ADVANCED INFORMATION

TECHNOLOGY
(AICITSS)

COURSE MATERIAL
MODULE – I

Board of Studies
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, New Delhi
 The objective of this background material is to provide uniform reference material to the students undergoing
Advanced Information Technology under AICITSS.
All attempts have been made to make the discussion simple and comprehensive. Students may note that the
material has been prepared with an objective to help them in acquiring requisite knowledge and skillsin the
subject and gain hands on experience.
This is also expected to serve as a source of reference book in their future education and training. In case
students have any suggestions to make for further improvement of the material contained herein, they may write
to Board of Studies, ICAI Bhawan, A-29, Sector 62, Noida. Queries can alsobe sent to : [email protected].
All care has been taken to provide the material in a manner useful to the students. However the material has not
been specifically discussed by the Council of the Institute or any of its Committees and the views expressed
herein may not be taken to necessarily represent the views of the Council orany of its Committees.
All rights reserved.No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in aretrieval systemor transmitted, in
any forms or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording orotherwise, without prior
permission, in writing, from the Institute.

©The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India

Revised Edition : August, 2017

ISBN : 978-81- 8441-

Published by The Publication Department on behalf of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India, ICAI Bhawan,
Post Box No. 7100, Indraprastha Marg, New Delhi- 110 002, India.
 PREFACE
The impact of Information Technology (IT) on several aspects of accounting profession and practice has been
pronounced over the last two decades. The revolutionary developments of various IT tools and techniques have a far
reaching impact on the organizations.
In today’s business world, accounting professionals have to interact with computer-based Information systems on a
regular basis. As primary users of information systems in organizations, accountants need to participate in the
design, development and operations of IT systems. Accountants today need to measure and evaluate the
performance of information systems. Internal auditors must assess the quality of information systems for operations,
compliance and financial reporting while external auditors must assess for financial reporting and both must also
evaluate the accuracy of information input and output.
There are many stakeholders relying on the data provided by ERP systems. While these systems provide a high level
of automation, they also have attached risks pertaining to data and processes within the Environment. This course
will provide a gateway to the students in their journey to understand auditing in an ERP environment.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has been making earnest efforts to develop a contemporary body of
knowledge and skill set for its studentsby updating its curriculum from time to time.
In order to impart synchronized and uniform theoretical and practical knowledge to all the aspiring CA students in the
IT area,the Institute has established its own IT Lab sequipped withcomputers of latest configuration,software and
other infrastructural facilities at almost all its branches and regional offices.
Auditing in an ERP environment, Advanced features of MS-Access and MS-Excel, MS-Excel as Audit tool, and ERP
using Tally arethe main components which would be covered during the training programme.
This uniform course material has been prepared by Board of Studies of the ICAI in accordance with the course
contents covered in the specially designed curriculum to disseminate qualityeducation to its students and the
same has been printed by The Board of Studies for distribution to CAstudents across India and abroad.
We hope that this coursematerial would help the students in building their IT skills which is amust for all, in the
current scenario.
 CONTENTS

UNIT-1 : AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Chapter - 1 Auditing in ERP Environment 3-15

Chapter - 2 General Information Technology Controls 16-44
Chapter - 3 Automated Application Controls 45-68
Chapter - 4 Segregation of Duties and Sensitive Access 69-81
Chapter - 5 System Generated Reports 82-96
Chapter - 6 New System and Data Migration Review 97-108
Chapter - 7 Non Standard Journal Entries 109-120

UNIT-2 : DATABASE APPLICATION USING MS - ACCESS

Chapter - 1 Advanced SQL Queries 123-188

Chapter - 2 Designing Forms and Reports 189-243
Chapter - 3 Building Criteria Expressions 244-279
Chapter - 4 Macros and Switchboards 280-333
 UNIT-1
AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT
 CHAPTER

1 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand the requirements of SA315 and SA330 relating to IT and auditing in an ERP environment.
 To understand the types of Books of Accounts in an ERP
 To understand Controls Based audit
 To understand the difficulties in performing only Substantive audits in ERP environment
 To understand the process of Access to systems relevant for audit
 To understand the Use of work of experts in an audit

1.1 Overview
For the last 2 decades, India has been on a fast track to use Information Technology in the day to day activities.
Individuals and Businesses/Corporations are increasingly dependent on IT to undertake most of their activities.
Individuals using simple calculations or Corporations devising complex security features and transactions have
taken the assistance of IT. While the risk of individuals using IT is limited to perhaps the individual himself, the
risks of Corporations using IT are varied and have an impact on the entity, society or even the country. In such
a scenario, there needs to be a check/audit on the use of IT by Corporations.
Businesses today rely on ERP systems and applications more than ever. Many of these systems generate and
process data that is used in the preparation of financial statements of a company. The auditors also often rely
on the data and reports that are generated from these systems. In this context, it is critical to understand the IT
specific risks that could potentially impact the integrity and reliability of financial transactions and data flowing
through a company's systems.
Some of the examples of ERP systems are SAP, Oracle, Peoplesoft, TALLY etc. These are available in the
market and can be purchased and customised as per requirements.
In addition, the companies can develop ERP systems on their own. Companies in niche sectors like Oil and
Gas etc. where the operations are complex and transactions can be different from the usual. These are
categorised under Developed ERP systems.
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

1.2 Understand the requirements of SA315 and SA330 relating to IT and

auditing in an ERP environment
SA 315 states that the objective of the auditor is to identify and assess the risks of material misstatement,
whether due to fraud or error, at the financial statement and assertion levels through,
 Understanding the entity and its control environment, including the entity’s internal control framework.
 Understanding the information systems environment relevant to financial reporting and communication.
 Understanding and assessing the risks associated with the relevant environment.
The auditor will have to understand the nature of the entity and the governance structure. The governance
structure will provide an indication over the Internal Control Framework. One important aspect of Control
framework in an IT environment is that the entity should have separate reporting structures for the IT team and
the Business team. The IT team is the owner of the application and the Business team is the owner of the data
residing within the application. The roles of both the teams should be segregated and should not overlap. This
communication lines are strictly drawn so as to maintain the integrity of the data within the application.
An example of the Governance framework as shown in Fig 1.2.1.

Fig. 1.2.1: Governance framework

Along with an understanding of the entity, the auditor identifies the industry to which it belongs. This will enable
the auditor to get an idea of the complexity and class of transactions, account balances and disclosures to be
expected in the financial statements.
The next step for the auditor is to understand the IT systems and related procedures within IT and business
processes by which these transactions are initiated, recorded, processed, reported etc. These could happen
within IT systems or outside.
There may be instances where the events and conditions, other than routine transactions but are significant for
financial reporting, may be captured in the Information Systems. We are referring to Non Standard Journal
Entries. The auditor has to understand the process and controls in recording such entries.
Some examples of the Information Systems environment relevant to financial reports are given below:
1. The audit client is an entity that has many branches, depots, sales outlets across the country etc.
Transactions such as invoice entries, debit/credit notes etc. may be passed at each of these locations.
4 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

2. The audit client is in the retail industry. They have many Point of Sale outlets (POS) where the sales are
recorded. These POS machines should have the latest price catalogue at the time of invoicing.
3. The audit client is in the IT industry. They have many types of revenue such as milestone billing, time
spent on projects etc. along with markup. This data is captured in various applications and the invoice is
raised in the integrated ERP.
The information gathered during the understanding phase of the IT environment should be captured in a
summary format to plan out the audit strategy.

Fig. 1.2.2: Audit Strategy

An example of the understanding of the Control Environment is given:
It is possible that the information flow as mentioned above may be in a partially or fully automated environment.
Automated environment refers to one with less manual process intervention and relies more on the systems
driving the activities. The risks in an automated environment are many. For example, the risks may be due to
the number and location of applications, interfaces between the applications, security within the applications
etc. We shall learn more on the components of an Automated Environment in the sessions on General IT
Controls and Automated Application Controls. However, given below are a sample of risks in an automated
environment as well as an example of an IT Automated environment.
Domain Inherent Risk of Material Misstatement Control Description
Control Lack of segregation of incompatible IT Segregation of duties has been clearly defined
Environment functions/duties may lead to increased and documented for all critical IT functions. It is
risk of fraud and unauthorized activities. clearly communicated to all critical IT function
users.
System Generic users and contractor's user IDs Generic user ID's and service accounts are
Security may be used to gain unauthorized access identified and a "user owner" is assigned to the
to the network. user ID.
System Unauthorized users could access Application, Database and Operating Systems
Security corporate data if passwords are not set Password controls are configured according to
according to security standards the Information Security Policies.
Table 1: Control Description
ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 5
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Web Server
Information flow

AUDIT CLIENT

Information flow

Budget
King

Fig. 1.2.2: IT Automated Environment

In addition to SA 315, the auditors, in response to Clause (i) of Sub-section 3 of Section 143 of the Companies
Act, 2013 (“the 2013 Act” or “the Act”) , have to report whether the entity has adequate internal financial
controls system in place.
The auditors have to express an opinion on the effectiveness of the entity’s internal financial controls over
financial reporting and have also to mention the audit procedures conducted to arrive at the opinion. These
procedures will be carried out along with the audit of financial statements. The requirement is applicable for
listed and unlisted companies.

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 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

1.2.1 Objectives of SA 330

SA 330 deals with the auditor’s responsibility to design and implement responses in the form of audit
procedures in response to work done as part of SA 315. The objective of the procedures is to reduce the risk of
material misstatement to an acceptable level. These audit responses will be a part of the overall audit strategy.
The strategy will set the scope, timing and direction of the audit. Depending on the level of automation achieved
by a Corporation, these audit procedures will revolve around a mixture of controls and substantive based
approach. Such audit procedures form a part of the overall financial statement audit procedures.
Given below is the chart that explains the link between the works done as per SA 315 and SA 330 as shown in
Fig 1.2.3.

Fig. 1.2.3: The link between the works done as per SA 315 and SA 330.

Thus, the auditor as per requirements of SA 330, has to plan and execute the audit procedures to achieve the
objectives of SA315 and Internal Financial Controls reporting.

1.3 Books of Accounts in an ERP

An integrated enterprise resource planning system inherently means that all the modules within the system are
seamlessly connected with each other and the transactions flow through the relevant modules. Thus, there is
one Primary Set of Books and all the transactions reside here.
Where the books were maintained in a manual format or in the earlier version of the systems, there were
various books of accounts or ledgers. For example, there were Purchase ledgers, sales ledgers, cash book,
bank book etc. Entries were passed in these books depending on the type of transactions. At the end of a
ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 7
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

period – for example on a daily basis, weekly basis or on a monthly basis, the totals of these books were
posted to the General Ledger.
With the advent of ERP, such different types of books or ledgers were not used. ERP’s were integrated which
meant that for any type of transactions, the impact to the General Ledger was automatic and on a real time
basis. The General Ledger had Control Accounts which was a summation of the respective transactions.
For example, if we take 2 purchase transactions involving 2 Vendors
Purchases Dr - Purchase Control Account
To Vendor 1 A/c - Creditors Control Account

Purchases Dr - Purchase Control Account

To Vendor 2 A/c - Creditors Control Account
In the above example, the ERP will maintain the details of transactions separately for Vendor 1 and Vendor 2
and also have a Creditors Control Account to capture the total of all Creditors balances.
The auditor, to audit the books of accounts and as per requirements of SA 330 will have to assess the risks and
put in place an audit program which is a combination of
 Tests of Controls
 Substantive procedures including Substantive Analytical Procedures and Test of Details
In the below Fig 1.3.1 is given the type of audit evidence that can be obtained from the client as per SA 330 and
SA 500.

Fig. 1.3.1: Audit Evidence

8 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

While deciding on the audit procedures the auditor should take into account the risk of material misstatement at
the assertion level for each class of transactions, account balance and disclosure.

1.4 Difficulties in Substantive audits in ERP

In the current automated environment, an auditor cannot devise an audit plan which is entirely made up of
substantive procedures. The client may have automated complete processes in the systems to minimise or
eliminate manual procedures. This increases the risk of any misstatement not being detected only by
substantive procedures. Hence, the auditor will have to rely on audit procedures which include auditing within or
surrounding the systems. Some other possible reasons why substantive procedures themselves may not be
feasible or sufficient are:
 Increased use & complexity of Systems and Application software in Business (for example, use of old
legacy systems, multiple applications)
 nature of business (Telecom, e-Commerce)
 Volume of transactions are high (Retail, Manufacturing)
 Systems distributed over different geographies(main ERP in India, Payroll application in Europe)
 Company Policy (Compliance)
 Regulatory requirements - Companies Act 2013 IFC, IT Act 2008
 Required by Indian and International Standards - ISO, PCI-DSS, SA 315, SOC, ISAE
 Outsourced processes (Part of the Purchase process outsourced to an organization outside the country)
 Increases efficiency and effectiveness of audit

1.5 Controls Based Audit

Some key aspects of SA 300 - Planning of Audit of Financial Statements, have to be taken into consideration.
 Involvement of Key Team Members – If the company/auditee is using ERP, then the audit team will have
to incorporate experts/specialists in the audit team who can extract data from the ERP, navigate within
the ERP, understand any rules defined by the Company within the ERP etc.
 Areas where Computer Assisted Audit Techniques - CAATS may be used as part of the audit procedures.
In determining the audit approach to include Controls Based audit, the below Fig 1.5.1 as shown the
questions/criteria to be considered:

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 9

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Fig. 1.5.1: Control Based Audit

The auditor after having evaluated and tested the Internal Control Framework may adopt a strategy that
includes Tests of controls. The auditor may have to an appropriate mix of Controls testing along with
substantive procedures. A test of controls is an audit procedure to test the effectiveness of a control used by a
client entity to prevent or detect material misstatements. Depending on the results of this test, auditors may
choose to rely upon a client's system of controls as part of their auditing activities. These controls may be
manual, automated, inherent etc.

1.6 Access to systems for audit

When auditing in an ERP environment it is essential for the auditor to have access to that environment. Here
are some possible reasons for requiring access to ERP
 To extract data and reports required for audit, independently. Obtaining audit data independently gives
the auditor more direct audit evidence. For example, the auditor may want to get a daybook, purchase
register, sales register, trial balance from an ERP system. For this purpose, the auditor should first
have a user id and password to login to the ERP system of the company. The Fig 1.6.1 as shown
below a sample trial balance report generated from an ERP.

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 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Fig. 1.6.1: A sample trial balance report generated from an ERP.

 To test automated application controls through the system by inspection of configurations. For example,
consider a solution of a situation where duplicate vendor invoices are automatically identified and
blocked in the ERP system. To test this automated control, the auditor needs to review the relevant
configurations or settings in the ERP . The auditor will require access to ERP for carrying out this test of
control. Refer below screenshot of configuration for duplicate invoice check in ERP application as shown
in Fig 1.6.2.

Configuration will check

duplicate invoice for a vendor

Fig. 1.6.2: Configuration for duplicate Invoice Check an ERP.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

When auditors have access to systems, it makes the audit process more efficient and effective and also
reduces the amount of time the company staff have to devote for audit. However, there are certain points to
remember when requesting for access to systems. They are,
 Auditors should always request access to the production or live environment. Production environment is
where business transactions are posted, financial statements including trial balance, balance sheet and
profit & loss statements are generated. Access to non-production environments alone viz., quality, test
systems will not suffice unless additional audit evidence is obtained to corroborate that data obtained
from non-production systems is consistent with the production system data. We will learn more about the
various system environments in the chapters on General IT Controls.
 The type of access that auditors request should be Display-Only or Read-Only i.e., access without the
ability to create, alter or delete data in the ERP environment. This is essential because auditors should
not make changes to business data, even inadvertently.
 Super user, privileged or administrative access is not always necessary for auditors and should not be
requested. Even when provided with super user, privileged or administrative access to systems, it is
better to decline acceptance of such access. For example, in SAP ERP the users who are assigned the
role SAP_ALL or SAP_NEW have super user access which means these users can perform any
transaction or activity in the ERP. This level of super user access is generally not necessary for an
auditor.

Super user
Roles

Fig. 1.6.3: Super user Roles

 Auditor should request for temporary access for the duration of audit to minimise any possible misuse of
the same access at a later date.
 Prior to obtaining access to company systems, the auditor should receive sufficient training or orientation
in navigating through the systems and applications. Experimenting on company systems should be
avoided. In case the auditor does not have sufficient knowledge of an ERP, they should take help from
experienced and authorised users of the ERP.

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 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

 To obtain data from core technology components of an ERP environment viz., operating systems,
databases, networks, the auditor should take help from the respective administrators of those systems.
 Before obtaining access to systems, the auditor should also gain an understanding of the company IT
policies including password policy, user access policy and acceptable usage policy and so on. For
example, complexity, duration and length of passwords etc. This is essential so that the auditor does not
inadvertently violate the company policies or compromise IT security.

1.7 Involvement of experts

When auditing in an ERP environment, it is likely that the auditor will come across certain aspects of and ERP
environment that require more in-depth understanding and knowledge of the technical subjects. Examples of
what an auditor may have to looking at and review could include,
 Complex ERPs like SAP
 Legacy systems including mainframes and AS/400 systems
 Latest technology like cloud computing
 In-house developed systems and applications
 Customised and specialised systems
 Database like Oracle or SQL Server
 Operating systems like Unix and variants
To determine the scope, understand the ERP environment, assess risks and carry out audit tests will require
special training, expertise and skills for an auditor (of financial statements). In certain cases where the auditor
may not possess such knowledge and skills an expert should be involved. Just like how auditors sometimes
involve experts from the fields of Taxation, Transfer Pricing, Valuators, Actuaries, even IT specialists can be
involved as experts in an audit of financial statements. The standard SA 610 - Using the Work of an Auditor's
Expert provides the necessary guidance on involving experts.

1.8 Exercise
1. _________ states that the objective of the auditor is to identify and assess the risks of material
misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, at the financial statement and assertion levels.
2. Understanding the information systems environment relevant to financial reporting and communication is a
part of:
(a) SA300
(b) SA315
(c) SA330
(d) SA500
3. The __________ team is the owner of the application.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

4. The __________ team is the owner of the data within the application.
5. In response to Clause ___ of Sub-section __ of Section 143 of the Companies Act, 2013, the auditor has to
report whether the entity has adequate internal financial controls system in place.
6. ______ deals with the auditor’s responsibility to design and design and implement responses in the form of
audit procedures in response to work done as part of SA 315.
7. Involvement of key team members and usage of CAATS is a part of SA _______, Planning of Audit of
Financial Statements.
8. Involvement of Experts in audit is covered under SA ______.
9. Complexity, duration and length of passwords are a part of :
(a) User access policy
(b) Password policy
(c) Acceptable usage policy
(d) None of the above.
10. Typically, the auditors should request for ___________ access or ___________ access to the client’s ERP
system.

1.9 Glossary
ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
POS – Point of Sale
GITC – General Information Technology Controls
CAATS – Computer Assisted Audit Techniques
ISO – International Organisation for Standardisation
PCI-DSS – Payment Card Industry – Data Security Standard
ISAE – International Standard for Assurance Engagements
SOC – Service Organisation Controls

1.10 References and other reading material

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org >
Resources
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

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 AUDITING IN ERP ENVIRONMENT

1.11 Answer to Exercise

1. SA 315
2. Answer is b – SA 315.
o SA 315 mentions that it is key to understand the information systems environment relevant to
financial reporting and communication.
3. IT Team
4. Business team
5. Clause (i) of Sub-section 3 of Section 143 of the Companies Act, 2013
6. SA330
7. SA 300
8. SA 610
9. Answer is b – Password policy
10. Display only or Read only

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 15

 CHAPTER

2 GENERAL INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand about General IT Controls
 To understand the categories and types of General IT Controls
 To understand the impact of General IT Controls on Audit of financial statements
 To know which systems to scope for review of General IT Controls
 To learn about the sample size requirements for General IT Controls
 To understand the procedures for review of various categories or domains of General IT Controls
including IT Governance, Program Changes, Access Security, Data center and network Operations,
Application system acquisition, development and maintenance
 To understand how to evaluate impact of deficiencies in General IT Controls on overall audit
 To know when to test General IT Controls

2.1 What are General IT Controls

“General IT controls are policies and procedures that relate to many applications and support the effective
functioning of application controls. They apply to mainframe, miniframe, and end-user environments. General
IT-controls that maintain the integrity of information and security of data commonly include controls over the
following:” (SA 315)
These are IT controls generally implemented to mitigate the IT specific risks and applied commonly across
multiple IT systems, applications and business processes. Hence, General IT controls are known as “pervasive”
controls or “indirect” controls.

2.2 Categories of GITCS

There are basically four categories of General IT Controls which are as follows:
 Data center and network operations
 Program change
 Access security
 Application system acquisition, development, and maintenance (Business Applications)
In addition to the above there are aspects of that relate to the governance and oversight of IT systems at the
entity level known as IT Governance. The auditor is required to obtain an understanding of IT Governance as
part of the review of Entity Level Controls.
 GENERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS

2.3 Types of Controls

The different types of controls are as follows:
Automated Controls
Automated controls are embedded into IT applications viz., ERPs and help in ensuring the completeness,
accuracy and integrity of data in those systems. Examples of automated controls include edit checks and
validation of input data, sequence number checks, user limit checks, reasonableness checks, mandatory data
fields, user access controls and password controls.
Manual Controls
Manual controls are activities in a business process that are performed by individuals or employees manually
i.e., without the need to rely on a IT system or data generated by a system. For example, manual controls
include approval of a manual journal voucher, reviewing reconciliations, authorisation for payments, approving
credit limits and segregation of duties, user acceptance testing of program changes.
IT-Dependent Controls
IT dependent controls are basically manual controls that make use of some form of data or information or report
produced from IT systems and applications. In this case, even though the control is performed manually, the
design and effectiveness of such controls depends on the reliability of source data.

2.4 How do GITCS Impact Audit

When IT systems are used in a company for processing of business transactions and activities there will be
risks which are specific to the use of IT systems that need to be considered. Examples of IT risks are given
below:
 Inaccurate processing of data, processing inaccurate data, or both
 Unauthorized access to data
 Direct data changes (backend changes)
 Excessive access / Privileged access (super users)
 Lack of adequate segregation of duties
 Unauthorized changes to systems or programs
 Failure to make necessary changes to systems or programs
 Loss of data
The auditor should identify, evaluate and assess the IT risks to determine impact on audit. General IT Controls
or GITCs are internal controls that are implemented by a company to mitigate IT risks. Effective implementation
and operation of General IT Controls are essential for relying on the following:
 Information Produced by Entity (IPE) i.e., data, information or reports that are generated from systems
 Automated controls, calculations, accounting procedures that are built into the applications
 IT dependent controls
ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 17
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Due to the inherent dependency on IT, the effectiveness and reliability of Automated controls and IT dependent
controls require the General IT Controls to be effective.

2.5 Which Systems to Scope for Review of GITCS

In an audit of financial statements, the auditor is required to understand the entity and its business, including IT
as per SA 315. As mentioned in the introduction section, obtaining an understanding of a company and its
automated environment involves understanding how IT department is organised, IT activities, the IT
dependencies, relevant risks and controls. Depending on the nature, size and complexity of operations, a
company could be using one or more IT systems and applications.
While the auditor is required to obtain an understanding, document the IT environment at a company, including
all IT systems, the auditor is required to consider only those General IT Controls that mitigate risks relevant to
financial statements.
Which IT systems and General IT Controls to include in-scope for an audit depends on the auditors’ judgement
and assessment of risk of material misstatements to financial statements and the planned audit response to
these risks.

Fig 2.5.1: IT environment

In this example, the auditor has obtained an understanding if IT environment which has four different IT
applications being used at a company. However, the auditor has considered two applications i.e., SAP and
Paymaster as “In-Scope” for audit since these two applications are used in the processing of financial
transactions which has a direct impact on the accounting and preparation of financial statements.
However, two other applications “Accent” and “BudgetKing” are not considered in scope for audit because
these systems, even though are important for the company, do not impact the financial data and accounting of
the company.

2.6 Sample Size

The methodology and approach for testing General IT Controls in an audit of financial statements is the same
as approach for testing other internal controls including manual controls, automated controls or IT-dependent

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 GENERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS

controls. Accordingly, the sample size requirements when testing General IT Controls are also the same. The
considerations for determining sample size include the following:
 Size of population to test
 Type of control - Manual/Automated/IT-Dependent
 Frequency of control - Daily/Weekly/Monthly/Quarterly
 Nature of test - Inquiry/Observation/Inspection/Reperformance
 Timing of test - Interim/Year-end/Full Period
 History of errors and exceptions
 Tolerance for exceptions
 Effectiveness of Entity Level Controls
 Risk assessment - High/Medium/Low
The auditor should apply professional judgement in determining the sample size for testing controls and is
required to explicitly document the following as per SA 230,
 factors considered and justification for sample size
 how the auditor ensured completeness of population

2.7 Procedures for Review of IT Governance

IT Governance is a part of the larger corporate governance of a company that involves establishment of the IT
framework in a company which includes
 Defining IT objectives
 Alignment of IT objectives with business objectives
 Setup IT organisation structure
 Define Roles & Responsibilities of IT personnel
 Create IT policies and processes
 Monitor quality and effectiveness of IT
In an audit of financial statements, the auditor is required to understand and evaluate the internal controls
components other than control activities i.e., Control Environment, Risk Assessment, Information &
Communication and Monitoring as a part of reviewing Entity Level Controls. The Information & Communication
component requires the auditor to obtain an understanding of
 how business processes operate,
 the relevant information systems used in the processing of business transactions and activities,
 the risks and controls pertaining to the information systems and underlying infrastructure
 reliability of information generated from systems

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While Information & Communication is more relevant to the use of information systems in a company, in large
and complex ERP environments it is likely that the other components of internal controls viz., Control
environment, Risk assessment and Monitoring will also be relevant.
The following is a sample procedure of how the auditor performs an understanding and evaluation of the IT
Governance in a company.
Ref No. IT Governance Review Checklist
1 How is the IT department organised
2 Who has ownership and provides leadership for IT function
3 The manner in which IT function reports to those charged with governance i.e., Board of
Directors/Audit Committee
4 Have formal IT policies and procedures been defined
5 Are roles and responsibilities defined and assigned to IT personnel
6 Is there segregation of duties within key IT functions
7 Do human resource policies and process ensure that right people are hired for key IT functions
8 Is security training and awareness provided to employees
9 How does IT communicate and collaborate with other business functions
10 What is the process for identifying and addressing IT risks
11 How does the company ensure the reliability, effectiveness of IT systems
12 Is compliance with and adherence to IT policies and procedures monitored and measured

Table 1: IT Governance

2.8 Procedures for Review of Program Changes

The Program changes domain of General IT Controls involves the understanding and evaluating the process,
risks and controls that are relevant to making changes to the IT systems and applications.
The objective of program changes is “To ensure that modified systems continue to meet financial reporting
objectives”. The change management process and activities in the process can be understood from the
illustration as shown in Fig 2.8.1:

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Fig 2.8.1: The change management process

The process for program changes is similar to the process that is followed for acquisition, development and
implementation of new systems. The program change process begins after a new system or ERP is
implemented and involves the ongoing maintenance of ERP system. In other words, program changes process
begins from the point where program development ends i.e., after go-live stage.
 Change Requests: A user initiates a request for change based on a business requirement. For example,
a new report may be required because of a regulatory requirement or for internal reporting. The change
request is reviewed and approved by a supervisor or head of department. All changes are recorded and
tracked to ensure timely completion.
There are different types of changes including the following:
 Normal changes – these are changes required in the existing functionality of the ERP due a business
need.
 Bug fixes – a bug is an error in software which affects business transactions or reports in an ERP.
Changes are required to be made to the program or configuration of the ERP to rectify or fix the bug.
Identification of bugs normally happens when a user reports a problem to the IT Helpdesk. In such
cases it is likely that a request made to helpdesk is converted to a program change request by the IT
department and approval is provided by a IT Manager or ERP consultant instead of the supervisor of
business user.
 Enhancements – when new improvements or functionality is added to an existing ERP. For example,
a workflow process is introduced for processing purchase orders to facilitate system based
approvals.

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 Minor changes – changes that take less time and effort are classified as minor changes. For
example, any program change that requires less than 40 hrs of effort may be considered as minor
change.
 Major changes – these are changes that require more time and effort to develop and implement. For
example, changes that take more than 100 hrs of effort may be considered as major change.
Sometimes where major enhancements and major changes take place in an ERP, such changes
may fall under the GITC domain of Program development instead of program changes.
 Patches and updates – these are changes provided by the vendor of ERP to address known bugs,
security, or provide improvements to functionality to existing ERP.
Patches and updates are typically initiated and processed by the IT department. Depending on the
nature of the patch or update, the business user involvement could vary.
 Data changes – these are direct changes to data carried out in the backend database using SQL
statements or tools.
Direct data changes are high risk because they bypass the application controls and directly impact
integrity of financial data.
 Emergency changes – these are changes that are required to be carried out urgently to prevent
disruption to business transactions. For example, an emergency change is required to fix a bug that
impacts critical business transaction viz., invoice / despatches or patches released by ERP vendor to
address a security vulnerability found in the ERP.
Due to the nature of emergency changes, it is likely that the change management process may be
bypassed for implementing the change. However, the necessary approvals and documentation
should be obtained subsequently within a reasonable time frame.
 Changes in IT Infrastructure – These are changes made to the IT infrastructure components that
support the ERP. For example, upgrades in operating system or database, changes to network
configuration, installation of new hardware, etc.
Infrastructure changes are technical in nature and do not affect the business functionality. These
changes are initiated and processed by the IT department.
 Development: Approved change requests are provided to the IT department where the systems analysts
perform analysis & design and prepare the functional / technical requirement specification for the change.
The programmers develop the change by writing the program code or modify the configuration in the
development environment. Once development is completed, the change is moved to test environment for
testing.
 Testing: Program changes are tested to verify that a change works as intended. Testing is done at
different levels. Unit testing is done by developer to test the working of specific change made. The
functional consultant tests the change by preparing test cases and test scripts to simulate different
scenarios and verify if the change meets the functional specifications under all scenarios including
integration with other modules and interfaces to other systems, if any. Business user, who initially

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requested the change, performs the user acceptance testing to verify that a program change meets
business requirement for which change request made.
The extent of testing a program change could vary depending on the nature of the change itself. For
example, a change in existing report format and layout may not require extensive testing, whereas a new
report that is developed may require more testing. Bug fixes and other IT specific changes may require
unit testing and integration testing, but not user acceptance testing.
 Implementation: Prior to implementing changes in production environment, a quality assurance team
reviews the changes and documentation prepared for adherence to company’s change management
process. After clearance is obtained from quality assurance, the IT head or equivalent approves the
implementation of change in production environment based on which an administrator moves the change
from test to production environment.
In case of major changes or enhancements that impacts a larger user group, training and awareness of
change should be provided to users.
 Segregation of duties: The change management process requires several tasks to be carried out by
different people in different environments viz., development, test and production. These tasks and
environments should be adequately segregated to prevent unauthorised changes from being made. The
illustration as shown in Fig 2.8.2 below is an example of how this segregation can be implemented.

Fig 2.8.2: Segregation of duties

Example of configuration to prevent direct changes in ERP production environment:

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Fig 2.8.3: To prevent direct changes in ERP

Example showing three separate environments for development (SBD), testing (SBQ) and production
(SBP) in Fig 2.8.3

Fig 2.8.3: Three separate environment for development, testing and production

Documentation: Sufficient and appropriate documentation should be prepared and maintained to

support all program changes. The documentation should include the following,
 change request forms
 approvals and sign-offs
 source code
 test cases and test scripts with results obtained
 user acceptance testing outputs and results
 record of training provided to users
 updates to user manuals and technical manuals to reflect the changes

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The below illustration is an example of change request form

ABC Private Limited

Change Request in ERP

Project Name CR No
Project Id CR Date
Requestor Request No.
Designation Request Date
Contact Number
E-Mail Id
Sl. Application Module/Functionality/ Change Request Details Proposed Status
No. Screen Changes
1

Requested by HOD / In-Charge UAT Sign-off

(Sign, Name & Date) (Sign, Name & Date) (Sign, Name & Date)

Developed by Change Implemented by IT In-Charge / IT Head

(Sign, Name & Date) (Sign, Name & Date) (Sign, Name & Date)

The table below has examples of risk and controls that an auditor may consider when reviewing program
changes
Ref No. Activity Risk Control description
1 Change Request Unauthorised changes The change request is approved by the department
are processed In-charge or Head of department (HOD).
Changes to IT infrastructure components are
approved by IT Head.
2 Testing Untested changes Unit testing is performed by developer, user
could compromise the acceptance testing is done by end user prior to
integrity of financial implementing in production environment.
data
3 Segregation of Changes are made Three separate environments exist for development,
duties directly in production quality (test) and production.
environment and may Separate teams are involved in development and
result in loss of data migration of changes to production.
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Ref No. Activity Risk Control description

and program integrity. Development of changes is done by consultants and
movement of changes to production is performed by
System Administration only after approval.
4 Implementation Changes are Access to migrate changes to production is
implemented by restricted to System Administrators only.
unauthorised persons.
5 Documentation Changes are applied A monthly review of all changes to application
bypassing the change programs is performed by internal audit/quality
management process. assurance team. Exceptions and deviations are
reported to senior management and those charged
with governance.

Table 2: Risk & Control description

2.9 Procedures for Review of Access Security

Access security is one of the categories or domain of General IT Controls that involves the understanding and
evaluating the process, risks and controls that are relevant to user access and security configurations in the IT
environment.
The objective of access security domain is “To ensure that access to programs and data is authenticated and
authorized to meet financial reporting objectives”. The access security is implemented at several layers of the
IT environment as shown in Fig 2.9.1.

Fig 2.9.1: Access security

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The various activities in this domain include the following:

 User management: involves granting, modification and revocation of user access and periodic review of
user access to ensure that access granted is consistent with user job responsibilities and excessive
access is not granted. For example, when a new employee joins a company in the stores department, a
new user id is created and granted access to company network and ERP to process goods movements.
In case existing employee in accounts payables section is promoted as finance manager and transferred
to from factory office to head office, his/her access in ERP should be modified by removing access to
process accounts payables transactions at plant/factory and providing access to approve payments at
head office level.
When an employee resigns and leaves a company, access of the employee should be revoked/removed
from network, ERP application and office premises without delay.
User management apply to all layers of access security i.e., application, database, operating system,
network and physical layers because users are created, modified and revoked at all layers.
 Sensitive Access and Segregation of Duties (SA/SoD): involves granting user the ability to perform
critical business activities in an ERP. Segregation of duties refers to the identification of conflicting
business activities and preventing users from being granted to access these conflicting activities. The
chapter “Segregation of Duties and Sensitive Access” gives a detailed explanation with examples about
SA/SoD at ERP application layer.
Apart from the application layer, SA/SoD is relevant at other layers of security. Examples of how
sensitive access and segregation of duties is implemented (for other than application layer) in an IT
environment are as follows,
 In modern client/server and web-based applications, business users are generally not created at the
database and operating system layers. However, some companies could be using legacy systems in
which user access may be created at database and/or operating systems.
 Only administrators, or IT operations personnel should be granted access to database, operating
system and network layers for day-to-day management of IT operations, not business users.
 Developers and programmer access should be restricted to development environment and testing
environments. Developers should not have access to production environment.
 Privileged user access: commonly known as super users or admin users, a privileged user is someone
with full or unlimited access to IT systems or applications. Privileged users may exist at all layers of
access security. Typically, these users are system administrators, database administrators or network
administrators. Because of the excessive level of access, it may not be possible to enforce security
controls viz., SA/SOD for privileged users and hence privileged user access is considered high risk.
Hence, activities of these users should be logged and reviewed periodically.
 Audit logging and monitoring: an audit log or audit trail is a historical record of events and activities
that take place in an IT environment. Audit logs are relevant to all layers of access security. In most IT
systems and applications, enabling audit log is an optional feature and must be explicitly enabled and
configured appropriately. Audit logs can quickly grow in size and occupy high volume of data and storage
space and likely to impact performance of a system. However, some systems including, Windows
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Servers OS, Oracle database and Unix provide advanced audit management features so that only
relevant events and activities viz., privileged user activity, changes to master are logged.
In addition to enabling the audit logs in systems, there should be a process in place to periodically review
audit logs to detect any unauthorized events, activities and exceptions. Typically, audit logs should be
generated and reviewed by someone independent of the IT function or those having privileged user
access.
Example of audit log configuration in Windows Server. In this example, audit logs are set as Not Defined
i.e., auditing is not enabled

Fig 2.9.2: Audit log configuration

Example of shows configuration to enable table logs and security logs in ERP. OFF indicates table log
are not enabled, 0 indicates security logs are not enabled.

Fig 2.9.3: Security Logs in ERP

 Password configuration: a password is a secret code that is used in combination with a user id to gain
access into an IT system or application. Because of the sensitive nature of a password, unauthorised
users including hackers most often target the passwords of users, specifically privileged users. Most
systems provide the options for configuring the security and strength of passwords in order to protect
being compromised from attacks. Password configuration and controls are applicable for all layers of
access security.
Example of a password configuration in ERP as shown in Fig 2.9.4.

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Fig 2.9.4: Password configuration in ERP

All new systems, applications and network equipment are supplied with one or more pre-created user ids,
commonly known as “default users”, including the administration user id. The purpose of these default
users is to facilitate easy installation and implementation of the respective software. However, the risk
with default users is they are supplied with a password (known as “default password”) that is published
openly and known to all. The default passwords should be changed immediately after installation but
many companies forget to change the default passwords which can be misused by an unauthorized user
or hacker.
Example of default users and corresponding default passwords in an oracle database.
User ID Password Password hash value
ORACLE ORACLE 38E38619A12E0257
ORADBA ORADBAPASS C37E732953A8ABDB
DBSNMP DBSNMP E066D214D5421CCC
DEMO DEMO 4646116A123897CF
ADMIN JETSPEED CAC22318F162D597
ADMINISTRATOR ADMIN F9ED601D936158BD
APPLSYS APPLSYS FE84888987A6BF5A
SYSTEM CHANGE_ON_INSTALL 8BF0DA8E551DE1B9
SYS 0RACLE8 1FA22316B703EBDD
OUTLN OUTLN 4A3BA55E08595C81
SAPR3 SAP 58872B4319A76363
SCOTT TIGER F894844C34402B67
SYSADM SYSADM BA3E855E93B5B9B0

Table 3: Default password in Oracle

 Direct data access: all data including financial data, master data, transaction data and user data is
stored in a database, logically represented as rows and columns (similar to an excel spreadsheet). Some
common databases include Oracle 12g, MS-SQL Server 2012 and MySQL. The data is physically stored

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in the form of data files located in the operating system. Direct data access is relevant at the database
and operating system layers of access security.
It is possible to directly access and modify/ manipulate data in a database using tools viz., SQL Plus,
Toad, SQL Navigator, Enterprise Database Management tools. Direct data access is high risk because it
bypasses security and business controls defined at the application layer. Normally only a limited number
of users are likely to have database access including database administrators and IT operations
personnel.
 File system security: application programs, data files, backups, configuration and user security files, etc
are physically stored in the form of files and directories/folders in the operating system. An operating
system is a system software that converts high level user command to machine language. Examples of
operating systems include Windows 10 (desktop), Windows 2012 Server, Unix (HP-UX, AIX) and Linux
(RHEL, SuSE, Ubuntu). Access to the critical files and directories that contain sensitive information
should be restricted to a limited number of users including systems administrators and IT operations
personnel. File system security is relevant at the operating system layer of access security.
Example of file system permissions in UNIX as shown in Fig 2.9.5.

d directory
- in first column indicates
file

r read, w write, x execute

- rw- r- - r- -
Owner Group World
(root) (root) (everyone)

Owner Group
(root) (root)

Fig 2.9.5: File system permission in UNIX

 Domain security: a domain is a central repository of objects including users, groups, and access rights
and permissions implemented in a server operating system viz., Windows 2012 Server. A domain forms
part of a company’s internal network and is used to for the authentication and authorisation of users
before they can access applications and network resources viz., shared drives, folders and files.

