Automation Anywhere Enterprise Client - User Manual

628 Pages·2017·14.28 MB·English

by  Automation Anywhere

AUTOMATION ANYWHERE ENTERPRISE
Bot Creator/Bot Runner - User Guide
ProductVersion 11.0.0
DocumentVersion 1.0
DateofPublication 16th January 2018
Update(s)toDocumentEdition -
Copyright©2018AutomationAnywhere,Inc. Page 1 https://support.automationanywhere.com
Introduction to Automation Anywhere
AutomationAnywhereallowsyoutocreateautomatedtaskswithease.It'sintuitiveinterfaceprovidesyoutheessentialfeaturesto
record,modifyandruntasksthatrangefromsimpletomorecomplexones.
ThistopicprovidesasummaryoffeaturesavailableinAutomationAnywhereClient.Italsoprovidesthenecessaryinformationtodir-
ectyoutorelatedtopics.
Note: For prerequisites and setup details, refer the Automation Anywhere Enterprise - Installation
Guide that is shipped with the product.
ClientDashboard-Overview
TheClientDashboardbasicallycomprisesoftheMenuBar,ToolBar,Automate&Manage Panels,TaskPanel,andFeaturePanels.
Collectivelytheseallowyoutocreate,record,runandmodifyyourBots.
TheToolBar
TheToolBar(locatedbelowthemenubar)isacombinationoftoolbuttonsandfunctionsforrecording,runningandmodifyingtasks:
Recordtaskswithdifferentrecordingmethodsavailableonthe'Automate'window.
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ReferSelectingRecordingMethodsfordetails.
Recordkeystrokesaswellasmouseclicksandmovements.
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ReferUsingtheScreen/StandardRecorderfordetails.
Runtheselectedtask
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ReferRunningaTaskfordetails.
ModifytheselectedtaskusingtheTaskEditor.
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Refer UsingtheTaskEditor fordetails.
ROI
Itdisplaysthereturnoninvestment(ROI)accruedthroughuseofAutomationAnywhere.ClicktolaunchtheROIcalculator.
ReferUsingtheROI Calculatorfordetails.
Note: While recording and running automated tasks ensure that you follow best practices documented
in the help topic Best Practices for Recording/Running Tasks.
Additionally,AutomationAnywhereoffersfeaturestotroubleshootintheformof'SearchHelp','Chat'and'ClientNotifications*'.
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AccesstheAutomationAnywhereonlineknowledgebasewiththe'SearchHelp'feature.
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Chatwithoursupportexecutiveswiththe'Chat'feature.
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Receivetrialstatus,taskfailureandexternalnotifications.ReferenceAutomationAnywhereClientNotificationsfordetails.
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Automate
TheAutomatepanel allowsyoutoautomateyourprocessesbycombiningTaskBots,MetaBots,andWorkflows.
YoucanfindallautomationtasksundertheTaskstab.Thesearedisplayedinfolders;clickingeachfolderwillnavigatetotherelevant
TaskListvisibletotheright.Rightclickafoldertoopen,create,renameordeletethatfolder:
A.Tasks
TheTaskslist,whichtakesupmostoftheworkspace,displaysrelevanttaskdetailsincolumnssuchasFileName,Description,
CreatedAt,Duration,Size,Hotkeys(ifany)andStatusetc.
 Tip: Select column view from View > Column Displayed
Locatedatthetop-mostrightcorneroftheTaskListarebuttonsthatenableyoutodelete,createanexeanduploadtheselectedtask.
Alternately,clicktheActiondrop-downbuttontocarryouttaskrelevantactionssuchasrun,edit,upload*,copy,rename,locateand
send.
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B.MetaBots
TheMyMetaBotsListshowstheMetaBotsthataredesignedbyyou.AMetaBotisanautomationblueprintofanapplicationthatcan
bere-usedtooptimizeprocesses.Theyhelpyoustandardizeyourprocessesendtoend.
MetaBotsenableyoutocreateautomationbuildingblocksthatcaptureinformationintheformofvisualsorapplicationAPIs.Thesecan
thereonbeintegratedascommandsandfurtherleveragedbyvariedprocessestodelivervalueatmultiplelevels.
ReferIntroductontoMetaBotDesignerfordetails.
C.Workflows
Ithelpsyoubuildprocessflowdiagramsinagraphicalenvironment.Theseyoucansubsequentlyusetobuildandrunautomated
tasksintheprogram.
ReferUsingtheWorkflowDesignerfordetails.
Manage
Managepanelhasfeaturesthatallowyoutomanageyourautomatedbots.Theseinclude: 
A.Repository
CommunicatewithyourControlRoomtouploadanddownloadTaskBots,MetaBots,IQBots,andWorkflows.
ReferUploadingandDownloadingTasksandDependencies fordetails.
