A Comparison of Elliott 7.5, 8.2, 8.5, and 8.6 DDF Files
- 7.5 DDF: These are the DDF files that reside in the <ElliottRoot>\DDF40 folder. We no longer distribute these DDF files.
- 8.2 DDF: These are the DDF files that reside in the <ElliottRoot>\Bin\DDF40 folder. Generally speaking, they are identical to 8.6 DDF files except the document number fields are defined as numeric. All string fields are case insensitive except that the index columns are defined as case sensitive. There may be some minor issues with PowerSearch related to case sensitivity. Our primary intention with this DDF is if you have not converted your database for alphabetic document numbers. Then you can use this DDF and it does not require database conversion for legacy DB to use it. The naming convention is ELIDATA*.
- 8.5 DDF: These are the DDF files that reside in the <ElliottRoot>\Bin85\DDF40 folder. They are identical to 8.6 DDF files except all string key fields are case insensitive. The naming convention is ELI85DATA*. These DDF files are provided for backward compatibility with those users who have converted to 8.5 DB. Before these users convert to using 8.6 DB, they can use the 8.5 DDF for the time being.
- 8.6 DDF: These are the DDF files that reside in the <ElliottRoot>\Bin86\DDF40 and <ElliottRoot>\Bin86\DDFROOT folders. Generally speaking, the DDF files in the <ElliottRoot>\Bin86\DDF40 folder are identical to 8.5 DDF files. The index columns are defined as case sensitive except name, description, and email addresses are defined as case insensitive. Like 8.2 and 8.5, all non-index string columns are defined as case insensitive to facilitate searching. We discovered there are some disadvantages in making string key fields case insensitive as in 8.5 DDF and hence reversed course with 8.6 DDF files. The naming convention is ELI86DATA*. The DDF files in the <ElliottRoot>\Bin86\DDFROOT folder will be used to create database ELI86ROOT which contains the definition of BTR files in the <ElliottRoot> folder. In Elliott 8.6, features like Report Desk, PowerSearch, and Avalara rely on BTR files in the <ElliottRoot> folder, which relies on DDF files in <ElliottRoot>\Bin86\DDFROOT to access. To use 8.6 DDF, you are required to go through DB conversion. Before you can do that, you can still use the DDF for 7.5, 8.2, and 8.5. We recommend all users migrate to 8.6 DDF eventually.
|
|
7.5 |
8.2 |
8.5 |
8.6 |
|
Subfolder |
.\DDF40 |
.\Bin\DDF40 |
.\Bin85\DDF40 |
.\Bin86\DDF40 |
|
DB Naming Convention |
ELLIOTTDATA* |
ELIDATA* |
ELI85DATA* |
ELI86DATA* ELI86ROOT |
|
Document No. |
Numeric |
Numeric |
String |
String |
|
Non-Index Field |
Case Sensitive |
Case Insensitive |
Case Insensitive |
Case Insensitive |
|
All Index Fields Except Name, Description & Emails Address |
Case Sensitive |
Case Sensitive |
Case Insensitive |
Case Sensitive |
|
Index Fields of Name, Description & Emails Address |
Case Sensitive |
Case Sensitive |
Case Insensitive |
Case Insensitive |
|
Support Status |
Not Supported |
Supported |
Supported |
Supported |
|
To be Used When |
To be compatible with Old Web Services or 3rd party application. Use Numeric Doc# & DB has not been converted |
Use with numeric Doc# & DB has not been converted. |
Use with string Doc# & DB and for those who converted to 8.5 format. |
Use with string Doc# & DB converted to 8.6 format. We recommend all users to migrate to this DDF eventually. |
|
Avalara Interface |
Not Compatible |
Not Compatible |
Compatible |
Compatible |
|
Report Desk |
Not Compatible |
Compatible |
Compatible |
Compatible |
|
Power Search |
Not Compatible |
Compatible (see known issue) |
Compatible |
Compatible
|
|
Known Issue |
Legacy – not all tables and columns are defined. |
The searching of name, description & email address are case sensitive. |
May result in strange behavior when primary key value has lower case values or special characters. |
None |
|
DB Conversion Required |
No |
No |
8.5 DB Conversion Required |
8.6 DB Conversion Required |