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 Firewall, VPN, Anti-virus/malware: IT systems operate in a networked environment in which several

systems and devices are connected and communicate with each other and exchange data using ports,
services and network protocols. Firewalls are installed and configured at the perimeter network layer to
protect the company’s IT systems from external threats and remote attacks. Virtual Private Network
(VPN) allows users to remotely access to a company IT systems and applications using a secure and
encrypted channel through a public network like the internet. Anti-virus and anti-malware software is
used to protect data corruption that are caused by computer viruses.
Example of a remote access through external network, firewall, and internal network as shown in Fig
2.9.6

Fig 2.9.6: remote access through external network, firewall, and internal network

 Environmental controls: environmental controls form part of the physical security layer of access
security. Computing facilities that process, store, and transmit sensitive and critical data require
protection from environmental hazards viz., fire, water, dust, humidity and heat that could result in
system failures, data corruption and loss of data. Smoke detectors, fire extinguisher, air conditioning,
temperature and humidity control, raised flooring are implemented to protect systems from environmental
controls.
The manner in which access security is implemented will vary based on the nature, size and complexity of
business operations and the extent to which IT systems are used. While most of the activities mentioned above
are critical for the company, it is likely that some of these activities are less relevant to an audit of financial
statements.
For example, security activities at the database and application layer that directly protect the integrity of
financial data will be more relevant to audit. Whereas, the security activities at the outer layers of network and
physical layers would be less relevant to audit. The auditor should determine the relevant activities and controls
based on risk assessment.

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The illustration below summarises the relevance of the various access security activities to the layers of
security.
Security Layer

Operating System Security

Application Security
Database Security

Physical Security
Network Security
Security Activity
User management     
Segregation of Duties & Sensitive Access     
Privileged user access     
Audit logging and monitoring     
Password configuration     
Direct data access  
File system security 
Domain Security  
Firewall, VPN, Anti-virus/malware  
Environmental controls 

Fig 2.9.7: Various access security activities

The table below has examples of risk and controls that an auditor may consider when reviewing access security
Ref Activity Risk Control description
No.
1 User management Unauthorised access to There is a formal approval process of creating,
systems changing and removing all access to the application.
2 User management Users have excessive There is a process of periodic reviews to verify that
access to systems user access is consistent with job responsibilities.
3 Password Weak passwords may A robust password policy is implemented at the
Configuration compromise security application level, database and operating system.
controls.
4 Access logging and Unauthorised activities Special system utilities for accessing data are
monitoring may go undetected. logged and reviewed on a regular basis.
5 Access logging and Unauthorised activities Audit trail controls are designed and monitored by
monitoring may go undetected. the management for potential unauthorized
activities.

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Ref Activity Risk Control description

No.
6 Network security Computer virus may
Appropriate software is installed, updated regularly
cause data loss and
to protect the system from virus attacks.
corruption
7 Perimeter network Unauthorised persons
security and hackers may gain The internal network is protected from unauthorized
access to financial data access via external network connections (i.e.
remotely. internet) by appropriate placements of firewalls, etc.

8 Physical security Unauthorised users

Physical access to computer facilities, data centres,
may gain access to
and removable storage media is appropriately
computing facilities and
restricted.
data

Table 4

2.10 Procedures for Review of Data Center and Network Operations

Data centre and network operations, also known as computer operations, is one of the categories or domain of
General IT Controls that involves the understanding and evaluating the process, risks and controls that are
relevant to day-to-day operations carried out in the IT environment.
The objective of data center and network operations is “To ensure that production systems are processed to
meet financial reporting objectives”. The various activities in this domain include the following
 Batch jobs: processing of batch jobs involves combining several transactions of the same nature for
processing at the same time. Typically, batch jobs are designed to execute automatically at a pre-
scheduled time without user intervention. A user could also initiate a batch job and schedule it for
execution at a particular point of time.
For example, all the purchase invoices are processed overnight by a batch job which is scheduled to
execute at midnight daily so that the payment can be made next day. Another common example is of a
batch job is a discount calculation program that is manually executed by a user at the end of every month
to process discounts to dealers.
Example of monitoring batch jobs in ERP as shown in Fig 2.10.1.

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Green tick indicates job completed

successfully

Red indicates job failure

Fig 2.10.1: Batch jobs in ERP

 Real-time processing: in a real-time processing system, transactions are initiated, processed and
recorded immediately as and when they occur, without delay.
For example, when a sales invoice is created in a ERP, the corresponding accounting entries are
automatically posted to the respective sub-ledgers and general ledgers at the same time account
balances are updated immediately.
 Data Backups: backup involves making periodic copies of existing data and applications to an alternate
storage media which can be useful for recovery in the event of data loss or corruption of data. The
content, frequency, storage, retention and restoration of backups depend on the nature of business and
criticality of data.
For example, the data in a ERP system of a cement manufacturing company is copied every day to an
external drive. Once a week an additional copy of the data is copied to a tape and stored in a remote
branch office in a fire proof safe. On the other hand, the data of a financial services company may be
copied to an external system in real-time using database mirroring and replication techniques i.e., two
copies of the same database are maintained at different locations and every transaction is automatically
copied on to both the databases to ensure high availability of systems. Example of backup schedule in
ERP.

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Configuration indicates daily full backup,

except Sunday

Fig 2.10.2: Backup Data in ERP

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Example of backup log, return code RC 0000 indicates successful completion of backup, RC 0005 and
0003 indicate error in backup.

Fig 2.10.3: Backup & return Code

 Interfaces between systems: data flows between two or more IT systems is known as an interface. The
flow of data could be real-time, scheduled using batch jobs or manual. In case a company is using only a
single ERP system, interfaces may not be relevant.
For example, consider a software services company that has in-house application for Projects,
PeopleSoft for HR & Payroll and Oracle EBS for accounting and financial reporting. At month end,
invoicing is done in Oracle EBS based on the project status and rates obtained from the Projects
application, staff information and timesheets from PeopleSoft. The data flow between the three systems
happens through interfaces. On the other hand, consider a mid-sized manufacturing company using an
Oracle EBS application for all business transactions. In this example, there are no interfaces because
there is only one system.
 Recovery from Failures: In the event of failures that impacts the availability of IT systems the company
should be able to cope with and recover from the system failures. A business continuity plan is a
document that details the risks, business impact analysis and other procedures to help a company in
going on with business transactions when failures occur. Disaster recovery plan, which is a part of the
larger business continuity plan, focuses on the procedures for restoring the IT systems back to normal
state after the failure.
For example, a telecom company installs multiple backup power systems including diesel generators at
tower sites to keep the network operational in the event of power outages. Core banking systems,
railway/airline ticketing systems, e-commerce portals, etc., have an operational secondary data center
located at a remote site that would allow the bank to continue operations in the event of failure of the
primary data center.
 IT Helpdesk: a helpdesk is a facility to address and resolve user requests including queries, incidents
and problems related to IT systems and applications. Typically, all requests are logged and monitored to
minimize disruption to business.
For example, a mid-sized consumer retail company with several outlets across a city has a central IT
helpdesk to resolve user requests. All requests are recorded in an online intranet portal and there is also
a toll-free number which users can make use of to log service requests. Requests have to be resolved in
a timely manner based on the priority and severity recorded and governed by service level agreements
between IT department and business.

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The activities in this domain are mainly to ensure that IT systems are available for carrying on business
transactions and to detect and correct disruptions to IT systems and applications. All activities in computer
operations may not be relevant to an audit of financial statements being operational in nature.
For example, service level agreements are put in place to ensure that systems are available for users to
process transactions, similarly a IT helpdesk provides support to users so they can continue using systems for
transactions. While the service level agreements and helpdesk are important activities for ensuring availability
of systems for business, there is no direct impact on the financial transactions and reporting aspects.
However, activities viz., batch jobs, interfaces and backups could directly impact the integrity of financial
transactions and data and hence considered relevant for audit.
The table below has examples of risk and controls that an auditor may consider when reviewing computer
operations.
Ref Activity Risk Control description
No.
1 Batch scheduling Unauthorized changes Additions, changes and deletion to job schedules are
and processing are made to batch jobs. documented and authorized.
2 Batch scheduling Failures in execution of All batch jobs are monitored for successful
and processing batch job. completion. Any errors and incomplete jobs are
identified and rectified in a timely manner.
3 Real-time Unauthorised changes There exists a consistent procedure for making
processing are made to the changes to the configuration of real-time processing
configuration of real-time components (including middleware, where
components. applicable).

4 Backup and Loss of critical data due Formal backup policy exists, is implemented and
Recovery to data corruption duly monitored for compliance.
system failures.
5 Backup and Loss of critical data due On site and Off-site backups are maintained
Recovery to fire and theft securely.
6 Backup and Backup is incomplete or Back up recovery is periodically tested to ensure that
Recovery corruption of backup it works when required.
media
7 Interfaces between Data transfer between Plans for the business continuity is kept up to date
systems systems is incomplete or and tested.
inaccurate
8 Disaster recovery Data recovery plan is Disaster recovery plans are updated once a year and
obsolete tested two times a year.

Table 5

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2.11 Procedures for Review of Application System Acquisition,

Development and Maintenance
The application system acquisition, development and maintenance, also called program development, is one of
the categories or domain of General IT Controls that involves the understanding and evaluating the process,
risks and controls that are relevant to a company when major changes occur in the IT environment. For
example,
 New IT systems and applications are acquired and implemented in the company
 Existing IT systems are migrated to a different system
 Major changes occur in IT applications or infrastructure
The objective of application system acquisition, development and maintenance is “To ensure that systems are
developed, configured and implemented to meet financial reporting objectives”. The various activities in this
domain include the following
 Project Planning
 Analysis & Design
 Data Conversion/Development
 Testing
 Go-Live Decision
 Documentation & Training
In activities mentioned above represent the System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) in software development
terminology which is one of the most common method that is followed for development and implementation of
new systems and applications including ERP systems.
The auditor should consider this domain of General IT Controls to be relevant for audit only when major
changes occur in the IT environment that impact the financial reporting. For example, if a company is
implementing a new ERP system to automate the business process of sales, purchase, inventory, payroll and
general ledger, the auditor should consider reviewing process and controls in this domain because this change
impacts the financial reporting. On the other hand, if a company is implementing a new customer relationship
management (CRM) system for improving marketing and customer service, the auditor may not consider
reviewing this implementation because there is no impact on financial reporting.
The audit approach, methods and review procedures that and auditor should consider have been provided in
more detail in the chapter on “New System and Data Migration Review”

2.12 Concluding on Impact of Deficiencies in GITCS on Audit

During a review of General IT Controls, deficiencies in design and operating effectiveness may be observed.
Examples of deficiencies in GITCs include:
(a) password controls are not enabled

38 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 GENERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS

(b) a formal sign-off for user acceptance testing has not been obtained for program changes
(c) errors and batch jobs have not been resolved
(d) privileged user access has been granted to unauthorised users
(e) direct-data changes have been made in database without approvals
(f) audit logs have not been enabled
Having found deficiencies, the auditor should evaluate the impact of these deficiencies on the audit. For this
evaluation, the auditor should consider the following:
 which automated controls, IT dependent controls and reports/IPE will be impacted
 are there compensating controls that mitigate the risk, can we test the compensating controls. For
example, are there manual checks and controls that mitigate risk of material misstatement.
 is there evidence that deficiency was not exploited. For example, even though privileged user access
was granted to unauthorised users, have the users used this level of access (it is possible the users may
not be even aware they had the access)
 consider data analytics using CAATs to verify the integrity of account balances. For example, the auditor
can extract transaction data from the ERP system and use ACL to independently reconcile sub-ledger
with general ledger balance.
 determine the aggregate financial impact of the deficiencies and compare with materiality.
The above examples are some of the ways in which the auditor evaluates the deficiencies to assess impact on
audit. Wherever necessary, the auditor should consider revising the planned audit response by altering the
nature, timing and extent of audit procedures, including controls testing and substantive testing, to address the
risk of material misstatement in financial statements. For example, the auditor may increase the sample sizes
for controls testing or test reports and IPE substantively.
Evaluation and assessment of deficiencies requires the auditor to apply professional judgement and the auditor
is required, as per SA 230, to explicitly document the process of evaluation, factors considered, additional audit
evidence obtained and conclusions reached to support the audit opinion.

2.13 When to Test GITCS

Understanding of the ERP environment is obtained during the planning phase of an audit of financial
statements. The timing for testing General IT Controls in an ERP environment will vary depending on several
factors including the following:
 Effectiveness of the Entity Level Controls
 Understanding of Business process and controls
 Level of automation in business process
 Dependencies on IT i.e., IPE/Reports, IT Dependent controls
 Risk assessment, including IT risks
 IT systems and application in scope
ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 39
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

 Outsourced IT activities
 Deficiencies observed in past audits
 New systems and changes in existing IT environment
The above are some of the factors that the auditor should consider in determining the timing of General IT
Controls. In a typical ERP environment, it is more likely that the testing for GITCs is performed early in the audit
process, close to the planning stage, because of the dependencies that other audit work, including controls and
substantive testing, have on effectiveness of GITCs.
In deciding the timing for GITCs tests, the auditor should also factor the possibility of finding deficiencies and
the time required for remediation and re-testing GITCs. In other words, if the GITCs are tested during the
planning phase of audit, there will be sufficient time to rectify any exceptions and deficiencies and re-test or
plan alternate audit procedures prior to balance sheet date. On the other hand, if the GITCs are tested closer to
year-end, there may not be sufficient time to rectify deficiencies or carry out alternate audit procedures.

2.14 Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
1. What are data flows between multiple IT systems also known as,
(a) Batch jobs
(b) Interfaces
(c) Databases
(d) Operating systems
2. Which of the following activity from the Data center and network operations domain of GITCs is less likely
to have an impact on audit,
(a) Service Level Agreements
(b) Data backups
(c) Real-time processing
(d) All of the above
3 What is the risk due to default passwords,
(a) They are easy to guess
(b) Openly know
(c) Do not comply with company’s password policy
(d) All of the above
4. Privileged users are more commonly known as,
(a) Business users

40 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 GENERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS

(b) Normal users

(c) Super users
(d) End users
5. Segregation of duties is applicable to which layer of access security,
(a) Application security
(b) Database security
(c) Network security
(d) All of the above

Fill in the blanks

6. With respect to samples selected for testing, the auditor is required to document _________ for sample
size and how the auditor ensured ______
7. The software methodology used for carrying out program development and program changes is known as
_____________
8. Deficiencies in GITCs will impact the ________ of automated controls, IT-dependent controls and IPEs
9. ____________ is considered high risk because it bypasses the application controls and could compromise
data integrity.
10. A _________ contains procedures for restoring the IT systems back to normal state after a failure.

True or False
11. The auditor should review GITCs for all IT systems and applications used at a company (True/False)
12. Developers and programmers should not be given access to production environment (True/False)
13. It is more efficient to test GITCs at year-end (True/False)
14. Batch jobs should be monitored for failures so that corrective action can be taken (True/False)
15. Environmental controls are applicable to all layers of access security (True/False)

2.15 Case study

Access Ltd. is using an ERP which has Sales, Purchase, Inventory and GL modules. The ERP has standard
reports for P&L account, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow statement. However, the Finance Controller wanted three
new reports with a different presentation and format which were created and implemented during the year
under audit.
You have been a member of the audit team for the last three years. For the current year, in the initial meetings
with the client, you are informed that the company has developed these three new reports. From the audit of
the previous years you are aware that the General IT Controls at the company are effective.

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 41

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

You have started the GITCs review for the current year. Your task is to,
(a) Identify which domains of GITCs will be applicable
(b) Document three risks and relevant controls you plan to test to validate whether the reports have been
prepared in a controlled manner.

2.16 Glossary
ACL Audit Command Language (CAAT Tool)
AIX Unix Operating System for IBM servers
BCP Business Continuity Plan
CAATs Computer Assisted Audit Techniques
CR Change Request
CRM Customer Relationship Management (application software)
DB Data Base
DMZ De-Militarized Zone
DR Disaster Recovery
ELC Entity Level Controls
ERP Enterprise Resource Planning (application software)
GITC General Information Technology Controls
HOD Head of Department
HP-UX Unix Operating System for HP servers
HR Human Resource
IPE Information Produced by Entity (reports, etc)
IT Information Technology
LAN Local Area Network
Oracle EBS Enterprise Business Suite, ERP application software provided by Oracle Corporation
OS Operating System
RHEL Red Hat Enterprise Linux, a type of Linux Operating System
SA Standards on Auditing
SA/SOD Sensitive Access / Segregation of Duties
SAP Systems, Applications and Products in data processing, ERP application software
SDLC System Development Life Cycle, a software development methodology
SQL Structured Query Language, high-level software language for database systems
SuSE A type of Linux Operating System
UAT User Acceptance Testing
VPN Virtual Private Network
WAN Wide Area Network

42 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 GENERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY CONTROLS

2.17 References and Further Reading

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org >
Resources
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

2.18 Answers to Excises

1. Correct answer is B
Interfaces are data flows between two or more systems in an IT environment
2. Correct answer is A
Service level agreements are operational controls put in place to ensure availability and quality of IT
services and hence less likely to impact the financial reporting aspects.
Backups and Real-time processing are more likely to be relevant because there is a risk of data loss and
data corruption due to system failures.
3. Correct answer is D
All three risks mentioned are relevant.
4. Correct answer is C
Privileged users are also known as super users or administrators and have unrestricted access to systems.
Business users, normal users and end users refer to the same type of users who have restricted access to
systems.
5. Correct answer is D
Segregation of Duties is pervasive and applicable to all layers of access security
6. Justification, Completeness of population
7. Systems Development Life Cycle or SDLC
8. Reliability
9. Direct data access
10. Disaster Recovery Plan or DR Plan
11. False
The auditor is required to review GITCs for relevant IT systems that impact financial reporting objectives.
12. True
Developers and programmer access should be restricted to development environment and test environment

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

13. False
Timing for a review of GITCs depends on several factors and could vary based on the outcome of these
factors. However, in an ERP environment testing for GITCs is normally performed early in the audit
process, close to the planning stage, because other audit work depends on the effectiveness of GITCs.
14. True
Errors or failures in Batch jobs could impact the completeness and accuracy of financial transactions and
hence batch jobs should be monitored, any errors and failures should be rectified in a timely manner.
15. False
Environmental controls are applicable to the physical security layer of access security.

2.19 Answer to Case Study

(a) The GITC domains that will be applicable are Program Changes and Access Security.
(b) Relevant risks and controls are as follows:
Ref No. Activity Risk Control description
1 Change Unauthorised changes are The change request is approved by the department
Request processed In-charge or Head of department (HOD).
Changes to IT infrastructure components are
approved by IT Head.
2 Testing Untested changes could Unit testing is performed by developer, user
compromise the integrity acceptance testing is done by end user prior to
of financial data implementing in production environment.

3 Segregation of Changes are made Three separate environments exist for development,
duties directly in production quality (test) and production.
environment and may
result in loss of data and Separate teams are involved in development and
program integrity. migration of changes to production.
Development of changes are done by consultants
and movement of changes to production is performed
by System Administration only after approval.
4 Implementation Changes are implemented Access to migrate changes to production is restricted
by unauthorised persons. to System Administrators only.

44 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 CHAPTER

3 AUTOMATED APPLICATION
CONTROLS
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand what are Automated Application Controls
 To understand the types of Automated Application Controls
 To understand the Various Business Cycles, Obtain Process Understanding and Identification of
Controls
 To understand the procedures for review of Design Effectiveness and Operating Effectiveness of
Application Controls
 To understand when to test Automated Application Controls
 To understand what sample size to follow for testing Automated Application Controls
 To analyse and conclude on impact of deficiencies in Automated Application Controls on audit

3.1 Overview
Clause (i) of Sub-section 3 of Section 143 of the Companies Act 2013, requires the auditors’ report to state
whether the company has adequate internal financial controls system in place and the operating effectiveness
of such controls.
In June 2003, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States of America adopted Rules
for the implementation of Sarbanes – Oxley Act, 2002 (SOX) that required certification of the Internal Controls
over Financial Reporting (ICFR) by the management and by the auditors.
There are other regulatory requirements such as J-Sox etc. where auditors are required to certify the adequacy
of internal controls as implemented by Management.
Thus, the auditors are required to express an opinion on the effectiveness of an company’s internal controls
over financial reporting and such opinion is in addition to and distinct from the opinion expressed by the auditor
on the financial statements.
As mentioned in the Introduction Chapter, SA 315 talks about identifying the risk of material misstatement
through understanding of the Company and its environment. The company implements an internal control
framework to minimise the risk. The auditor shall understand the internal controls within the company. While
understanding the internal controls, the auditor will understand the types in internal controls as implemented by
the company. Internal controls are implemented by a company irrespective of whether they have implemented
an ERP or not. In this session, we shall try to understand the implementation of internal controls in an ERP
environment.
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Some reasons why ERP’s are implemented by companies are:

 To move from manual processes to automated processes and achieve better operational efficiencies
 To achieve ease of reporting due to high level of sophistication of the reports defined in ERP’s
 To have a better internal control environment as ERP’s allow for processes and controls to be automated
 To respond faster to competition and the outside business environment.
While there are advantages and efficiencies that can be gained by automation, there is also a heightened risk
of processes and controls being compromised within the ERP. Hence, it is important for the company to
implement controls within the ERP. Such controls are called as Automated Application Controls (AACs).
These controls are implemented over the processing of transactions and data within the application. They are
specific to each application. Hence, they are called AACs. In this chapter, we shall understand the AACs and
get to know some examples.
The Guidance Note on Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting defines “Application controls as
those controls that achieve the business objectives of timely, accurate and reliable information.” The
application controls that are automated within the ERP are called AACs.
The Committee of the Sponsoring Organisations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) defines controls
activities “as the policies and procedures that help management objectives are carried out.” Thus, AACs are
those policies, procedures and activities designed to provide reasonable assurance that objectives relevant to a
given automated solution are achieved.
Another explanation is AACs are controls that prevents applications from executing unauthorised transactions
in a manner that puts data at risk.
The objectives of AACs are to ensure
 completeness of data
 accuracy of data
 the validity of the transactions
 only authorised transactions are processed
 appropriate segregation of duties.
This is also mentioned in IG 7.5 in The Guidance Note on Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting
Some of the risks that are addressed by such AAC’s are:
 Risk of unauthorised personnel entering the data
 Risk of personnel entering unauthorised data
 Risk of inaccurate processing of data
 Risk of unauthorised changes / modifications to data
 Risk of data being obtained by unauthorised personnel

46 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

3.2 Types of Automated Application Controls

Some of the different types of Automated Application Controls to address the above mentioned risks are:
1. Inherent controls – These controls come along with the implemented ERP. These can also be called
Input controls. These are some basic controls such as
(i) Debit = Credit. All transactions should match
(ii) Validation checks - Fields where numbers are entered, will not accept alpha numeric or alphabets
etc.
Error message while entering account number which is not defined in chart of accounts:

Error message
shown by system.

Fig 3.2.1: Error message

(iii) Duplicate check – When a system prevents an invoice number to be entered twice etc.
2. Embedded Calculations – These are controls that also come along with the implemented ERP. These
can also be called Processing controls. These are combined with Configurable controls For example:
(i) Depreciation calculation – The depreciation is calculated automatically by the system. This process
of calculation is embedded within the ERP. However, the percentage of depreciation has to be
defined for each class of asset. This is a configurable control.
Sample depreciation configuration in Asset master:

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 47

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Fig 3.2.2: Sample depreciation configuration in Asset master

(ii) Discount calculation - Where discounts are provided to customers based on sales value/volume
(a) Discount calculation is an embedded calculation
(b) Discount percentage is a configurable control
3. Configurable controls – These controls are implemented by the Company at the time of installing the
ERP. These can also be called Processing controls. These will be implemented as per the process
followed by the company.
For example:
(i) 3 way match – The relevant fields within the Purchase Order (PO), Goods Received Note (GRN) and
Invoice should match.

48 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

3 way match configuration in ERP

Configuration of Tolerances for
price and quantity variances.
Price Variance between Purchase order and Invoice Quantity Variance between Goods Receipt and
Invoice

Fig 3.2.3 Configuration of Tolerances

(ii) The PO raised by a Purchase Executive is approved by the Purchase Manager

(iii) At the time of raising a Sales invoice, relevant Debtors and Debtors Control account is debited and
Sales account is credited.
(iv) Inventory valuation as defined by the Company – FIFO or Weighted Average etc.
Sample configuration for raw material valuation: Configuration of Inventory
valuation for raw materials

Fig 3.2.4: Configuration of Inventory

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 49

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

(v) Tolerance percentage as applied by the Company in terms of discount given at the time of raising
sales invoice etc.
(vi) Journals are approved based on limits set per person
4. Access / Security controls – Users are provided access to the systems based on their roles and
responsibilities and job profiles. These can be called as Sensitive Access and Segregation of Duties. For
example
(i) Data entry operator, Purchase Executive, Finance Manager, Sales Manager, CFO etc.
5. Automated Account Posting – Accounting entries are automatically posted in the ERP based on the
business operation performed. For example
(i) Goods receipt /Issue in an ERP.
1. The operation of goods receipt triggers an automatic entry in the system:
ACCOUNT CODE PARTCULARS DEBIT CREDIT
300000 Stock Account XXXXX
191100 To Goods Receipt account XXXXX
301100 To Freight Clearing account XXXXX

ACCOUNT CODE PARTCULARS DEBIT CREDIT

301100 Goods Receipt account XXXXX
V11001 To Vendor account XXXXX
Configuration of inventory accounts to be posted automatically during goods receipt posting:

Inventory GL accounts configured for

auto posting during goods receipt

Fig 3.2.5: Configuration of Inventory GL accounts

50 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

Configuration of GR/IR Clearing account to be posted automatically during goods receipt posting:

GR/IR Clearing GL
accounts configured for
auto posting during goods
receipt

Fig 3.2.6: Configuration of GR/ IR Clearing GL accounts

3.3 Process of identification of Automated Application Controls

To the extent that it is relevant to an audit of financial statements, auditors are required to understand, assess
and respond to such risks that arise from the use of IT systems [Ref. SA 315 (Revised) – Identifying and
assessing the risks of material misstatement through understanding the entity and its environment].
Understanding the entity and its automated environment involves understanding how IT department is
organised, IT activities, the IT dependencies, relevant risks and implemented controls.
The understanding of a company’s IT environment that is obtained should be documented [Ref. SA 230 – Audit
Documentation] using any standard format or template. This is very important to be performed in the first year
of the audit of the company. Once this understanding is obtained and documented, the auditor should update
the relevant information in the subsequent years of audit. Any changes will have an impact on the audit strategy
to be adopted. This will also impact the locations from which the audit has to be conducted.
In the Introduction Chapter, we have seen a table that captures all the IT systems used by the company.
Combining that table with the flow as given in the below diagram should help any an auditor to plan his audit
procedures in an ERP environment.
 The auditor needs to map how each of the IT systems captured in the table contribute to the significant
accounts and disclosures.
 The relevant business processes should be mapped to the IT systems.

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 51

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Fig 3.3.1: Process of identification of Automated Application Controls

For example:
Automated Controls
Relevant for
configured within
Significant Accounts Major Business financial
IT system the
and Disclosures Processes / Cycles reporting
system/Application
Y/N
Y/N
Sales/ Debtors -
Revenue and
Receivables
Sales, Debtors,
Purchases/Creditors –
SAP Purchases, Creditors, Y Y
Purchase Payables
Closing Stock etc.
Process
Stock – Inventory
Process
Salaries, Loans and
Advances to
Pay Master HR and Payroll process Y Y
Employees, Leave
balances
Interface Salaries, Loans and
HR and Payroll process
between Advances to
and Period End Closing Y Y
Paymaster Employees, Leave
process
and SAP balances

52 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

Once the auditor maps the relevant IT systems to Business processes and to the significant accounts and
disclosures, the next step is to gain an understanding of how the business processes function and the controls
within these processes. The controls can be manual, automated, IT dependent manual controls. For the
purpose of this session, we shall focus only on AACs.
The auditor via an enquiry process gets an understanding of the various business processes. The
understanding of the process flows and the controls within the processes can be documented in either of the 2
ways:
1. Process Flow Diagrams
2. Process Narratives
Process Flow Diagrams:
The Guidance Note on Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting refers to Process flow diagrams
as a helpful form of documentation for auditors to depict the process to initiate, authorise, process, record and
report transactions.
 Insertion of risks of material misstatement.
o The auditor may insert symbols for risk of material misstatement at the point(s) in the process flow
where the risk is present. It is possible that, due to the nature of the risk of material misstatement, it
may appear at multiple points in the process flow diagram.
o The auditor may use different symbols for significant and normal risk of material misstatement as
necessary.
 Attaching control activity symbols
o Symbols may be placed for control activity that address risks of material misstatement on the
diagram.
o Automated and manual control symbols may be used as necessary
 Identification of applications in the process flow diagram
o If a task relies on an application system when performing an action, the auditor may use a symbol for
such applications on the diagram
o If formatting and space allows, the auditor may attach the application symbol directly on the task
which it relates
 Associating the IPE symbol where appropriate
o If IPE is used in the execution of a control activity or IPE that is produced as part of the process that
is important to the audit (e.g., IPE that an auditor uses in his or her substantive procedures), the
auditor may attach a separate symbol for the IPE as a document symbol.
An example of a Depreciation Run Process Flow diagram is available in Fig 3.3.2:

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 53

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Start

Depreciation
Depreciation isis calculated asper
calculated as perthe
the
compliance of Schedule-II,
compliance of Schedule-II,thethecalculation
calculation
is
is automated
automatedininERP. ERP.

After
After finalization
finalization ofofadditions
additionsand
and deletions
deletions in
in every
every quarter,
quarter, the depreciation
the depreciation is run–
is run month
month – wise wise in inERP.
ERP. FA01- A

The authorization in ERP to run

The authorization in ERP to run depreciation is
depreciation is given to Manager
given to Manager –Accounts
– Accounts

Stop
Stop

Fig 3.3.2: Depreciation Run Process Flow diagram

FA 01 A - Automated control to run depreciation procedure.

Process Narrative:
Another form of documentation as mentioned in the Guidance Note can also be a Process Narrative to capture
the process Understanding and controls within the respective Business Process. While documenting the
Narrative the following points may be kept in mind:
 Who is involved in the process (e.g., departments, roles, and people)?
 Are there segregations of duties that are relevant to the process?
 What is the general objective of the processes and what are the related sub processes?
 When does the process occur?
 Does the process involve, or impact, multiple locations?-
 What are the tasks within the process and in what sequence do they occur?
 What are the points in the process at which a misstatement, including a misstatement due to fraud could
arise?
54 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

 What control activities address the risks?

 What IPE is involved?
 How are application systems involved within the process?
For example: Process Narrative for Depreciation Run Procedure:
 The Finance Team is in charge of the depreciation run in the ERP. This is run centrally for all locations.
 Depreciation is calculated as per Schedule-II and the depreciation calculation is automated in the ERP.
 The finalization of additions and deletions are done every quarter.
 The depreciation is run month wise in the ERP via path: Transactions - Assets – Depreciation Run.
 Depreciation in the ERP can be run only on a monthly basis. The authorization in the ERP to run
depreciation is given to Manager–Accounts.
Control FA 01- A = Automated
Manager-Accounts runs the depreciation after all the additions and deletions are updated by accounts team.
Depreciation is automatically computed by ERP based on the asset lives entered in Asset Master.
Accounting Entries
ACCOUNT CODE PARTCULARS DEBIT CREDIT
XXXXX Depreciation on Asset Account XXXXX
XXXXX To Accumulated Depreciation Account XXXXX
Risk and Control Matrix
Sub Control Ref Risk Control Frequency Manual/ Preventive/ System,
Process FSA
Process No. Description Description of Control Automated Detective IPE
Manager-
Accounts
runs the
depreciation
after all the
additions
and
deletions are
Depreciation updated by
Fixed calculation accounts
Depreciation FA-01 Accuracy Monthly Automated Preventive ERP
Assets may be team.
incorrect Depreciation
is
automatically
computed by
ERP based
on the asset
lives entered
in Asset
Master.

ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY 55

 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

3.4 Procedures to review Design Effectiveness and Operating

Effectiveness of Controls
The Process Narratives and Process Flow Diagrams are useful tools to document the processes followed by
the Company and identify the AACs. Once the AACs are identified they have to be evaluated for Design
Effectiveness. If the Design of the control is found to be effective, they have to be then tested for Operating
Effectiveness.
Evaluation of Design of an AAC:
One commonly preferred method for testing Design effectiveness is a Walkthrough of the control. In a
walkthrough, the auditor will track a transaction from start to end i.e. from the initiation of the transaction to the
point where it is finally reported in the Financial Statements. This is very important in the first year of audits. In
the subsequent years, we may update our understanding for the year based on previous years’ work.
For example: For Fixed Assets cycle the process of walkthrough may be as given below as shown in Fig 3.4.1.
At certain stages of the cycle, there are entries that impact the financial statements.

Fig 3.4.1: Fixed Assets cycle the process

Management of the company is responsible for the design of the internal control. The auditor will have to
evaluate this design and assess whether the control along with other controls put in place perform the function
of preventing or detecting and correcting material misstatements in a timely manner. It the control is not
properly designed, the risk is that it may not be able to prevent or detect errors or frauds.
Controls need to be evaluated at entity level too. Entity Level Controls are implemented to monitor the controls
at the department level etc. These controls need to be designed properly by the Company and evaluated by the
auditor.
Walkthrough Procedure:
The auditor will have to adopt a combination of Inquiry, Observation and Inspection while evaluating the design
of a control via Walkthrough process

56 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

o Inquiry should be made of relevant or appropriate personnel performing the control. Probing and open
ended questions to be asked of the personnel.
o Observation of the relevant procedures performed by the personnel
o Inspection of relevant supporting documents etc. for the control to be performed.
o Re-performance if necessary
While testing the design of the AAC, the auditor should understand whether the logic of the control has been
clearly defined in the system. The auditor will have to check the configuration in the system and understand
whether it satisfies the control objective.
Screenshot of DEPRECIATION CALC. CONFIG

Fig 3.4.2: DEPRECIATION CALC. CONFIG

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Walkthrough of the Depreciation control:

Fig 3.4.3 Yearly Depreciation

58 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

DEPN1

Fig 3.4.4 Period Depreciation

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

DEPN 2
Control Walkthrough Procedure Results Exceptions Y/N
The system 1. From the Asset Register Obtained the Fixed Assets No exceptions
automatically select one asset that was Register and picked up one asset
calculates the created during the year. no. 000000005 – Chairs.
depreciation as 2. Note the Depreciation
per the rates percentage as given for the Noted that the purchase date of
defined in the asset from the Asset the asset was 31st July 2013.
system. register.
3. For that asset reperform the Noted from the configuration that
calculation of depreciation. the
4. Reconcile the depreciation Cost = 12866.11
amount with the amount
Less: Salvage = 643.31
automatically calculated by
the system. Cost = 12222.80
Useful life = 60 months
Depreciation = 12222.80/60=
203.71. Please refer to
screenshot DEPN 2

Depreciation for 1 day =

203.71/31 = 6.57.
Please refer to screenshot
DEPN 2

Thus total depreciation for 2013-

14 = 203.71*8 =
1629.68
Depn for 31st July =
6.58
Total Depreciation 2013
=1636.26

Please refer screenshot DEPN2

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 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

The accounting entry is

Account code Particulars Debit Credit
XXXXX Depreciation on Asset Account 1636.26
XXXXX To Accumulated Depreciation Account 1636.26
There may be cases such as in other business cycles like Revenue cycle etc., where, there may be multiple
scenarios within the cycle such as
 Multiple revenue streams
 Multiple modes of sales etc.

Note: For example If the Revenue process is different for

 Export and Domestic sales
 Cash and Credit sales
Separate transactions are to be taken for a walkthrough of each scenario. This applies for all in scope business
processes.
Evaluation of Operating Effectiveness of an AAC
The auditor has evaluated the design of an AAC. Before testing the operating effectiveness of AAC, one key
element to consider is the effectiveness of GITC’s. As mentioned earlier, AACs are configured within the
system after which the system will perform the control once it is triggered. The auditor needs to determine
whether the AACs are operating as designed and whether the person operating the control has the required
ability and competence to do it. The steps mentioned in the Walkthrough procedure may be used for testing the
AACs.
For example: In the above example, on purchase of the Fixed Asset, at the time of creating the entry in the
ERP, the company will enter details such as
 Gross Amount
 Date of Purchase / Installation
 Depreciation % or Number of months (life) for the assets to be depreciated etc.
Once these entries are configured, the depreciation is calculated automatically by the system. Hence, it is
called an AAC. To add/modify/delete any of the configurations, the company will have to follow the Change
Management Procedure. The authorized persons as per Company policy can only make the change in the
configurations. These 2 areas fall under the Change Management and Sensitive Access and Segregation of
Duties domains of GITC.

3.5 Timing of AACs testing and Sample Size

The auditor needs to plan for an appropriate time to test AACs. The factors to be considered to determine the
timing to test AACs are:
 The period covered under audit

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

 Risk associated with the control at the time of risk assessment.

Based on the above factors the auditor will test the AACs. The assumptions before testing the AACs are:
 GITCs are effective. This is because they assist in effective functioning of application controls including
AACs
 Design of the control has been evaluated and is effective.
If the GITCs are effective, then the auditor may adopt a reduced level of testing or minimal sample size.
Generally, if the there are no iterations in the process and AACs then the auditor may adopt a test of one
sample for testing AACs. The effectiveness of GITCs indicate that the controls operate in a similar manner
throughout the period of reliance for all transactions. If there are different iterations or scenarios then the
auditor will need to test each iteration/scenario while relying on the GITCs.
If there has been a change in the AAC during the audit period, then the control has to be retested after the
change. Thus, at the time of planning for the audit at the beginning of the year, the auditor will have to
understand from the client if there may be changes to the business processes. Accordingly, the auditor needs
to plan the timing of testing AACs. The auditor should plan the timing of testing of controls after being aware
that the design of the control is effective and operating for a sufficient period of time. The auditor needs to test
the control for operating effectiveness at an appropriate time for the auditor to conclude that they were effective
throughout the year. As per the requirements of Internal Financial Controls, the controls need to be operating
as on the Balance Sheet date.
If the GITC’s are found to be ineffective, then the auditor will have to test the automated controls closer to the
Balance Sheet date to support the opinion on Internal Financial controls.

