

You can see in Alma Analytics whether a block is set as an external field or not.  If your block is "external" then BULK_UPDATE appears in the Block External ID field in Alma Analytics.  If the Block External ID field is blank, then the block has been created as an internal note field.  The hard part is catching this in the window of time between when Analytics updates and your patron load happens. Don't ask me how or why I know this.


If you're adding blocks to a set of patron records via a job, make sure you use the following setting in the task parameters to keep the block from being overwritten:

Added/changed field: Internal


When you add a block to a patron record manually, I think the default setting is to add the block as an internal field.  Even if the user record is an external record (i.e. is loaded from an outside source), fields that you create as internal fields are protected from overlay during the daily patron load.  By leaving the box for Add as an external  unchecked, you should (?) protect the block from being overwritten.


[cid:image001.png at 01D3E86D.1BDBDF30]

Does this help?


Kirsti S. Thomas
Library Technical Services Manager
Seattle Colleges
kirsti.thomas at seattlecolleges.edu<mailto:kirsti.thomas at seattlecolleges.edu>



From: Wactclc-alma [mailto:wactclc-alma-bounces at lists.ctc.edu] On Behalf Of Kim Mitchell
Sent: Thursday, May 10, 2018 13:02
To: WACTCLC Alma Discussion <wactclc-alma at lists.ctc.edu<mailto:wactclc-alma at lists.ctc.edu>>
Subject: [Wactclc-alma] Quarter Blocks set yesterday have disappeared today

Okay,

This is a repeat from last quarter. Setting a block on student account yesterday is erased today.
I blocked both for "other" (which was the workaround from last quarter which indicated overdue) and "fine owed".

To my dismay, the whole block list I worked on...the work is lost.

Any suggestions?

Thank you


Kim Mitchell
Library Paraprofessional 3
Skagit Valley College
Whidbey island Campus
360-679-5221

Committed to Students

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