Tracelink University

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The Text message transaction enables trading partners to exchange free-form, human-readable messages directly through standard EDI channels. Unlike transactional EDI messages that require structured data for system processing, the text message is designed for non-transactional communication such as instructions, clarifications, alerts, or one-time announcements that benefit from being shared within the EDI framework but do not need to trigger system actions.

For more information about Text messages guidelines, see Text messages.

Create and submit text messages

Perform this task to create and submit new text messages. Additionally, client can begin work on a text message and save it for completion at a later time.

  1. Select the Main Menu icon.
  2. Select My Networks in the header.
  3. Select a [MPL Network] from the Select your Network drop-down in the header.
  4. Select a Partner or Location (e.g. your entire company or a Link to a specific Partner or internal location) in the header.
  5. Select the Go button.
  6.  Select Operational Messages from the left menu.
    Partners must have the correct roles assigned if using the Owner's instance of Multienterprise Information Network Tower.

  7. Select Text Messages - Sender.

  8. Select the New button.
  9. On the New Text Message Information screen, fill in the following fields:
    1. Text Message Number field – A unique identifier assigned to the text message for tracking and reference.
    2. Text Message Date field – The date on which the text message was created or issued.

  10. Select the Save button.

    The screen refreshes with the saved text message in the draft state and with the required sections populated.

  11. Select the Edit button.

  12. In the Transaction Information section, select Submitted from the Process Status drop drown.
  13. In the Text Message Information section fill in the following fields:
    1. Text Message Number field – A unique identifier assigned to the text message for tracking and reference.
      This field auto populates the value entered New Text Message screen.
    2. Text Message Date field – The date on which the text message was created or issued.
      This field auto populates the value entered New Text Message screen.
    3. Text Message Description field – A Brief summary or subject describing the content of the text message.
    4. Document Type Code drop-down – The code indicating the type or purpose of the text message.
    5. Processing Date field – The date the text message was processed by the receiving system.
    6. Invoice Date drop-down – The date of the invoice referenced in the text message if applicable.
    7. Created On Date field – The date the text message record was created in the system.
    8. Invoice Number field – Identifier of the invoice referenced in the text message if applicable.
    9. Internal Vendor Number field – Internal identifier for the vendor associated with the message.
    10. Department Number field – Identifier of the department related to the text message.
    11. Line Item Count field – The number of line items referenced within the text message.
    12. Notes field – An additional free-form information or comments related to the text message
    13. Action drop-down – A brief description stating the purpose of the transaction.
  14. In the Reference Transactions section, select the Addicon.
    1. In the New Reference Transaction panel, fill in the following fields in the Reference Transaction Information panel:
      1. Transaction Type drop-down – The type of transaction.
      2. Transaction Value type-ahead field – The unique identifier of the transaction.
        If the value does not match the available options, the value must be entered manually.
      3. Transaction Date field - The transaction date.
    2. Select Apply.

      The new reference transaction line item is added to the transaction reference table.

  15. In the Sender and Receiver section, fill in the following fields under Sender group:
    1. Company type-ahead field – The name of the company sending the text messages. This field pulls from the Owner's company and location master data.

      The remaining Sender fields are auto populated with the values from the company or location's master data entry. If the name of the company is not present in the Owners master data, the company name must be entered manually.

    2. Address 1 field – The address of the particular location.

    3. Address 2 field – Any additional address information.
    4. Country drop-down – The two-letter country code with country name for this location.
    5. State field – The state or region for this location.
    6. City field – The city for this location.
    7. Postal Code field – The postal code for this location's main address.
    8. Contact Telephone Number field – The company or location's phone number.
    9. Contact Fax Number field – The company or location's fax number
    10. Contact Type drop-down - The type of contact associated with the text message..
    11. Contact Name field - The name of the individual associated with the text message.
    12. Contact Phone field - The phone number of the contact for follow-up or clarification..
    13. Contact Email field - The email address of the contact associated with the text message.
    14. Party ID Type drop-down – The identifier type used for this company or location.
    15. Party ID Value field – The value associated with the identifier type.
    16. Township field - The name of the county or town.
  16. In the Sender and Receiver section, fill in the following fields under Receiver group:
    1. Company type-ahead field – The name of the company receiving the text messages. This field pulls from the Owner's company and location master data.