3.6 Assess the Impact of Deficiencies

The auditor should evaluate the identified deficiencies in controls to develop a response to risk of material
misstatement as given in SA 240 “The Auditor’s Responsibilities Relating to Fraud in An Audit of Financial
Statements”.
1. A deficiency in a Control will not allow the management to perform their assigned functions. This
deficiency may not prevent or detect misstatements. Such deficiencies are called Design Deficiencies.
A Design deficiency is also when (a) a control necessary to meet the control objective is missing or (b)
an existing control is not properly designed so that, even if the control operates as designed, the control
objective would not be met.
For example
For a Fixed asset:
o The Depreciation rate has not been configured OR
o The Class of the asset has been wrongly configured
2. A deficiency in operation exists when a properly designed control does not operate as designed, or when
the person performing the control does not possess the necessary authority or competence to perform
the control effectively.
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 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

For example
In Payroll cycle,
o the system is configured to calculate the Leave encashment balance. But the system is not
calculating the leave balance correctly as they may be a problem in the logic within the system.
While evaluating the deficiencies, the auditor will have to check if there are any compensating controls
either manual or automated and test them accordingly to check if the impact of the deficiencies is
minimised.
If there are no compensating controls, the auditor may perform other procedures such as Data Analytics
using CAATS tools to assess the impact of the deficiencies.
For example
 The Company has implemented an automatic approval of all Purchase Orders. The Company has
a PO approval matrix and this hierarchy has been configured in the system. However, the auditor
may have found out that the company has bypassed this control and placed orders based on
blanket approval of Purchase orders or no approval. Thus the auditor should
o Obtain the complete list of all Purchase orders from the system
o Using CAATS identify all PO’s approved as per the Approval Matrix document
o From the list extracted by the CAATS tool, identify all the PO’s that have blank in the
“Approved by field” or persons others than the Approval matrix
o The auditor will have to seek an explanation from the client for the reasons why the approval
matrix was bypassed
o The auditor will have to perform other substantive procedures to obtain comfort on the
Purchase amount appearing in the financial statement.
Communication of Deficiencies
SA 265 - “Communicating Deficiencies in Internal Control to Those Charged with Governance and
Management” makes it necessary for the auditor to communicate control deficiencies to the Management. Prior
to issuing such report the auditor may also go through the Internal audit reports and evaluate the control
deficiencies identified in the reports.
The auditor must communicate in writing in sufficient advance to provide an opportunity to the company to
remediate the deficiencies before the auditor issues the report on Internal Financial controls. The auditor will
have to also mention if the deficiencies were present in the prior periods of audit.
NOTE: Refer Guidance on Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting
The auditor has identified a design deficiency in a control. Prior to the Balance sheet date, the company has
rectified the design of the control. The auditor may test the implemented change for design and operating
effectiveness.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

3.7 Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Some of the objectives to be achieved by implementing AACs are:
(a) Completeness
(b) Accuracy
(c) Both a & b
(d) None of the above.
2. Some of the risks that are addressed by such AAC’s are:
(a) Risk of unauthorised personnel entering the data
(b) Risk of personnel entering unauthorised data
(c) Risk of inaccurate processing of data
(d) All of the above
3. Some of the examples of AACs are:
(a) Inherent controls
(b) Configurable controls
(c) A and B
(d) None of the above
4. Understanding the business process can be documented via
(a) Flow chart
(b) Process Narrative
(c) Risk and Control Matrix
(d) A and B
5. A control necessary to meet the control objective is missing. This is an example of
(a) Significant deficiency
(b) Operating deficiency
(c) Design deficiency
(d) None of the above
6. Who is responsible for the design of internal control
(a) Internal auditor
(b) Management
(c) Auditor
(d) None of the above

64 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

Fill in the Blanks

7. Validation checks and Duplicate checks performed by an ERP are part of ________________ Controls
8. Interest Computation performed by an ERP is a component of ________________ which form part of
AACs.
9. The Guidance Note on Internal Financial Controls over Financial Reporting refers to ________ as a
helpful form of documentation for auditors to depict the process to initiate, authorise, process, record and
report transactions.
10. ______________________ is responsible for the design of the internal control.
11. The auditor will have to adopt a combination of _______, _______ and ______ while evaluating the
design of a control via Walkthrough process.
12. The 3 way match of fields of PO, GRN and Invoice is an example of a _________ control.

True or False
13. If the design of an AAC is effective and prior to testing the control for operating effectiveness, it is
necessary to test GITC
(a) True
(b) False
14. A deficiency in operation exists when a properly designed control does not operate as designed, or when
the person performing the control does not possess the necessary authority or competence to perform
the control effectively.
(a) True
(b) False
15. If there are multiple scenarios in a business cycle, it is not necessary to take one sample of each
scenario to perform a walkthrough
(a) True
(b) False

Case Study
Access Ltd uses an ERP to capture the various operations of its business. The ERP has a fixed assets module
which manages the details of the fixed assets of the company. The company informs that the fixed assets
purchase procedure is automated within the system. The Purchase executive creates the asset. Based on the
Asset class, the depreciation percentage is automatically populated within the system. Once created, the entry
is automatically forwarded to the Fixed Asset Manager who approves the entry. For the below transaction,
 document the walkthrough of the automated controls,
 evaluate the design of the automated controls
 test the operating effectiveness of the controls
Assumption: GITCs are effective.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Other details:
Invoice No. Access/1718/22 dated 1st April 2017.
Asset No.: PM01-1718
Asset purchased: Plant & machinery
Asset class: Plant & machinery
Amount: Rs 1000000 (Ten lakhs)
Date of Purchase: 1st April 2017

3.8 References and Other Reading Material

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org
> Resources
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

3.9 Answers to Exercise

1 Correct answer is (c) – Completeness and Accuracy are the two objectives of implementing AACs. Other
objectives are validity, segregation of duties etc.
2 Correct answer is (d) – All of the above
All the mentioned risks are addressed by AACs
3 Correct answer is (c)
Inherent, configurable, automated calculations etc. are AACs.
4 Correct answer is (d)
Flow chart and Process Narratives are 2 ways of documenting business processes
5 Correct answer is (c).
If a control is missing it is an example of Design deficiency.
6 Correct answer is (b)
Management is responsible for design of controls. Internal auditors and Auditor are responsible for
testing the controls.

Fill in the Blanks

7 Inherent
8 Automated calculations.
9 Process flow diagrams.
10 Management.
66 ADVANCED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
 AUTOMATED APPLICATION CONTROLS

11 Inquiry, Observation and Inspection.

12 Configurable.

True or False
13 True. GITCs have to be effective, to have a strategy to test AACs for operating effectiveness.
14 True. Operating effectiveness deficiency exists when the control does not operate as expected or the
person operating the control is not competent.
15 False. If there are different scenarios in a business process, then one transaction per scenario have to
be taken for a walkthrough.

Answer to Case Study

Access Ltd.
Process : Fixed Asset
Sub - Process : Fixed Asset
Activity: Creation of Asset Master
Walkthrough Documentation
Date Performed : xx/xx/xx17
Performed By : AAAA
Client representative : BBBB

Ref Process or Activity/ Walk- through Walk-through Systems Evidence Design Operating Gaps Report to
Control Control Plan Procedure reports or Examined Effective- Effective- if any Client
performed spread- ness ness
sheets
relied on
a) From the ERP, Activity Check whether Obtained the Fixed Fixed Assets None None Not
obtain a list of parameters are Fixed asset Assets Purchases Applicable
all Fixed asset given correctly additions report Purchases Listing
purchases made in the ERP to for the year 2017- Listing
during the year extract the 18 and tallied it
2017-18. listing with the amount
appearing in Trial
Balance.
b) From the Fixed Activity From the Fixed Obtained Asset Fixed 1. Fixed None None None Not
Asset Register Assets register, No. PM01-1718 Assets Assets Applicable
obtain details of obtain the and corresponding Purchases Purchases
the Asset No to Fixed assets Invoice no. Listing Listing
be taken for details. Obtain Checked whether Fixed 2. Fixed
walkthrough. the invoice the Invoice Assets Assets
number number is Register Register
entered there available in the 3. Invoice No.
and check if Purchase Listing Access/1718/
the same is 22 dated 1st
given in April 2017
Purchase
Listing

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

c) Match invoice Activity Obtain hard From Invoice None 1. The details None None None Not
details with copy of original Number in the ERP Applicable
Fixed Assets invoice number Access/1718/22 2. Invoice No.
Register and match the dated 1st April Access/1718/
details of class 2017 understood 22
of Fixed Assets that asset
Purchased with purchased was
Fixed Assets Plant and
Register Machinery.
With the help of
the Purchase
Executive,
checked the
details in the ERP
with regard to the
Asset. Noted that
the categorisation
was correct.
Invoice date is 1st
April 2017.
d) Depreciation Control Check in the Noted that based ERP ERP Yes Yes None None
rate is populated system, the on the
automatically by process of categorisation, the
the ERP population of depreciation rate
depreciation is automatically
rates for the populated. Noted
Fixed Assets in the ERP that
category. depreciation rate
is given correctly
as 6.33%
e) The fixed asset Control Check in the For the approval ERP ERP Yes Yes None None
entry is system, the of the asset,
automatically process of noticed the drop
approved by the automatic down list in the
Fixed Asset approval by ERP. The list had
Manager Fixed Assets only one name
Manager i.e., of Fixed
Asset Manager,
who approved the
entry

3.10 Glossary
AAC – Automated Application Controls
SEC – Securities and Exchange Commission
SOX – Sarbanes Oxley Act 2002
ICFR – Internal Controls over Financial Reporting.
COSO – Committee of the Sponsoring Organisations of the Treadway Commission
CAPEX – Capital Expense

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 CHAPTER

4 SEGREGATION OF DUTIES AND

SENSITIVE ACCESS
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand what is meant by segregation of duties and sensitive access
 To understand about roles and profiles in an ERP environment
 To understand the methods and procedures to review segregation of duties and sensitive access
 To understand how to assess the impact of conclusions of GITCs on segregation of duties and sensitive
access
 To understand how to determine and evaluate impact of deficiencies in segregation of duties and
sensitive access on overall audit

4.1 What is Segregation of Duties and Sensitive Access

4.1.1 Sensitive Access (SA)
Sensitive access is when a user has the ability to perform critical business activities in an ERP. In other words,
business activities that carry a higher risk and could have wider impact on operations are referred to as
sensitive activities and the users who have this access are said to have sensitive access. Examples of sensitive
access in an ERP can include ability to
 create and modify sales prices
 approve purchase orders
 master data
 payroll information
 foreign exchange rates
 period open/closure function

4.1.2 Segregation of Duties (SOD)

Segregation of duties refers to the separation or distribution of job roles among employees in such a way that
incompatible or conflicting job roles are assigned to different persons.
 For example: preparation of a journal entry and approval of that journal are assigned to two different
persons. This is because if the same person prepares and approves a journal entry, there is a risk of
(a) unauthorised journal entry being posted
(b) errors in journal entry may not be identified and corrected in a timely manner
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

The concept of segregation of duties existed in business as part of the internal control procedures even before
the IT systems and ERPs came into use.
 For example: in a manual system of accounting and book keeping, hard copy cash vouchers are
prepared by the cashier, reviewed by the accountant and authorised by the accounts manager before the
transaction is posted to ledgers.
With ERPs now being used extensively, segregation of duties is being implemented and enforced through the
user access controls feature of ERP.

4.1.3 User Access in ERP

One of the key feature of an ERP is the ability to control users access to relevant business functions, activities
and operations within the ERP. Every person or individual who uses an ERP is called a “user” of the ERP and
each such user is assigned an identification called “user id” along with a corresponding secret code called
“password”. While the user id is known to all, the password is known only to the person or individual to whom
the user id is assigned. The combination of user id and password makes it possible for a person to start using
the ERP as shown in Fig 4.1.1.

Login to ERP with User

Id and Password

Fig 4.1.1 Login to ERP

There are several types of users within an ERP, they are

Normal users: These users are typically regular employees who carry out day-to-day business operations and
transactions using the ERP. For example, the employees who process sales orders, invoices, stores receipts &
issues, processing journal entries, are known as normal users, end users or business users.
System users: These users are internally used within the ERP to perform automated operations and
transactions.
 For example: automatic posting of monthly accrual entries, batch operations, process period-end
routines, interface with other systems and sub-systems are some operations performed using system
users viz., WF-BATCH, SYSTEM
Privileged users: These are a type of super users who have very extensive or unlimited access to carry out all
or several activities in an ERP environment.

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 SEGREGATION OF DUTIES AND SENSITIVE ACCESS

 For example: administrators, functional consultants or some ERP support teams are some of the
common super users viz., Admin, Administrator, BASIS, SYS
Default users: These are users that come packaged along with the ERP software. These users are sometimes
required to setup the ERP system initially. They are also used for educational purposes, when updating the
ERP to newer versions, to facilitate remote monitoring by vendors.
Generic users: These are similar to normal users but named in such a way that represent a title, position,
designation or function, place or region within a company and do not represent an individual or person.
 For example: users named CMD, CEO, MD, CFO, VP, Mumbai Region, Delhi Branch are generic users.
In this case even though the users are not given personal names, the user id is assigned to a single
person at a given point in time.
There is another type of generic users who share a common user id. For example, Sales User could be an id
shared by all persons in the sales department.
Temporary users: As the name suggests, these are users who are given user id for a limited time period. For
example, guest users, auditors, consultants and support users.
External users: These are users who do not belong to the company i.e., they are not employees but they may
still require access to the ERP. For example, vendors, customers, business partners.
We can see that there are several types of users of an ERP that we need to understand and not all user ids are
necessarily assigned to persons. While the types of users mentioned above are commonly seen in an ERP
environment, it is possible that there are more user types depending on the company policies and ERP product
design, specifications and the way it has been implemented in a company. The user types and the terminology
used to categorise user types could vary between different ERPs.
The auditor should understand the various types of users that exist in an ERP environment before reviewing
segregation of duties and sensitive access as shown in Fig 4.1.2.

User types in a ERP.

In this example, “Dialog”
means any user who can
access the ERP through
the Login Screen.

Fig 4.1.2 Users Type

User access to an ERP is given on a need-to-know and need-to-do basis. All users will not have access to all
the functions of the ERP. In other words, users access to ERP is based on the job roles and responsibilities of
respective users.
 For example: A Store Manager whose job to process and maintain stores inventory, receipts and issues
will have access to process goods receipts, goods issues and stock movements.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

4.2 Roles and Profiles

4.2.1 Using ERP Roles for implementing Segregation of Duties and Sensitive Access
Roles and Profiles are access control features in an ERP that enable grouping of several related access rights
in to a form which is logical and easy to manage and maintain.
 For example: users in a purchase department may typically need to perform activities including creation
of purchase orders, change purchase orders and display or view purchase orders. Users in the
department should be provided access to each of these activities individually in the ERP.
In a small ERP environment where there are 2-5 users, this may not be difficult but imagine in a larger ERP
environment with 20-50 users providing access to each activity may be more time consuming and prone to
errors. However, by grouping the purchase activities into a role it is much faster and easier to assign access to
all users with reduced chance for error.
The relationship between ERP Roles and users is many-to-many. For example, One ERP role
Purchase_Executive can be assigned to many users. On the other hand, one user Arun could be assigned
more than one ERP roles.
In the example below, three purchase activities a) Create Purchase Order, b) Change Purchase Order and c)
Display Purchase Order have been grouped together to create a role named Purchase_Executive. This role has
been assigned to a user named Arun who works in the purchase department.

Fig 4.2.1 Roles and Profile

Roles offer an easy to understand, fast and reliable way to manage user access to an ERP. Generally, Roles
are defined at the time of implementation of the ERP based on the job functions of employees. In ERP terms
this feature is known as Role Based Access Control (RBAC).

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 SEGREGATION OF DUTIES AND SENSITIVE ACCESS

4.2.2 Using ERP Profiles for implementing Segregation of Duties and Sensitive Access
A Profile is also a feature that is available in ERPs that is useful in implementing user access security and
controls. The basic purpose of a profile is similar to that of a role, i.e., to group related access in a logical form.
While a role represents a high-level grouping, which is aligned closely with the business function and job
responsibilities of a user, a profile is the more granular internal technical grouping of authorisations,
permissions and access rights within the ERP based on the input derived from the Role.
In the below example as shown in Fig 4.2.2, we can see that a profile named PUR_EXE001 has been created
for the role Purchase_Executive. This profile has then been assigned to the user.

Fig 4.2.2 ERP Profile

4.3 Procedures for Review

To audit segregation of duties and sensitive access in an ERP environment, the auditor first needs to
understand the business and IT environment in which company operates including the following,
(a) understand the various business functions, organisation structure, employee job roles and
responsibilities.
(b) the process that is followed for managing user access to ERP
(c) Understand the rules based on which user access has been implemented in the ERP
Given below as shown in Fig 4.3.1 is an example of business rules for implementing segregation of duties in a
Purchase and Payables business process. The combination of two different business abilities or business
activities mentioned below, when given to the same user(s), creates a conflict and could compromise the
segregation of duties.

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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Fig 4.3.1 Segregation of Duties

Having obtained this understanding, the auditor should determine, based on the audit risk assessment, which
segregation of duties rules and sensitive access are relevant to audit and accordingly prepare an audit test
plan.
Segregation of duties can be implemented as preventive or detective control. When implemented as a
preventive control, the user access requests are first checked with the company’s predefined segregation of
duties rules before access is provided. Any deviations between the access requested and the rules are
identified and resolved and access to incompatible activities are denied upfront.
In case segregation of duties are implemented as a detective control, user access is provided first and a
periodic check (say, every month or quarter) are performed to detect deviations in the user access and
segregation of duties rules. Deviations are resolved by revoking the user access to incompatible activities.
Identification and review of user access controls including segregation of duties and sensitive access can be
very complicated to review in an ERP environment due to the number of users, several access rules, the
possible combinations and their outcomes all of which could run into several hundreds, thousands or even more
for large ERP environments. Hence, it is common to use specialised automated tools for the review of
segregation of duties and sensitive access. Even though this review can be performed manually, using tools
makes the review process more effective and efficient. However, the auditor should receive adequate training
prior to using such specialised audit tools and techniques.
 For example: some of the tools that are used in implementing and review of segregation of duties and
sensitive access include SAP GRC (formerly, Virsa), Oracle GRC, BIZRights, Proprietary tools.
Given below is an example of how the user access in ERP can be summarised for a business activities as
shown in Fig 4.3.2

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 SEGREGATION OF DUTIES AND SENSITIVE ACCESS

Indicates that access to this activity

(Goods Receipt) is incompatible with
access to another activity (Purchase
Order Creation)

User has Sensitive Access

(Vendor Master Data)
 X denotes user has access to the activity
 Coloured cell with X denotes user has
access to incompatible activities
 Blank cell denotes user does not have
access to that activity

Fig 4.3.2 User access in ERP

4.4 Impact of conclusions of GITCs

Implementing and maintaining segregation of duties and sensitive access in an ERP environment is a very
dynamic process that keeps changing all the time due to the changes in business environment. For example,
employees change, job roles change, processes change and systems change. Whenever such changes in
business environment occur, the corresponding changes in user access must be made in the ERP environment
too. When an auditor reviews the user access controls in an ERP, the review is done at a point-in-time and the
results represent users access at that point only. However, auditing standards require auditors to obtain
evidence for the full period of audit.
This is where the effectiveness of GITCs becomes relevant. GITCs are General Information Technology
Controls that support the operating effectiveness of automated application controls and IT dependent controls.
User access controls are like application controls in an ERP environment and dependent on GITCs.
When GITCs are designed and operating effectively for the entire audit period, the auditor can conclude that
user access controls, including segregation of duties and sensitive access, are operating effectively throughout
the same period even though testing was performed point-in-time.
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 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

If there are deficiencies in GITCs or when they are not effective, it is likely to have an impact on the design and
operating effectiveness of application controls including user access controls. The auditor may have to carry out
additional testing and gather more audit evidence to conclude on the effectiveness of user access controls that
include segregation of duties and sensitive access.

4.5 Conclusion on Impact of Deficiencies on audit

During a review of segregation of duties and sensitive access the auditor may find deficiencies in the user
access controls. Examples of such deficiencies are given below:
(a) some users have access to prepare a purchase order and approve the same purchase order
(b) users have access to maintain vendor master data and process vendor payments
(c) users in sales department have access to maintain payroll information
(d) IT department users have access to process business transactions
Having found deficiencies, the auditor should evaluate the impact of these deficiencies on the audit. For this
evaluation, the auditor should consider the following:
 Is there a business reason because of which the segregation of duties could not be implemented in the
ERP?
 In case of business reason, has management identified a suitable compensating control.
 Can we test the compensating control?
 Has any user actually used the access? This means, a user has been inadvertently given access to
incompatible functions in the ERP, but the user was not aware of this and never actually used this
access.
 Are there any manual controls that mitigate the lack of user access controls? For example, there could
be a manual control where all purchase orders are manually signed by a higher-level employee viz., a
Purchase Director or Managing Director or CEO.
 For instances where a user has actually used the access, can management provide a list of all such
instances and ratify them all and confirm validity of transactions. The auditor may also consider
determining aggregate financial impact of the deficiency and evaluate the same from a materiality
viewpoint.
The above examples are some of the ways in which the auditor thinks through the deficiencies and assess
impact on audit. Wherever necessary, the auditor may have to obtain additional audit evidence to address the
risk of material misstatement.

4.6 Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of the following is NOT an example of an External user type,
(a) Employees

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(b) Customers
(c) Vendors
(d) None of the above
2. Business rules for implementing segregation of duties are defined by
(a) ERP Consultants
(b) Government
(c) Company
(d) Statutory Auditors
3. Examples of specialised tools to review segregation of duties and sensitive access in an ERP include,
(a) SAP GRC.
(b) Proprietary tools
(c) BIZ Rights
(d) All of the above.
4. Auditors review of user access controls in an ERP environment is performed at a point-in-time. What
other controls can auditors rely upon to get evidence of operating effectiveness for full year.
(a) Compensating Controls
(b) General IT Controls
(c) Manual Controls
(d) Automated Controls
5. When an auditor finds a deficiency in the user access controls, what should the auditor do next
(a) Report deficiency to management and do nothing more.
(b) Increase substantive testing
(c) Ignore the deficiency
(d) Evaluate the deficiency and determine impact on audit

Fill in the blanks

6. Sensitive access in an ERP refers to the ability of a user to perform _______ business activities.
7. Super users who have very extensive or unlimited access to carry out all or several activities in an ERP
environment are also known as _______ users.
8. The auditor should first gain and understanding of the ________ and ________ environments before
auditing segregation of duties and sensitive access in an ERP.
9. Segregation of duties can be implemented as either ______ or ______ controls.
10. ______ make it easy to manage user access to an ERP

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True/False
11. Segregation of duties can be implemented only in companies that use ERP (True/False)
12. Business Rules for implementing segregation of duties should be defined by the auditor (True/False)
13. A user in purchase department has access to maintain vendor master data and process vendor invoices.
This indicates a deficiency in segregation of duties (True/False)
14. User access to an ERP is given based on user job roles and responsibilities (True/False)
15. Reliability of user access controls in an ERP depend on effectiveness of application controls (True/False)

4.7 Case study

Access Ltd is a Private Limited Company which is in the business of manufacturing and selling mobile phones
within India. Revenues in FY17 is INR 100 crores. Access Ltd is using an ERP for all business operations
including Revenue and Receivables functions. You are auditing Access Ltd for FY17 and based on your
understanding of business and IT environment you have determined the following:
(a) There are 10 users (User01 to User10) in the ERP who have access to do the following activities:
 All users can process Sales orders
 User03, User04 and User05 can process despatches
 User06, User07, User08 can process sales invoices
 User01 can maintain customer master and price master
 User09 belongs to Finance/Accounts and has access to process bank receipts/collections
 User10 belongs to IT has access do all activities
(b) The company has given ERP access as per business requirements but do not have documented
business rules for segregation of duties.
(c) You have reviewed the General IT controls and found them to be effective
Your task is,
(a) Based on your risk assessment identify any five combinations of business activities in the Revenue and
Receivables process where segregation of duties should exist.
(b) Identify the activities that are considered as sensitive access
(c) Prepare a list of your observations, if any

4.8 References and Further Reading

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org
> Resources

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2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

4.9 Answers to Excises

1. Correct answer is (A).
Employees are typically considered as normal users or end users because they belong to a company, not
external.
(B), (C) Vendors, Customers are generally classified as external users.
2. Correct answer is (C).
Company policy should define the rules for segregation of duties as part of the internal control
framework.
(A) ERP consultants can help in the implementation of user access controls in ERP to comply with
company policy on segregation of duties.
(B) Government does not define rules for segregation of duties for a specific company. However, local
laws and regulations should be considered when defining the company policy.
(D) Statutory auditors will review and test user access controls in ERP including segregation of duties
based on the risk assessment. However, auditors cannot define the rules for segregation of duties.
3. Correct answer is (D). All the mentioned tools can be used.
4. Correct answer is (B).
When General IT Controls (GITCs) are effective for full year, the auditor can rely on user access controls
for the same period.
(A) Compensating controls are considered when a deficiency is found.
(C) Manual controls do not provide assurance for the operating effectiveness of user access controls.
(D) Automated controls are business process controls that also depend on effectiveness of GITC
5. Correct answer is (D)
The auditor should evaluate each deficiency and determine impact on audit. The auditor should consider
several mitigating factors and compensating controls and obtain additional audit evidence, if necessary.
(A) All deficiencies should be reported to management. In addition, auditor should evaluate each
deficiency.
(B) The auditor may consider more substantive testing only if necessary. But first, the auditor should
evaluate the deficiency.
(D) Deficiencies should not be ignored.

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6. Critical
7. Privileged
8. Business, IT
9. Preventive, Detective
10. Roles
11. False. Segregation of duties is implemented even in companies where there is no ERP.
12. False. Business rules for implementing segregation of duties should be defined by the
company/management.
13. True.
14. True.
15. False. Reliability of user access controls in ERP depend on the effectiveness of General IT Controls.

4.10 Case Study Solution

(a) There could be several conflicting combinations of business activities where segregation of duties should
be applied. However, it is based on risk assessment and professional judgement. Five such SOD
combinations are as follows:
Process Sale Orders AND Maintain Master Data
Process Sale Orders AND Process Invoices
Process Despatches AND Process Receipts/Collections
Process Invoices AND Process Receipts/Collections
Process Receipts/Collections AND Maintain Master Data

(b) Maintain Master Data and Process Receipts/Collections could be considered as Sensitive Access
(c) Some of the observations are as follows.
 Company does not have documented business rules for implementing segregation of duties.
 There are instances where segregation of duties does not exist (based on the rules mentioned in
a) above
 IT users have access to all activities in the Revenue and Receivables process.
 User01 has access to maintain master data and also process sale orders
 Users06, User07, User08 can process sales orders and also invoices
Note: It is suggested that the auditor prepare a chart of all ERP users and their access to business activities in
a matrix format. This will be useful in evaluating the segregation of duties and sensitive access more effectively
and efficiently.

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4.11 Glossary
ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
SOD – Segregation of duties
SA – Sensitive Access
GITC – General Information Technology Controls
Role – is a logical grouping of users in an ERP that is aligned to a job function
Profile – is an internal technical grouping of authorisations, permissions and user access rights in an ERP and
is derived from a role
GRC – Governance, Risk and Compliance

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5 SYSTEM GENERATED REPORTS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand Types of reports - Standard Reports, Customized Reports, Database Queries
 To understand procedures for validation of Reports - accuracy of logic, completeness and accuracy of
data
 To understand the impact of conclusions of GITCs on Report testing
 To understand conclusion of impact of deficiencies in Report testing on audit
 To understand when to test.

5.1 Overview
As businesses reliance on ERP systems and applications is on the increase, the information available in these
systems become critical. This information or data is critical for decision making or even for compliance
purposes for ROC etc. and is relied upon by the various stakeholders of an entity such as the management,
auditors etc. Thus the integrity of the information / data etc. on which the stakeholders make decisions
becomes crucial. As per the Guidance Note issued by the Institute on Audit of Internal Financial Controls over
Financial Reporting, the data or Information Produced by the Entity (IPE) can be generally used for:
 IPE is used by entity personnel to perform a relevant control.
 IPE is used by the auditor to test a relevant control.
 IPE is used by the auditor to perform substantive procedures.
The IPE can be in 2 forms:
 Reports generated from the System
 Listing/Output created manually with data from the system.
In this session, we shall focus more on understanding the different types of reports, procedures to test them
and impact of the testing performed.
Some examples of reports are high level reports such as Cash Flow statement, Analysis of Obsolete inventory
or more microscopic level of reports such as Registers – Purchase, Sales or Debtors Aging analysis etc. Profit
and Loss account, Balance Sheet can also be termed reports.
 SYSTEM GENERATED REPORTS

5.1.1 Why to test reports

 Management may make decisions relating to investments, efficiency of operations, allocation of funds to
different business streams etc.
 Management may have implemented various manual controls within the business processes. These
manual controls might be dependent on an underlying report from the system.
For example –
 A Periodic review of a Cash Flow statement by the Finance team.
 Provision of bad and doubtful debts. The finance team extracts a report from the system which lists the
dues outstanding from the customers bucketed as per number of days due. This report is reviewed by the
Finance Head and provisions are made for bad and doubtful debts in the books of accounts as per
Company policy.
 Compliance purposes
The above examples give an idea as to how management of an entity depend on reports from the ERP systems
that also have a bearing on the financial reports. These same reports are also used and relied upon by the
Auditors during the course of the audit. This information is used by the Auditors via their audit opinion to
provide assurance to other stakeholders on the integrity of the data.
Thus there is a need to test the reports from the ERP systems and applications relevant for financial reporting.

5.2 Types of Reports

There could be approximately 3 types of reports that can be extracted from ERP systems. The purpose for
which these reports may be used are for analysing Financial or Operational data. These reports may also be
used as part of statutory filing / compliance with SEBI, ROC, etc.
1. Standard Reports – These are reports that are available at the time of implementation of the ERP
systems by the entity. These reports are inbuilt into the systems. Each ERP comes with a set of reports
that can be used as is, if the company has implemented the ERP without too many modifications.
This means that the Company is following the pattern of the Chart of Accounts, etc. as defined in the
ERP and have not modified them. Thus if they stay within the parameters as defined in the ERP, these
standard reports can be used without any modifications. In the below table, Company 1 can use the
Standard Reports.
For example: Purchase Register, Sales Register, Fixed Asset Register, Cash Flow statement etc.
2. Customised Reports – These reports are created by the entities with respect to their businesses,
revenue streams, divisions etc.
Here, the company has followed their own pattern or code for Chart of Accounts (CoA), Vendors,
Customers etc.
For example: B/S, P&L account etc. Alternatively the examples mentioned above such as
Purchase/Sales/Fixed Assets Register can also be developed for the company specifically. These can be
categorised as Customised reports.

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Both the above types of reports are configured/coded and reside in the ERP systems.
COMPANY 1 COMPANY 2
Sr. Details Codes used as Details Codes as configured by
No. given when ERP Company at the time of
implemented implementation
1 2 3 4 5
1000001 to Control Accounts
1 CoA including CoA
9999999 100000 to 999999
Vendors,
Vendors VE100001 to VE110000
Employees,
Customers etc. Employees EP0001 to EP999999
Customers CS100000 to CS 999999

Fig No. 5.2.1 Customised Reports

Thus, in Column 5, the Company 2 has followed its own model of defining CoA, Vendor codes, Employee
codes, Customer codes etc. Thus the Standard reports based on CoA as defined in Column 3 cannot be
used. The company will have to define its own TB, P&L account, B/S, Cash Flow statement etc. Such
reports are called Customised Reports.
3. Database queries / Other tools etc.
Queries are used to retrieve information or data from a database in a readable format using a SELECT
statement.
For example: database queries can be used to extract payroll information from a payroll database such
as leaves available per employee, blank PAN details of employees who have not submitted PAN etc.
These are converted into Excel spreadsheets etc. and used as reports.

5.3 Validation of Reports – Accuracy of Logic, Completeness and

Accuracy of Data
In this session we shall understand the procedures to validate/test the reports. These procedures will be
specific to the ERP/system implemented by the audited entity.
As per the Guidance Note, the three elements for determining the testing strategy for reports are to understand:
 Source Data
 Report Logic
 Report Parameters
At the start of the audit process, the auditor along with the auditee have to make a list of all relevant reports
used by the company and the purpose for which they are used. The auditor will also have to understand the
risks involved with each report.

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 For example: if there is a mistake/error in the report, what is the potential impact on the business and the
audit procedure? How frequently are changes made to the report
 Complexity of the report in terms of how are the values populated, number of formulae etc.
 Target audience of the reports – Senior Management, Staff etc.
Before the auditor plans to understand the types of reports and the procedures to validate them, it is necessary
to check the integrity of the data within the system. The auditor has to:
 Test the General Information Technology controls (GITC’s) within and surrounding the ERP systems.
 Test the controls within the business processes including sensitive access and segregation of duties etc.
within and surrounding the systems. This is the source data for the reports.
This will give a reasonable indication to the auditor on the integrity of the data within the system. The results of
the above mentioned procedures will determine the extent and type of procedures to be used to validate/test
the reports for completeness and accuracy. There can be 2 scenarios pertaining to the results of the
procedures:
 If the controls in GITC and Business Processes are found to be effective then the auditor may limit
himself to performing certain tests on the reports.
 If the controls are found to be ineffective, the auditor will have to perform more detailed and substantive
procedures. These procedures will be specific to the conditions relevant to the entity.
We shall talk of the procedures to test these reports later in this session.
The auditor as a first step need to understand the different types of reports that can be extracted from ERP
systems/applications.

NOTE:
The company may have implemented a control on Quarterly Review of Aging Analysis by Finance Controller.
In such a scenario, the auditor will have to test 2 aspects of the control:
1. The Review by the Finance Controller
2. The integrity of the report. The procedure mentioned above can be used to test the integrity of the report. Here
the timing of the extraction of the report becomes important. The auditor will also have to check whether the
Finance Controller has reviewed the relevant latest report. The same report has to be independently extracted
by the auditor and tested.

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Fig. 5.3.1 implemented a control on Quarterly Review of Aging Analysis

5.3.1 Standard Reports

5.3.1.1 1st year of audit of the entity:

For example if the company has implemented SAP, the auditor may take steps as mentioned below:
Example 1: Debtors outstanding statement
Assumption – The results of GITC and Controls in business process testing are positive and reliance may be
placed on them. Access to add/modify/delete these reports are restricted and changes to the reports are
authorised.
 The company uses the following indicative commands in SAP to generate reports:
(a) se16
(b) se16n
(c) sa38
 The auditor should ensure with the IT personnel whether there has been any change to the program code
of the said report. In a case of a standard report, the creator/modifier of the report would be the vendor
i.e. SAP themselves. The auditor can take a screenshot to ensure the same.

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 If the evidence found in the change management logs indicates that the vendor - SAP was the last user
to access the report at the time of implementation of the ERP.

Transaction Code for

Debtors Ageing

Fig. 5.3.2 Debtors outstanding statement

Report Parameters:

Report Parameters
Customer account,
Company code and Key

Fig. 5.3.2: Report Parameters

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Report Output:

Ageing Buckets

Fig. 5.3.3: Report Output

 The auditor needs to then understand and test the completeness and accuracy of the report. The
debtor’s outstanding statement will have various buckets or columns. The buckets could be Upto 30
days, 31-60 days, 61-90 days, 91-180 days and Above 180 days, depending on the date of invoice which
is outstanding.
For example: Debtor 1
The auditor can devise a procedure to take one transaction – one sample per scenario. In this case, one
invoice per bucket as a sample is to be tested. Since these transactions are automatically populated in
the report, if the tests pass for one transaction, then the same inference can be made for other
transactions too.
 The original hard copy of the Invoice can be compared with the entry in the Outstanding statement for the
following fields: Date/Invoice no./Customer name/Amount etc. If the values match between the original
Invoice and the details in the Outstanding statement, the accuracy assertion is established.
 To establish the completeness assertion, the Grand Total of the Outstanding statement for all Debtors
can be compared to the total of the value of Debtors appearing in the B/S or TB or can be checked on
the screen itself.
Once the values are found to be matching, then a decision to rely on the report can be taken.
The above example pertained to SAP. Even in other ERP’s/tools/manual reports, the Company may be using
reports as given below. In this scenarios, testing of such reports as mentioned above have to be performed.

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The same procedure as mentioned for Standardised reports need to be followed. The differences are:
1. While testing for users who have access to create/modify report, the auditor will have to verify whether
the user names who have created/modified the reports are authorised users. If any change to the report
has happened in the year of audit, then appropriate approvals should be verified.
2. The auditor has to follow the same test procedures to test for completeness and accuracy as mentioned
above.
3. Unlike standard reports, the procedures to test the completeness and accuracy of the customised reports
have to be performed every year.
Path:

Customized report
for GL balance

Fig. 5.3.5: Customised Report

Report Parameters

Fig. 5.3.6: Report Parameters

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Underlying Program of the Report

Last change date

and the user name

Fig. 5.3.6: Underlying Program of the Report

5.3.3 Database Queries/Other Tools

Since, these reports are extracted on ad hoc basis or on as and when basis, the auditor needs to adopt a more
substantive approach to test the data extracted. Such reports have a high probability of the data being
manipulated after creation.
For example, MS Access reports, excel sheets etc. come under this category.
For example, refer below the screenshot of a query in MS Access for extraction of infrequently used GL
accounts for less than 6 times in a year.

Query for extraction of data

from MS ACCESS

5.4 Impact of conclusions of GITCs on Report testing

As mentioned in the earlier sections of this chapter, before we start to test the reports, the auditor needs to
understand, evaluate and test the General Information Technology Controls (GITC’s). The results of the GITC
tests will have a bearing on the procedures to be followed to test reports.
Scenario 1: Controls in all domains of GITC’s are effective and there are no relevant deficiencies.

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In such a case, the auditor can follow the procedures as mentioned above to test the reports – both standard
and customised.
Scenario 2: Controls are ineffective in all domains of GITC’s
Therefore, the procedures to test the reports have to be different from the above mentioned. The auditor will
have to devise a more substantive approach and other substantive procedures to testing the reports. The
auditor cannot rely on just one sample to test the completeness and accuracy assertions of the report.
This will be further elaborated in the session on GITC’s.

5.5 Timing of Report Testing

Deciding when to test a report is a critical element of the audit. Some of the criteria to be used to decide timing
of report testing are:
1. The data captured by a report is also essential in deciding the timing to test a report.
A report may capture real time data.
For example in a telecom industry, reports may be used to for revenue assurance, value added services
etc. Such reports may have values changing on a daily/monthly/quarterly/yearly basis. Hence, such
reports have to be tested as per the frequency in which they are used. If the auditor delays testing the
report, the values may be outdated and the results may not be accurate.
2. Company policy – If a report is generated and used by a Company on an annual basis.
For example Provisions made on obsolescence of inventory. The report is reviewed and entry is made in
the books of accounts as per this report. The auditor will also have to test a report as per the frequency
used by the company.
3. There may be instances where the company has implemented a new ERP during the financial year. The
legacy/older ERP is no longer used. The auditor may have to test the reports in both the systems as per
the frequency of the report.
For example, the company has implemented a new ERP from October 1st. They have a control of review
outstanding debtors and provisions made in the books of accounts every quarter. If the auditor decides to
test for 2 quarters - In such a scenario, the auditor may have to test the reports in both the systems.
4. Another important factor to be considered is the inclusion of Period end entries. The auditor will have to
understand the type of entries passed and whether they are included in the logic of the reports.