B. Schedules
ItisaconvenientfacilitytomanageautomatedBotsontimebasedschedulingcapabilities.YoucanscheduletoruntheTaskBots daily,
weekly,monthlyorwithatriggerevent.
ReferUsingtheScheduleManagerfordetails.
C.Triggers
Itprovidesaunifiedviewofthetriggersthatareconnectedtoyourtasks.Useittoenableordisableselectedoralltriggersaswellas
add,modifyanddeletespecifictriggersconnectedtoatask.
ReferUsingtheTriggerManagerandAddingTriggerstoaTaskfordetails.
D.Reports
Itprovidesgraphicalreportsthatdisplaythestatusoftasksandworkflows,aswellastheROIovertime.
ReferUsingtheReportDesignerfordetails.
E.ControlRoom
ThislaunchestheControlRoomtowhichyouareconnected.UsethecredentialsprovidedbytheControlRoomadmintologin.
PanelforTaskRelevantActivities 
BelowtheTaskListisapanelthatdisplaystaskrelatedProperties,ScheduleandTriggerintheformoftabs.
A.Properties
Viewandsetgeneralpropertiessuchasallocatingprioritystatusorspecificssuchasfrequency/conditionstorepeattheselectedtask,
adjustingspeed,emailnotifications,hotkeys,securityparameterstoensureauthorizedusersrunthetasketc.
Refer SettingTaskProperties fordetails.
B.Schedule
Scheduleyourautomatedtaskstorunatpreferredtimes,withoutrequiringsupervisionorintervention.
Refer SchedulingTasksusingtheScheduler fordetails.
C.Trigger
Connectatriggertypetotheselectedtask.Itautomaticallyrunsthetaskinresponsetoaneventthatoccursonyourcomputer.
Refer AddingTriggerstoaTask fordetails.
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Description/NotesPanel
AnadditionaltabtowardsthebottomrightistheDescription/Notespanel,whichallowsyoutoenterfreetextforselectedtask.Thetext
canbeeditedifandwhenyoumodifythetask.
Refer ViewingandSettingGeneralProperties fordetails.
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Understanding the Features and Benefits
AutomationAnywhereisintelligentautomationsoftware,providingunparalleledperformanceandscalabilityforgreaterefficienciesin
yourbusinessprocesses.
Capabilities:WhatDoesAutomationAnywhereOffer?
AutomationAnywherehelpsyoutooptimizethetimespentonrunningtasksbyprovidingthefollowingcapabilities:
Transformarepetitive,20-stepprocesstoasinglemouseclickorkeystroke.
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Runscheduledtasksanytimebyusingpowerfultaskscheduling,evenwhencomputerislocked.
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Automatescriptsthatexistindisparateformats.
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Easilymanageautomatedprocessesacrossasinglemachineormultiplemachines,andacrossadivisionoranenterprise.
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Createautomationtasksinminutes:recordkeystrokesandmouseclicks,anduseeasy,point-and-clickwizards.
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Easilymanageautomationuserswithascalableserverthatprovidestruecollaboration.
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Maintaincentralizedsystemsforbackup,security,andresources.
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Captureandreuseautomatedprocessesinacentralrepository.
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Managejobschedulingandexecutebatchdataprocessingwithease.
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AutomateFTP/SFTPprocesses.
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Download,upload,schedule&runtasksinmulti-userenvironmentslikeCitrixandTerminalServer.
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ScaleandextendAAEplatformwithMetaBotsDesignertoserveuniquebusinessneeds.Learnmore.
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UniqueFeatures:HowDoWeDoIt?
AutomationAnywhereprovidesthefollowingfeatures,makingittheonlysolutioninthemarkettooffercompleteautomationcap-
abilities:
AutomationTechnologythatquicklyautomatescomplextasks,withnoprogrammingrequired,andishighlyreliableandaccurate.
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CentralizedEnterpriseControlRoomthatmakesiteasytosetupandmaintainautomatedprocesses,users,andclientmachines.
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Industry-leadingWebRecorderandObjectRecorderthatrecognizeobjects,evenwhentheymoveposition.
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Over550+actionsavailable,including:
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1. ActiveDirectorysupportforuser/clientmanagement
2. Conditionsandloops
3. Userprompts
4. File,database,andsystemmanagement
5. High-speedreplayofautomatedtasks
6. Automaticemailnotifications
7. Taskchaining
8. Hotkeysetupandmanagement
9. User-definedandsystemvariables
10. Advancederrorlogging
11. PDFautomation
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Benefits:WhyDoIWantToUseThisSolution?
Enableyourteamstobe30-80%moreefficient.
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Eliminatehumanerrorindataentryprocesses.
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Improvecollaborationbetweenemployeesanddivisions.
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Increasetransactionspeeds.
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ReducecostsandachievehigherROIonyourexistingITsystems
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Integratemultiple,disparatesystemsanddata,includinglegacysystems,ERPsystems,partnerdata,andWebportals.