      The remaining Receiver fields are auto populated with the values from the company or location's master data entry. If the name of the company is not present in the Owners master data, the company name must be entered manually.

    2. Address 1 field – The address of the particular location.

    3. Address 2 field – Any additional address information.
    4. Country drop-down – The two-letter country code with country name for this location.
    5. State field – The state or region for this location.
    6. City field – The city for this location.
    7. Postal Code field – The postal code for this location's main address.
    8. Contact Telephone Number field – The company or location's phone number.
    9. Contact Fax Number field – The company or location's fax number
    10. Contact Type drop-down - The type of contact associated with the text message..
    11. Contact Name field - The name of the individual associated with the text message.
    12. Contact Phone field - The phone number of the contact for follow-up or clarification..
    13. Contact Email field - The email address of the contact associated with the text message.
    14. Party ID Type drop-down – The identifier type used for this company or location.
    15. Party ID Value field – The value associated with the identifier type.
  17. In the Party Identification section, select the Addicon and fill in the following fields in the Party Identification group:
    1. Company Entity Type drop-down – The type of business party (excluding Sender and Receiver) associated with the business name.
    2. Company type-ahead field – The company responsible for warehouse location identifiers and address information. This field pulls from the Owner's company and location master data.

      If the name of the company is not present in the Owners master data, the company name must be entered manually.

    3. Address 1 field – The address of the particular location.

    4. Address 2 field – Any additional address information.
    5. Country drop-down – The two-letter country code with country name for this location.
    6. State field – The state or region for this location.
    7. City field – The city for this location.
    8. Postal Code field – The postal code for this location's main address.
    9. Contact Telephone Number field – The company or location's phone number.
    10. Contact Fax Number field – The company or location's fax number
    11. Contact Type drop-down - The type of contact associated with the text message..
    12. Contact Name field - The name of the individual associated with the text message.
    13. Contact Phone field - The phone number of the contact for follow-up or clarification..
    14. Contact Email field - The email address of the contact associated with the text message.
    15. Party ID Type drop-down – The identifier type used for this company or location.
    16. Party ID Value field – The value associated with the identifier type.

  18. In the Text Message Address Details section:

    1. Select the Addicon and fill in the following fields in the Text Message Address Detail Informationpanel:
      1. Transaction Reference Identifier field – An unique identifier used to correlate the text message address details to a specific transaction..
      2. Address Description field – A brief descriptive text explaining the purpose or context of the address provided.
      3. Maximum Number Of Characters field – The maximum number of characters allowed for the address text.
      4. Maximum Number Of Lines field – The maximum number of lines permitted for the address content.
    2. Select Apply.
      The text message address details item details line item is added.
    3. Select a text message address details line row and then select the branch icon and fill in the following fields in the Sub Line Text Message Address Detail Information panel:
      1. Partner Entity Type drop-down – The identifies the role of the business partner associated with the address.
      2. Company type-ahead field – The company associated with the address details. This field pulls from the Owner's company and location master data.

        If the name of the company is not present in the Owners master data, the company name must be entered manually.

      3. Address 1 field – The address of the particular location.

      4. Address 2 field – Any additional address information.
      5. Country drop-down – The two-letter country code with country name for this location.
      6. State field – The state or region for this location.
      7. City field – The city for this location.
      8. Postal Code field – The postal code for this location's main address.
      9. Party ID Type drop-down – The identifier type used for this company or location.
      10. Party ID Value field – The value associated with the identifier type.
      11. Contact Type drop-down - The type of contact associated with the text message..
      12. Contact Name field - The name of the individual associated with the text message.
      13. Contact Title field - The job title or designation of the contact person.
      14. Contact Phone field - The phone number of the contact for follow-up or clarification..
      15. Contact Email field - The email address of the contact associated with the text message.
    4. Select Apply.
      The Sub Line Text Message Address Detail Information line item is added.
    5. Select the text message address details row drop down to view the sub lne text message address detail information in a table.