5.6 Conclusion of Impact of Deficiencies in Report testing on audit

The auditor may be faced with a situation where there are deficiencies in the reports/IPE that have been
tested. The errors at a minimum may be of 2 types:
o Logic errors
o Arithmetical errors

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o As per the scoping details, these reports are used by the Company and relied by the auditor during
the audit process. Hence these reports are tested by the auditors.
Thus, the auditor will have to accordingly coordinate with the company to make them understand the
deficiencies found and check if they have rectified the report/IPE. The auditor will have to modify their
audit procedures to calculate the impact on the financial statements. Also, the auditor will have to
independently obtain the information from the company’s ERP for the purposes of their audit.
Example 1:
The debtors ageing statement given in Section 3 of this session:
All the details such as Invoice number, Party name, Amount etc. are correctly appearing in the name.
However, the ageing buckets to calculate the number of days outstanding of the invoice is calculated
from the due date of payment of invoice. This is wrong as the date has to be calculated from invoice
date.
In such a scenario, the auditor will have to ask the company
o to create a new report or
o calculate the ageing correctly in the same report.
Accordingly the provisions etc may undergo a change in the financial statements.
Example 2:
In the same debtors ageing report, the outstanding buckets along with other details such as Invoice no.
name of party, Date etc is appearing correctly. However, there are arithmetical errors. The total of all the
buckets are not totalled correctly.
This can be verified by taking the Grand total of the Debtor ageing statement and tallying it with the total
in the Trial Balance.
In both the above scenarios, the auditor will have to adopt appropriate substantive procedures to test the
data.

5.7 Exercise
1. Which of the following method is used to produce reports about data.
(a) Standard Reports
(b) Customised Reports
(c) Database queries.
(d) All of the above
2. SELECT statement is used to generate which type of reports:
(a) Standard Reports
(b) Customised Reports

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(c) Database queries.

(d) None of the above
3. The auditor may limit the test procedures to test reports when
(a) Controls in Business process and GITC are effective
(b) Controls in Business process are effective and GITC are ineffective
(c) Controls are ineffective
(d) None of the above
4. What are the factors to be considered for timing of report testing:
(a) Quality and type of entries
(b) Company Policy
(c) Implementation of new systems
(d) All of the above
5. Some of the reasons to test reports by auditors:
(a) Used by management to take decisions
(b) Used by auditors as part of audit
(c) Used by management for compliance purposes
(d) All of the above.
6. Prior to testing of reports, the auditor needs to understand, evaluate and test the ________ and
_______.
7. On the assumption that the GITC’s are effective, the auditor needs to follow which sampling procedure to
test a report:
(a) One transaction
(b) One transaction per scenario
(c) Appropriate substantive procedures
(d) None of the above
8. The GITC’s are effective and a report has been tested in earlier years. In subsequent years, the auditor
may adopt an approach of testing ______________ of the report.
9. The 2 assertions generally evaluated at the time of testing reports are ______________ and
__________.
10. System Reports which are used to analyse business operations and are extracted from systems not
relevant for financial reporting, need not be tested.
(a) True
(b) False

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5.8 Case Study

Access Limited is Private Limited Company. It is using SAP as its main ERP. The Company at the time of
implementation of ERP decided to use only the Purchase and Sales Register as given by SAP. The IT team of
Access Ltd along with the Finance team created a customised report for Debtors Aging Statement. However, it
decided to prepare the P&L and Balance Sheet outside the system in MS Excel.
This is the second year of audit of Access Ltd. You are in the audit team and have been given the task of
testing the reports as part of the Audit of Financial Statements. Devise a testing strategy to test these reports.
The GITCs have been tested and found to be effective.
ANSWER TO EXERCISE
1. Correct answer is d: All of the above
All the 3 types of reports – Standard, Customised and Database queries are methods to extract data or
Information from the systems.
2. Correct answer is c: Database queries
Database queries using SELECT statement is commonly used to generate data. Standard reports and
customised are generated using pre-existing commands or menu paths in the ERP.
3. Correct answer is a: Controls in Business process and GITC are effective
When the controls are ineffective either in Business Processes or GITC then one of the elements of
determining testing strategy is affected namely source data.
Thus, controls in Business process and GITC have to be effective for the auditor to consider specific test
procedures.
4. Correct answer is d: All of the above.
The company may have period end entries to be passed. Another scenario could be that the company
has implemented a new system. Hence reports in both the systems may have to be tested for different
periods. Also, the company may have a policy for provisions for debts, obsolescence etc. Hence, all the
criteria have to be considered to determine the time to test reports.
5. Correct answer is b: Used by the auditors as part of the audit
The reports which the auditors use as part of the audit need to be tested. This list may also include
reports used by the Management.
6. Correct answer is General Information Technology Controls and Business Process Controls
7. Correct answer is b – One transaction per scenario.
In the case of Debtors outstanding statement, if there are various buckets depending on the number of
days outstanding of the invoice, one transaction per bucket has to be tested.
8. Correct answer is Last change date
9. Correct answer is Completeness and Accuracy

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10. Correct answer is True. If a system is not relevant for financial reporting, then reports from that system
need not be tested.

5.9 Answer to Case Study

Report Testing Strategy for second year of audit.
Standard Reports – Purchase and Sales Register -
 Ascertain from last year audit work papers if there were no issues in testing these reports.
 If so, test the Last change date of the report.
 If no change from previous year, no further testing required.
Customised Reports – Debtors Ageing Statement
 Take one sample per bucket and reconcile with original documents/evidences.
Excel Reports – P&L account, Balance Sheet
 To be tested by using appropriate substantive procedures.

5.10 References and Further Reading

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org
> Resources
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

5.11 Glossary
ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
ROC – Registrar of Companies
IPE – Information Produced by the Entity
GITC – General Information Technology Controls

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 CHAPTER

6 NEW SYSTEMS AND DATA

MIGRATION REVIEW

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 To understand about new systems implementations
 To understand the data migration strategy and approach in an ERP environment
 To understand how to review new system implementations and data migrations
 To understand how to determine and evaluate impact of deficiencies in data migrations on overall audit

6.1 New Systems and System Upgrades (Functional Vs Technical)

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a company-wide integrated computer software system used to manage
and coordinate all the resources, information, and functions of a business from shared data sources. ERP
delivers a single database that contains all data for the software modules, which include Sales, Purchase,
Materials Management, Human Resource & Payroll, Finance & Accounts, etc. Every ERP will have their own
terminology to map business process to software modules. For example, in SAP the purchase and inventory
processes are provided in the module known as Materials Management the same processes in Oracle are
known as Procurement and Inventory.
Some of the reasons why companies consider implementing a new ERP system or migrating from existing
legacy systems to ERP are as follows:
 To enable growth in business
 Take advantage of technology to carry out business faster and accurately
 Centralisation of data for better reporting and MIS
 Implement automated controls and enhance internal controls
 increase the level of automation in business process and increase operational efficiencies
 to respond to changes in business environment including regulatory changes
 obsolescence of existing technology or older versions are no longer supported by system vendors
 Outsourcing of business process to a third party
With the pace and frequency of changes in the overall business environment increasing periodically, the need
for migrating systems has also become more common. The following scenarios may exist when systems are
being implemented or migrated.
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

 Implementation of a completely new accounting system or ERP. For example, Tally, Quickbooks, In-
house developed ERP or SAP
 Migrating from an existing system to a new ERP. For example, Tally/Quickbooks to SAP
 Migrating from an existing system to an enhanced version of the same system. For example, SAP 4.7 to
SAP 6.0, Oracle 11i to Oracle R12
 Technical migration where the IT infrastructure including operating system, database, network or
hardware are changed but no change in version or functioning of ERP.
For example, the existing Windows 2008 R2 Server, on which the ERP is installed, is migrated to a
newer Windows 2016 Server operating system and all the desktop operating systems in the company are
upgraded from Windows 7 to Windows 10. In this example, the business functionality of ERP does not
change and hence it is considered as a technical migration.
 Implementing new modules in an existing ERP. For example, Payroll module is implemented in an
existing ERP where other modules viz., Finance & Accounts, Sales, Purchases and Inventory are already
operational.
The auditor needs to understand well in advance any plans a company may have to undertake major changes
in the IT environment during an audit period. The auditor has to consider the possibility of auditing in two very
different IT environments in the same year and should assess risks accordingly. Some of the areas where a
migration could impact audit include the following:
 Change in understanding of existing business process
 New risks could arise
 Activities and existing controls could undergo a change
 More automated controls are likely to be implemented
 User access rights and segregation of duties could change
 Reports and system generated data i.e., information produced by entity (IPE) could change
 Considerations for outsourced activities

6.2 Data Migration Strategy

ERP migrations are similar to any other project and accordingly the auditor should understand the strategy and
approach that is being adopted in a particular migration project. The key phases in any ERP migration project
will consist of the following as shown in Fig 6.2.1:

System Data
Planning Testing Go Live
Design Conversion

Documentation

Fig 6.2.1: Data Migration Strategy

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Planning: In this phase of migration the objectives of migration and the migration strategy are defined.
Commitment and involvement of top management is defined and an individual who will be the business sponsor
is identified to take key decisions. Team is formed and roles and responsibilities are assigned. A budget for the
migration is allocated. Key dates, timelines and milestones are determined. A risk assessment carried out and
critical dependencies - including availability of staff for the migration project, support from vendors and external
consultants, readiness of IT environments, etc. - are identified upfront. Back-out and rollback procedures are
planned as a contingency measure.
System Design: In this phase of migration the AS-IS (existing) system and process is understood and the TO-
BE (proposed) system and process prepared including the process flows, data flows and business process re-
engineering. Configuration and Customisations required are determined and the codification is prepared.
Interfaces with other systems and applications are determined.
Data Conversion: In this phase of migration involves identification of source data, data mapping between
source(existing) and target (proposed) systems is defined including the development of automated data
extraction and transfer programs or scripts. Intermediary data stores called staging areas are used to hold,
convert and transfer data. Inconsistencies in data, incomplete and inaccurate data are identified and corrected
as part of data cleansing and data enhancement. Integrity checks are done to ensure completeness and
accuracy of data. Mock conversions are carried out iteratively to rectify errors and data inconsistencies.
Testing: In this phase of migration various levels of testing are carried out that include, unit testing, integration
testing, user acceptance testing. Test cases, scenarios and test scripts are prepared to test the functionality of
the new system.
Implementation (Go Live): In this phase of migration the team checks if all objectives of migration and the
migration strategy are achieved. Any deviations should be identified and resolved. Adequate training has been
provided to the user of the new system. Assurance should be obtained from an independent auditor prior to
implementation in the form of a pre-implementation review report. A representative of top management should
provide approval for Go live and communicate to all stakeholders about the launch of new system. A rollback
plan is defined as a contingency measure in case migration is not successful.
Documentation: For all phases and migration activities, relevant documentation should be prepared and
signed off by the project team.
The below illustration is an example of a high-level ERP Migration Plan as shown in Fig 6.2.2.
Access Ltd
ERP Migration Plan
Durat ion: 01-Jul-201x t o 20-Aug-201x
July - 201x
Mon

Mon

Mon

Mon
Wed

Wed

Wed

Wed

Wed

Phase
Thu

Thu

Thu

Thu

Thu
Tue

Tue

Tue

Tue

Tue
Sun

Sun

Sun

Sun
Fri

Fri

Fri

Fri
Sat

Sat

Sat

Sat

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Pl a n n i n g / Ki ck-Off
Holiday

Sy st em Desi gn
Da t a Con v er sion
August - 201x
Mon

Mon

Mon

Mon
Wed

Wed

Wed

Wed
Thu

Thu

Thu

Thu
Tue

Tue

Tue

Tue
Sun

Sun

Sun

Sun

Sun
Fri

Fri

Fri

Fri

Fri
Sat

Sat

Sat

Sat

Sat

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Mi gr a t ion T est in g
Holiday

Holiday

Pr e-Im pl em en t a t i on Rev iew

Im pl em en t a t ion / GO-Liv e

Fig 6.2.2: High Level ERP Migration Plan

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It should be noted that the migration strategy could vary from company to company and depends on the scope
and nature of migration i.e., technical or functional. The auditor should obtain an understanding of the scope
and nature of migration to assess impact on audit.

6.3 Masters, Balances, Line-items, Open items

When planning a migration from an existing system to a new system, some of the important considerations
include determining an approach for migration of existing master data, historical transaction data, open items
and account balances.
A migration project provides an opportunity to review and carry forward only the relevant data and discard
obsolete data. The likely scenarios may be as follows:
 Duplicate master data is identified and blocked
 Obsolete or dormant master data is blocked
 Only current price masters are carried over to new system OR revised prices with effect from Go live
date could be adopted
 Missing fields, additional fields, mandatory fields in new system are identified and updated. Additional
data that is presently not available may have to be obtained from the respective source viz., customer,
vendors
For migrating the financial data and account balances, the following scenarios can be considered.
 Definition of new chart of accounts
 Mapping the legacy and new charts of accounts. See illustration for examples of one-to-many and many-
to-one GL mappings
 Closing balance in the legacy system is carried over as opening balance in new system
 Opening balances are directly entered or uploaded in new system OR processed through temporary
migration accounts as accounting entries for better control.

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 NEW SYSTEMS AND DATA MIGRATION REVIEW

Sample Chart of Accounts Mapping – Tally to SAP

Single account is mapped to

multiple accounts in SAP.

Multiple accounts in Tally are

mapped to a single account in SAP.

Fig 6.3.1: Sample Chart of Accounts Mapping – Tally to SAP

Historical transaction data including orders, invoices, goods receipt and dispatch notes and other standard and
non-standard journal entries may not be migrated to new system and will most likely remain in the legacy
system. The implications of this need to be considered from the following points of view
 Legal and statutory requirements including maintaining books of accounts in accordance with Companies
Act 2013
 Availability of records for tax audit and assessments.
 The duration for which books of accounts and records are required to be maintained in legacy system
 Access controls for the legacy system
 Protection of legacy data from being changed
 Software license terms of use for legacy system including application, operating system and database
Open items could exist as on the day of migration and it is important that the migration approach should
envisage and factor for such open items. Open items could exist the following scenarios
 Open orders – purchase, sales and production orders
 Open invoices – vendor, sales invoices

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 Advances – received and paid

 Loans to employees
 Stock-in-transit
 Depreciation history and accumulated depreciation for fixed assets.
The auditor should understand the approach adopted by the company management to assess the impact on
audit.

6.4 When to Test?

Having obtained an understanding of the migration approach, the business environment and the IT
environment, the auditor should perform a risk assessment for each phase of the migration process and identify
the risks that could impact the audit. The auditor should design appropriate audit procedures that include
evaluation of controls that are in place to mitigate the risks. The auditor should test these controls for design
and operating effectiveness.
The testing for data migrations can be performed pre-implementation which means either immediately
preceding the Go live phase, when a substantial part of the migration has been completed, or post-
implementation meaning after the Go live phase. The suggested approach is to perform both pre-
implementation and post-implementation reviews because of the following reasons
 a pre-implementation review provides an opportunity for the company to identify gaps, if any, in the
migration process and address the same in a timely manner.
 a pre-implementation also provides early assurance on the migration process and controls which can be
useful in planning other audit procedures better.
 a post-implementation review provides assurance on the effectiveness of migration process and controls.
However, in case of any gaps or deficiencies that are identified there is no opportunity to address and
remediate these gaps. The auditor should evaluate and report the gaps and deficiencies and design
further audit procedures, if necessary, in the same way as for other control deficiencies.
It should be noted that pre-implementation or post-implementation reviews can be carried out as separate non-
audit engagements by internal audit or another third-party auditor depending on the company’s requirements. In
any case, the statutory auditor is still required to perform a review of migration process and controls as part of
the audit process as part of testing General IT Controls, it is not an option. However, the auditor may consider
using the work performed by internal auditors in accordance with guidance given in SA 610. Whether the
auditor plans to rely on the work done by internal auditor or not, the auditor is required to evaluate and address
the gaps and deficiencies, if any, that have been identified by the internal auditor/third party auditors.
The table below has examples of some of the risks and controls at each phase of the migration process that are
relevant when implementing or migrating to new systems

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Phase Risk Control Activity

Planning Project may not go as Project manager prepares the detailed Project Plan which
per the plan. includes step by step activities involved, the key dates and
milestones, budgets, team allocation, etc.
This plan is approved by the Business Sponsor/Steering
Committee.
System Business process may As-Is and To-Be process document or Blueprint of existing
Design not be accurately or business processes with the proposed processes is mapped and
completely mapped documented by System Analysts.
This document is reviewed by appropriate functional team
members and approved by the Project Manager, Business
Sponsor/Steering Committee.
Data Transaction data may Converted account balances, data counts and totals are compared
Conversion not be uploaded with comparative data from legacy system to ensure the accuracy
accurately in to the new and completeness data conversion.
system. Project manager reviews data conversion results and ensures that
differences are identified and resolved in a timely manner.
Results of data conversion is documented and approved by the
Business Sponsor.
Testing Configurations made in Unit testing and Integration testing is done by project team and
ERP may not be reviewed by module leader and project manager.
accurate/may not User acceptance testing is done by business users and approved
function as per the by the respective process leads.
requirement Testing results are documented and approved by the Business
Sponsor.
Go Live Processing business The Project Manager ensures that all planned objectives have
transactions may be been met and new system is ready for use.
started in the new A pre-implementation review is carried out by an independent
system even before auditor to provide assurance that migration process and controls
migration if fully are effective.
completed and The Business Sponsor/Steering Committee reviews the project
objectives are not met. status and the pre-implementation report.
Business Sponsor gives formal approval to start using the new
system.

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6.5 Conclusion on Impact of Deficiencies on Audit

As noted in the previous section, it is likely that deficiencies will be found during a review of migration process.
Examples of such deficiencies include:
(a) a documented migration strategy and plan is not prepared
(b) a formal sign-off for user acceptance testing has not been obtained
(c) errors in data conversion have not been rectified
(d) approval for go-live was not formally obtained
Having found deficiencies, the auditor should evaluate the impact of these deficiencies on the audit. For this
evaluation, the auditor should consider the following:
 are there any alternate sources which can compensate for lack of structured documentation. For
example, email communications, minutes of meetings, project folders and working papers.
 In case of errors in data conversion, the auditor should determine if the errors are specific to a particular
set of transactions, business process or pervasive. Based on this assessment, the auditor may be able to
limit further audit procedures. For example, if the data conversion errors pertain to 25 sales invoices, the
auditor may test these specific invoices substantively.
 consider using CAATs to ensure completeness and accuracy of data. For example, the auditor can
rebuild the trial balance by extracting all transaction as on conversion date separately from legacy and
new system, summarise these transactions in ACL and compare net account balances. Ideally, there
should not be any difference between the legacy and new system after factoring for changes in chart of
accounts.
 determine the aggregate financial impact of the deficiencies and compare with materiality.
The above examples are some of the ways in which the auditor thinks through the deficiencies and assess
impact on audit. Wherever necessary, the auditor may have to obtain additional audit evidence to address the
risk of material misstatement.

6.6 Exercises
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of the following is example of an ERP,
(a) SAP
(b) Oracle R12
(c) In-House developed
(d) All of the above
2. Which of the following activity is part of the System Design phase of a migration,
(a) Allocation of Budget

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(b) Configuration
(c) Mock conversion
(d) All of the above
3. At which phase of the migration would rollback procedures be triggered, if necessary
(a) Planning
(b) Data Conversion
(c) Go-Live
(d) Migration Testing
4. Which of the following require specific considerations during a migration,
(a) User access and segregation of duties
(b) Open items
(c) Master data
(d) All of the above
5. When would auditors review migration process and controls,
(a) During Pre-implementation/Post-implementation reviews
(b) When reviewing General IT Controls
(c) Both A & B
(d) None of the above

Fill in the blanks

6. ___________ should be prepared and maintained for all phases of migration.
7. The auditor should evaluate the _______ of deficiencies identified in the migration process.
8. A ______________ review provides an opportunity for the company to identify gaps in the migration
process and address the same in a timely manner.
9. The auditor may consider using the work performed by internal auditors in accordance with guidance
given in __________
10. Interfaces with other systems and applications are determined during ____________ phase of the
migration process.

True/False
11. When a pre-implementation review has been performed and the gaps have been rectified, the auditor is
not required to evaluate and test controls in the migration process. (True/False)
12. The auditor should consider using CAATs when evaluating deficiencies in migration controls.
(True/False)

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13. Migration approach and strategy will be the same for all companies. (True/False)
14. Duplicate master data records should not be considered for migration from legacy to new system.
(True/False)
15. After migrating to the new system, the data in legacy system can be discarded. (True/False)

6.7 Case Study

Access Ltd is in the business of manufacturing and selling of mobile phones. Revenue in FY17 is INR 100
Crore and expected to grow at over 30% per annum for the next three years considering the significant increase
in demand for mobile phones.
Access Ltd is currently using SAP ERP for accounting, sales and purchases and inventory. In view of upcoming
GST tax reforms, which will be effective mid of FY18, the company is in the process of upgrading the SAP
system to meet the new requirements. The company is also implementing a cloud based SalesForce CRM
solution which will be integrated to the SAP ERP system to drive the Marketing and Customer Relation
Management activities.
You are the auditor of Access Ltd for FY18. Your task is to,
(a) Identify the systems at Access Ltd.
(b) Determine which system is relevant for audit and why.
(c) Think of three audit considerations that come to your mind because of the change in existing systems.

6.8 References and Further Reading

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org
> Resources.
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org.
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf.

6.9 Glossary
ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
GITC – General Information Technology Controls
SA – Standards on Auditing
CAATs – Computer Assisted Auditing Techniques
MIS – Management Information System
IPE – Information Produced by Entity
ACL – Audit Command Language (CAAT Tool)

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IT – Information Technology
CRM – Customer Relationship Management
GST – Goods and Services Tax

6.10 Answers to Excises

1. Correct answer is D).
SAP, Oracle R12 and In-house developed are examples of ERP.
2. Correct answer is B).
Allocation of budget happens in Planning phase. Mock conversion is part of Data Conversion phase.
3. Correct answer is C).
Rollback procedures are defined in the Planning phase and triggered during the implementation or Go
live phase, if necessary.
4. Correct answer is D).
Approach for migration of user access and segregation of duties, open items and master data should be
considered.
5. Correct answer is C).
Auditors can evaluate and test migration controls as part of pre-implementation, post-implementation
reviews or during while reviewing General IT Controls during audit process.
6. Documentation.
7. Impact.
8. Pre-implementation review.
9. SA 610.
10. Planning.
11. False.
The auditor has to evaluate and test the remediated controls.
12. True.
The auditor can assess impact of deficiencies by analysing data using CAATs.
13. False.
The migration approach will vary from company to company depending on several factors including the
scope and nature of migration.
14. True.
Duplicate master data is identified and discarded as part of data cleansing during migration.
15. False.

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Several factors should be considered including legal and statutory requirements before legacy system is
discarded.

6.11 Answer to Case Study

(a) The two systems are SAP ERP and Sales Force CRM
(b) SAP ERP is relevant because the financial accounting and transactions are processed in SAP.
Sales Force CRM does not have financial data that and hence, not relevant from an audit point of view.
(c) Some of the audit considerations are as follows:
 Changes in the general ledgers and Chart of Accounts – new ledger codes for GST will be created
 Changes in transactions – invoice formats, tax calculations
 Master data updates – customer and vendor masters to be updated with new GST tax codes
 Changes in business process and internal controls, including automated controls
 Changes in IPE – new reports will be created, reporting formats will be new

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 CHAPTER

7 NON STANDARD JOURNAL

ENTRIES

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 What are Non-Standard Journal Entries in ERP’s
 Process to identify Non-Standard Journal Entries
 Process to ensure completeness of data
 Identify Criteria for JE analytics
 Software Testing for scripts

7.1 Overview
Companies use ERP’s to record transactions. In most ERP’s these transactions are automated based on the
business process. In addition to the sub-leger entries that arise out of business processes, the companies may
also pass journal entries that impact the financial statements. We shall now try to understand the different types
of journal entries
 Standard Entries – These transactions pertaining to sales, purchases, inventory, rent, audit fees, AMC
expenses, salaries etc. are subject to internal controls as defined by the company.
 Non Standard Entries – In addition to the automated entries, these entities also record nonrecurring,
unusual transactions or adjustment entries in the ERP’s. These entries may not be subject to the same
level of rigour of the internal controls or may not have passed through any controls at all.
These transactions could be manual in nature and may pertain for example:
 Estimates, impairments etc.
 Adjustments to amounts already reported in financial statements – combinations, reclassifications
etc.
 Top Up entries – These are residing outside the books – for example in excel sheets etc. and may
impact the financial statements.
 Inter company set off entries etc.
For the purpose of this session we shall concentrate on Non Standard Journal Entries (NSJE) only. SA 240 and
The Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting in paragraphs
64,66,80,90, IG 4.4 and IG 5.6, IG 19.21 and IG 21.9 also talk about unusual transactions and the audit
procedures to deal with them.
 AUDITING IN AN ERP ENVIRONMENT

Before identifying the various type of journal entries – standard, non-standard and top up, the auditor will have
to understand, evaluate and test the process of internal controls in place to pass such entries.
These entries may be passed throughout the year or more generally at the end of a financial period. There is a
possibility that these entries may be passed through sub ledgers like purchase or sales. However, in this case,
there may be a level of collusion required, which may be difficult.
Hence, such NSJE are generally directly passed in the General Ledger. There is a risk of management
override of controls in passing such entries. In each entity, the level of this risk may vary, but the risk is present.
The risk of management override may also lead to risk of material misstatement to fraud which is a significant
risk. As a result, the audit procedures should be very robust and relevant to the entity that is being audited.
There is another key aspect to remember while auditing in ERP environment. Other entries – automated etc.
will be supported by relevant printed documents. These NSJE’s may exist only in electronic form directly in the
General Ledger with no supporting physical documents.

7.2 Process to identify Non Standard Journal Entries

Fig 7.2.1 Process to identify Non Standard Journal Entries

The above process will assist the auditor in understanding the type of journal entries passed and more
specifically Non Standard Journal Entries.
The points to note for understanding the business systems and processes are:
 Accounting software – ERP/customised/off the shelf packages
 IT team – in house/outsourced

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 Type of entries – automated or manual etc.

 SA/SOD among IT and business teams etc.
 Timing of passing journal entries – end of day, weekend etc.
The points to note for understanding the fraud risk factors are:
 Sales targets to be achieved – important to investors, stock holders etc.
 Bonuses and incentives – employees
 Debt requirements – banks etc.
The auditor should generally ask open ended questions to the management to understand if there were any
unusual activities during the year under audit.
 Whether the employee who recorded entries went on vacation and if there was a substitute during that
period
 Whether the employee shared his user id and password with any person during the year.
 Whether any entries were passed during the year without any supporting documents.
Once the auditor gathers all the information, the assessment has to be made whether any of the replies
received has translated to any journal entries. The criteria to be used to for selecting the non standard journal
entries will be taken up later in this session. Prior to this, the population of journal entries have to be extracted
and the completeness of data has to be ensured.

7.3 Process to ensure completeness of data

Once the auditor has completed his inquiries and gathered the requisite information, the next step is to
understand the timing of performing the journal entry testing.
 Generally, the auditor will wait for the company to have passed most of the entries and closed the books
of accounts for the period before deciding to take up the testing.
 Once the books are closed, even if the entries need to be passed, a register or a tracker is maintained on
the further entries that may need to be passed.
 If the auditor decides to perform JE analysis before the year end, then the auditor along with the
company will have to keep track of the entries passed subsequently and if required, analyse them later.
Once the auditor has decided to perform the journal entry testing, the entries need to be extracted. There are
various ways of identifying journal entries passed in the system:
 If the journal entries are passed using a specific journal type then a list of such entries can be extracted
from the system.
o For example, journal types could be MJV – Manual Journal Vouchers etc
 If the journal entries cannot be distinctly identified by the journal type, then the complete list of all entries
are extracted. Out of this full list of entries, the auditor will have to identify journals for testing.

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The process can be described as:

 Extract the full list of entries.
 Perform completeness testing
 Based on understanding obtained from the company, identify the JE criteria to pick the
Non Standard Journal Entries.
 Apply the criteria filter on the full list of JE entries
 Test the filtered list of Non Standard Journal Entries.

7.3.1 Data fields to be extracted

Generally, some of the common fields for which data need to be extracted are given below. One point to keep
in mind is that the ERP/application should have these fields and the company must be entering data in these
fields for them to be extracted.
1. Date
2. Journal No.
3. Journal Type
4. Entry Date
5. Approved date
6. Posted date
7. Period
8. Business Unit
9. Account Number
10. Account Name
11. Description
12. Debit Amount
13. Credit amount
14. Line no.
15. Prepared by
16. Approved by
17. Posted by

7.3.2 Common methods to test for completeness of data:

Some of the common methods to test for completeness of data are:

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 Roll forward testing – Roll forward the entries passed during the year to the balances in the Trial
Balance. The auditor may use ACL/IDEA Caseware/MS Access/Excel to perform Roll forward testing
 Procedures other than Roll Forward Testing.
 Roll Forward Testing
o Using CAATS to test for completeness of data:
 Using tools such as ACL, IDEA Caseware, MS Access, Excel etc., the auditor can test the data
for completeness.
 Match the number of entries in the system with that extracted in the CAATS tool. Both the
numbers should match.
 Match the total number of debits with total number of credits for all the entries. The difference
should be zero.
SCREENSHOT of number of entries in MS Access with system as shown in Fig 7.3.1

Number of entries which are uploaded into CAAT tool i.e. MS Access.

Fig 7.3.1 Number of entries in MS Access with system

SCREENSHOT of debits = credits as shown in Fig 7.3.2

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Fig 7.3.1 Debits=Credits

 If the company is using an ERP, then, the auditor can ask for a full list of entries based on Journal type
and summarise the data based on Journal type. This can be reconciled with the Trial Balance and tested
for completeness.

Journal Type Amount

Sales
Purchase
Cash
Total

 The entries in the data extracted need to be match the highlighted areas.
Details Opening balance Debits Credits Closing Balance
Balance Sheet
Cash balance 10000 2000 4000 8000

Profit & Loss

Salaries 0 50000 2000 48000

 Procedures Other than Roll Forward Testing

o There are industries/sectors where the roll forward testing may not be appropriate or feasible.
o For example - in banks/financial institutions/e-commerce/retail sectors where the volume of
transactions are huge, the auditor may have to think of a different method to test for completeness of
data.
 The auditor can identify the key account balances and perform roll forward testing only for those
accounts and not for all accounts.

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 There are high risk accounts such as - intercompany accounts and related party transactions the
auditor can reconcile the opening balances and closing balances with previous year and current
year financial statements and then test by roll forward the transactions (debit and credit).
 Holding company audits – A holding company with many subsidiaries - Journal entry testing may
be very challenging. A possible path would be to adopt roll forward testing in the subsidiaries. At
the holding company level, the auditor can test the consolidating and eliminating entries.
 CAATS can also help in finding out gaps in the sequence numbers of journal entries. This is
useful where the volume of transactions are huge such as banks/financial institutions etc.
 CAATS can also help in finding out if there are duplicate journal numbers used.

7.4 Identify Criteria for JE Analytics

The auditor will have to know the business of the client and the industry and then decide on the criteria to be
used for JE analytics. Some of the common criteria can be:
1. Seldom used accounts – Accounts that are used very infrequently.
2. Unusual combination of accounts –
a. Debit cash - Credit Revenue
3. Posted and approved by the same person
4. Persons passing entries or adjustments who generally do not pass entries
5. Unusual time of the day / on holidays/weekends etc.
6. Amounts having round numbers or same ending numbers
a. Numbers ending with 0000 or 9999 etc.
7. Small value entries but the volume of such entries are many.
8. Accounts that have significant estimates or period end adjustments
9. Accounts identified with risk of material misstatement
10. Entries passed after the books have been closed. Etc.

7.5 Software Testing of Scripts

The process of identifying NSJE and applying the JE criteria for testing is a long and time consuming process
every year. Once the auditor understands the processes and controls in place to pass Journal entries, the type
of journal entries, the information system (ERP) used to pass such entries etc., this process may be automated
to build in efficiencies within the audit. The auditor need not spend time on operational matters. This will also
assist the auditor in spending productive time performing the audit, analysing the data.
The auditor can take help from IT members in his audit team to develop a script whereby the data can be
extracted.

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 The auditor can build in the rules or code, the data fields mentioned in Section 3.1 above to extract the
data.
 The auditor can provide this to the company’s IT team to schedule the data extraction automatically.
 Once data is obtained, the auditor can also write scripts for the JE criteria to run automatically. The JE
criteria is mentioned in Section 4.
 Based on the results obtained, the auditor can test the list of journal entries obtained after applying the
filters.
Safeguards to be applied while using scripts:
 The auditor should be careful to see that the scripts are updated in all respects. For example – if the
company has added a new period/ new journal type/new user id, the scripts should be updated
immediately.
 The auditor should ensure that the company do not make any unauthorised changes to the script without
the knowledge of the auditor. The scripts are the property of the auditor.
 The auditor should plan the process of extraction in such a way that the scripts are run by the company’s
IT team in the presence of the audit team and the output is provided to the auditor without any
modifications.

7.6 Exercises
1. The unusual, non recurring transactions may generally be directly entered in
(a) Sub ledgers
(b) General Ledger
(c) Excel sheets
(d) None of the above
2. Estimates, impairments are generally a type of
(a) Standard Journals
(b) Top up journals
(c) Non Standard journals
(d) None of the above
3. While understanding the IT/ERP systems used to record entries, the points to note are:
(a) Accounting software / ERP used
(b) Automated or Manual entries
(c) SA/SOD among IT and Business teams
(d) Timing of passing the entries
(e) All of the above
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4. Some of the fraud risk factors to note which may lead to unusual transactions are:
(a) Sales Targets
(b) Personal gain such as Bonus, incentives etc.
(c) Debts requirements for banks etc.
(d) All of the above
5. A key factor to be kept in mind while making enquiries of personnel are:
(a) Ask close ended questions
(b) No discussions required
(c) Ask open ended questions
(d) None of the above
6. Entries maintained outside the system and impact the financial statements are:
(a) Top up entries
(b) Standard Journal entries
(c) Non Standard Journal Entries
(d) None of the above
7. Which is the main risk due to Non Standard Journal entries:
(a) Risk of Material misstatement
(b) Risk of management override of controls
(c) Risk of lack of sensitive access
(d) Risk of lack of segregation of duties.
8. It is possible that a Non standard journal entry may not have relevant ____________ supportings.
9. A common method to test for completeness of data is _________________ testing.
10. In industries/sectors, where volume of data is huge, ________________ testing may not be an
appropriate way of testing completeness of data.
11. Before testing Journal entries, it is necessary to test the controls surrounding the process of passing
Journal Entries.
(a) True
(b) False
12. One way of auditor enquiring about unusual activities at a client location is to ask ________ questions.
13. ______________ to be achieved may be a key fraud risk factor from an investor/ stock holder
perspective leading to Non standard journal entries.
14. _____________ to be achieved may be a key fraud risk factor from a bank/financial institution
perspective.
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15. To bring in efficiencies in the process of extraction and analysis of JE data, the auditor may use
____________ .

7.7 References and further reading

1. Standards on Auditing published by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), www.icai.org
> Resources
2. Guidance Note on Audit of Internal Financial Controls Over Financial Reporting issued by Auditing and
Assurance Standards Board. - (14-09-2015), www.icai.org
3. Companies Act 2013, www.mca.gov.in/Ministry/pdf/CompaniesAct2013.pdf

7.8 Case Study

Access Ltd is an IT company with its headquarters in India and 6 branches across the globe - 2 in USA, 2 in
Europe and 2 in Asia Pacific. The main revenue streams of the company are IT/ITES services. The company
services customers in the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. They have 7 offices along with the Headquarters
in India.
These 7 offices have their own administrative teams, finance teams , sales teams etc. They transact with the
HQ as well amongst themselves. Each office is a Revenue centre and hence costs/expenses are tracked
separately by them. The finance team individually draws up a TB, P&L account and B/S capturing their numbers
separately. The books of accounts are maintained separately by each office and audited at the location by a
locally appointed auditor. The signed audit report is sent to HQ for consolidation.
Since, the HQ is in India, the main auditors are located in India. The main auditors, audit the consolidated set of
accounts.
The company is using SAP as their main ERP. Since, the company is a well established company with a large
clientele, the number of transactions are substantial. Totally they have about 5000 transactions per month at
the HQ. The transactions are passed by the Sales Personnel, Finance personnel etc. All the operations are
automated and hence most of the entries automatically flow into the General Ledger. The Finance team as part
of the book closure process also pass manual entries as appropriate.
You are a member of the audit team. You have been informed that the IT personnel in the team have evaluated
and tested the GITC’s and found them effective. You have tested the Sensitive access (SA) and Segregation of
Duties (SOD) as defined in the process and the system and found them effective. The other internal controls in
the processes are also effective.
The audit strategy is to test Non standard Journal entries. You have been asked to devise a procedure to test
the entries. You will discuss and finalise the audit procedure with your Audit Manager.

7.9 Answer to Exercise

1. Answer is b - General Ledger.

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Generally, the non-recurring transactions may not have a supporting. To be passed in Sub ledgers, it
may require collusion among personnel. Hence, they are passed in General Ledger.
2. Answer is c – Non Standard Journals.
These are based on certain assumptions etc and not passed as part of a standard/routine operation.
3. The answer is e – All of the above.
All the factors are necessary to be noted while understanding the IT/ERP system.
4. The answer is d – All of the above.
All are relevant risk factors which may lead to unusual transactions.
5. The answer is c – Ask open ended questions
By asking open ended questions, the auditor will be able to extract more information from the auditee.
This will enable the auditor to ask more relevant questions.
6. The answer is a – Top up entries.
These entries are usually passed after the books are closed and before the financial statements are
finalised.
7. The answer is a – Risk of material misstatement.
NSJE are entries that may be passed as a result of fraud. Hence, this is the main risk. Another risk can
also be risk of management override of controls.
8. “Printed”
9. “Roll forward”
10. “Roll forward”
11. The answer is True.
As part of the requirements of IFC, the controls pertaining to Journal entry process need also to be
evaluated and tested.
12. “Open ended”
13. “Sales targets”
14. “Debt requirements”
15. “Software scripts”

7.10 ANSWER TO CASE STUDY

1. The HQ in India will have regular transactions and Inter company transactions.
2. As part of the evaluation of the IT and Business processes, the automated controls have been found to
be effective. The journal types of automated entries should be identified.
3. Understand from the company, the manual entries and inter company entries passed. Understand the
Journal type used for such entries.
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4. Focus should be only on those entries. If the list of such entries can be separately extracted, the list
should be reconciled with the TB and then tested.
5. If the separate list cannot be extracted:
(a) the full list of entries should be extracted including automated entries.
(b) Roll forward testing should be performed including the Opening and Closing Trial Balances
(c) The automated transactions, based on the Journal types identified earlier should be removed from
the list. Thus, only manual transactions remain.
(d) From the manual transactions list, the inter company transactions should be removed.
(e) On the remaining population, the auditor should apply the JE criteria and obtain a filtered list to
test.
6. The full list of Intercompany transactions should be tested separately. A reconciliation statement may be
sent to each office to confirm the balance.
7. The auditor may also speak to the component auditors to understand the procedures followed by them to
test NSJE at the individual offices.

