Scheduling helpers

Enter parameters to set up scheduling helpers to perform parallel processing in forecast scheduling.

Comment

Enter a brief descriptive text. This comment is also displayed on the Generaltab of the Session logform. Optionally, enter a comment.

Select

Use the query to select specific items if you do not want to calculate all items. Any derived component items are also calculated automatically.

Recurrence

Set up a recurring batch job.

Forecast plan

Select the forecast plan to use in the calculation.

Number of helpers

Enter the maximum number of scheduling helpers to use. The actual number of helpers that is used depends on the number of available batch threads among the batch servers.

Item distribution factor

This field is used to calculate the number of items that are processed at a time by each helper. The program calculates the number of items by using the following formula:

(# of helpers + 1) * Item distribution factor

The value of this field affects the forecast scheduling performance. A value that is too low could result in a high load being placed on the helper synchronization mechanism. A value that is too high could result in a situation where helpers sit idle and wait for each other to finish before they all can proceed.

Test results show that 20 is a reasonable starting level for this field. You can adjust the value based upon customer-specific factors, such as data composition and hardware setup.

Track item process duration

Select this check box to store the processing duration records that are created for each processing round during the forecast scheduling run. You can use the records to analyze the efficiency of the planning process and adjust the scheduling helper parameters.

Note
Using this parameter affects forecast scheduling performance, so you should limit using this option to fine-tuning the planning process.