  19. In the Message Details section:

    1. Select the Addicon and fill in the following fields in the Message Details Information panel:
      1. Transaction Reference Identifier field – An Unique identifier used to correlate the text message address details to a specific transaction..
      2. Message Description field – A brief descriptive text explaining the purpose or usage of the message.
      3. Maximum Number Of Characters field – The maximum number of characters allowed for the address text.
      4. Maximum Number Of Lines field – The maximum number of lines permitted for the address content.
    2. Select Apply.
      The message details information line item is added.
    3. Select a message details information item detail line row and then select the branch icon and fill in the following fields in the Sub Line Message Details Information:
      1. Text Reference Code field – Code used to categorize or reference the message text.
      2. Message field – Actual text content of the message to be transmitted.
    4. Select Apply.
      The Sub Line Message Details Information line item is added.
    5. Select the message details information row drop down to view the sub line message details information in a table.
  20. To submit the text message:
    To save the text message in a Draft state and finish it later, ensure the Move To button is not selected and then select the Save button in the draft state.

    1. Select the Move To button at the top of the screen.

      The submit status indicator circle is filled in with green to indicate the desired action upon selecting save.

    2. Select the Save button.

      The text message is submitted.

Tips

  • Select the Addicon, to add a new line item, where available.

  • Select the Deleteicon, to remove an individual line item, where available.

  • Select the branch icon, to add a new line item in the inserted table, where available.

  • New text messages can also be created by selecting the New button on the Text Messages Details screen for an existing text message.

 Complete and submit a saved text message in the draft state.

  1. Select the Main Menu icon.
  2. Select My Networks in the header.
  3. Select a [MPL Network] from the Select your Network drop-down in the header.
  4. Select a Partner or Location (e.g. your entire company or a Link to a specific Partner or internal location) in the header.
  5. Select the Go button.
  6.  Select Operational Messages from the left menu.
    Partners must have the correct roles assigned if using the Owner's instance of Multienterprise Information Network Tower.

  7. Select Text Messages - Sender.

  8. Select the Filter button to find the text messages in Draft state.

  9. Select the Text Message Number link in the results table.

  10. Select the Edit button.

  11. In the Transaction Information section, select Submitted from the Process Status drop drown.
  12. Confirm the text message details and select the Edit icon associated with that line item to modify the fields if required.

  13. Select the Move To button at the top of the screen.

    The submit status indicator circle is filled in with green to indicate the desired action upon selecting save.

  14. Select the Save button.

    The text message is submitted.

Tips

  • Select the text messages row and then select the Delete icon on the top of the Search Text Messages screen, to delete the text messages in draft state.

A deleted transaction cannot be retrieved.

Search and view text messages

Perform this task to search for and view the details of the text messages sent or received by receivers or senders. Viewing the details of a text messages enable receivers and senders to quickly access order information (e.g. the quantity for each line item in an order) in TraceLink without having to search through the actual B2B message.

  1. Select the Main Menu icon.
  2. Select My Networks in the header.
  3. Select a [MPL Network] from the Select your Network drop-down in the header.
  4. Select a Partner or Location (e.g. your entire company or a Link to a specific Partner or internal location) in the header.
  5. Select the Go button.
  6.  Select Operational Messages from the left menu.
    Partners must have the correct roles assigned if using the Owner's instance of Multienterprise Information Network Tower.
  7. Select Text Messages - Sender or Text Messages - Receiver from the left menu.
  8. Select the Filter button.
  9. Fill in one or more of the following fields to filter the results:
    1. Text Message Number field – A unique identifier assigned to the text message for tracking and reference.
    2. Text Message Date drop-down – The date on which the text message was created or issued.