7.11 Glossary
NSJE - Non Standard Journal Entries
ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
SA – Sensitive Access
SOD – Segregation of Duties
ACL – Automated Command Language
CAATS – Computer Assisted Audit Techniques

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DATABASE APPLICATION USING MS-ACCESS
 CHAPTER

1 ADVANCED SQL QUERIES

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Writing Advanced Queries
 Creating Sub-queries
 Creating Unmatched and Duplicate Queries
 Grouping and Summarizing Records using Criteria
 Summarizing Data using Crosstab Query
 Creating a Pivot Table and a Pivot Chart
 Joining Tables in Queries
 Calculated Fields

1.1 Introduction
Queries are an essential part of database. They are used to extract required data from one or more tables and
present the result in a datasheet or on a Form or Report. They can be considered as questions asked to a table
in a database. Access 2010 provides a graphical tool known as Query Designer to create queries. Queries are
not only used to retrieve data from tables, but can also be used to insert, update or append data in tables, to
filter data, to perform calculations with data, to summarize data and to automate data management tasks.
This chapter focuses on creating different types of queries and their different usage. The first part of the
chapter talks about Sub-queries, in which the criterion for a query is query itself, i.e. writing a query within
query. The next part of the chapter talks about working with Query Wizard and learning how to find unmatched
data between two tables and to find duplicate rows within a table. We will also learn to create a summarised
result out of queries using the crosstab queries. Crosstab queries can be taken as a tabular format of Pivot
tables. This chapter also introduces the multiple views of the query and how to get query results in the form of
Pivot Tables or Pivot Charts.
In addition to the above queries, we will also learn to create a query on multiple tables, specify different join
types to retrieve the desired result. We can create joins between the tables using relationship window provided
by Access 2010, or we can create joins at the query design window. Access 2010 also has many functions and
operators which can be used to create expressions. This chapter discusses how to use these functions to
create a new column from an existing column. The chapter also highlights some of the advanced queries
available in Access 2010 and illustrates their significance using case studies.
 DATABASE APPLICATIONS USING MS-ACCESS

1.2 Writing Advanced Queries

Access 2010 has the capability to handle far advanced queries than the simple criteria based queries. The
queries in Access 2010 not only allow users to change the existing data, but also to generate summary reports.
This section discusses few advanced queries handled by Access 2010, such as Sub-queries, Crosstab Queries,
Creating Unmatched and Duplicate Queries, and also creating PivotTable and PivotChart through queries.

1.2.1 Creating Sub-queries

A sub-query is a query nested inside another query. We can use Sub-queries within Select query, Action query
or within other Sub-queries. Sub-queries in Select statement can be the part of Where clause or having clause
in Group By query. For Action queries, we can use Sub-queries to change the records which match some
values in other tables.
Fig. 1.2.1 shows an example of a sub-query in a Select statement.

SELECT * FROM Products

WHERE ProductID IN
(SELECT ProductID FROM OrderDetails WHERE Discount >= .25);

Fig. 1.2.1. Subquery Example

This query retrieves all the columns from table Products based on the criteria that the discount on the products
in the OrderDetails table must be greater than or equal to 25%. Notice that to present the criteria of discount for
Products, we have used a sub-query in the WHERE clause.
Points to be noted while writing a sub-query:
 The sub-query must always be written as an SQL statement.
 The sub-query is always written in brackets ( ).
 If we are using the same table for the main query and sub-query, we need to provide aliases (alternate
names) to the tables.
 If a sub-query is returning more than one row, the IN, ANY, ALL or EXISTS clause should be used in the
WHERE statement.
1.2.1.1 Problem Scenario
Rohit is an Accountant in Apex Ltd. At the closing of the quarter, he has to check the Invoices for which the
payments are made in Quarter-I of year 2008.
Solution
For the purpose of solving the above requirement, a query is created to retrieve all records from Invoices table
for which the Payment Date in Payments table lies in Quarter-I i.e. between 1/1/2008 and 4/30/2008. Since we
do not require any details from the Payments table, we use the table in a sub-query.

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Steps for retrieving records from table INVOICES

1. Open the Show Table dialog box, by clicking on Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Invoice table from Show Table window and click Add, as shown in Fig. 1.2.2.

Fig. 1.2.2: Show Table window

3. Click Close.
4. The Query Designer Window appears, as shown in Fig. 1.2.3.

Fig. 1.2.3: Query Designer Window

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5. Select the fields Invoice Number, Sales Order Number, Type of Invoice, Invoice Date, Source of Order
and Payment Terms from table Invoice and drag them to the Columns tab as shown in Fig. 1.2.4.

Fig. 1.2.4: Drag the required columns

6. Click the Save button at Quick Access Toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as
Invoices Paid Q1 as shown in Fig. 1.2.5.

Fig. 1.2.5: Save the Query

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Now we create a SQL Statement for sub-query. The SQL Statement for the sub-query can be written directly in
the criteria clause with the Select syntax or we may create another query using Query Designer and then copy
the generated SQL. For the current scenario, we use the latter method.

Steps for writing a query to retrieve Invoice Number from Payments where Paid Date is in Quarter-I of
year 2008
1. Open the Show Table dialog box, by clicking on Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Payments table from Show Table window and click Add, as shown in Fig. 1.2.6.

Fig. 1.2.6: Show Table window

3. Click Close.
4. Double-click the columns Invoice Number and Date Paid so that they appear in the Columns tab in
Query Design as shown in Fig. 1.2.7.

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Fig. 1.2.7: Select Required columns

5. In the Criteria section of the Date Paid Column, write the criteria BETWEEN #1/1/2008# AND
#4/30/2008# and clear the Show checkbox. The Query Design window should appear, as shown in Fig.
1.2.8.

Fig. 1.2.8: Specify the criteria

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6. Click the Run icon in Design -> Results to view that the proper result is coming.
7. Click on SQL View from Design -> Results -> View drop-down to view the SQL statement of the
query. The SQL statement appears for the query, as shown in Fig. 1.2.9.

Fig. 1.2.9: Query SQL View

8. Copy the SQL statement and switch to the Query window of Invoices Paid Q1.
Steps to add a sub-query to Invoices Paid Q1 query
9. In the Criteria tab of Invoice Number column, type IN() and paste the copied query within the braces.
The Query window appears, as shown in Fig. 1.2.10.

Fig. 1.2.10: Write subquery in Criteria

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10. Click the Run icon in Design -> Results to view that the proper result is coming.
In a similar manner as demonstrated by an example above, Sub-queries can be used as a SQL statement for
criteria of Action queries, Group By queries etc.
NOTE: We can also use Sub-queries as an expression to create a new column as a query result.

1.2.2 Creating Unmatched and Duplicate Queries

Query Wizard available in Access 2010 can be used to create different types of queries. Along with several
different queries, it also provides queries to find duplicate records in a table on the basis of one or more fields
in a table. In a similar manner, we can create Unmatched Query to compare two tables and find the records that
do not have matching values in given columns.
1.2.2.1 Unmatched Queries
Find Unmatched Records Query will examine the data found in two different tables/queries and compare the
records based on a common field. It will return the records from the first table which do not have matching
values in second table.
The easiest way to create Unmatched Query is by using the Find Unmatched Query Wizard. After the wizard
builds query, we can modify the query's design to add or remove fields, or to modify joins as required.
Unmatched Query Wizard in Access 2010 asks for the names of the two tables to compare, and common field
name between the tables. The wizard then confirms the fields that we wish to retrieve from the first table as a
query result. Finally, the wizard prompts to enter the query name and creates the query.
This type of query can help find records that have no corresponding records in other tables. For example, we
may be looking for products that have not been sold in any order or may be for customers who have not placed
any orders.
1.2.2.2 Problem Scenario
Ankur Mathur, Sales Head of Apex Ltd. wishes to reduce the production of few products. To analyse which
products should not be produced further, he needs to find out the products which have not been ordered so far.
Solution
For the purpose of finding the unmatched products in Sales Item Description, we use Unmatched Query Wizard
and find out products from Inventory table which do not have a matching Item Number in Sales Item Description
table.
Steps for creating Unmatched Query using Query Wizard:
1. Open the Query Wizard by selecting Query Wizard from Create -> Queries, as indicated in Fig.
1.2.11.

Fig. 1.2.11: Open Query Wizard

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2. The New Query window appears, as shown in Fig. 1.2.12.

Fig. 1.2.12: New Query Dialog Box

3. Select Find Unmatched Query Wizard from the New Query window and click OK, as shown in Fig.
1.2.13.

Fig. 1.2.13: Select Find Unmatched Query Wizard

4. The Find Unmatched Query Wizard appears. Select the table Inventory and click Next, as shown in
Fig. 1.2.14.

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Fig. 1.2.14: Select Table Inventory

5. Select the table Sales Item Description from second page of the wizard as we need to compare
Inventory table to Sales Item Description table, as shown in Fig. 1.2.15. Click Next.

Fig. 1.2.15: Select Table Sales Item Description

6. Now, we need to mark the common field in both the tables to be compared. For this example, select
the Item Number in both Inventory and Sales Item Description table and click button, as

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shown in Fig. 1.2.16. Click Next to move to next page.

Fig. 1.2.16: Match the common fields between two tables

7. On the next page in wizard, select the columns that should be the part of query result and click Next.
In this page, select Item Number, Class, Category, Sub Category, Description, Manufacturer, Model
and Cost fields as shown in Fig. 1.2.17. Click Next to move to next page.

Fig. 1.2.17: Select the Fields

NOTE: Use button to move a selected field from Available fields to Selected fields,
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button to move all fields from Available fields to Selected fields, button to move selected
field from Selected fields to Available fields, button to move all fields from Selected fields
to Available fields.
8. Name the Query as “Products without Orders” in the final window that appears and click Finish as
shown in Fig. 1.2.18.

Fig. 1.2.18: Name the query

9. The result of the query appears as in datasheet form, indicating the products that do not have an
order associated with them, as shown in Fig. 1.2.19.

Fig. 1.2.19: Query Result

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1.2.2.3 Duplicate Queries

The Duplicate Queries option creates a query that reports which records in a table are duplicated by matching
one or more fields in the table. The Query Wizard first confirms which fields have to be used to check for
duplication and then prompts to enter some other fields that may be a part of query result. Finally, Access 2010
accepts a name for the query and displays the results as a datasheet.
This type of query is useful when we have no unique indexes or primary key in the table, or the data for the
table is imported from a source where we do not have mechanism to check duplicate values.
1.2.2.4 Problem Scenario
Varun Gupta, a Chartered Accountant in Apex Ltd., is required to audit the invoices and the payments. While
tracking the payments he noticed that multiple invoices have been created for a single sales order. To sort out
the things, he wishes to check all the sales order having duplicate invoices.
Solution
Create a Find Duplicate Query for table Invoices based on the field Sales Order Number so that it displays all
the duplicate invoices created for a single sales order.
Steps for Finding Duplicate records in the table Invoices
1. Open the Query Wizard by selecting Query Wizard from Create -> Queries.
2. Select Find Duplicates Query Wizard from the New Query dialog box and click OK, as shown in Fig.
1.2.20.

Fig. 1.2.20: Select Find Duplicates Query Wizard

3. The Find Duplicates Query Wizard appears. Select the table Invoice and click Next as shown in Fig.
1.2.21.

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Fig. 1.2.21: Select Table Invoice

4. Select the column on the basis of which the duplicate records need to be matched and click Next. In this
scenario, select Sales Order Number as shown in Fig. 1.2.22. Click Next.

Fig. 1.2.22: Select the column for Duplicate values

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5. Select the columns that should be the part of the query result and click Next. In this dialog box, select
Invoice Number, Type of Invoice, Invoice Date, Source of Order and Payments Terms, as shown in Fig.
1.2.23. Click Next.

Fig. 1.2.23: Select the columns for Query Result

6. Name the Query as “Duplicate Invoices” in the final window that appears and click Finish, as shown in
Fig. 1.2.24.

Fig. 1.2.24: Name the Query

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7. The result of the query appears in Datasheet form with all the Sales Order having multiple invoices, as
shown in Fig. 1.2.25.
NOTE: We can create Find Duplicate Query by matching records on multiple fields also. This query can also be
used to find duplicate records in a table by matching records on all the fields (considering that we can match
only 10 fields at a time).

Fig. 1.2.25: Query Result

1.2.3 Grouping and summarising Records using Criteria

Access 2010 provides queries that can be used for obtaining the aggregated results instead of individual
records. These queries may be helpful in retrieving count of records, sum, average, and maximum or minimum
of the values in a column. These queries are known as Group By queries or Totals Query. Such queries can
return the aggregated results from the entire table or the records of the table filtered by a certain criteria.
1.2.3.1 Grouping and summarising Records
At times, it is required to retrieve information in tables based on a group of one or more fields. For example,
total number of contacts from a particular area or a sum of all the payments received in a month. Access 2010
provides a method to obtain the desired result using queries without the need of any complex programming. It
calculates the totals using several aggregate functions.
Access 2010 performs grouping of the records by using Totals option available in the Query Tools tab, as
shown in Fig. 1.2.26.
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Fig. 1.2.26: Totals option in Design tab

The Totals option adds a new row in the Query Designer window which enables the application of summary
functions to columns as indicated in Fig. 1.2.27.

Fig. 1.2.27: Total Row added

A list of Aggregate Functions that can be used with Totals Query is given in Table 1.2.1.

FUNCTION NAME EXPLANATION

Sum() Returns the sum of numeric data for a column or set of values in a column
Count() Counts the set of values that satisfy the given criteria
Avg() Returns average of numeric data for a column or set of values in a column
Max() Returns a maximum value from a set of values
Min() Returns a minimum value from a set of values
Var() Returns the variance of values in a column or set of values
Stdev() Returns a standard deviation for a set of data values
First() Returns the first value from a list of text values
Last() Returns the last value from a list of text values

Table 1.2.1: Aggregate Functions

1.2.3.2 Problem Scenario
The Country Head in Apex Ltd. wishes to compute the sales volume of its products. He also would like to see
the number of orders placed for each product, so that they can focus on products with greater sales volume.

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Solution:
Create a Total query that calculates the count of orders placed for each product and arrange them in
descending order of the counts so as to find the products which are sold more.
Steps for creating a total query
1. Open the Query Design window by selecting Query Design from Create -> Queries, as indicated in Fig.
1.2.28.

Fig. 1.2.28: Opening the Query Design window

2. Select the Inventory and Sales Item Description tables from Show Table dialog box and click Add, as
shown in Fig. 1.2.29.
NOTE: Multiple tables can be selected in the Show Table window by pressing CTRL key and then selecting the
tables.

Fig. 1.2.29: Show Table window

3. Click Close. We can see the two tables with a 1:∞ relationship. This relationship has been created while
creating the database.

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4. Click the Totals button in the Show/Hide group on the Design tab, as shown as Fig. 1.2.30.

Fig. 1.2.30: Click on Totals button

5. Select the fields Category and Item Number from Inventory table and drag them to the Columns tab.
Similarly, select fields Sales Order Number from Sales Item Description table and drag it to Columns tab.
The Query Window appears as shown in Fig. 1.2.31.

Fig. 1.2.31: Select the required columns

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6. In the column Sales Order Number, change the Group By function to Count, as shown in Fig. 1.2.32.
Notice that we have set Group By on columns Category and Item Number, so that the query first groups all the
items according to their category and then all the items in same category on the basis of Item Number. The
Count function with Sales Order Number indicates that we wish to compute the count of total Sales Orders for
a group created.

Fig. 1.2.32: Set the Totals Function

7. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the results. The result of the query appears, as shown in
Fig. 1.2.33.

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Fig. 1.2.33: Query Result

NOTE: The Query result just shows all the products arranged in group of Category and Item Number and their
volume sold. To get the products which are sold more, the column CountOfSales Order Number has to be
arranged in order that it appears from most sold to least sold.
8. Reopen the query in Design View by clicking Design View from Home -> Views.
9. In the column Sales Order Number, set the sort order as descending, as shown in Fig. 1.2.34.

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Fig. 1.2.34: Set the sort order

10. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the result. The result appears as shown in Fig. 1.2.35.

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Fig. 1.2.35: Query Results sorted according to sales of Product

11. Click the Save button on Quick Access Toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as
Product Sales Volume.
NOTE: Queries are required to be saved for future use if the same result is desired again; it saves the effort
and time of recreating the query.
1.2.3.3 Applying Criteria to Records
A criterion limits the records that are displayed as result, on the basis of values in a field. A criterion in Total
queries can be created against Group By, Aggregate Total, Non-Aggregate Total fields. For Group By and
Aggregate Total, criteria can be mentioned using Criteria tab of Query Design window. For the Non-Aggregate
Total field, the criteria can only be specified using the Where clause instead of Group By or Aggregate function
in Total tab of Query Design window.
Using any one, any two, or all three of these criteria, the scope of Total query can be limited to finite criteria.
1.2.3.4 Problem Scenario
Considering the problem of retrieving Sales volume of Products as discussed in Section 2.2.3.1, Country Head
wants to have a look at only the products with at least an order count of three. The management authority also
thought of maintaining the products which are cheaper and have more sales volume.
Solution
Update the Total query Product Sales Volume created above and apply criteria “>=3” on the Sales Order
Number count to ensure that only the products with at least an order count of three are retrieved as a query
result. Also, add criteria “<50” to the Cost field of the products so that management can have a view on the
cheaper products.

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1. Open the query Product Sales Volume in Design view. To do this, right-click the query and select Design
View.
2. In the column Sales Order Number, type “>=3” in the Criteria tab as shown in Fig. 1.2.36.

Fig. 1.2.36: Insert Criteria for Sales Order Number

3. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the result. The result of the query appears as shown in Fig.
1.2.37.

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.
Fig. 1.2.37: Query Result for Products having at least 3 Sales Orders
Now, include only the products which cost less than 50.00 in the query result. Since Cost is a non-aggregate
field, the criteria for the Cost is included in the Where clause of Total tab.
4. Double-click the field Cost in the Inventory table so as to include it into the Field tab of Query Design
window.
5. Change the Group By function of column Cost to Where clause in Total tab and write “<50” in the Criteria
tab, as shown in Fig. 1.2.38.
Note that the Show checkbox is cleared as Cost is a non-aggregate field and not a part of the query
result.

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Fig. 1.2.38: Products with cost <50

6. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the result of the query, as shown in Fig. 1.2.39.

Fig. 1.2.39: Query Result

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7. Click Save at Quick Access Toolbar to save the query.

1.2.4 Grouping and summarizing Records using a Crosstab Query

Crosstab query is an excellent analytical tool. It is a special type of query that can be created to describe one
numerical quantity in terms of two other fields. Crosstab queries are useful for summarizing information, and
are somewhat similar to pivot tables in MS-Excel.
For example, we might want to have a table that contains the sales figures of entire inventory for the whole
year, and the amount of money that is made per product during each month of the year. In this case, a crosstab
query would be the right way to display the information.
Access 2010 provides an option to create Crosstab query through Query Wizard. Each crosstab query will
include one or more Row Heading, a single Column Heading and a Value to be displayed at the intersection of
row and column.
1.2.4.1 Problem Scenario
The company Apex Ltd. wishes to revise the credit limit of its customers. For this purpose, Ashish, the PRO
needs a summary report that indicates the count of orders placed by each customer in every month of last
financial year i.e. 2011-2012.
Solution
To obtain the desired summary report, create a Crosstab query on table Sales Order with month of Sales Date
as row heading, Customer Number as column heading and count of Sales Order Number as values. We create
this query using the Query Wizard.
Steps for creating Crosstab queries
1. Open the Query Wizard by selecting Query Wizard from Create -> Queries
2. Select Crosstab Query Wizard from the New Query dialog box and click OK as in Fig. 1.2.40.

Fig. 1.2.40: Select Crosstab Query Wizard

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3. The Crosstab Query Wizard appears. Select the table Sales Order and click Next as shown in Fig.
1.2.41.

Fig. 1.2.41: Select Table Sales Order

4. The next page in Query Wizard confirms the column to be taken as Row Heading. In this window, select
the column Sales Date as shown in Fig. 1.2.42 and click Next.

Fig. 1.2.42: Select column Sales Date for Row Heading

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5. Select the column to be taken as Column Heading in the next window of the Query Wizard that appears.
In this window, select the column Sold to Customer as shown in Fig. 1.2.43 and click Next.

Fig. 1.2.43: Select column Sold to Customer for Column Heading

6. Next page in the wizard prompts to specify the values that should appear on the intersection of rows and
columns. Select the column Sales Order Number from the Fields tab and Count from the Functions tab
in this page, as shown in Fig. 1.2.44. Click Next.
NOTE: This page has a checkbox Yes, include row sums; which if checked, allows the inclusion of the grand
total of values in the row as a column in the query result.

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Fig. 1.2.44: Select Sales Order Number Count as values

7. Write the name for the query as “Customer-Month wise Sales” in the final window that appears and click
Finish, as shown in Fig. 1.2.45. We can also choose the default query name that the wizard displays.

Fig. 1.2.45: Name the query

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8. The result of the query appears in Datasheet form, as shown in Fig. 1.2.46.

Fig. 1.2.46: Query Result

NOTE: The query result is not as desired as it displays the values on the basis of the Sales Date and not on
Sales Month. To view these results on the basis of Sales Month, we are required to make changes in the query
design and change the column Sales Date to the Month (Sales Date) and also provide a criterion that the
months must be in last financial year.
Steps to group results on Sales Order Month
1. Reopen the query in design view by clicking the Design View from Home -> Views.
2. Click on field Sales Date and write the expression Sales Month: Month ([Sales Date]) in Field tab as
shown in Fig. 1.2.47.
NOTE: We can use the function Month Name() to get names of month instead of numbers in query results.

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Fig. 1.2.47: Change the expression of field Sales Date

Steps to provide the criteria for last financial year

1. Double-click the column Sales Date from table Sales Order such that it appears in Field tab. Change
the value of Total tab to Where and add the expression Between 4/1/2011 AND 3/31/2012 to the
Criteria tab as shown in Fig. 1.2.48.

Fig. 1.2.48: Provide a criteria to Sales Date column

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NOTE: The Access 2010 query window has changed the criteria expression suitable to match column
values.

2. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the modified result as shown in Fig.1.2.49.

Fig. 1.2.49: Query Result

NOTE: The result of the query appears as a 3-dimensional table with Months on rows, Customer No. on
columns and the Count of orders as values.
Crosstab Queries are capable of handling much more complex calculations. These queries can be based on
another query using multiple tables or may use different level of grouping by having more than one row
heading. Also, Crosstab queries can be created by Query Design by changing the query type to Crosstab.

1.2.5 Creating a PivotTable and PivotChart

The powerful tool of MS-Excel PivotTable and PivotChart is also available in Access 2010 to summarize data.
Interactive Pivot Tables and Pivot Charts enable the manipulation of summary data, and therefore can save
ample time to create multiple queries and reports to achieve the same results.
1.2.5.1 PivotTable
A PivotTable is a view in Access Queries that allows summarising and examining data in a datasheet form. It is
used to group values as rows and columns with a calculated value at the intersection of each row and column.
A PivotTable can be considered as a modified form of Crosstab queries discussed in the above section. A
PivotTable is created by dragging fields to the appropriate area on the design screen. Data can also be broken
down to different levels of detail, such as showing earnings by year, quarter, or month.
The PivotTable view in a query can be obtained by selecting the PivotTable View from the Views drop-down in
Home tab as indicated in Fig. 1.2.50.

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Fig. 1.2.50: PivotTable View

The PivotTable is shown in Fig. 1.2.51.

Fig. 1.2.51: PivotTable

A PivotTable has four areas for dropping fields whose values are summarized. The description of these areas is
shown in Table 2.2.2.

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Drop Area Description

Filter Area Is used for the fields that are used as a filter for PivotTable
The fields selected to be displayed as column headings are included in this
Column Area
area
The fields selected to be displayed as row headings are dropped in this
Row Area
area
The field values to be used for calculations or summarization are dragged
Totals Or Detail Area and dropped in this area, and the value is displayed at the intersection of a
row and column

Table 1.2.2: Drop Area in Pivot Table

1.2.5.2 Problem Scenario

The Head of Sales Department in Apex Ltd. has demanded a Sales Summary report for review. The following
are the desired requirements: the sales of the products can be viewed in terms of Year, Quarters and Months;
the report should enable the user to view the products filtered by Category.
Solution
To create this Summary report, first a query is created that displays the Products and their Category, Sales
amount of each product, and also the date on which they were sold. Then to create summary sheet, we create
a PivotTable view of the query having:
 Category field as a filter
 Product field on row
 Year, Quarter and Month on columns
 Total Sales (which is computed as Quantity sold into Product cost) displayed as values
Steps for creating the query to obtain Sales Data
1. Open the Query Design window, by clicking Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Inventory, Sales Item Description and Sales Order tables from Show Table window and click
Add, as shown in Fig. 1.2.52.

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Fig. 1.2.52: Show Table window

3. Select the columns Category and Item Number from Inventory Table and drag them to the columns tab.
Similarly, select column Sales Date from table Sales Order and drag it to the columns tab. The query
window appears as in Fig. 1.2.53.

Fig. 1.2.53: Select the required columns

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4. Now to compute the Total Sales of the Product, multiply Quantity * Price and create a new column. Write
the expression Total Sales: [Quantity]*[Price] in the Field tab of the next column as displayed in Fig.
1.2.54.

Fig. 1.2.54: Compute Total Sales

5. Click Run in Design –> Results to view the query result. The result appears as shown in Fig.
1.2.55.

Fig. 1.2.55: Query Result

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Now, we have achieved the desired result from the query. However, the Summary Report through PivotTable is
required to be created.
Steps for Creating PivotTable from the query
1. Open the query in PivotTable View by clicking PivotTable View from Home -> Views, as displayed in Fig.
1.2.56.

Fig. 1.2.56: Select PivotTable View

2. The PivotTable view appears with the field list on right side as displayed in Fig. 1.2.57.

Fig. 1.2.57: PivotTable View

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NOTE: If the PivotTable Field List does not appear, obtain the list by clicking Field List from Show/Hide
group on the Design tab as indicated in Fig. 1.2.58.

Fig. 1.2.58: Field List Button

3. Select the Category field from PivotTable Field List and drag it to the Drop Filter Fields Here area.
4. Select the Item Number field from PivotTable Field List and drag it to the Drop Row Fields Here area.
5. Select the Year by expanding the Sales Date By Month field and drag it to the Drop Column Fields Here
area. Similarly, select and drag Quarter and Month to the Drop Column Fields Here area.
6. Select and drag the Total Sales field to the Drop Totals or Detail Fields Here area. The PivotTable
window should appear as in Fig. 1.2.59.

Fig. 1.2.59: Drag Fields in PivotTable Area

7. Click Save at Quick Access Toolbar to save the query. Type the name of the query as “Sales
Summary Report”.
If we wish to see the Quarterly sales of all the Products from Personal Watercraft category, the PivotTable
query is obtained as follows:

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8. Open the drop-down in Category Filter Area, clear all checkboxes and check the Personal Watercraft and
click OK as in Fig. 1.2.60.

Fig. 1.2.60: Select Personal Watercraft from Category Filter

9. Click on the negative sign on Quarter tab so that the months disappear. Also, click on the plus sign with
Totals to make the Grand Total appear. Make sure that all the plus signs in Item Number Row are clicked
so as to make the Total Sales value appear. The final query should appear as shown in Fig. 1.2.61.

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Fig. 1.2.61: Quarterly sales of all the Products from Personal Watercraft category

1.2.5.3 PivotChart
A PivotChart is a tool used for graphical analysis of data. In simple terms, PivotChart helps visualize a
PivotTable, Query or a Form. It can display summarized data in different chart formats and enables data
analysis. Data can be presented by using different chart formats as required, and unwanted items can be
hidden from being viewed.
The PivotChart view in a query can be obtained by selecting the PivotChart View from Home -> Views, as
indicated in Fig. 1.2.62.

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Fig. 1.2.62: PivotChart View

A sample PivotChart indicating sales of a Category of Products in each Quarter in a year is shown in Fig.
1.2.63.

Fig. 1.2.63: PivotChart View

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Description of the various headings marked in PivotChart above is given in Table 2.2.3.
Headings Description
X-Axis The horizontal axis in PivotChart
Y-Axis The vertical axis in PivotChart
Legend A table displaying the color code used for each data series in PivotChart
Filter Field A field on basis of which filter can be applied on PivotChart.
Data Field Field values to be shown along the Y-axis.
Category Field Field values to be shown along the X-axis.
Series Field Field values that will form the legend of the graph.

Table 1.2.3: Various fields in PivotChart

1.2.5.4 Problem Scenario
Considering the Summary Sales Report discussed in Section 1.2.5.1, a graphical representation of the same
data is required.
Solution
To represent the data graphically, we need to create a PivotChart. For this purpose, we first create a query to
display Summary Report and then create a PivotChart based on that query. In the Pivot Chart, the fields will be
placed as:
 Category as Filter Field
 Years & Quarters field on X-Axis
 Total Sales on Y-Axis
 Item Number as Series Field
Steps to create a query of Summary Report
Follow the steps discussed in Section 1.2.5.1 to create a query Sales Summary Report and create another
query Graph of Sales Summary Report with columns as Category, Item Number, Sales Date and Total Sales
(Quantity * Price).
Steps to create a copy of Summary Report
1. Double-click the Graph of Sales Summary Report query to open it in the Datasheet view.
2. Open the PivotChart view of the query by selecting PivotChart View from Home -> Views drop-down list.
The PivotChart view appears as in Fig. 1.2.64.

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Fig. 1.2.64: PivotChart View

3. If the Chart Field List is not there, select the Field List option from the Show/Hide group on the Design
tab.
4. Select the Category field from Chart Field List and drag it to the Drop Filter Fields Here area.
5. Select Years by expanding the Sales Date By Month field and drag it to the Drop Category Fields Here
area. Similarly, select and drag Quarters to the Drop Category Fields Here area.
6. Select the Item Number field and drag it to the Drop Series Fields Here area.
7. Select and drag the Total Sales field to the Drop Data Fields Here area.
8. To display the legend, select Legend from the Show/Hide group on the Design tab, as indicated in Fig.
1.2.65.

Fig. 1.2.65: Select Legend option

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9. The PivotChart window should appear, as shown in Fig. 1.2.66.

Fig. 1.2.66: Drag and Drop Fields in PivotChart Area

NOTE: The Total Sales of few products is much lesser as compared to other products that they are hardly
visible on data bar. To solve this problem, the axis has to be changed to Logarithmic axis so as to make data
bars more visible.
Steps for changing the axis to logarithmic axis
1. Right-click on any value in Y-axis so the entire scale is selected and select Properties from the menu, as
shown in Fig. 1.2.67.

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Fig. 1.2.67: Select properties for Y-Axis

2. In the Properties window that appears, go to the Scale tab and check Logarithmic Scale checkbox as
displayed in Fig. 1.2.68.

Fig. 1.2.68: Scale Properties

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3. Close the Properties window.

In order to make graph more explanatory, we will provide a name to X-Axis and Y-Axis of the graph.
Steps for naming Axis in PivotChart
1. Right-click the Axis Title on X-Axis and select Properties from the menu, as shown in Fig. 1.2.69.

Fig. 1.2.69: Open X-Axis Properties

2. In the Properties window, go to the Format tab and change the Caption property to Sales Quarter as in
Fig. 1.2.70.

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Fig. 1.2.70: Change caption of X-Axis

3. In a similar manner, change the caption of Y-Axis to Total Sales. The PivotChart appears as in Fig. 1.2.71.

Fig. 1.2.71: Pivot Chart with Axis Captions

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Now if we wish to see the chart of quarterly sales of all the products from Truck category for the year 2011, the
PivotChart will be obtained as follows:
4. Open the drop-down in the Category Filter area, clear all checkboxes check the Truck checkbox and click
OK as in Fig. 1.2.72.

Fig. 1.2.72: Select Truck from Category

5. In a similar manner, select 2011 from Years drop-down in horizontal axis. The resultant chart appears as in
Fig. 1.2.73 indicating the sale of different items of Truck category, which is maximum in Quarter2 and
minimum in Quarter4.

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Fig. 1.2.73: Quarter-wise Truck Sales

NOTE: Different PivotCharts can be made to represent different kinds of data. Both PivotChart and PivotTable
can also be made directly on tables rather than making a query first.

1.3 Joining Tables in Queries

A Join is a temporary relationship that is created between two tables in a query or the relationship window using
a common field in both the tables having same data type and usually the same name. Joins created in a query
are temporary and are meant for the current query only. Joining tables in a query is required to view data from
two or more tables. For example, to retrieve products ordered by each customer, tables Customers, Sales
Order and Inventory are required to be joined to get the desired output.
When two or more tables are added to the Query Design window, Access 2010 creates Joins between them
based on the relationships that have been defined in the relationship window. Joins establish the criteria that
the data must match to be included in the query operations. If the tables are not joined, the query result will
match each record of one table to every record in another table, resulting in spurious rows. Different types of
joins are available to get a different set of records as query result.
There are three types of joins available in Access 2010: inner join, left outer join, and right outer join.
Inner Join: Returns only those rows from both tables that match on the joining field.
Left Outer Join: The query returns all of the rows from left table, and also those rows from the right table that
share a common value on both sides of the join. Since some of the rows in left table of a left outer join will not
have corresponding rows in right table, some of the fields returned as a query result will be empty when the
rows do not correspond.
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Right Outer Join: It is just the opposite of left outer join. The query using right outer join returns all the rows
from right table, and also those rows from the left table that share a common value on both sides of the join.
1.3.1 Problem Scenario
The Operations Regional Head of Apex Ltd. is required to produce a report giving the details of the payments
received.
For this purpose, two reports are required to be prepared:
 First report indicating the Invoices for which payments have been made, including the invoice and
payments detail.
 Second report displaying a list of all the sales order, their invoices and details of payments, including
those invoices for which payments have not been received.
Solution
To get the desired result, we create two queries:
First query to fulfill the requirement using inner join between tables Invoice and Payments.
Second query to achieve the second requirement which includes Sales Order, Invoice and Payments tables
with an left outer join between Invoice and Payments tables.
Steps to create the first query - to obtain invoices for which payments have been made
1. Open the Query Design window, by clicking Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Invoice and Payments tables from Show Table window and click Add. Click Close.
3. To join the two tables, click the Invoice Number from Invoice table and drag it to Invoice Number in
Payments table. The query window appears, as shown in Fig. 1.3.1.
NOTE: If the tables are already related through relationship window, the joining line automatically
appears between the tables.

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Fig. 1.3.1: Create Relationship between tables

4. Select the columns Invoice Number, Sales Order Number, Type of Invoice, Invoice Date and Source of
Order from the table Invoice and drag them to the columns tab. Similarly, select columns Date Paid, How
Paid, Amount Paid and Amount Alloc from Payments table and drag them to the columns tab. The query
window appears as shown in Fig. 1.3.2.

Fig. 1.3.2: Add required columns

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5. Click the Save button on Quick Access Toolbar to save the query. Type the name of the query as
Payment Made.

6. Click the Run icon in Design -> Results to view the query result displaying invoices with their
payment details as shown in Fig. 1.3.3.

Fig. 1.3.3: Query Result

Steps to create the second query - to display list of all the sales order, their invoices and payments
details, including those invoices for which payments have not been received
1. Open the Query Design window, by clicking Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Sales Order, Invoice and Payments table from Show Table window and click Add. Click Close.
3. To join the tables, click the Sales Order Number from Sales Order table and drag it to the Sales Order
Number in Invoice table. Similarly, join Invoice and Payments table on Invoice Number field. The query
window appears as shown in Fig. 1.3.4.

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Fig. 1.3.4: Join Tables

4. Select the fields Sales Order Number, Sold to Customer and Sales Date from Sales Order table and drag
them to the Columns tab. Similarly, select fields Invoice Number, Type of Invoice, Invoice Date, Source of
Order and Payment Terms from Invoice table and columns Date Paid, How Paid, Amount Paid and
Amount Alloc from Payments table. The query window appears as in Fig. 1.3.5.

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Fig. 1.3.5: Select required columns

5. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the query result as shown in Fig. 1.3.6.

Fig. 1.3.6: Sales Order with Payments

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Notice that these query results are showing only the records for which payments have been received. To get
the records for which the payment are not yet received, the join between Invoice and Payments table has to be
converted to left outer join.
Steps to create left outer join between Invoice and Payments tables
6. Switch to the query design view by clicking Design View in Home -> Views.
7. Right-click the joining line between Invoice and Payments tables and select Join Properties from the
menu, or double-click the joining line. The Join Properties window appears, as shown in Fig. 1.3.7.

Fig. 1.3.7: Join Properties dialog box

8. Select the option 2: Include ALL records from ‘Invoice’ and only those records from ‘Payments’
where the joined fields are equal., and click OK. The Join Properties window appears as displayed in
Fig. 1.3.8.

Fig. 1.3.8: Set the Join Properties to Left Outer Join

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9. The Join line changes to indicate that it is a left outer join. Notice an arrow pointing towards the Payments
table as indicated in Fig. 1.3.9.

Fig. 1.3.9: Left Outer Join between Invoice and Payments tables
10. Click Save on Quick Access Toolbar to save the query. Type the name of the query as Sales Order
Details.

11. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the query result shown in Fig. 1.3.10. Notice that the Date
Paid, How Paid, Amount Paid and Amount Alloc fields from table Payments are blank for few records,
indicating the invoices for which payments have not been received.

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Fig. 1.3.10: Query Result

A more complex join can be created among any number of tables and modified accordingly to get the desired
results.

1.4 Calculated Fields

The Access 2010 query’s result is not restricted to the fields in tables only, but can display many other
computed columns known as Calculated Fields. The Calculated fields can be compared to cells containing
functions or formulas in Excel Worksheet. In Access, these cells can be considered as the columns of the table.
Normalization forbids tables to have columns whose values can be computed using the existing fields.
Calculations in a query are recomputed each time the query is run. As such, data is always current. The results
of the calculations are not stored in a table. A calculated field performs some type of arithmetic calculations on
one or more fields in a table to come up with a completely new field. For example, if a table has an Order Total
field and a Tax Rate field, Access 2010 can calculate these two fields to find out the Sales Tax for each order
as [Order Total] * [Tax Rate].
The calculated fields create new fields in a record by combining the values of other fields in the record.
Calculated fields can store numeric, date, or text fields for each record using expressions and functions.
1.4.1 Problem Scenario
Ramit, an executive in Apex Ltd. is required to produce a report displaying all the sales orders which contains
the field Total Amount Paid as a sum of Tax, Freight and Other Charges.
Solution
As a solution to the above problem, a query has to be created on table Sales Order with a calculated column
Total Amount Paid computed as a sum of Tax, Freight and Other Charges.