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Value:WhatCanIDoWithAutomationAnywhereClient?
AutomationAnywherehelpscompaniesachieveprocessconsistencyacrossateam,department,division,orenterprisebyautomating
andmanagingworkflows,processes,andtasks.
Someoftheprocessesyoumightconsiderautomatinginclude:
Time-consumingdataentryprocesseslike:
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1. Checkinginventory
2. Re-orderingsupplies
3. Formattingandrunningreports
Loggingintowebsites,searchingwebsites,submittingwebforms,orupdatingrecordsonawebsite.
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ManagingERPfront-endprocesses,includingSAP,OracleApplications,Peoplesoft,MSDynamics,Salesforce,andmore.
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Automatingdatatransfers,includingimporting/exportingdatabetweenapplicationsorfiles.
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UsetheAutomationAnywhereObjectRecordertomanageandexecuteWindowscontrolsasabackgroundprocess.
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Automateroutinebackupsandfilemanagementtasks.
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AutomationAnywhereisthemostcompletebusinessprocessautomationsolutionavailabletoday!
Copyright©2018AutomationAnywhere,Inc. Page 8 https://support.automationanywhere.com
Verifying Automation Anywhere System Requirements
ThissectionhelpsyoudeterminewhetheryoursystemhastheproperhardwareandsoftwaretoinstallAutomationAnywhere.Before
installingtheAutomationAnywhere,verifythatyourenvironmentsupportsthefollowingrequirements.
OperatingSystems:
MicrosoftWindowsServer2012
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MicrosoftWindowsServer2008R2
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MicrosoftWindowsServer2003
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MicrosoftWindows8.1/8*
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MicrosoftWindows7*
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(Both32-bitand64-bitOSversionsaresupported)
Processorspeed:Recommended-3GHz,MultiCoreorhigher.
RAM:Recommended-4GBorhigher.
HardDiskcapacity:200MBoffreeharddiskspaceforinstallation.
Note:
OnanaverageanAutomationAnywherescriptisapproximately100-150KB.Additionalfreediskspaceisrequiredtodevelop
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automationprojects,asAutomationAnywherecreatestemporaryfileslikescreen-shots,serverlogs,auditfilesetc.duringthe
executionoftheautomationscripts.
Theactualfreespacerequiredincreaseswiththeprojectsizeandhenceitisrecommendedtohaveatleast40-50GBoffree
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diskspaceinordertoimplementlongtermprojects.
AdditionalRequirements
1024x768orhigherresolutionmonitor
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Mouseorotherpointingdevice
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MicrosoftInternetExplorer8.0orlater.
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.NETFrameworkRequirements
A.NETFrameworkisrequiredtorunAutomationAnywhereproducts.
.NETFramework4.0
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.NETFramework3.5+SP1
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Note: If using Enterprise, you need to have both versions of .NET Framework installed;
SynchronizationbetweenClientandServer
TosynchronizethetimebetweentheAutomationAnywhereClientandtheEnterpriseControlRoom,enabletheNetworkTimePro-
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tocol(NTP)settingsonyournetwork.FormoreinformationmodifyingtheNTPsettingsforyournetwork,seeyoursystemadmin-
istrator.
 Important: On Terminal Server machines, Automation Anywhere does not support concurrent 'Terminal
Server' connections. There could be multiple users logged in on to the Terminal Server and they all can
use their individual instances of Bot Creator; however, one user must have only one active session.
AlsoSee...
InstallingtheAutomationAnywhereClient
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Connecting to Automation Anywhere Control Room
AutomationAnywhereallowsyoutomonitorandadministeralargemulti-sitecomplexautomationinfrastructureusingthewebbased
ControlRoom.
LogintotheControlRoom
AsaBotrunnerorBotcreator,youcanlaunchtheClientbyconnectingtotheControlRoom.
Tologon:
1. TypetheControlRoomServiceURLinthe'ControlRoom'fieldoftheClientLoginscreen.
Iflaunchingforfirsttime,inputtheappropriateControlRoomServiceURL.Onlogginginthesecondtime,yourlastlogin
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URLisdisplayed.
IfyouwishtologinusinganotherURL,simplyinputtheappropriateURL.
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2. BasedonControlRoomauthenticationtype,youwillhavetoprovideyourauthenticationdetails.Youareauthenticatedusing
eitherofthetwomethods
WindowsorADauthentication-ThisisavailablewhentheControlRoomisconfiguredforActiveDirectoryauthenticationtype.
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WhenyouselectWindowsauthentication,youdonotneedtoprovideanycredentials.Youwillbeauthenticatedwithyouractive
directoryorwindowscredentials.Thisoptionisselectedbydefault.
Tip: If for any reason automatic Windows Authentication fails, select User Authentication and
enter your credentials.
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