    3. State drop-down – The state of the text message: 

      • Draft – The transaction is in the draft state.
      • Submit – The transaction has been created.
      • Processing – The application is getting ready to handle incoming transactions by doing some initial tasks, such as copying the files it receives.
      • Processed – The application changes the standard information into a format that is easy to use and specific to your transaction.
      • Preparing to Send – The application is getting ready to send out a transaction and is doing some initial tasks, like copying the necessary information for the process.
      • Sending –The application sends out business transactions to the buyer or supplier.
      • Sent – The transaction is successfully completed and shared with the receiving party.
    4. Receiver type-ahead – Displays only if the menu item is Sent Text Messages . The name of the company the text message was sent to.
      If the name of the company is not present in the Owners master data then the company's name must be entered manually.
    5. Sender type-ahead – Displays only if the menu item is Received Text Messages . The name of the company the text messages was received from.
      If the name of the company is not present in the Owner's master data then the company's name must be entered manually.
    6. Last Modified drop-down – The period of time in which the text message was last updated:
      • Today – The transaction was modified within the last few hours.
      • Yesterday – The transaction was updated within the past 24 hours.
      • Last Week – The transaction was modified in the last 7 days.
      • Last Month – The transaction was modified in the last 30 days.
      • Last 3 Months – The transaction was modified in the last 90 days.
      • Last 6 Months – The transaction was modified in the last 180 days.
      • Custom Range – Select a specific period of time that the transaction was modified in from the calendar.

  10. Select Apply.

    A list of text messages displays based on the filter results.

  11. Select the link for the text message from the results table.

    The View Text Messages screen displays.

  12. To view all fields for each line item, select the View icon on the Text Messages Details screen.

Reprocess and Resubmit text messages

After the text message is submitted, the user might encounter an error and the processed status will be set to Paused With Error. Use the following procedure to resolve any error messages encountered while submitting a text message.

  1. Select the Main Menu icon.
  2. Select My Networks in the header.
  3. Select a [MPL Network] from the Select your Network drop-down in the header.
  4. Select a Partner or Location (e.g. your entire company or a Link to a specific Partner or internal location) in the header.
  5. Select the Go button.
  6.  Select Operational Messages from the left menu.
    Partners must have the correct roles assigned if using the Owner's instance of Multienterprise Information Network Tower.

  7. Select Text Messages - Sender.

  8. Select the Filter button to find the text message in Processing, Processed, Preparing to Send, or Sending state.
  9. Select the Text Message Number link in the results table.
  10. View the following fields for error in the Transaction Information section: 
    • Process Status - Displays the status of the submitted transaction.
    • Last Transaction Error - Displays the error message.
  11. Select the Edit button..
  12. In the Transaction Information section, select Submitted from the Process Status drop drown.
  13. Select the Save button.
    The text message request is moved from Processing state to Sending state indicating that the text message is submitted successfully.

Do not select the Move To button, as it will cause the transaction to skip a workflow state, preventing successful delivery.

If a transaction is successfully sent to a partner but an issue occurs on the partner's side (e.g. in their ERP system), the sender can avoid re-entering all the details by rolling back to a previous workflow state and resending the transaction, thus saving time and effort for both parties.

  1. Select the Main Menu icon.
  2. Select My Networks in the header.
  3. Select a [MPL Network] from the Select your Network drop-down in the header.
  4. Select a Partner or Location (e.g. your entire company or a Link to a specific Partner or internal location) in the header.
  5. Select the Go button.
  6.  Select Operational Messages from the left menu.
    Partners must have the correct roles assigned if using the Owner's instance of Multienterprise Information Network Tower.

  7. Select Text Messages - Sender.

  8. Select a Text Message Number in Sent state.

  9. Select the Edit button.

    The state of the text message is automatically moved to Sending state.

  10. Select the Move To button at the top of the screen.

    The submit status indicator circle is filled in with green to indicate the desired action upon selecting save.

  11. Select the Save button.

    The text message is submitted.

The statues of the text message moves to Sent state.

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