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Steps for creating query with Calculated Columns

1. Open the Query Design window, by clicking Create -> Queries -> Query Design.
2. Select the Sales Order table from Show Table window and click Add. Click Close.
3. Select the columns Sales Order Number, Sold to Customer, Sales Date, Payment Terms and Shipped via
from Sales Order table and drag them to the columns tab as displayed in Fig. 1.4.1.

Fig. 1.4.1: Select Required Columns

4. To create the calculated column, write the expression Total Amount Paid: [Tax] + [Freight] + [Other] in the
Field tab of the next column as displayed in Fig. 1.4.2.

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Fig. 1.4.2: Calculated Column - Total Amount Paid

5. Click Run in Design -> Results to view the query result. The result is displayed in Fig. 1.4.3. Note
the calculated column Total Amount Paid in query result.

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Fig. 1.4.3: Query Result

6. Save the query as Sales Order Report and close the query window.

1.5 Summary
Queries are the heart of every database application. Queries are responsible for converting diffuse data
contained in tables into information that users can actually use. Without queries, we would have to write a
complex code for every data extraction and transformation.
This chapter talks about more complex part of queries. Sub-queries, as the name indicates is a query within
query and helps us to retrieve data from multiple tables, and can also be used to replace Joins. The Query
Wizard can be used to create queries like Find Unmatched and Find Duplicate. Apart from this, queries can
generate summary reports using Group By and Crosstab Queries. Queries can be very interactive in terms of
PivotTables and PivotCharts which can be obtained by just changing the query view.
Queries can be based on multiple tables using different types of joins. Joins can be Inner Join or Outer Joins.
Queries provide much more liberty, such as adding newly calculated columns to query result or restrict number
of rows returned by specifying the criteria. Calculated columns enable us to implement normalization by
omitting unnecessary columns in the table and introducing them as calculated columns later.

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1.6 Lab Exercises

1.2.6 Case Study
For the database Apex Inventory Shipment of Apex Ltd., consider the scenario and provide their solutions.
1. The company is launching a new sales campaign for its existing customers. For this, the marketing
department needs the list of customers with the highest credit limit. Create a query using sub-query to
retrieve this list.
2. A sales person made a mistake and skipped entering the item description for an order made by the
customer. Using query, retrieve the sales order information for which the item description has not been
entered.
3. For the above exercise, retrieve the information about the customer who has placed the order so that the
items can be reconfirmed.
4. The company launched its new office in India and asked the sales executive to interact with various people
and enter the details of possible customers in a table named Customers_India. The table has the following
structure:
Field Name Data type
Customer Number Text
Salutation Text
First Name Text
Last Name Text
Company Text
Phone Text
Email Text
Street Text
City Text
State Text
ZIP Code Text

In the absence of any constraints on the table, the sales team ended up inserting duplicate records of a
single customer. Write a query to find these duplicate records. (Consider the Customer Number as unique
for each customer.)
5. The Finance Head who keeps track of their inventory shipped, requires the report displaying the quantity of
items shipped every month of year 2011. Create a Totals query displaying the required data.
6. The company is issuing a discount policy to its customers. For this purpose, the Marketing Regional
Manager needs a detailed report of the customers. The report should contain Customers Names on rows
and Month Name as columns, and count of orders placed by each customer on the intersection cells of
rows and columns.

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7. Create a user interactive report using PivotTable to display payments made by customers. The user should
be able to filter the customers according to their states and should be able to drill the payments in terms of
years, quarters, months and days.
8. Considering the scenario given in the above exercise, create a graphical view using PivotChart indicating
the total payments received quarter-wise from all the customers from a particular city. User should be able
to filter the city on the basis of their country.
9. Create a query containing mailing address list for all the customers with the following field list:
1 Salutation FirstName Last Name
2 Company
3 Street, City
4 State
5 Country
6 Postal Code
10. Display the list of all customers from New York (State Code – NY), with details of items they have ordered
and Total Amount to be paid by them.

1.2.7 Multiple Choice Questions

1. For the database Apex Inventory Shipment of the Apex Ltd., we wish to retrieve records for customers who
have not placed any orders yet. What type of query can be used?
(a) Duplicate Query
(b) Crosstab Query
(c) Find Unmatched Query
(d) Group By query
2. Considering the database Apex Inventory Shipment of the Apex Ltd., how can we display sales grouped by
country, state, and customer, all at the same time?
(a) Use the Sort Descending command
(b) Use the PivotTable View command
(c) Use the Find command on specified groups
(d) All of the above
3. For the database Apex Inventory Shipment, the number of items for each category is required to be
computed, which query type is required to be used?
(a) Select Query
(b) Group By query
(c) Crosstab Query
(d) Duplicate Query

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4. Considering the scenario in question above, which function should be used with Item Number in query?
(a) Count
(b) Compute
(c) Sum
(d) Calculate
5. In the database Apex Inventory Shipment, to see total amount received from Payments table, it should be
dragged into which area of the PivotTable?
(a) Drop Column Fields Here
(b) Drop Row Fields Here
(c) Drop Totals or Detail Fields Here
(d) None of the above
6. Considering the database Apex Inventory Shipment, we wish to get all the sales orders with cash
payments. What needs to be done to achieve this?
(a) Create a sub-query with Sales Order as Payment type
(b) Create a select query on Sales Order table and write Cash as criteria for Payment Terms
(c) Create a Group-By query on Payment Terms
(d) None of the above
7. From the database Apex Inventory Shipment, we wish to retrieve a report displaying details of all the
invoices including the payments details (if already made) of the invoices. What type of Join should be used
in Query window to achieve the desired result?
(a) Left outer join
(b) Right outer join
(c) Default join
(d) No joins will be used
8. How can we add a table to the Query Design window?
(a) Select Create -> Add Table
(b) Select Database Tools -> Add Table
(c) Select Design -> Show Table
(d) Select the table from the Navigation Pane
9. If we are creating a Crosstab query, the table we are querying must contain what?
(a) Lots of confusing information
(b) More than 100 records

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(c) At least one field

(d) At least three fields
10. _______ type of query summarises information in a grid, organized by regions and months.
(a) An update query
(b) A parameter query
(c) An action query
(d) A Crosstab query
11. When we double click a query object, we open
(a) The object in design view
(b) The object in print preview
(c) The result of the query
(d) The underlying table on which the query is based
12. What is the primary difference between a PivotTable report and a Crosstab query?
(a) A PivotTable report can contain sums, counts, and averages, while a Crosstab query cannot
(b) We cannot create a PivotTable from a Crosstab query
(c) A Crosstab query lets us group similar items, while a PivotTable query does not
(d) None of the above
13. In Access 2010, the best types of queries to use for data analysis are:
(a) Select queries
(b) Parameter queries
(c) Action queries
(d) All of the above
14. Which view allows adding tables to the query?
(a) Datasheet view
(b) PivotTable view
(c) PivotChart view
(d) Design view
15. Which type of join in multi-table query permits to view all the records from one table and matching from
another?
(a) Inner Join
(b) Outer Join
(c) Equi Join
(d) Non-Equi Join

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16. For the database Apex Inventory Shipment, we need to present a graphical view of the sales volume of
products. User should have the liberty to view all the products, or products from a particular category. For
this purpose, a PivotChart is created. Which field should be placed in area Drop Series Fields Here?
(a) Category
(b) Total Sales
(c) Month
(d) Item Number
17. For the above question, the area Drop Filter Fields Here should contain _________ field.
(a) Category
(b) Item Number
(c) Years
(d) Month
18. To view the results in Datasheet view of the query created, do the following _____________.
(a) Press F5 key
(b) Click Run on Design tab
(c) Press CTRL + R
(d) All of the above
19. The option in Design ribbon permits us to create what type of queries?

(a) Crosstab Queries

(b) Action Queries
(c) Parameter Queries
(d) Group By Queries
20. For the database Apex Inventory Shipment, if we wish to delete all the invoices for which the payments
were made in last quarter of year 2011, what should be done?
(a) Create a select query and delete records manually
(b) Create a sub-query with action query
(c) Create simple action query
(d) Cannot be done using queries

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2 DESIGNING FORMS AND REPORTS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Advanced Form Design
 Adding Unbound Controls
 Adding Graphics to Form
 Adding Calculated Values
 Adding Combo Boxes
 Make effective use of forms
 Displaying a calendar control on a form
 Organising information with tab pages
 Displaying a summary of data in a form
 Advanced Reports
 Creating customised headers and footers
 Adding calculated values
 Sub-reports
 Make Reports more effective
 Including a chart in a report
 Printing data in columns
 Cancelling the printing of a blank report

2.1 Introduction
Forms help to display, add, modify, and delete data. Different features available in Access 2010 enable to
create forms such that it becomes easier for the users to handle data. Access 2010 provides various methods
to make forms handier and simpler. Different controls can be added to a form to enhance their working. Access
also provides ActiveX controls which are Microsoft control meant for different purposes. A form can be divided
into pages to increase the readability, or can include a summary section to display grouped data.
Reports can be considered as the static version of forms. Reports are the best way to present data to higher
authority and communicate the information to the people. They can be customized using header and footers,
calculated values, and sub-reports to represent linked data. Access 2010 also provides the facility to create
 DATABASE APPLICATIONS USING MS-ACCESS

charts in reports which represents data diagrammatically. Since reports are used for business communication, it
must be available for everyone.

2.2 Advanced Form Design

Forms are an important medium of representing data in Access 2010. Forms are not only used for entering of
data, but also to view the data in a user friendly manner. Access 2010 provides various controls and utility to
make the forms more presentable. For example, forms can contain unbounded controls, graphics, calculated
values, and combo boxes.

2.2.1 Adding Unbound Controls

An Access 2010 Form can contain multiple controls, each having its own significance. These controls can be
selected from Create tab in Forms ribbon. In general, all the controls are bounded to one field of the table or
query the form is based on. However, there are few controls which retain the entered value, but are not linked
with any table fields. These controls can be used for text label display, for controls such as lines and
rectangles, or for holding unbound OLE objects (such as bitmap pictures or logo) that are not stored in a table,
but in the form itself. Unbound controls are also known as variables or memory variables.

2.2.2 Problem Scenario

The database Apex Inventory Shipment has a form frmOrders as shown in Fig. 2.2.1, based on table Sales
Order which keeps track of all the orders placed. The Sales Manager wishes to add a current date on the form,
so that it becomes easy for the user to keep track of dates.

Fig 2.2.1. frmOrders form

Solution
The Database Developer adds an unbounded control, a label to the form and sets its property to store the
current date.

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Steps for adding an unbounded control

1. Right-click the form frmOrders under All Access Objects -> Forms tab. Select Design View from the
dropdown to open the table in Design View, as shown in Fig. 2.2.2.

Fig 2.2.2. Open the form frmOrders in Design view

2. Select the Date & Time control from Design ribbon ->Header/Footer tab. The Date and Time window
appears, as shown in Fig. 2.2.3 select the date & time format from this window.

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Fig. 2.2.3: Date and Time window

3. Click OK to close the window and draw the control on the Form Header portion on the form. The form should
appear, as shown in Fig. 2.2.4.

Fig. 2.2.4: Date and Time unbounded control added to a form

NOTE: In a same way, other controls like shapes, logo, etc. can be added to form. The properties of these
controls can be set to meet user requirements.

2.2.3 Adding Graphics to Form

Attractive forms are always a valuable addition. Access 2010 makes it easy to add a graphic to the background
of a form, such as a “watermark” which appear on expensive bond paper. The picture can contain a company
logo, text, or any other graphic element. The picture is specified by the form’s picture property and can be
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embedded in the form or linked to an external file. If the picture is linked, the graphic displayed on the form
changes any time the external file is edited.
The graphic can be inserted into the form in the following ways:
1. Import a graphic file (clip art, gif, jpeg, bmp, etc.) directly into the form.
2. Attach a link to the graphic that opens a website or other database object.
3. Associate the graphic with an existing macro in the database.

2.2.4 Problem Scenario

Consider the frmOrders discussed in section 2.2.1. The Database Developer wants to make it more presentable
and thought of adding a picture to the background of the form.
Solution
The picture can be set as form background using the image control. Select the picture to be added, draw the
image control and adjust its properties to make image as a background.
Steps for adding graphics
1. Right-click the form frmOrders under All Access Objects -> Forms tab. Select Design View from the
dropdown to open the table in Design View.
2. Select the insert image button from Design ribbon -> Controls tab and drag it to cover the Details section of
the form.
3. The Insert Picture window appears. Browse for the picture to be inserted and click OK to close the window.
The Insert Picture window is displayed in Fig. 2.2.5.

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Fig. 2.2.5. Insert Picture window

4. The form after the picture is inserted appears, as shown in Fig. 2.2.6.

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Fig. 2.2.6: Image inserted in form frmOrders

5. The picture is required to move to the back of controls. Right-click the picture and select Position -> Send to
Back from the dropdown, as indicated in Fig. 2.2.7.

Fig. 2.2.7. Send the picture to back of controls

6. The form appears, as shown in Fig. 2.2.8.

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Fig. 2.2.8. Form with Graphics

7. Select the picture and press F4 to view its properties. In the property sheet, move to format and set the Size
Mode property of picture to stretch, as shown in Fig 3.2.9.

Fig. 2.2.9. Set the image property

8. The final form appears, as in Fig. 2.2.10.

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Fig. 2.2.10. frmOrders with Graphics inserted

NOTE: While adding a graphic to the form, a link to that graphic can also be created. The link ensures that the
changes made to original file are also reflected in form.

2.2.5 Adding Calculated Values

Access 2010 provides many features to give forms enhanced behavior and a modern look. One of the major
requirements in Access 2010form that it can be display computed results. These results may be bounded to
some field in the table or may be unbounded. For example, we may need to display the complete name of the
customer instead of displaying the first name and last name separately.
Calculated controls can use any of the existing function or user build function available in Access 2010.
Calculated values can also be expressions computed with a combination of other fields and operators.

2.2.6 Problem Scenario

Consider the form frmOrders discussed in section 3.2.1. The Manager wishes to add another date in form,
which may indicate when the order will reach customers. This date can be computed as 15 days after the date
of shipment.
Solution
A textbox is added to the form.This textbox contains calculated value, which is computed as 15 days + date of
shipment.
Steps to add calculated values to form
1. Right-click the form frmOrders under All Access Objects -> Forms tab. Select Design View from the
dropdown to open the table in Design View.
2. Select the textbox control from Design ribbon -> Controls tab and draw it on the details section of the
form. The form should appear, as in Fig. 2.2.11.

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Fig. 2.2.11. Insert Textbox in Form

3. Double-click the label and type Delivery Date instead of Text25. Similarly, double-click the textbox and type
=DateAdd("d",15,[Ship Date]). The form should appear, as shown in Fig. 2.2.12.

Fig. 2.2.12. Specify values for Textbox control

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NOTE: The formatting of the new added textbox can be copied from above cells.
4. Select Form View from Home ribbon -> Views tab to open the form in Form View. Confirm the textbox
displays the calculated value.

2.2.7 Adding Combo Boxes

Combo boxes in Access 2010 provide a way of selecting a value from a list. This is quicker than remembering
which value to type and ensures that the entered value is valid. A combo box is a compact method of
presenting a list of choices and allows user to enter a value that is not in the list.
The values in a combo box are displayed by clicking the arrow at the end. In combo box values can be selected
by clicking it or by typing the first few characters of the value into the text box area of the combo box. If the
Auto Expand property is set to Yes, the default setting, Access 2010automatically fills in the rest of the value.
Combo box consists of rows of data with one or more columns, which can appear with or without headings. One
of the columns contains the values to be stored in the field (bound control) or use for other purposes (unbound
control); the other columns contain explanatory information.

2.2.8 Problem Scenario

Consider the form frmOrders created in section 3.2.1.Theexecutives are making many mistakes while typing the
reference of the customer to which orders are sold. The Sales Manager asked the Database Developer to find
the solution to this problem.
Solution
The Database Developer thought that it will be a good way to add a combo box for the customers. Users will
have an option to choose the value from the list or type a new value if required, thereby decreasing the typing
mistakes.
Steps to add a combo box in Form
1. Right-click the form and select Design View from the dropdown to open the form in Design View. The form
appears, as shown in Fig. 2.2.13.

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Fig. 2.2.13: frmOrders in Design View

2. Delete the Sale to Customer textbox.
3. Select the Combo Box control from Design ribbon -> Controls tab and draw it in the place of Sale to
Customer textbox. The Combo Box wizard appears, as shown in Fig. 2.2.14.

Fig. 2.2.14. Combo Box wizard

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4. Select the first option i.e. I want the combo box to look up the values in a table or query and click Next.
5. In the Select Table or Query window, select the table option from View tab and choose table Customer
from the list, as indicated in Fig. 2.2.15. Click Next to continue.

Fig. 2.2.15. Select the required table

6. In the Select Field window, select field Customer Number from Available field and click on sign to put
it into selected fields. Similarly, add First Name and Last Name to selected field. The window appears, as
shown in Fig. 2.2.16. Alternatively, the user can double-click the fields to add them to selected field.

Fig. 2.2.16. Add field to Combo Box

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NOTE: Even if the multiple fields are selected to be displayed in Combo Box, the Primary Key will be stored
in table or form.
7. Click Next to continue. In the Sort Order window select Customer Number as 1. This is indicated in Fig.
2.2.17.

Fig. 2.2.17. Select Customer Number for Sort Order

8. In the Hide Key Column window, uncheck the Hide Key Column checkbox, as shown in Fig. 2.2.18. Click
Next to proceed.

Fig. 2.2.18. Uncheck Hide Key Column Option

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NOTE: Hide Key Column hides the Primary Key to be displayed as a value in combo box, though internally
only Primary key is stored.
9. The next window confirms a unique value to be stored in table. Select Customer Number and click Next, as
indicated in Fig. 2.2.19.

Fig. 2.2.19. Select Field to be stored in Table

10. In the next window that appears, select the option Store the value in this field and select the value Sale to
Customer from the dropdown, as indicated in Fig. 2.2.20.
NOTE: The first option Remember the value for later use is used in case of unbound controls.

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Fig. 2.2.20. Select field to store the value

11. Click Next to make the Name window appear. Type the name cmbCustomers for the Combo Box and click
Finish to close the wizard, as indicated in Fig. 2.2.21.

Fig. 2.2.21: Type Name for Combo Box

12. The Sale to Customer combo box appears on the form, as displayed in Fig. 2.2.22.

Fig. 2.2.22. Combo Box added in form

13. Set the formatting of the label and combo box to make it more presentable. Open the form in Form View to
verify the added combo box. The form should appear, as shown in Fig. 2.2.23.

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Fig. 2.2.23. The Combo Box List appears

2.3 Make effective use of Forms

Most databases provide forms for data entry and for viewing data. Access 2010 provides few techniques that
help enhancing the usability of forms, and in turn, the productivity of the users of database. Forms are used by
most of the users on a regular basis, and hence it is very crucial to make the effective use of forms. Adding
more capabilities to forms helps to save user time and work, and also present data in a more organised way.
Some of the extended functionality of the form can be:
 Adding calendar control on a form
 Organising information with tab pages
 Displaying a summary with tab pages

2.3.1 Displaying a calendar control on a Form

To make forms more presentable and user friendly, different types of controls can be added to forms. These
controls can be as simple as controls that are available in the design ribbon -> controls tab, or can be a third
party ActiveX control. ActiveX controls are usually graphical objects that do not operate as standalone
solutions, and they run only in the Windows environment.
Calendar control is one of the most popular ActiveX controls. While working with dates, it is always helpful to
have a calendar nearby. If a form contains a date field, it is always good to add a calendar control which
displays dates graphically and make the form more user-friendly. The calendar control provides properties that
enable to set and retrieve dates in/from a table.

2.3.2 Problem Scenario

Database Designer of Apex Ltd. has designed the frmOrders form to be used for Sales Orders table, as shown
in Fig. 2.3.1 The Supervisor of the Customer Service Group informs the designer that the people taking orders
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often need to refer to a calendar to answer customer questions, such as when they will receive a shipment. A
calendar is necessary so that the customer service employees can take weekends and holidays into account
when they make an estimate as to when orders will be shipped.

Fig. 2.3.1. frmOrders Form

Solution
A Calendar control is added to all the date fields to make the form convenient for the users. The Database
Developer adds a calendar control for Sales Date and Ship Date for users to pick up date graphically.

Steps to add a Calendar Control

1. Right-click the frmOrders and select Design View from the dropdown to open the form in Design View, as
shown in Fig. 2.3.2.

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Fig. 2.3.2. Open form frmOrders in Design View

2. From Design ribbon -> Controls tab, click the Insert ActiveX Control Command .
3. The Insert ActiveX control window appears. SelectCalendar Control 11.0 from the list and click OK, as
shown in Fig. 2.3.3.

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Fig. 2.3.3. Select Calendar control

4. The Calendar control is placed in the upper-left corner of the form. Drag it to the required position. The
frmOrders after inserting the Calendar control appears, as displayed in Fig. 2.3.4.

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Fig. 2.3.4: Calendar control inserted on the form

5. Select the Calendar control and press F4 to open the Property Sheet for the Calendar control
6. Move to the data tab in property sheet. Click the arrow next to the Control Source property, and choose
Sales Date from the list, as shown in Fig. 2.3.5.

Fig. 2.3.5. Set the Control Source property

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NOTE: The Calendar control has many properties that you can set to create a custom appearance.
7. To set other properties of Calendar control, click on button in the Custom property in Other tab. The
Calendar properties appear, as shown in Fig. 2.3.6.

Fig. 2.3.6. Calendar Properties

2.3.3 Organising information with Tab Pages

A Tab control is an Access 2010control that allows user to create multiple pages in one form. Each page is
separated by its own tab and becomes active when the user selects a tab. Tab controls are useful for
presenting grouped information that can be assembled by category. A tab control has pages, each with a tab of
its own. Each tab page can contain all types of controls, such as text boxes, combo boxes, images, and even
command buttons.

2.3.4 Problem Scenario

The Sales Manager asks the Information Analyst to store the information of the customer which could be
displayed in a friendly manner, such that the customer’s personal details and company details can be viewed
separately.
Solution
The Information Analyst advises the developer to divide the information into separate tab in a form. One tab in
the form should contain customer contact detail, while the other can contain customer’s company details, and
third tab can contain customer’s terms with the company.
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Steps to add tab in a form

1. On the Create ribbon -> Forms tab, click Blank Form to create a new form, as shown in Fig. 2.3.7.

Fig. 2.3.7: Open a blank Form

2. From the Field List window, open the plus sign with Customers table and drag the fields Customer Number,
First Name, Middle Name and Last Name to the form. The form appears, as shown in Fig. 2.3.8.

Fig. 2.3.8. Add Fields to a blank form

NOTE: If the field list window does not appear, click on Add Existing Field from Design ribbon -> Tools tab.
3. Click Home ribbon -> Views tab -> View and select Design View from the dropdown to open the form in
Design View. The form appears in Design View, as shown in Fig. 2.3.9.

Fig. 2.3.9. Form in Design View

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4. Extend the size of the form as required. Click on tab control in Design ribbon -> Controls tab and draw
it into the form. The form appears, as shown in Fig. 2.3.10.

Fig. 2.3.10. Add tab control to a form

5. Double-click the tab Page28. Property sheet appears. Type the value Personal Details in Name property,
as shown in Fig. 2.3.11.

Fig. 2.3.11. Change the name of first tab

6. In a similar manner, change the name of the second tab to Company Details. Right-click the Tab control
and select Insert Page from the dropdown to add a new tab and change its name to Other Details. The
form should appear, as in Fig. 2.3.12.

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Fig. 2.3.12. Add three tabs to Form

7. Move to the Personal Details tab, and select the field Street, City, Country, Zip/Postal Code, Phone, Other
Phone, and Email from the Field List window. The resultant form is displayed in Fig. 2.3.13.

Fig. 2.3.13: Add required field to personal Details tab

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8. In a similar manner, add the fields CompanyName, Company Details and Job Title to the Company Details
tab and also the fields Credit Limit, Payment Terms, Comments, and Document submitted to the Other
Details tab.
9. A tabbed form is prepared. Now the user can navigate between different tabs to view the information
required.
10. Save the form as frmCutomers.

2.3.5 Displaying a Summary of Data in a Form

Presenting a summary of data can be very useful to users who access database. PivotCharts and PivotTables
are created in forms to display a summary of data. Pivot Table is used to summarize and analyzes data in a
form. The idea of Pivot Table is to let users slice and dice the data in any way required at a given moment in
time. Pivot Table represents the data in spreadsheet form, while Pivot Chart represents the same data in a
graphical form. Both Pivot Chart and Pivot Table are different views of a form.
Pivot Table represents the data in tabular form, in which one or more vales are represented in rows, another
value in columns, and a summarized value at the intersection of row and column. Forms that lend themselves
to be displayed in PivotTable or PivotChart view provide many ways for users to manipulate data. An example
of such a form is one that contains information about country, city, salesperson, sales, and date of sale. Such
form can be used to determine sales by city and salesperson for each month, or sales in each country for each
salesperson during the year.

2.3.6 Problem Scenario

The Sales Manager wishes to see the summarized data of sales. He requests the Database Developer to
create a form in such a manner, that it should display the summarized data in terms of cost of Item Sold per
year, per country. For example, he needs a report displaying summary of the items sold country wise and state
wise in year 2008 Quarter-2.
Solution
The Database Developer first creates a query based on table Sales Order, Customers, Sales Item Description,
and Inventory and fetches the required data from it. Once query is created, then a form using pivot table option
is created over the query.
Steps for creating a query
1. Open the Query Design window by clicking Create ribbon ->Queries tab -> Query Design.
2. Select the tables Customers, Sales Order, Sales Item Description and Inventory table from the Show Table
window. Click OK to close the window. The Query Design window appears, as shown in Fig. 2.3.14.

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Fig. 2.3.14. Query Design window

3. Select Country and State from the Customers table and drag them to the Add Columns tab. Similarly add
the column Sales Date from Sales Order table and Item Number from Inventory table. Also add a
calculated column as Total Sale: [Quantity] * [Price]. The resultant query window is displayed in Fig. 2.3.15.

Fig. 2.3.15. The query Design window

4. Save the query as SummarizedData and run to confirm the results.
Steps for creating a Pivot Table Form
1. Select the query SummarizedData under All Access Objects -> Queries tab. From the Create ribbon ->
Forms tab ->, click the dropdown arrow near More Forms and select Pivot Table from the list, as indicated
in Fig. 2.3.16.

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Fig. 2.3.16. Select the Pivot Table option

2. The Pivot Table window appears along with the field list, as shown in Fig. 2.3.17.

Fig. 2.3.17. The Pivot Table window

NOTE: If the Field List window does not appear, click Design ribbon -> Show/Hide tab and Field List.
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3. Open the plus sign of the field Item Number and drag the field to Drop Row Fields Here. Open the plus sign
of Country and State drag Country and then State to Drop Column Fields Here. Similarly, open the plus
sign for Total Sale and drag the column Total Sale to Drop Totals or Detail Fields Here, and open the plus
sign of Sales Date By Month and drag the fields Years and Quarters to Drop Filter Field Here. The resultant
Pivot Table window is shown in Fig. 2.3.18.

Fig. 2.3.18. Pivot Table window

4. Click the dropdown arrow of Sales Date by Month field. Deselect the Select All option and open the plus
sign of year 2008, and select Qtr2 from the year 2008, as shown in Figure 2.3.19.

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Fig. 2.3.19. Select the required year

5. The Pivot Table window displays the sales made for each item country and state wise in Quarter2 of year
2008.
NOTE: Pivot Table gives you a flexibility of selecting the desired data and view the data according to your
requirements.

2.4 Advanced Reports

Reports are one of the best ways to represent data. Reports can be made more advanced and more user
friendly to represent the data in a more organized form. The Reports can include customized Headers and
Footers such as to display the company Logo or the department. Also the calculated controls can be added to
report to display computed values.

2.4.1 Creating Customised Headers and Footers

Reports can include pairs of header and footer sections:
 Report Header and Footer for printing information at the beginning and end of the report.
 Page Header and Footer for printing information at the top and bottom of each page.
 Group Header and Footer for printing information when the group starts or the group ends, if groups exist in
the report.
To add a header/footer pair, right-click in the report design and choose Page Header/Footer or Report Header/
Footer from the shortcut menu. Page and report headers and footers are added as pairs, while In Group only
Headers can be added.

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Controls in the Report Header & Footer section are printed only once at the beginning and the end of the report.
A common use of a Report Header section is as a cover page or a cover letter, or for presenting information
that needs to be communicated only once to the user of the report. The Report Footer section can be used to
display the summarized data of whole report, like author of report, date & time, etc.
Controls in the Page Header & Footer section are normally printed at the top and bottom of every page.
Typically, Page Headers serve as column headers in group/total reports; they can also contain a title for the
report. A Group Header section normally displays the name of the group. Group Headers immediately precede
Detail sections. A Group Header is added to the report if any grouping is done in the report.
Each Header& Footer section in reports can be customized from their traditional look to meet user’s
requirement. Different controls can be added to header and footer. The textboxes or labels can be used to
display a user-defined message. Various functions and expression can be used to display summary results and
computed data.

2.4.2 Problem Scenario

The Database Developer has prepared a report rptCustomers to display all the details of the customers, as
shown in Fig. 2.4.1. The Zonal Sales Head requires the report to be customized; each page of the report must
contain the Report Title at the top and date & time at bottom.

Fig. 2.4.1: Report rptCustomers

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Solution
The Database Developer adds a Page Header & Footer to the report and customizes the Page Header to hold a
label with Report Title, and Page Footer to contain the date & Time using Date Time control.

Steps to customize Page Header & Footer of the Report

1. Right-click the report rptCustomers under All Access Object -> Reports tab and select Design View from
the dropdown to open the report in Design View. The Report Design View should appear, as in Fig. 2.4.2.

Fig. 2.4.2: Report rptCustomers Design view

2. Expand the Page Header section. Select a label control from Design ribbon -> Controls tab and draw
it on the Page Header section, as indicated in Fig. 2.4.3.

Fig. 2.4.3. Add Label to Page Header

NOTE: If Report Header does not appear right-click the report and select Page Header /Footer to view
them.

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3. Type the text Customers into the label and format it according to the requirement, as shown in Fig. 2.4.4.

Fig. 2.4.4. Add Title to Label

4. In a similar manner, add a Textbox control to the Page Footer of the report from Design ribbon ->
Controls tab. The resultant report appears, as shown in Fig. 2.4.5.

Fig. 2.4.5: Add Textbox to the Report

5. Delete the label of the Textbox and type =Now() in the textbox. The report appears, as shown in Fig. 2.4.6.

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Fig. 2.4.6. Add Textbox in Page Footer

6. Right-click the report and deselect Report Header/ Footer to remove the report header and footer. This is
optional. The report header can contain some different text and can be displayed.
7. Open the report in Report View format by selecting Report View from Home ribbon -> Views tab to verify
the data. The report should appear as in Fig. 2.4.7. Note that each page of the report contains the Report
Title and Date/Time.

Fig. 2.4.7. Report View

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2.4.3 Adding Calculated Values

Reports in Access 2010 can be modified to display the data as per user requirements. In general, reports
contain fields from the table, but many times it becomes necessary to add some computed values in reports.
These computed values may count, sum, or calculate an average of the numeric values in a group created in
the report. Also, these computed values can be calculated using one or more fields in a table, for example, to
display the total cost by multiplying quantity and price.
The calculated values in reports are added using a text box and specifying an expression. The liberty of
displaying computed values helps to display the reports in a user-friendly format. The calculated values in the
report can be displayed in two ways: using queries with calculated columns and creating reports based on
them, or by computing values in the report itself using Expression and Functions. The calculated values in
queries are displayed as fields in reports which use them.

2.4.4 Problem scenario

Consider the report rptCustomers discussed in section 3.4.1.The Sales Head wishes the customer name should
be displayed as a complete name, not as first name and last name. He requests the Database Developer to
implement the change.
Solution
The Database Developer adds a calculated value that concatenates first name and last name in the report
rptCustomers and replaces the First Name and Last Name textboxes.
Steps to add Calculated Values
1. Right-click the report rptCustomers under All Access Objects -> Reports tab and select Design View from
the dropdown. The report appears in Design View, as shown in Fig. 2.4.8.

Fig.2.4.8: report in Design View

2. Select the First Name and Last Name textboxes and delete them. Add a new Textbox control from
Design ribbon -> Controls tab.
3. Drag the Textbox in place of First Name and Last Name textboxes. The report should appear, as shown in
Fig. 2.4.9.

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Fig. 2.4.9. Add Textbox control to Report

4. Delete the Textbox Label and type the text = [First Name] + “ “ + [Last Name] in the textbox. The report
window appears, as shown in Fig. 2.4.10.

Fig. 2.4.10. Write the expression in calculated control

5. Add a label control from Design ribbon -> Controls tab in the Page Header tab along with other
headings. The Report should appear, as in Fig. 2.4.11.

Fig. 2.4.11. Add Label Control to Page Header

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6. Type text Name in label and format the label accordingly. The Report should appear, as shown in Fig.
2.4.12.

Fig. 2.4.12: Format the label

7. Select Report View from Home ribbon -> Views tab to open the report in Report View. The resultant report
should appear, as in Fig. 2.4.13.

Fig. 2.4.13. Report view

2.4.5 Sub-Reports
Sub-Report is a report that is inserted in another report. A sub-report, a complete report in its own right, is
inserted into another report, called the Main Report. Main Report can be either bound or unbound. A bound
main report is based on a table or query and its sub-reports contain related information. An unbound main
report is not based on a table or query, but can serve as a container for one or more sub-reports. A main report
can include as many sub-reports as necessary. The sub-reports can be added to two hierarchy levels.

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Sub-Reports are usually an extension of data in main report. For example, the main report can contain details
about the sales in a year, while the sub-report can show data for sale of each item or charts and graphs
summarising and illustrating the numbers in the main report. If a sub report is inserted in a bounded main
report, it should contain some field to link to main report.

2.4.6 Problem Scenario

Consider the Report rptCustomersdiscussed in section 3.4.1. The Regional Head notices that the database
users face a big problem while tracing the orders placed by each customer. He asks the Database Developer to
create a user-friendly object which can display both the customer’s details and orders placed by the customer.
Solution
The Database Developer decides to add a sub report to the report rptCustomers which include details of the
orders placed by the customers. For this purpose, the table Sales Order is used and the fields Sale to Customer
from Sales Order and Customer Number from Customers are mapped.
Steps to add a Sub Report to Main Report
1. Right-click the report rptCustomers and select Design View from the dropdown to open the report in Design
View.
2. In the Design View, expand the Details section. Select the sub-report control from Design ribbon ->
Controls tab and draw the control in Details section.
3. The SubReport Wizard appears, as shown in Fig. 2.4.14.

Fig. 2.4.14. SubReport Wizard

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4. Select the option Use Existing Tables and Queries and click Next to proceed further, as shown in Fig.
2.4.15.

Fig. 2.4.15. Select option to use existing table

5. In the Select Table or Query window, select the table Sales Orders from the list. Select the fields Sales
Order Number, Sale to Customer, Sales Date, Ship Date from selected field to available field, as shown in
Fig. 2.4.16.

Fig. 2.4.16. Select required Table

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6. Click Next to advance. The Link Field window appears. Select Customer Number from Forms/Reports field
and Sale to Customer from Subforms /Sub reports field. The Sub Report Wizard appears, as shown in Fig.
2.4.17.

Fig. 2.4.17. Link fields of main report and sub report

7. Click Next to proceed to Name of Sub report window. Provide a suitable name to your sub report, and click
Finish to close the window as indicated in Fig. 2.4.18.

Fig. 2.4.18: Provide a name to the sub report.

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8. Open the resultant report in Report View by selecting Report View from Home ribbon -> Views tab. Final
report appears, as shown in Figure 2.4.19.

Fig. 2.4.19. Customers and Orders placed by them

2.5 Make Reports more effective

Reports are a way of communicating database information. By customizing reports, the information can be
presented in the most effective format. A customized report developed by using Access 2010 tools can reach a
wider audience and enable more users to handle them. Different methods to make reports effective can be:
 including charts in a report
 printing data in columns
 canceling the printing of a blank report
 creating report snapshot

2.5.1 Including a Chart in a Report

Chart is a graphical representation of information used to illustrate quantitative relationships. It is a diagram that
depicts a relationship, often functional, between two sets of numbers or between a set of numbers and a set of
categories.
Microsoft Graph is used to chart data from any of the database tables or data stored within other applications. It
creates graphs in a wide variety of styles, such as bar graphs, pie charts, line charts, and others. Because
Microsoft Graph is an embedded OLE application, it does not work by itself. As such, it has to be run from
within Access 2010. In other words, it is dependent on Access 2010.

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Different Chart Types

Chart Type Purpose
Column Chart Used to compare multiple values of categories or differences over a period of time.
The horizontal axis depicts categories and the vertical axis depicts values.
Bar Chart Used for the same purposes as a Column Chart. However, the horizontal axis of a Bar
Chart shows values and the vertical axis shows categories or periods of time.
Area Chart Used to emphasize differences in individual values to the total, over a period of time.
Line Chart Used to compare trends over a period of time.
Pie Chart Used to show the relationship of a part to the whole. It is suitable for depicting one
data series or data at a point in time.

Charts can be included in reports to illustrate the information more clearly. Charts enhance the data presented
in reports by summarising the information and illustrating it in easily understandable ways. The reader can
analyse trends and make comparisons using charting tools. The chart can be linked to a field in the underlying
table or query.

2.5.2 Problem Scenario

The Sales Head wishes to create a summary report. The report should show the quarterly total sales for each
category. The Sales Head requests the Information Analyst to show a diagrammatic representation of the
report.
Solution
The best way to display the summary report is to create charts to represent the data. The charts can be
included in a report, and based on a query to show its diagrammatic representation.
Steps to Include Chart in Report
1. The Query Sales data represents the summarized data for per quarter sale. The design of the query is
displayed in Fig. 2.5.1.

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Fig. 2.5.1. Sales Data Query

2. Select Report Design from Create ribbon -> Reports tab. A blank report opens.

3. Select Chart control from Design ribbon -> Controls tab and draw it on the report. The Chart Wizard
appears, as shown in Fig. 2.5.2.

Fig. 2.5.2. Chat Wizard

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4. Select the Queries option, and select Query: Sales Data from the list, as indicated in Fig. 2.5.3.

Fig. 2.5.3. Select Queries Sales Data

5. Click Next to advance. The Select Field window appears. Select all the fields: Category, Qtr, and Sales, as
shown in Fig. 2.5.4.

Fig. 2.5.4. Select required fields

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6. Click Next to proceed. In the Choose Chart Type, select the Column Chart and click Next.
7. In Preview Chart window drag field Qtr to Axis, Category to Series and Sales to Data as shown in Fig.
2.5.5. Click Next to advance.

Fig. 2.5.5. Drag the fields to chart

8. Specify the title for the chart and select the Display Legend option. Click Finish to close the window.
9. The resultant chart appears, as shown in Fig. 2.5.6.

