ITEMREF expansion

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We would like to expand the Item number to 30 characters by changing the length in the ITM data type.

Has anyone expanded their Product field out to 25 or 30 characters as a customization via the ITM data type? How did it work out and were there limitations or constraints encountered.

We are aware we might have issue with crystal reports truncating the data and perhaps some screen space issues and are prepared to deal with those.

Thanks

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  • +1
    Verified Answer

    In theory, you should be able change the length on the ITM datatype setup, and do a dictionary validation for everything filtered by ITM datatype. What this will do is it will increase the length for all ITM data type fields on all screens and all tables. 

    The thing is, it's under the assumption that all product fields are tagged with ITM datatype. While that may hold true 99% of the time, there could be that 1% out there that are not tagged as ITM due to either oversight or program limitation. 

    One example would be price list. Since you can use any field as pricing criteria, it can not be hardcoded as ITM datatype, instead, it's a generic field that allows 40 character. While this will not cause the problem when you increase to 30 characters, but for those who want to increase beyond 40, this will become an issue.

    I personally believe that the only solution is to make this change in a Dev environment first and test. 9 out 10 you will probably be fine, or the 1% occurs on functions you are not using.  But the key is to do a thorough testing on all processes to make sure nothing breaks on the functions you do use. If you see any error, report it your partner and it's likely a easy fix. 

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  • +1
    Verified Answer

    In theory, you should be able change the length on the ITM datatype setup, and do a dictionary validation for everything filtered by ITM datatype. What this will do is it will increase the length for all ITM data type fields on all screens and all tables. 

    The thing is, it's under the assumption that all product fields are tagged with ITM datatype. While that may hold true 99% of the time, there could be that 1% out there that are not tagged as ITM due to either oversight or program limitation. 

    One example would be price list. Since you can use any field as pricing criteria, it can not be hardcoded as ITM datatype, instead, it's a generic field that allows 40 character. While this will not cause the problem when you increase to 30 characters, but for those who want to increase beyond 40, this will become an issue.

    I personally believe that the only solution is to make this change in a Dev environment first and test. 9 out 10 you will probably be fine, or the 1% occurs on functions you are not using.  But the key is to do a thorough testing on all processes to make sure nothing breaks on the functions you do use. If you see any error, report it your partner and it's likely a easy fix. 

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