Fig. 2.5.6. The Sales Data Report

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NOTE: The chart object can be modified by right-clicking and selecting Chart Object -> Edit from the dropdown.
Also, the chart object can be embedded with existing data in the report so that the chart changes with each
record display.

2.5.3 Printing Data in Columns

Reports are a handy tool to represent data. The visibility of the reports makes an impact on how data can be
viewed. Some of the reports may involve long lists of just a few fields of data—such as a phone or product list.
These may be best arranged in multiple columns for better readability.
While working with many databases, it is natural to come across some that consists of long lists of information.
As a result, printing such data can mean printing a single column on many pages.
The multiple columns for the report can be set using the Report Page Setup property and setting the number of
columns to 2 or more, as shown in Fig. 2.5.7.

Fig. 2.5.7. Select multiple columns from Page Setup

2.5.4 Cancelling the Printing of a Blank Report

If a report contains no records, the detail area of the report will be blank. While printing reports, it is not be
advisable to print blank report. Macros can be used to cancel printing of a blank report and thus save time and
effort. Depending on the availability of data, certain records may be absent in a report and printing a blank
report would be meaningless.

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To cancel previewing or printing of a blank report when the underlying query has been run with no records
returned, the On No Data event of the report is used.

2.5.5 Problem scenario

The Database Developer has prepared a report CustOrders, which accepts the customer’sfirst name and
displays all orders placed by the customer in the current quarter. However, most users while printing the report
found that the even when the query returns no results, the report is printed. They requested the Database
Developer to resolve the problem.
Solution
The report event On No Data can be used to cancel the printing of report when no data is returned.
Steps for Canceling the Print
1. Open the CustOrders Report in Design View.
2. Press F4 to open the property sheet of report. Make sure that the report is selected in the Selection Type
textbox. On the Event tab, select the property On No Data, as indicated in Fig. 2.5.8.

Fig. 2.5.8. Property Sheet of Report

3. Select button of On No Data property.Choose Builder window appears. Select Macro Builder and click
OK as shown in Fig. 2.5.9.

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Fig. 2.5.9. Open Macro Builder

4. In the Macro Builder window, select Action MsgBox and specify the value of message Arguments as No
Records Found, Title as Customers Orders, as indicated in Fig. 2.5.10.

Fig. 2.5.10. Specify MsgBox Action

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4. Specify the second action as CancelEvent and click the Close button to close the Macro window. The
confirmation message appears, as indicated in Fig. 2.5.11.

Fig. 2.5.11. Confirm to close the macro

5. Click Yes to save the macro and close the message window. The macro now appears on No Data event.
6. Open the report and verify that the macro is working.

2.6 Summary
Forms and Reports are a crucial part of data representation in Access 2010. Access 2010 provides various
utilities to make Forms and Reports more user-friendly and presentable. Different controls can be added to
forms to display the logo of the company, date and time, and pictures. Forms also permit the inclusion
calculated values and combo boxes which make it much easier to handle the controls and present data to user.
This control helps make data handling easier for the user. Access 2010 provides various ActiveX like calendar
control to make forms more interactive. Sometimes, it is required to display the information on a form in groups.
The tab control available with Access 2010 can be used for this purpose. The popular utility for summarizing
data of Pivot Table to summarize data is also available in Access 2010.
Reports represent static data, but are a useful way of communicating. Reports in Access 2010 can be
customized to user’s requirements including its header and footers. Another crucial feature available with
reports is sub-reports, which enable data linking in several tables. Apart from this, we can add charts and
calculated controls to reports to make them more visible. The properties of reports can be used to avoid printing
of blank reports.

2.7 Lab Exercises

Considering the Apex Inventory Shipment database of Apex Ltd. Provide a solution to the following problem
scenarios:
1. The Sales Manager of the company has demanded a form displaying the details of the orders, containing
with Items ordered, Shipping Details and Invoice Information. Design the form Order Details as displayed in
Figure below. Create tabs to represent the data.

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On the Order Details Form created in Question1 implement the Question 2 to 7:

2. In the Order Details form, convert the Customer Textbox to Combo Box which contains Customer Number
and Company Name.
3. To make the Order Details form more user-friendly, add a calendar control to the form to select the Order
Date.
4. The Sales Manager asked the developer to add a logo of the company the Order Details form as the form
will be circulated among all divisions.
5. The database developer needs to make the form more presentable and has to add a picture on the
background of each tab. Implement the needful.
6. In the Order Details tab of the form, add a calculated value that calculates the Total Price as Qty * Unit
Price – Discount as shown in Figure below:

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7. The Sales Manager of the Company wishes to launch some sales promotional offers. He requested the
database developer to create a form which should display the summarized count and cost of Orders placed
by each customer on Quarter and month basis. He should also be able to view the same results for a
particular category. Create a form containing Summary of Data.
The developer of Apex Inventory Shipment database needs to create Item Sales report. The report should
be grouped by Category and then Item and should display quantity and price of Item sold. The report is
displayed in Figure below:

Implement the Questions 8 – 14 based on the report Item Sales.

8. Add a calculated control Total Sales on the report that should display the Total Sales as Price * Quantity.
9. Add a Page Header and Footer on the Report. The header must contain the logo of the company and
Footer must contain the current Quarter and Month.
10. Compute the Total Sales for each product in group footer.
11. Include a pie chart in the Category group footer that should display the ratio of sales of each product in that
category. The report should look like as in Figure below:

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12. The details of the Sales of Item were to be presented in the Monthly meeting as a hardcopy. So the
Manager asked the executive to get the report into columnar format so that is more readable. Remove the
Page Headers and the chart, and print the report in two columns.
13. For the Annual review of the sales, the Vice President demanded a report displaying the product sales by
month. The reports should display the products from a particular category, which is given by the user. The
report should represent the data diagrammatically using charts. Create the required Report.
14. The Sales Manager found that there are few categories which are not produced any more by the company
but are not discarded in the report. As a result if such category is entered, a blank report gets printed. As a
report administrator, cancel the printing of the blank report.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. The controls that are not linked to any field of the table or query on the form are known as ________.
(a) ActiveX control
(b) Unbounded Controls
(c) Graphics Control
(d) Bound Controls
2. The Vice President of the Company wishes to add the image of the company vision statement as a
background of all the forms. Which control can be used for the purpose?
(a) Calendar Control

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(b) ActiveX control

(c) Image Control
(d) Graphics Control
3. Which of the Header in reports can be viewed separately from the Footer?
(a) Page Header
(b) Group Header
(c) Report Header
(d) All of the above
4. The Manager requested the developer to create a Inventory form in a manner such that the Product’s
description is stored in one group, the cost and supplier information another group. Which is the best
control to display the required information?
(a) Use the Tab Control
(b) Use SubForms
(c) Add ActiveX Control
(d) None of the above
5. Which property of the form can be used to insert a background image?
(a) Caption
(b) Background
(c) Record Source
(d) Picture
6. The Sales Executive while filling the details of the orders placed find it very difficult to type the name of
each product every time it is ordered. They demanded that the form should provide them a drop down to
select the product to be ordered. How can we implement the required?
(a) Using the query in the form
(b) Using the Combo Box control
(c) Using a SubForm
(d) Cannot be done
7. The Calendar control can be selected from _______________
(a) Microsoft Office-> Access Options
(b) Design -> Controls
(c) Design -> Controls -> ActiveX controls
(d) Create -> Forms

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8. The Regional Sales Head demanded a summary report indicating the monthly sales done by each
employee in each zone. Which kind of form is best to display the required data?
(a) Use tabbed browsing
(b) Insert an Image in form
(c) Insert SubForm
(d) Create Pivot Table
9. To print the multi-columnar report, the number of columns can be set through _________ property.
(a) Report property sheet
(b) Page Setup
(c) Report wizard
(d) Grouping
10. The persons from the delivery team found it very annoying that even when the reports contained no data,
they are printed and they have to search for such reports among all the printed data. They requested the
developer to find the solution to this problem. Which property of report can be used to implement the
requirement?
(a) CancelPrint
(b) CancelEvent
(c) Create a macro called On No Data
(d) Create a macro called On Print
11. To display the data of the Products and the orders placed for each product in the current month. The
following feature available in Reports can be used.
(a) Report Wizard
(b) Nested Reports
(c) Grouping
(d) SubReports
12. The Regional Head wishes to view the diagrammatic representation of data indicating the sales made by
each zone in his region. Which feature can help to implement the requirement?
(a) Graphics
(b) ActiveX
(c) Charts
(d) Pivot Table
13. To display the list of employees grouped according to first letter of their name, which type of controls can
be used in reports?

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(a) Use Calculated values in group

(b) Add grouping control
(c) Add Function control
(d) Add ActiveX control
14. Which property of the control is used to bind it to a field of a table or a query?
(a) Data
(b) Record Source
(c) Field
(d) None of the above
15. Each tab in a tab control is known as _________.
(a) Page
(b) Data Tab
(c) Control Page
(d) Control
16. The Sales Manager requested a summary form which should enable him to choose the category and
display the monthly sale of each product in the category. In the created Pivot Table Form, The category
field should be placed in which area?
(a) Drop Row Fields Here
(b) Drop Column Fields Here
(c) Drop Totals or Detail Fields Here
(d) Drop Filter Field Here
17. A developer created a report displaying the information of customer grouped according to country and
state. To add a count of customer in each state the count textbox should be placed in which section of the
report?
(a) Page Footer
(b) Report Footer
(c) State Group Footer
(d) Country Group Footer
18. The SubReport in the main report can be inserted to _______________ hierarchy level?
(a) 7
(b) 3
(c) 2
(d) 4

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3 BUILDING CRITERIA EXPRESSIONS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Using operands in Criteria Expressions
 Using built-in functions
 Working with Expression Builder

3.1 Introduction
Expressions in Microsoft Access 2010 can be considered similar to formulae in Microsoft Excel. Expressions
are a combination of operands, operators, functions, and values that are evaluated according to their order of
precedence. Expressions can be used with tables, queries, forms, reports, and macros. In Access, expressions
are used to obtain calculated values, provide criteria, and query or supply constraint to table columns. Access
also provides a powerful user interactive graphical tool to create expressions known as Expression Builder.
In this chapter, we will discuss how to build criteria expressions in Access. We will also look at using various
components of an expression for building query criteria. This chapter will also identify various operators
available in Access 2010. Next, we will discuss the available built-in functions in Access. We will discuss the
different type of functions and their utilisation. Further, this chapter will cover how to use Expression Builder to
create expressions using Objects, Functions, Operators, and Identifiers.

3.2 Using Operands in Criteria Expressions

Query criteria are the most important part of any query as they permit users to select only the desired records
from an existing table. An operand is a value on which a calculation is performed. In other words, an operand is
a data value that gets manipulated in the query expression. Operands can be literals, identifiers, or functions.

3.2.1 Literals
A literal is value that is not addressed by any name. It can be typed directly into the criteria expression. In
Access, literal can be of type number, text, date, or logical value (i.e. True or False). Literals are also referred
as constants as their values remain static throughout the evaluation of expression.
Examples of literal:
“Hello” + “ “ + “Everyone” , Here Hello and Everyone are Text literals
[Date] > #1/1/2011#, Here 1/1/2011 (1-Jan-2011) is a Date literal
 BUILDING CRITERIA EXPRESSIONS

3.2.2 Identifiers
Identifiers are variables. In Access, identifiers represent field name, table name, or control name. Identifiers are
a crucial part of expression building as they specify the column to which an expression represents. While
creating an expression in Access, identifiers are always represented in square brackets [ ].
Examples of identifiers used in an expression:
[Basic Salary] + [Tax]: Where Basic Salary and Tax are identifiers

3.2.3 Functions
Functions provide specialised operations to enhance the working of Access. Functions are built-in expressions
that take an input, perform necessary calculations on it, and return the output. The input accepted by the
function is called arguments; a function may have one or more number of arguments. Access provides us
different functions to work with different type of data, such as Text functions, Date and Time functions, Numeric
functions, and Mathematical functions.
For example, a text function Length takes an input string as an argument and returns the length of the string in
number as:
Length (“MS Access”) will return 9.
3.2.3.1 Problem Scenario
Apex Ltd. is launching a new production unit in “California”, which will also focus on some new products. To
promote these products a detailed list of all existing customers from “California” (state code CA) is required.
Solution
To achieve this, a query displaying Name, Contact Info, and Address of the customers is required. To get only
the customers from “California”, the value CA in the criteria for the state field needs to be specified. Here, CA
is a literal operand and is typed direct in query criteria.
Steps for creating required query
1. Click Create ribbon -> Other -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select Customers from Show Table and click Add, as displayed in Fig. 3.2.1.

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Fig. 3.2.1. Show Table window

3. Select the columns Salutation, First Name, Middle Name, Last Name, Company, Street City, State,
Zip/Postal Code Phone, and Email from table Customers and drag them to the columns tab. The Query
window appears, as shown in Fig. 3.2.2.

Fig. 3.2.2. Select Required Columns

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Now, we will add criteria to get records from “California”.

4. In the Criteria tab of field State, write the literal “CA”, as indicated in Fig. 3.2.3.

Fig. 3.2.3. Specify criteria for State

5. Click Save in the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Customers from California”.
6. Click the Run sign in Design ribbon -> Results to view the results of the query, as shown in Fig. 3.2.4.
NOTE: Literals are usually combined with operators to form complex expressions for query criteria.

Fig. 3.2.4. Query Results

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3.3 Using Operators in Criteria Expressions

Operators make the expression complete. They are special symbols, such as +, -, used with operands to
perform calculations. Every operator has a specific meaning and a symbol. Operators help create expressions
with the combination of identifiers and values. Every operator is executed according to its priority.
For example: In [BasicSalary] + [Tax], “+” is an operator.
Different types of operators are:
 Comparison operators
 Arithmetic operators
 Miscellaneous operators
 Compound criteria and logical operators

3.3.1 Comparison Operators

Comparison operators, also known as relational operators, define relation between two identifiers or two values
by comparing them. These operators can be used with Numeric or Date data type.
Comparison Operators are listed in Table 3.1

OPERATOR NAME EXPLAINATION

> Greater Than Num1 > Num2 returns true if Num1 is greater than Num2
< Less Than Num1 < Num2 returns true if Num1 is less than Num2
>= Greater Than Equal Num1 >= Num2 returns true if Num1 is greater than or Equal to Num2
to
<= Less Than Equal To Num1 <= Num2 returns true if Num1 is less than or equal to Num2
<> Not Equal To Num1 <> Num2 returns true if Num1 is not equal to Num2
= Equal To Num1 = Num2 returns true if Num1 is equal to Num2
Table 3.1: Comparison Operators

3.3.2 Arithmetic Operators

Arithmetic operators, commonly known as mathematical operators, are used with numeric data to perform
calculations.

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Arithmetic Operators are displayed in Table 3.2.

OPERATOR NAME EXPLAINATION
+ Addition
- Subtraction
* Multiplication
/ Divide Returns integer as a result of division of integer numbers and
decimal as a result of division of decimal numbers, that is, 5\2 will
return 2.5 and 5\2.5 will return 2.
\ Integer Divide Returns integer as a result of division, that is, 5\2 will return 2 and
5\2.5 will return 2.
^ Exponentiation Computes power, that is, the result of 5^3 is 125.
Mod Modulo Returns the remainder of the division of two integers, that is, 5/2
will return 1.
Table 3.2: Arithmetic Operator

3.3.3 Miscellaneous operators

In Access, a special set of operators is used with multiple data types. These operators provide an additional
functionality to create expressions. Some of the miscellaneous operators are – LIKE, Between, IN, Is Null etc.
3.3.3.1 The LIKE Operator
The LIKE operator works with text or date data type. LIKE is used to match text patterns in the query criteria.
This operator uses various wildcards to form different patterns. The various wildcards that can be used with
LIKE are mentioned in Table 3.3.

Wildcard Explanation Example

* Denotes any number of LIKE ‘A*’ will match all the characters
characters (0 or more) starting from A
For example, Accounts, Audit
? Denotes a single character LIKE ‘B??K’ will match all the text with
B as first letter, k as last letter and 2
letters in between.
For example- Book, Back
# Denotes a single digit LIKE ‘#ABC’ will match text which
starts from a digit followed by ABC.
[xyz] Denotes a set of characters LIKE [ABC]* will match all text starting
from either A, B, or C.
Table 3.3: Wildcards with LIKE operators

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3.3.3.2 The Between… And Operator

The Between operator is used with Numeric and Date data type to obtain a set of values within a specified
range of values.
For Example:
Between 10 and 20 will give all the values within the range of 10 and 20 including 10 and 20.
Between #1/1/2011# And #8/1/2011# will return all the dates between 1-Jan-2011 And 1-Aug-2011.
(Note that dates are included between # and are written in “mm/dd/yyyy” format).
3.3.3.3 The IN operator
The IN operator is used to match a value to a set of values given. This operator can be used with Numeric,
Text, or Date data types.
For Example:
[Month] IN (‘Jan’, ‘Feb’, ‘Apr’, ‘May’) will match all the month values which are either from the specified values.
3.3.3.4 The IS NULL operator
The IS NULL operator is used to find the null records in table. We use IS with NULL to indicate all the record
which are null in the table. Note: Null is not “0” or “blank”.
For Example:
[Discount] IS NULL will return all the records with [Discount] value as NULL.
Similar to IS NULL, IS NOT NULL searches for non-null values.
For Example:
[Advance Amount] IS NOT NULL will return all records where [Advance Amount] is not null.

3.3.4 The Logical Operators

A logical operator results in expression that returns True or False. These operators are used to combine
multiple expressions. They are also known as Boolean operators.
The logical operators are listed in Table 3.4.
OPERATOR NAME EXPLAINATION
And Logical And Returns True if both the expressions compared are True
Or Logical Or Returns True if either of the expressions compared is True
Eqv Logical Exclusive Nor Return True if either both the expressions are True or both
the expressions are False
Xor Logical Exclusive Or Return True if either of the expressions is True
Not Logical Not Works with a single expression and returns True if the
expression is False
Table 3.4: List of Logical Operators
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3.3.5 Understanding the Operator Precedence

Access permits to create complex expressions containing multiple operators. To evaluate these expressions,
Access determines which operator to evaluated first, and then which is next, and so forth according to a
predetermined order. This order is known as operator precedence. Every operator is assigned a precedence
order and is calculated in the same order.
The only exception to this rule is parenthesis (). Parentheses are used to group expressions and override the
default order of precedence. Operations within parentheses are performed before any operations outside them.
Within the parenthesis all operators are computed on basis of their precedence.
Operator precedence is similar to BODMAS order that is followed in algebra. Parenthesis or brackets over here
perform the same function to change the priority order of operators.
Note: BODMAS =

B Brackets first
O Orders (ie Powers and Square Roots, etc.)
DM Division and Multiplication (left-to-right)
AS Addition and Subtraction (left-to-right)

Operators are first preceded in the order of their category and then within each category each operator has its
own precedence order. Operators precedence according to their category is displayed in Table 3.5, from the
highest to the lowest.

Operator Category Precedence Order

Arithmetic I
Comparison II
Boolean III
Table 3.5: Operator Precedence according to Category
Table 3.6 displays precedence of each operator within different categories from the highest to the lowest.

Category Operator Symbol Precedence Order

Arithmetic
Exponentiation ^ I
Multiplication and/or division (left to right) *,/ II
Integer division \ III
Modulo Mod IV
Addition and/or subtraction (left to right) +, - V

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Comparison
Equal = I
Not equal <> II
Less than < III
Greater than > IV
Less than or equal to <= V
Greater than or equal to >= VI

Logical
Not I
And II
Or III
Xor IV
Eqv V
Imp VI
Table 3.6: Operator Precedence within Category

3.3.6 Using Compound Criteria

Queries can help retrieve data in any form. Queries are usually created on multiple criteria, known as
compound criteria.
There are two types of compound criteria - “AND” and “OR.”
3.3.6.1 AND Criterion
In AND, compound criteria will return results only if each individual criterion is true.
For example, if we add criteria to the query from the Customer table as:
[State] = “CA” AND [Credit Limit] > 500000, it will return customers from California who have credit limit greater
than 500000.
The AND criteria in a query designer is specified by writing all the criteria in some row of the Criteria tab, as
shown in Fig.3.3.1.

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Fig. 3.3.1. Specifying AND compound criteria

3.3.6.2 OR Criteria
The OR compound criteria are used in queries where we need to match either of the criterion specified in query
criteria. OR returns result even if any criterion is true.
For example, if we add criteria to the query from the Customer table as:
[State] = “CA” OR [Credit Limit] > 500000, it will return all customers who are either from California or who have
credit limit greater than 500000.
The OR criteria in a query designer is specified by writing all the criteria in different rows of the Criteria tab, as
shown in Fig. 3.3.2.

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Fig. 3.3.2: Specifying OR Compound Criteria

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3.3.6.3 Problem Scenario

This case study focuses on the operators discussed above and how to use them as a Criteria Expression.
At the end of a quarter, Country Head of Apex Ltd. wishes to review the following data:
 A report displaying all sales orders placed in from January to March 2008.
 All inventory details from the “Car”, “Snowmobile”, and “Boat” categories along with the details of the order
placed for them.
 A list of all the products that were sold with a quantity greater than 5, or the price greater than 1000.
 A contact list for all Customers whose first name starts with A, B, or C.
Solution
For creating the query containing the report of Sales Order, the query will be created on the Sales Order table,
using “Between” and ”And” operator in query criteria.
The inventory details query will contain the Inventory table and Sales Item Description. The query criteria will be
based on the IN operator.
For obtaining the list of products, query needs to be based on Inventory and Sales Item Description containing
compound criteria.
To retrieve the contact list of Customers, query will be based on the Customers table and the criteria for the first
name will contain the LIKE operator.
Steps for creating query containing the report of Sales Order
1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select the Sales Order table from the Show Table window and click Add, as shown in Fig. 3.3.3.

Fig. 3.3.3. Show Table window

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Select all the columns from the Sales Order table and drag them to the Columns tab. The Query window
appears, as shown in Fig. 3.3.4.

Fig. 3.3.4. Select Required Columns

3. In the Criteria section of the Sales Date column, write the criteria BETWEEN 1/1/2008 AND 3/31/2008. Set
the Sort order of column as Ascending, as shown in Fig. 3.3.5.
NOTE: The Query Builder window formats the date with # sign.

Fig. 3.3.5. Specify Query Criteria

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4. Click the Run sign in Design ribbon -> Results to view results, as shown in Fig. 3.3.6.

Fig. 3.3.6. Query Result

5. Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Sales Order QTR1”.
Steps for creating inventory details query
1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select the Inventory and Sales Item Description table from the Show Table window and click Add, as
shown in Fig. 3.3.7.

Fig. 3.3.7: Show Table Window

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3. Select Item Number, Category, Sub Category, Description, and Model from the Inventory table and drag
them to the Columns tab. Similarly drag Sales Order Number, Quantity, Unit, and Price. The Query
window appears, as shown in Fig. 3.3.8.

Fig. 3.3.8: Specify Required Fields

4. In the Criteria section of the Category column write the criteria IN (Car, Snowmobile, Boat), as shown in
Fig. 3.3.9.

Fig. 3.3.9: Specify Criteria for Column

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5. Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Inventory Sales”.
Steps for creating the query to obtain the list of products
1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select the Inventory and Sales Item Description table from the Show Table window and click Add.
3. Select Item Number, Category, Sub Category, Description, and Model from the Inventory table and drag
them to the Columns tab. Similarly, drag Sales Order Number, Quantity, and Price. The Query window
appears, as shown in Fig. 3.3.10.

Fig. 3.3.10. Specify Required Columns

4. In the Criteria section of the Quantity column write the criteria > 5. In the next row, write the criteria for
Price as > 1000. The Query design window should appear as shown in Fig. 3.3.11.
NOTE: Since this is an OR compound criteria, both the criteria are written in different rows.

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Fig. 3.3.11. Specify Compound Criteria

5. Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Inventory Sales – Qty Price”.

6. Click in Design ribbon -> Results to view the results, as shown in Fig. 3.3.12.

Fig. 3.3.12. Query Results

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Steps for creating query to retrieve the contact list of Customers

1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select the Customers table from the Show Table window and click Add.
3. Select Customer Number, First Name, Last Name, Company, City, State, Country, and Phone from
Customers and drag them to the Columns tab. The Query window appears, as shown in Fig. 3.3.13.

Fig. 3.3.13. Specify Require Fields

4. In the Criteria section of the First Name column write the criteria LIKE “[ABC]*”. The wildcard [ABC]* with
operator LIKE specifies that it should match any string starting from A, B, or C. Also set the sort order of
the First Name field to Ascending. The Query Design window should appear as shown in Fig. 3.3.14.

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Fig. 3.3.14. Specify Query Criteria

5. Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Customers Contact List – ABC”.

6. Click in Design ribbon -> Results to view the results, as shown in Fig. 3.3.15.

Fig. 3.3.15. Query Results

Many complex Criteria Expressions for a query can be created using the combination of operators and
operands. Combining multiple criteria and different operators can help get the required data.

3.4 Using the Built-In Functions

Built-In Functions provide specialized operations to enhance the working of Access. We can perform
mathematical, financial, comparative, and other operations using functions.
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Some useful types of functions available in Access are:

 Mathematical
 Date/Time
 Financial
 SQL Aggregate
 Text

3.4.1 Using Text Functions

Text functions are used to perform various operations on strings, such as manipulating strings, concatenate the
string, extracting a portion of string.
Some useful string functions are listed in Table 3.7.
FUNCTION NAME EXPLAINATION EXAMPLE
Left() Returns specified number of Left(“Access”,3) will return Acc
characters from left of the string
Right() Returns specified number of Right(“Access”,3) will return ess
characters from right of the string
Mid() Returns specified number of Mid(“Access”,2,3) will return 3 characters from 2
characters from the given position in positions, that is, cce
string
Len() Returns the length of the given Len(“Access”) will return 6
string
Lcase() Converts the text to lower case Lcase(“ACCESS”) will return access
Ucase() Converts the text to capital case Ucase(“access”) will return ACCESS
Instr() Returns the position of first Instr(“Operations”,”ra”) will return 4
occurrence of a string in another
string
Trim() Removes leading or trailing spaces Trim(“ Acc ess “) will return “Acc ess”
in a text
Replace() Converts a substring from the given Replace(“Account Transactions”,”Account”,”Daily”)
string into specified string returns Daily Transactions
Strcomp() Compares two strings Strcomp(“Access”,”Access”) returns 0
Returns
0 if strings are same. Strcomp(“Access”,”Training”) returns -1 as
1 if first string is greater the second. “Training” is greater than “Access”
-1 If first string is less than the
second.
StrReverse() Returns the string in reverse order StrReverse(“access”) returns “ssecca”
Table 3.7: Text Functions

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3.4.2 Using Date and Time Functions

These functions are used to handle Date and Time data. This group contains various functions such as
extracting a part of date or adding two dates.
Few of the important Date/Time functions, are shown in Table 3.8.
FUNCTION NAME EXPLANATION EXAMPLE
Now() Returns current date and time Now()
Returns 07/18/2012 12:20:55
Date() Returns current date Date()_
Returns 07/18/2012
Time() Returns current time Time()_
Returns 12:30:15
DateDiff() Returns difference two dates. The DateDiff (“m”,#7/18/2011#,#12/3/2011#)
interval for difference can be in terms Returns 5 as the difference between two
of Days (“d”), months(“m”), Quarter dates in terms of months is 5.
(“q”), years(“yyyy”), weeks (“ww”)
DateAdd() Adds a specified interval to the given DateAdd(“q”,1,#1/11/2012#) will return
Date. Intervals in this can be used as 4/11/2012
same in DateDiff As a Quarter added to January returns
April.
DatePart() Extracts a portion of a date from the DatePart(“ww”,#2/3/2012#) returns 6
given date
Month() Returns month in integer from the Month(#12/1/2011#) returns 12
given date
MonthName() Returns name of the month, that is, MonthName(12) returns December
given as an integer
Year() Returns year from a given date Year(#2/2/2012#) returns 2012
Table 3.8: Date and Time Functions

3.4.3 Using Math Functions

Math functions are used for performing calculations on Numeric data. These functions provide us the property
of performing various mathematical operations.

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Some important mathematical functions are listed in Table 3.9.

FUNCTION EXPLANATION EXAMPLE
NAME
Abs() Returns the absolute value of a number Abs (14) returns 14
Abs(-14) returns 14
Fix() Returns the nearest integer for a negative number Fix(-125.64) returns -125
Int() Returns an integer for a specific value Int(23.64) returns 23
Round() Returns a number rounded to specified number of Round(18.234,2) returns 18.23
digits Round(18.246) return 18.25
Rnd() Returns any generated random number Rnd() returns any Random no.
Sgn() Returns an integer representing sign of a number - Sgn(-14) returns -1
1 for –ve number
1 for +ve number
0 for Zero
Sqr() Returns square root of a number Sqr(16) returns 4
Log() Returns logarithm of a number
Table 3.9: Math Function

3.4.4 Using Financial Functions

Financial functions are used to perform many standard financial calculations, such as interest rates, annuity or
loan payments, and depreciation.
Some extensively used financial functions are listed in Table 3.10.
FUNCTION EXPLAINATION EXAMPLE
NAME
DDB() Returns the double-declining balance DDB(cost, salvage, life, period[, factor])
method of depreciation return based on the If we calculate depreciation for Rs.5, 000
formula: computer with a Rs.200 salvage value and
Depreciation / period = ((cost salvage) * an estimated useful life of three years for the
factor) / life first year.
DDB(5000,200,3,1)
FV() Returns the future value of an annuity based FV(Rate, Payment Periods, Payment [,
on periodic, fixed payment and fixed interest Present Value] [, Type])
rate If we calculate Future value for a rate of 8%
for 10 installments depositing an amount of
Rs. 200 monthly. FV will be calculated as:
FV(0.08/12,10,-200)
PV() Returns the present value of an annuity PV (Rate, Payment Periods, Payment [,
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based on periodic, fixed payments to be Future Value] [, Type])

paid in future and fixed interest rate To calculate Present value of an annuity that
will provide 5,000 a year for the next 20
years at a rate of .0825. We will use:
PV(.08,5000,20)
SYD() Returns the sum-of-years depreciation of an SYD(Cost Of Asset, Salvage Value, Length
asset for a specific period Of Useful Life, Period)
To calculate the depreciation charges of a
building that cost 365820 to build has a
salvage value of 5390, and an estimated
useful life of 30 years. We will use function
SYD as:
SYD(365820,5390,15,1)
PMT() Returns the payment for an annuity based To calculate a payment amount for a 6
on periodic, fixed payment and fixed interest percent loan of 360 months for 110000. The
rate formula will be:
PMT(.005, 360, -110000)
RATE() Returns the interest rate per period Rate (nper, pmt, pv [, fv ] [, type ] )
To calculate interest rate on a Rs. 5,000
loan where monthly payments of Rs.250 are
made for 2 years
Rate(2*12,250,5000)
Table 3.10: Financial Functions
3.4.5 Problem Scenario
The Operations Manager of Apex Ltd. received many complaints from customers about the orders not reaching
them on time. He wants a report to be submitted for all the orders which were delayed (under normal cycle
orders must be shipped within 7 days).
Solution
The required query will use the tables Sales Order, the criteria will be placed on shipped date using the
DateDiff () function.
Steps for creating a query
1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
Select the Sales Order table from the Show Table window and click Add.
2. Select the columns Sales Order Number, Sold to Customer, Sales Date, Ship Date, Shipped Via. The
Query window appears, as shown in Fig. 3.4.1.

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Fig. 3.4.1. Select required column

Specify the criteria for Shipped Date as DateDiff("d",[Sales Date],[Ship Date])>7. The DateDiff() function
returns difference between two dates, “d” forces it to return it in terms of days. The query looks like, as shown
in Fig. 3.4.2.

Fig. 3.4.2. Specify Query criteria using Functions

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3. Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as Orders Delayed.

4. Click in Design ribbon -> Results to view the results, as shown in Fig. 3.4.3.

Fig. 3.4.3. Query Results

3.5 Working with Expression Builder

The Expression Builder tool in Access helps build complex expressions. It contains easy access to access
names and properties of columns of the tables. Expression Builder also contains a set of predefined functions
in Access and also some prebuilt expression as to display page numbers.
The Expression Builder window is shown in Fig. 3.5.1.

Fig. 3.5.1: Expression Builder Window

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3.5.1 View of Expression Builder

Expression box - A text box in which expressions are written. Any value from the Operators button or
Expression Elements can be pasted into Expression Box.
Operator buttons - Various operators are available in the Operators Buttons tab. We can just click any
operator to get it in the Expression Box text box.
Expression elements – Expression element contains three tabs
 First one is for the objects in the database like Tables, Queries, Forms, or Reports.
 Second is for the sub elements of the objects selected in the First tab like fields of the table, containers in
Reports and Forms.
 Third is for the properties of the element selected in second tab.

3.5.2 Complete view of all the three tabs in Expression Elements

The first tab contains functions, the second contains different types of functions, and the third contains all the
functions in a particular type.
Click the Paste button to get any function in Expression Box, as shown in Fig. 3.5.2.

Fig. 3.5.2. Three tabs in Expression Elements

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3.5.3 Problem Scenario

Consider the case scenario discussed in section 3.3.4 database Apex Inventory Shipment. The Marketing
Manager of Apex Ltd., found that there were few orders which were prepared on time, but could not be sent
because of customer details are not available. By mistake, a sales executive while typing has put a wrong
customer number. Customer Number general format is XXX-0000, where X represents character and 0
represents any digit. The executive has inserted five digits instead of four. List the names of all such customers.
Solution
For this query, again the Sales Order table needs to be used. The criteria would be formed using the text
function Len (), length of Customer Number is normally 8 but would be 9 in this case. Expression Builder can be
used to specify the criteria.
Steps for second creating query
1. Click Create ribbon -> Queries -> Query Design to open the Query Design window.
2. Select the Sales Order table from the Show Table window and click Add.
3. Select the Sales Order Number Sold to Customer, Sales Date, Ship Date, Shipped Via columns.
4. Right-click on the Criteria tab of the Sold to Customer column and select Build from the drop-down, as
shown in Fig. 3.5.3. The build will open the Expression Builder window.

Fig. 3.5.3. Select build from drop down

5. The Expression Builder window appears, as shown in Fig. 3.5.4.

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Fig. 3.5.4. Expression Builder window

6. The expression in the criteria should be Len ([Sold to Customer]) > 8. To include the length () function,
select Functions -> Built-In functions from first tab, Text on the second tab, and Len on the third tab from
Expression Elements in Expression Builder, as displayed in Fig. 3.5.5.

Fig. 3.5.5. Select Len function

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7. Double Click the Len function to include expression in Expression Box, as shown as in Fig. 3.5.6.

Fig. 3.5.6. Paste the expression

8. Now the string which is a part of the Len () function must be replaced by field name. To do this select
Table -> Sales Order from the first tab, Sale to Customer from the second tab in Expression Elements part
of Expression Builder.
9. Select the string argument of the Len () function and Double click to Paste the argument in Len() function.
The column Name (Sale to Customer) will be pasted in place of string, the Expression Builder looks like as
in Fig. 3.5.7.

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Fig. 3.5.7. Place the required column as function argument

10. Now click on > (Greater Than sign) from the Operators tab so that it gets pasted on Expression Box and
write 3 after that so the Expression Builder window looks like as in Fig. 3.5.8.

Fig. 3.5.8. The Complete expression

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11. Click OK to save the expression. Note the written expression appears in criteria of the Sale to Customer
field, as shown in Fig. 3.5.9.

Fig. 3.5.9. Expression appears in Criteria

Click on the toolbar to save the query. Type the name of query as “Sale to customer Criteria”.

12. Click in Design ribbon -> Results to view the results, as shown in Fig. 3.5.10.

Fig. 3.5.10. Query Results

The Expression Builder makes it easier to remember function names and also avoids typing error in the name
of the columns. The operators’ option can be used to place all the available operators in criteria expression.

3.6 Summary
This chapter focused on creation of criteria expressions in Access 2010. The different components of the
expression are – operators, operands, and functions. Operands can be considered as values used for
performing operations. Operands can be further distinguished as literals, identifiers, and functions. Further, this
chapter introduced different types of operators as – comparison, arithmetic, logical, and miscellaneous.
Functions are built in code to help us work better with expressions. There are different types of functions
available in Access to work with different data types. Various functions available are - Text Function, Date and

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Time Functions, Math Functions, and Financial Functions.

Expressions can be written directly or by using an interactive tool Expression Builder to create expression.
Expression Builder has various tabs as Expression Box, Operator Buttons, and Expression Elements.

3.7 Lab Exercises

For Apex Inventory Shipment database of Apex Ltd. Provide a solution to the following problem scenarios:
1. A sales executive while inserting records in the Sales Order table by mistake inserted the Sales Date with a
previous year. For instance, instead of 1/2/2012, he typed 1/2/2011. Write an Update query to add 1 year to
all the dates which were written in previous year.
2. The Finance manager came to know that there had been a problem in receiving payments that were paid
through Cheque or Electronic Card. Create a record set displaying all the invoices that were paid through
Cheque, Master Card, or Visa Card.
3. For year-end review, the Vice President of the Company needs a report displaying a list of all the
customers, and value and count of the orders placed by them.
(To solve the above query create a Group By query on Customer, Sales Order, and Sales Item Description.
Calculate the value of orders as Sum of Quantity and Price).
4. Considering the query in question 3, a customer named James having Customer Number as END-0010
wishes to pay his entire amount in monthly installments. Company charges an interest rate of 5% for the
part payments. Calculate the amount that James has to pay as a monthly installment. (Use the PMT
function).
5. Display a list of all the orders which have not been shipped. (Check for orders with NULL Shipped Date).
6. A sales person was trying to fetch all the customers from India from city – New Delhi, but he found that the
city has been typed in many different ways. For instance New Delhi was also written as Delhi, N Delhi, or
Old Delhi. Find all the records from table Customers which have country as India and contain ‘Delhi’ in city
name.
7. The Marketing Manager defined a standard format of creating Customer Code as XXX-0000 where XXX
are first three letters of Customer’s Company and 0000 is a four digit numeric code for customer. This
format was not followed by some executives. Find all the customers for whom first three letters of the
Customer Number does not match first three letters of their Company Name.
8. It was noticed that in the table Sales Item Description some values for Ship Qty are inserted as negative.
Write a query to retrieve data having all the values of Ship Qty converted to positive and also the Price
removing the decimal values. (Use math functions for the purpose).
9. Display a list of all the inventory items which are to be reordered. (Check all the Inventory which have
Reorder Point greater than Inventory in Stock + Inventory on Order).
10. Considering the above query, retrieve a list of all the inventories which have not been ordered from past
one month. (Make use of DateDiff and Date function)

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Multiple Choice Questions

1. For the Apex Inventory Shipment database, a list of orders placed ten months ago or more from the Sales
Order table needs to be created. What would be appropriate query criteria for the Sales Date field?
(a) DateValue(DateAdd(“yyyy”,-3,[Sales Date]) > Today()
(b) >= 3 Months
(c) Between 3 And 5
(d) DateAdd("m",3,[Sales Date])<Date()
2. Which record will be retrieved if the query criteria is < #1/1/11#?
(a) All values less or more than 1,195
(b) Value less than 95 characters
(c) Records with date before 2011
(d) All of above
3. The query criteria on Shipped Date for deleting all the records from the Sales Order table which were
shipped before April 2011 or were never shipped would be ____________?
(a) ">=#4/1/2011# OR IS NULL
(b) Month() = April
(c) IS NULL
(d) None of the above
4. For the criteria BETWEEN 1/1/2011 and 12/31/2011, which rows will be displayed as result?
(a) Display records between the dates 1/2/2011 and 1/1/2012
(b) Display records between the dates 1/1/2011 and 12/31/2011
(c) Display records whose dates equaled 1/1/2011 or 12/31/2011
(d) All of the above
5. In the criteria expression Total Amount Paid: [Tax] + [Freight] + [Other], which value is an Identifier.
(a) Total Amount Paid
(b) [Tax]
(c) +
(d) All of the above
6. A report is needed to be prepared, checking all the orders that are pending to be shipped within one week.
The criteria expression in Shipped Date can be?

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(a) > Today()

(b) < DateAdd(“d”,7,”[Shipped Date])
(c) > Date() + 7
(d) = Now()
7. The tab in Expression Builder in which we write expressions is known as _____________.
(a) Expression Elements
(b) Operator Button
(c) Expression Box
(d) Expression Builder window
8. The criterion for the Category column in the Inventory table is IN (“Truck”, “Boat”, “Car”). This is equivalent
to:
(a) [Category] Like “Truck”,”Boat”,”Car”
(b) [Category] = “Truck”,”Boat”,”Car”
(c) [Category] = “Truck” AND [Category] = ”Boat” AND [Category] = ”Car”
(d) [Category] = “Truck” OR [Category] = ”Boat” OR [Category] = ”Car”
9. Among +, <>, MOD, AND, <= operator which operator has the highest priority.
(a) +
(b) MOD
(c) AND
(d) <>
10. The criteria expression LIKE?a*.
(a) Will match all text starting from A
(b) Will match all text ending from A
(c) Will match all text having second character as A
(d) Will match all text starting with a digit
11. Which criteria would be used to find the records where the mode of payment is not known from Payments
table?
(a) [How Paid] IS NULL
(b) [How Paid] = “”
(c) NOT IN [How Paid]
(d) None of the above

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12. The criteria [Sales Date] > #1/1/2011# XOR [Payment Terms] = “Cheque” will return records only when …
(a) [Sales Date] is greater than 1-Jan-2011 And [Payment Terms] is “Cheque”
(b) Either [Sales Date] is greater than 1-Jan-2011 Or [Payment Terms] is “Cheque”, but not both
(c) [Sales Date] is greater than 1-Jan-2011 Or [Payment Terms] is “Cheque”
(d) All of the above
13. Consider the query on the Inventory table:

This query will return:

(a) All records from Inventory table
(b) All records from Inventory table having Quantity in Stock greater than 20 AND Quantity on Order >
25.
(c) All records from Inventory table except having Quantity in Stock less than 20 and Quantity on Order
> 25.
(d) All records from Inventory table having Quantity in Stock greater than 20 OR Quantity on Order > 25.
14. The Mid(“Apex Limited”,5,4) function will return
(a) Apex
(b) Ted
(c) Limi
(d) Apex Limited
15. The SGN() function is a ____________ type function:
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(a) Math
(b) Financial
(c) Text
(d) Date & Time
16. The expression to combine first three characters of Customer First Name and last four characters of Sales
Order Number placed by customer will be:
(a) [First Name] + [Sales Order Number]
(b) [First Name] & [Sales Order Number]
(c) Left([First Name],3) + Right([Sales Order Number],4)
(d) Left([First Name]) + Right([Sales Order Number])
17. The expression 3\4 will return
(a) 0.75
(b) ¾
(c) 0
(d) None of the above
18. The Instr(4, “XXpXXpXXPXXP" , “P”) function will return
(a) 3
(b) 6
(c) 9
(d) None
19. Which of the following is not a Date Time function?
(a) Today()
(b) Date()
(c) Now()
(d) MonthName()
20. A query with compound criteria, where both the criteria are written on the same row of two different fields.
This will be creating_____________ compound criteria?
(a) OR compound criteria
(b) AND compound criteria
(c) XOR compound criteria
(d) EQV compound criteria

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4 MACROS AND SWITCHBOARDS

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
 Simplifying Task with Macros
 Creating a Macro
 Attaching a Macro
 Restricting Records Using a Condition
 Validating Data Using a Macro
 Automating Data Entry Using a Macro
 Managing
AddingSwitchboards
Unbound Controls
 Creating a Database Switchboard
 Modifying a Database Switchboard
 Setting the Startup Options

4.1 Introduction
A macro allows you to automate tasks and add functionality to your forms, reports, and controls. Access macros
let you perform defined actions and add functionality to your forms and reports. Macros in Access can be
thought of a graphical and a simpler way to do programming. Every macro has a list of actions and arguments
defined for each action. Macros can be used independently or attached to a form, report, or control events.
Arguments provided in a macro can restrict, validate, or automate data entry. Microsoft Access 2010 has added
new features to macros to eliminate the need to writing VBA code.
Switchboards are forms available in Access 2010 to present data in the form so that users can focus on using
the database as intended. A switchboard form presents the user with a limited number of choices for working
with the application and makes the application easier to use. For example, a switchboard may give choice to
open the tables, forms, and open or print reports.

4.2 Simplifying Task with Macros

In Access, macros can be considered as a simplified version of VBA programming. Macros are used to execute
any task that can be initiated with the keyboard or the mouse. Macros are written by specifying a list of to
perform and providing arguments for these actions. Access 2010 provides enables macros so that they can
automate responses to many types of events (events can be change in the data, the opening or closing of a
form or a report, or even a change of focus from one control to another) without forcing actually using a
programming language.
 MACROS AND SWITCHBOARDS

4.2.1 Creating a Macro

In Access, macros can be created using the Macro Design window. This window can be opened by clicking
Create  Other  Macro, as shown in Fig. 4.2.1

Fig. 4.2.1 Create New Macro

The Macro Design window is displayed in Fig. 4.2.2.

Fig. 4.2.2. Macro Designer Window

In the new Macro Designer for Access 2010, the layout more closely resembles a text editor. Actions and
conditional statements displayed in a familiar top-down format that is used by programmers. Arguments are
displayed inline in a dialog box as shown in Figure.4.2.3

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Fig. 4.2.3: Macro Designer Window

Adding a new action or conditional statement is simple. Either select it from the actions drop-down list, from a
right-click menu, or select it from the Action Catalog pane as shown in Fig. 4.2.4 to the right side of the Macro
Designer.

Fig. 4.2.4: Action Catalog

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Actions Catalog: Actions are the basic building blocks of macros. MS Access 2010 provides a Action Catalog
pane that contained large list of actions to be chosen, enabling a wide range of commands that can be
performed. Some of the commonly used actions are: open a report, find a record, display a message box, or
apply a filter to a form or report. A list of some commonly used actions in macro is displayed in Table 4.2.
Action Description
ApplyFilter Applies a filter or query to a table, form, or report.
CancelEvent Cancels the event that caused the macro to run.
Close Closes the specified window or the active window, if none is specified.
CopyObject Copies the specified database object to a different Microsoft Access database or to
the same database with a new name.
DeleteObject Deletes the specified object or the object selected in the Database window, if no
object is specified.
Echo Hides or shows the results of a macro while it runs.
FindNext Finds the next record that meets the criteria specified with the most recent
FindRecord action or the Find dialog box. Use to move successively through
records that meet the same criteria.
FindRecord Finds the first or next record that meets the specified criteria. Records can be found
in the active form or datasheet.
GoToControl Selects the specified field on the active datasheet or form.
GoToPage Selects the first control on the specified page of the active form.
GoToRecord Makes the specified record the current record in a table, form, or query. Use to
move to the first, last, next, or previous record.
Maximize Maximizes the active window.
Minimize Minimizes the active window.
MoveSize Moves and/or changes the size of the active window.
MsgBox Displays a message box containing a warning or informational message.
OpenForm Opens a form in the Form view, Design view, Print Preview, or Datasheet view.
OpenModule Opens the specified Visual Basic module in the Design view.
OpenQuery Opens a query in the Datasheet view, Design view, or Print Preview.
OpenReport Opens a report in the Design view or Print Preview or prints the report immediately.
OpenTable Opens a table in the Datasheet view, Design view, or Print Preview.
OutputTo Exports the specified database object to a Microsoft Excel file (.xls), rich-text file
(.rtf), text file (.txt), or HTML file (.htm).
PrintOut Prints the active database object. You can print datasheets, reports, forms, and
modules.
Quit Quits Microsoft Access.

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Rename Renames the specified object.

Requery Forces a re-query of a specific control on the active database object.
Restore Restores a maximized or minimized window to its previous size.
RunApp Starts another program, such as Microsoft Excel or Word.
RunCode Runs a Visual Basic Function procedure.
RunCommand Runs a command from Microsoft Access's menus. For example, File Save.
RunMacro Runs a macro.
RunSQL Runs the specified SQL statement for an action query.
Save Saves the specified object or the active object, if none is specified.
SelectObject Selects a specified database object. You can then run an action that applies to that
object.
SendObject Sends the specified database objects as an attachment in an e-mail.
SetValue Sets the value for a control, field, or property on a form or report.
SetWarnings Turns all system messages on or off. This has the same effect as clicking OK or Yes
in each message box.
StopAllMacros Stops all currently running macros.
StopMacro Stops the currently running macro. Use to stop a macro when a certain condition is
met.
TransferDatabase Imports or exports data to or from the current database from or to another database.
TransferSpreadsheet Imports data from a spreadsheet file into the current database or exports data from
the current database into a spreadsheet file.
TransferText Imports data from a text file into the current database or exports data from the
current database into a text file.
Table 4.1: Macro Actions
4.2.1.1 Problem Scenario
Kanika Mathur, a sales executive in Apex Ltd. is required to send a detailed report of all the orders that have
been placed today to the Sales Head every evening in a form of an Excel sheet, also the same sheet also has
to be uploaded in a shared folder for delivery to check. She thought to automate the process of transferring
records so as to save the efforts required.
Solution
As a solution to the above problem, create a macro that transfers the table Orders into Excel and stores it in a
shared folder using the TransferSpreadSheet Action. Then, use Send Object Action to mail it to the Sales Head.
Steps for creating the macro
1. Open Macro Designer. Click Create  Macro & Code  Macro.

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2. Click AddNew Action drop-down box  Select ExportWithFormatting.Note that the

ExportWithFormatting option will also be available in Action Catalog. The Macro Designer window
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.5.

Fig. 4.2.5 : Select Export with Formatting Action

3. When we select an action that needs more than one argument, it would appear, followed by a box for each
argument as shown in Fig. 4.2.6.

Fig. 4.2.6 : Box for each argument and type necessary values
Object Type : Table
Object Name : Orders
Output Format : Excel Workbook (*.xlsx)
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Output File : C:\Desktop\Order.xlsx

NOTE: Output File Name should include the complete absolute path of the shared folder. Macro Designer
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.6.
4. Select the next action in the Query Designer window as EmailDatabaseObject and specify Action
Arguments, as shown below in Fig. 4.2.5:
5. Fig. 4.4: Action SendObject
Object Type : Table
Object Name : Orders
Output Format : Excel Workbook (*.xlsx)
To : [email protected] <email of Sales Head>
Cc :
Bcc :
Subject : <Subject line for the mail>
Message Text : <Message to be sent along with attachment>
Edit Message : No (Select Yes to edit message before sending>
Template File : <template file for output to be generated>
NOTE: The EmailDatabaseObject action can only be used if the Outlook is configured and is open. The
To, Cc, Bcc, Subject, Message Text options can be set according to the requirement.
6. Click Quick Access  . The window prompts for the name of the macro, write the name of macros as
MailCurrentOrders and click OK. Close the Macro Design window.
7. Double-click the Macro Name under the Macro option in the All Access Objects tab to execute it.

Fig. 4.2.7: EmailDatabaseObject Macro

All Macros are saved automatically in default name.

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Macro Builder can use many actions in a single macro or create multiple macros in one macro designer by
using macro names. Macro can also be assigned shortcut keys using the AutoKeys macro.

4.2.2 Attaching a Macro

A macro can be attached to an event of a control, a form, or a report. Macros are used to provide an added
functionality to Access Objects. Macros can automate responses to many types of events without using a
programming language. Events are the property of a form or a control. Macros are always attached to one
event or another to perform some action. To view the events for a control, open its Property window and move
to the Events tab as shown in Fig. 4.2.8. For example, if a button on a form is required to print a report, a macro
which opens a report in print preview from can be attached to click event of the button. Access permits to
create macros embedded to the control or attach an existing macro to events.

Fig. 4.2.8: Events in Form Properties

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4.2.2.1 Problem Scenario

Consider the problem scenario discussed in section 4.2.1. Now the same functionality is required to be added
to the Orders form. This means that the Orders form should have a button that enables the user to export and
mail the table.
Solution
Consider the form frmOrders which is based on Orders table, as shown in Fig. 4.2.9.

Fig. 4.2.9: Orders Form

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Now, add a button on the form and attach a macro to the click event of the button. Macro is the same as
created in section 4.2.9 and exports and mails the list.
1. Open the Orders form in the Design view. To do this, right-click the form and select Design View from the
list.
2. To add a button to the form, select Design -> Controls  button to be added and draw it on the form, as
shown in Fig. 4.2.10. Cancel the Command Button wizard that appears.

Fig. 4.2.10: Draw the button on the form

NOTE: The Command Button wizard may not appear if Use Control -> Controls in Design is not selected.

Fig. 4.2.11: Use Control Wizards option

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3. Open the control properties by selecting the Command button and press F4. Alternatively, select Property
Sheet from Design -> Tools, as shown in Fig. 4.2.12.

Fig. 4.2.12: Select Property Sheet

4. The Property window appears as shown in Fig. 4.2.13.

Fig. 4.2.13: Property Sheet for Button

5. In the Format tab of Property Sheet, set the value of the Caption property to Export And Mail as shown in
Fig. 4.2.14.

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Fig. 4.2.14: Set Caption Property

6. In the Event tab of the Property Sheet, set the value of the On Click event. To do this, click to open
the list and select MailCurrentOrders, as shown in Fig. 4.2.15.

Command24

Fig. 4.2.15: Set the On Click event Property

NOTE: A macro embedded to the control can also be created, by clicking on button and selecting Macro
Builder from the Choose Builder window that appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.16.

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Command24

Fig. 4.2.16: Create an embedded Macro

7. The form appears as shown in Fig. 4.2.17; the macro will be executed on clicking the Export And Mail
button.

Fig. 4.2.17: Click Button to execute the Macro

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Multiple macros can be created in a single Macro Designer window by giving each macro a different name and
can be attached to an event of form or control by specifying their name.

4.2.3 Restricting Records using a Condition

A macro condition is an expression that enables a macro to perform certain tasks only if a specific situation
exists. When a condition is used in a macro, the macro performs a defined set of tasks depending on whether
the expression returns the True or False value. When the expression returns True, all the actions are
performed. When the expression returns False, none of the actions are performed. Conditions can be entered
in the Conditions column of the Macro Builder window. A single condition can control more than one action.
4.2.3.1 The Where Condition
The Where condition filters and selects records in reports or forms and their underlying tables or queries. This
condition is applicable as an argument for the macro actions OpenForm and OpenReport. The Where condition
is an Action Argument for macro actions such as OpenForm or OpenReport. For example, the Where condition
specified for an OpenForm action can be used to compare and display matching records from two related
forms.
4.2.3.2 Problem Scenario
In the Database Apex Inventory Shipment, as an enhancement to the Orders form created in Section 4.2.2, the
Manager wishes to see the details of the Customer who has placed the order.
Solution
As a solution to the above requirement, a command button will be added to the form. On the click event of the
command, a macro will be created that displays the Customers form restricted to the Customer Number for the
order.
For the purpose of displaying the customer information the frmCustomers form is created based on the
Customers table, as shown in Fig. 4.2.18.

Fig. 4.2.18: Form frmCustomers

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Steps for adding a button to frmOrders

1. Open the frmOrders form in Design view. To do this, right-click the frmOrders form under the All Access
Objects tab and select Design View from the list. The form opens in Design View, as shown in Fig. 4.2.19.

Fig. 4.2.19: Open form frmOrders in Design View

2. To add a button to the form, select the button from Design -> Controls and draw it on the form, as shown
in Fig. 4.2.20. Cancel the Command Button wizard that appears.

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Fig. 4.2.20: Draw Command Button on Form

3. Open the control properties by selecting the Command button and pressing F4. Set the value of Caption
property as View Customer Details, as shown in Fig. 4.2.21.

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Fig. 4.2.21: Set Caption Property

Steps for embedding a macro to On Click event of the command button
4. In the Event tab of Property Sheet, set the value of the On Click event. To do this, click next to the On
Click property. The Choose Builder window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.22.

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Fig. 4.2.22: Open the Choose Builder window

5. In the Choose Builder window, select Macro Builder from the list and click OK. The Macro Designer
window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.23(A).

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Fig. 4.2.23(A): Macro Designer window

6. In the Add New Actions Dropdown list, select the OpenForm Action from the list. Set the value of Action
arguments as shown in Fig 4.2.23(B):

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Fig 4.2.23(B): Fill the arguments of OpenForm Action

Form Name : Customers
View : Form
Filter Name :
Where Condition : [Customer Number]=[Forms]![Orders]![Sold to Customer]
Data Mode : Yes
Window Mode :
7. Click Design -> Close -> Close, as shown in Fig. 4.2.24(A).

Fig. 4.2.24(A): Close the macro

8. A message box appears prompts to save the macro created, as shown in Fig. 4.2.25(B). Click Yes to save
the macro.

Fig. 4.2.25(B): Confirm to save the macro

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9. The created macro gets embedded in the Property window and is shown in the On Click property. The
Property Sheet appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.26.

Fig. 4.2.26: Property Sheet

10. To check the macro, open the frmOrders form in Form View and click the View Customer Details button.
This should display the frmCustomers form only with the record of current customer, as indicated in
Fig. 4.2.27.

Fig. 4.2.27: Customer Records restricted by Orders form.

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4.2.4. Validating Data using a Macro

Microsoft Access provides a variety of ways to control how data is entered in a database. For example, the data
that a user can enter into a field can be limited to a range of values or to the format in which it must be entered.
The validations can be defined at the table level by specifying table properties or the validation can be done at
the form level. To validate data entry in a form, the properties of the controls may be used or alternatively all
these validations can be defined using macros. Macros provide a good flexibility to place complex validation.
Macros are useful for validating records when:
 Validation rule is to be applied on multiple fields in the form or to same field in different forms.
 To display customized error messages for different types of errors in the field.
 Instead of Validation Rule, it must be just a warning message.
 The validation involves references to controls on other forms or contains a function.
Table 4.2 lists some control events on which macro can be attached for Data Validation.

Event Property When the Macro Will Execute

Before Update Before the entered data is updated.
After Update After the entered data is updated.
Before Insert After you type in a new record.
On Delete In response to a deletion request, but before the record is
deleted.

Table 4.2: Event Property

Table 4.3 lists some macro actions that can be used as a response to validation.

Action Use Action To

Cancel Event Prevents a user from posting a new record unless certain
conditions are met.
GoToControl Specifies where on the form the insertion point is to be placed.
MsgBox Displays a custom message box.

Table 4.3: Macro Actions for Data Validation

4.2.4.1 Problem Scenario
Consider the frmOrders form created in Section 4.2.2. Rahul Sharma, the database developer in Apex Ltd. is
asked to place a check on the Item Number field. It is to be ensured that Item Number should not be left blank.

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Solution
To solve the above problem, a macro will be embedded on the Click event property of the Save Command
Button. This macro will check if the Item Number is blank and will display a message accordingly.
Steps for Validating Item Number
1. Open the frmOrders form in Design View. To do this right-click the frmOrders form under the All Access
Objects tab and select Design View from the list.
2. Add a button to the form by selecting the button from Design -> Controls and draw it on the form. Cancel
the Command Button wizard that appears.
3. Open the control properties by selecting the Command button and pressing F4. Set the value of the
Caption property as Save, as shown in Fig. 4.2.28.

Fig. 4.2.28: Set the caption property as Save.

4. In the Event tab of Property Sheet, set the value of the On Click event. To do this, click to the right
side of the On Click property and open the Choose Builder window.
5. Select Macro Builder from the list in the Choose Builder window, as shown in Fig. 4.2.29. Click the OK
button.

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Fig. 4.2.29: Open Macro Builder

6. In the Macro Designer window that appears, add the conditions from selecting If from Add New Action
Menu as displayed in Fig. 4.2.30.

Fig. 4.2.30: Add Condition

7. In the Condition Argument textbox of the Macro Designer type the text [Item Number] IS NULL, this
condition checks whether the Item Number value is blank.
8. In the Add New Action Dropdown, select the CancelEvent action from the list. The Query Designer window
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.31.

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Fig. 4.2.32: Specify Condition & Action

9. In the next row, type … in the Condition tab. In the Action tab, select MsgBox from the list and specify
Action Arguments as:
Message : Item Number cannot be left Blank
Beep : Yes
Type : Warning?
Title : Validate
10. In the next row, type … in the Condition tab. In the Action tab, select GoToControl from the list and specify
Action Arguments:
Control Name : Item Number
The Macro Designer window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.33.

Fig. 4.2.33: Specify GoToControl Action

11. Click Design -> Close -> Close, as shown in Fig. 4.2.34.

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Fig. 4.2.35: Click Close to save and close the macro

12. A message box appears prompting to save the macro created, as displayed in Fig. 4.2.36. Click Yes to
save the macro.

Fig. 4.2.36: Confirm to Save the macro

Note that the created macro gets embedded in the Property window and is shown in the On Click property.
Property Sheet appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.37.

Fig. 4.2.37: Property Sheet

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13. To check the macro, open the frmOrders form in Form View and enter a new record with the values, as
shown in Fig. 4.2.38.

Fig. 4.2.38: Enter a New Record

14. Click the Save button to save the record. Since the Item Number field is left blank the macro gets
executed and the message is displayed, as shown in Fig. 4.2.39.

Fig. 4.2.39: Macro Executes

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Note that the multiple conditions and their post actions can be specified in the same macro; specifying the
validation rule for other fields also.

4.2.5. Automating Data Entry Using a Macro

Macros can be used to avoid errors and save time during data entry by automating the data entry process.
Instead of having users type in the same data over and over for each record with the possibility of invalid data
being entered, a macro can automate data entry. Microsoft Access Macros can be used to speed up the
process of data entry. While automating the entry of data, it can be ensured that the possibility of errors in
database data is minimized, which can have an impact on the accuracy of the data available for reports and
queries.
Macros can also be used for data entry where the value to be entered is dependent on value of other fields. For
Example, a macro can be created to enter the total cost of an order if the unit price and quantity to be ordered
of an item is provided.
Table 4.4 lists the common events that can be used for Automating Data Entry.
Event Property When the Macro Will Be Executed
On Enter Upon arriving on a control, but before the control has
focus.
Before Update Before the control data is updated.
After Update After the changed control data is updated.
On Exit Upon leaving a control, but before the focus is removed.

Table 4.4: Event for Automating Data Entry

Table 4.5 specifies macro action used for Automating Data Entry.
Action Description
SetLocalVar Enters a value automatically in a field. The field name and the
value that needs to be entered in the field are mentioned as
arguments. You need to enter the arguments in the Action
Arguments pane for this action.
GoToControl Specifies the field where the insertion point needs to be
moved after a value.

Table 4.5: Macro Actions for Automating Data Entry

4.2.5.1 Problem Scenario
In the frmOrders form discussed in section 4.2.2, the Operational Manager wishes to see the total cost of the
order, which would be computed as Quantity ordered * price of an Item.

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Solution
A text box as Total Order Cost is added to the form, and a macro is created on the Exit event of price to
compute the total cost of an order. This macro first checks the value of Quantity is not null and then computes
Total Cost.
Steps for creating a macro to automate data entry
1. Open the frmOrders form in the Design view. Add a TextBox to a form, select the TextBox control from
Design -> Controls and draw it on the form, as shown in Fig. 4.2.40.
Note that the TextBox also creates a label on the form so as the label to the Text value can be specified.

Fig. 4.2.40: Draw the TextBox on form

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2. Double-click the label and write the text Total Cost. Change the format of the label to match it with other
controls. In this case, set the format as “Times New Roman, size 12, Bold”. The Form Design window
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.41.

Fig. 4.2.41: Specify the text as Total Cost

3. Open the control properties by selecting TextBox and pressing F4. In the All tab of Property Sheet, set the
value of the Name property as “Total Cost”, as shown in Fig. 4.2.42.

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Fig. 4.2.42: Set the Name property

4. In the Event tab of Property Sheet, set the value of the On Click event. To do this, click to the right
side of the On Click property and open the Choose Builder window.
5. Select Macro Builder from the list in the Choose Builder window, as shown in Fig. 4.2.43. Click the OK
button.

Fig. 4.2.43: Open Macro Builder

6. In the Macro Designer window, add the Conditions tab by selecting Condition from Design -> Show/Hide.

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7. In the Condition tab of the Macro Designer type the text [Quantity] Is Not Null, this condition checks if the
Quantity value is blank.
8. In the Action drop down, select the SetLocalVar action from the list. Set the value of Action arguments as:
Name : Name of the local Vatriable
Expression : [Quantity] * [Price]
The Query Designer window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.44.

Fig. 4.2.44: The Macro Designer window

9. Click Design -> Close -> Close to save and close the macro. A message box appears prompting to save
the macro created, as displayed in Fig. 4.2.36. Click Yes to save the macro.

Fig. 4.2.45: Click Yes to save the macro

10. The created macro gets embedded in the On Exit event property of the Price TextBox control. Property
Sheet appears, as shown in Fig. 4.2.46.

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Fig. 4.2.46: Property Sheet

11. Open the frmOrders form in Form View and enter a new record with the values, as shown in Fig. 4.2.47.

Fig. 4.2.47 : Insert a new record in frmOrders

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12. As you enter the value for price and move to the next textbox, the On Exit event of the Price control gets
executed and the total cost is calculated, as shown as Fig. 4.2.48.

Fig. 4.2.48: Automated Data Entry for Total Cost

4.3 Managing Switchboards

A switchboard is a Microsoft Office Access 2010 form that facilitates navigation in Access and access to
different parts of an application. It functions as an interface between the user and the application. A
switchboard is similar to the Ribbon of the Access application. It provides users with direct access to the
specific functions of the application and acts as an interface between the user and the application.
Switchboard contains command buttons that execute specified actions. These buttons can be programmed to
open forms, reports, queries. Each button on the switchboard triggers some action within the database or leads
to another switchboard form. Switchboard forms are an invaluable way to keep users focused on using the
database as intended.
A switchboard form presents the user with a limited number of choices for working with the application and
makes the application easier and user specific to use. The user’s login information can determine which of a

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number of switchboard forms to use. For instance, a manager with a higher level of privileges may be given a
form with more options than a clerical worker would be given.

4.3.1. Creating a Database Switchboard

The Switchboard Manager is a dialog box that allows creating a switchboard for an Access database. It lists the
switchboards currently available in a database and provides an option to create new ones. In each switchboard,
command buttons can be added, deleted, or edited. The command buttons can be configured for accessing
forms, reports, macros, or functions in the database. Switchboard Manager only allows a maximum of eight
command buttons on a switchboard. The operations that the command button on switchboard can perform are
listed in Table 4.6.

Command Action performed

Go to Switchboard Opens a secondary switchboard.
Open Form in Add Mode Opens a form in a mode that only allows new records to be added.
Open form in Edit Mode Opens a form in a mode that allows any record to be added or edited.
Open Report Opens a report in Print Preview.
Design Application Opens the Switchboard Manager.
Exit Application Closes the current database.
Run Macro Runs a macro.
Run Code Runs a Visual Basic function.

Table 4.6: Different Commands that Switchboard can perform

When a switchboard is created with Switchboard Manager, Access creates the Switchboard Items table that
describes what the display text and action performed by the buttons on the Switchboard form.
4.3.1.1 Problem Scenario
Employees of Apex Ltd. need to keep updating the company database frequently for various reasons. However,
employees are confused over the interface that appears when the application is started. The application
developer wishes to resolve this confusion by providing a clear and concise environment in which users can
reduce the amount of time spent figuring out how to obtain the information they are looking for.
Solution
To resolve the problem of navigation in the database, a Switchboard form that contains buttons to open the
Customers and Inventory tables and the frmOrders form needs to be created.
Since switchboard is not capable of opening the tables directly through the Command button, so we have
created macros to open the Customers and Inventory tables named as MacroCust and MacroInvent
respectively. The structure of macros is displayed in Fig. 4.3.1.

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Fig. 4.3.1: Macro to open Customers and Inventory table

NOTE: Notice that both the MacroCust and MacroInvent macros are created in the same Macro Designer
window using the Macro Name property.
Steps for Adding Switchboard in Access 2010
The Switchboard Manager is still available in Access 2010, but it's not included in the Database Utilities Ribbon
as in Access 2007 and 2003. You have to launch it as doing the following steps as shown in Fig.4.3.2:
Step 1: First click the File tab and Options button, then we will get into Access Options window;
Step 2: Click the Quick Access Toolbar at left bar;
Step 3: In the Choose commands from drop down box, select the Commands Not in the Ribbon item;
Step 4: Select the Switchboard Manager item in the command list box;
Step 4: Click the Add button;
Step 6: At last click the Ok button at the bottom.

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Fig. 4.3.2: Open Switchboard Manager in MS Access 2010

Steps for creating Switchboard in Access 2010:
On the New tab, in the Ribbon, click Switchboard Manager, as shown in Fig. 4.3.3.

Fig. 4.3.3: Switchboard Manager

NOTE: If the database does not contain any switchboard, a message box as indicated in Fig. 4.3.4 appears
confirming to create a new Switchboard.

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Fig. 4.3.4: Confirming New Switchboard

1. The Switchboard Manager Dialog box appears. Click New to create a Switchboard. Switchboard Manager
is displayed as in Fig. 4.3.5.

Fig. 4.3.5: Switchboard Manager Dialog box

NOTE: Instead of creating a new Switchboard, the default created switchboard can also be used.
2. In the Create New dialog box, in the Switchboard Page Name text box, enter User Switchboard and then
click OK to create a sub-switchboard with that name, as shown in Fig. 4.3.6.

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Fig. 4.3.6: Create New Dialog Box

3. In the Switchboard Manager dialog box, in the Switchboard Pages section, verify that User Switchboard is
selected and click Edit, as displayed in Fig. 4.3.7.

Fig. 4.3.7: Edit the switchboard to add buttons

4. In the Edit Switchboard Page dialog box, click New to add buttons to Switchboard. The Edit Switchboard
Item dialog box appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.8.

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Fig. 4.3.8: Create a New Button

5. In the Edit Switchboard Item dialog box, in the Text field, type Customers as name of the button.
6. From the Command list, select Run Macro.
7. From the Form list, select MacroOpenTable.MacroCust and click OK. The Edit Switchboard window
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.9.

Fig. 4.3.9: Provide details of the button

8. Click OK to close the Edit Switchboard window, the created button appears in Items on the Switchboard
tab, as shown in Fig. 4.3.10.

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Fig. 4.3.10: Customers Button

9. Repeat steps 4 - 8 to add another button to the form which opens the Inventory table. The final Edit
Switchboard window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.11.

Fig. 4.3.11: Create Button Inventory

Steps to add frmOrders form to the Switchboard
10. In the Edit Switchboard Page dialog box, click New to add buttons to Switchboard. The Edit Switchboard
Item dialog box appears.

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11. In the Edit Switchboard Item dialog box, in the Text field, type Orders as name of the button. From the
Command list, select Open Form in Add Mode.
12. From the Form list, select frmOrders and click OK. The Edit Switchboard window appears, as shown in
Fig. 4.3.12.

Fig. 4.3.12: Create Orders Button

13. The final Edit Switchboard window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.13. Click Close to close the Edit
Switchboard window.

Fig. 4.3.13: Final Edit Switchboard window

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14. The Switchboard Manager window appears. Select User Switchboard and click the Make Default button.
This option will set the User Switchboard as default switchboard. The Switchboard Manager window
appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.14.

Fig. 4.3.14: Make User Switchboard as Default Switchboard

NOTE: Notice that Switchboard Manager has created a new table Switchboard Items and a new form
Switchboard.
15. To test the switchboard created, double-click Switchboard under All Access Objects -> Forms to launch
the User Switchboard window. The switchboard form appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.15

Fig. 4.3.15: User Switchboard

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4.3.2 Modify a Database Switchboard

A switchboard created using Switchboard Manager can display only the default settings for the elements on the
switchboard. Switchboards can be made more handy and effective by modifying the properties of a
switchboard. Access provides different features to customize a switchboard.
A Database Switchboard can be modified in the Design view using the Property Sheet pane. The VB Editor can
also be used for making switchboard modifications. Switchboard can be modified by changing its design,
moving controls, adding text, modifying text properties, adding graphics, and changing the control properties.
To add or delete buttons to Switchboard, the Edit option in Switchboard Manager is used.
4.3.2.1 Problem Scenario
The developer noticed that the switchboard created in section 4.3.15 is not giving a professional look. He
wishes to add the company logo to the switchboard. In addition, he wants to add a new button to the
switchboard which will help the user to create an excel copy of data and mail it to the manager.
Solution
To add a company logo to the switchboard, modify the switchboard in the Design view. To add a new button to
the switchboard, use the Edit option in Switchboard Manager. Create a command button to execute the macro
MailCurrentOrders created in section 4.2.1.
Steps for adding a company logo to Switchboard
1. Right-click the switchboard under All Access Objects -> Forms and select the Design view from the list to
open the switchboard in the Design view. The switchboard appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.16.

Fig. 4.3.16: Open Switchboard in Design View

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2. Click Design -> Controls -> logo button and browse to the logo image, as shown in Fig. 4.3.17.

Fig. 4.3.17: Form Design Tools View

Fig. 4.3.18: Print the desired logo

3. The logo appears in the Switchboard form, as displayed in Fig. 4.3.19.

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Fig. 4.3.19: The Switchboard form with logo.

Steps to customize the text in Label
1. Select the Apex Inventory Shipment label and press F4 to open the Property window.
2. Set the value of caption property as Inventory Shipment Data. The Caption property is visible under the
Format tab. The Property window appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.20.

Fig. 4.3.21: Change Caption of the label

3. Save the Switchboard form and open it in the Form view to view the changes made. The Switchboard
form appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.22.

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Fig. 4.3.22: Switchboard Form

Steps for adding a new button to the Switchboard Form
4. On the New Tab or where the Switchboard Manager in your tab, New Tab, click Switchboard Manager.
5. The Switchboard Manager Dialog box appears. Select User Switchboard and click Edit to edit the
switchboard, as shown in Fig. 4.3.23.

Fig. 4.3.23: Edit the Switchboard User Switchboard

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6. Edit Switchboard Page appears. Click New to create a button, as shown in Fig. 4.3.24.

Fig. 4.3.24: Create a new button

7. In the Edit Switchboard Item dialog box that appears as a result, in the Text field, enter Mail and Create
Excel copy.
8. From the Command list, select Run Macro.
9. From the Form list, select MailCurrentOrders and click OK. The Edit Switchboard window appears, as
shown in Fig. 4.3.25.

Fig. 4.3.25: Add a button to run macro MailCurrentOrders

10. Click OK to close the Edit Switchboard window, the button appears in Items on the Switchboard tab, as
shown in Fig. 4.3.26.

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Fig. 4.3.26: Button appears in Edit Switchboard window

11. Close the Edit Switchboard window and the Switchboard Manager window.
12. To test the switchboard created, double-click Switchboard under All Access Objects -> Forms to launch
the User Switchboard window. The switchboard form appears, as shown in Fig. 4.3.27.

Fig. 4.3.27: Switchboard Form

4.3.3 Setting the Startup Options

Since most database users do not require direct access to the entire application, the switchboard can be used
as a means to direct the user only to the objects specific to their job role. To make a switchboard appear while
opening the database so as to make the application more convenient set the startup option of the database.
Displaying the switchboard at startup helps to implement a level of security by hiding the key elements of the
interface from the user. This allows users to access the database objects relevant to their tasks.
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4.3.3.1 Problem Scenario

The Country Head of Apex Ltd., desired that the database Apex Inventory Shipment should be more users
friendly. This means that users should not waste time navigating through various objects. The application
should guide the user provide only the required functionality.
Solution
The Switchboard form has already made the application user friendly, with a difference that user needs to open
the application search switchboard among the forms and then execute it. This is time-consuming a long
process and user may be confused with various options and forms available. To avoid this, set the switchboard
form at the Startup option so that as and when the user opens the application the Switchboard form should
appear and user may select the required task from it.
Steps to set the switchboard form at startup

1. Open the Apex Inventory Shipment database and click .

2. Select Access Options from the list, as shown in Fig. 4.3.28.

Fig. 4.3.28: Open Access Options

3. The Access Options window appears select Current Database from the left tab, as shown in Fig. 4.3.29.

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Fig. 4.3.29: Select Current Database

4. Go to Application Options, click in the Display form and select Switchboard from the list that appears,
as shown in Fig. 4.3.30.

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Fig. 4.3.30. Select Switchboard for Display Form option

5. Click OK to close the window.
6. To test the startup option, close and reopen the database. The Switchboard form should display
automatically.
NOTE: Other than switchboard, any other form can also be set as a database startup option. So it helps to
create a login form or a switchboard form and launch it at the startup of database.

4.4 Summary
Macros can be created from simple to complex with one or multiple actions. Macro can be executed as a
separate object or can be attached to an event property of form, controls, or reports. The attached macros are
executed when the event occurs. Macro can also be useful in restricting the number of records to retrieve using
the Where clause available with certain actions. Using macro names, can help one macro object hold many
macros. Conditions can also be specified with macros to validate the data entry. Macros can also be embedded
with the control so that it is stored in the control and moves around with the control.
Switchboards can help to navigate between the various database objects easily and manage data more
effectively. The switchboard is essentially a steering wheel for users to find their way through the functions and
forms that are available in the application. The switchboard is used as a navigation form, using buttons to
display other forms. Switchboards are created using Switchboard Manager. A Switchboard Manager creates a

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switchboard form and a switchboard items table automatically. Switchboards can be set as database startup
options so they should be displayed as the database is opened and can guide the user through proper options.

4.5 Lab Exercises

Consider the Apex Inventory Shipment database of Apex Ltd. Provide a solution to below problems.
1. The executive from California has sent the details of all the Orders received today as an Excel 2007 (.xlsx)
file named Orders_CA. Create a macro to convert the file to Access table and append the records to the
Orders table.
(NOTE: To append the records, create a query and execute it through macros.)
2. The executive in the Operations department are using the frmOrders form to view the orders placed. They
want a functionality that the orders should be displayed only for the given period and the date should be
accepted each time when they open the form. Create a macro to fulfill the requirement. (Use the Where
clause)
3. The operations manager is facing a problem in checking whether the Items ordered are available or not. He
wishes to have a button on frmOrders which should display the details of the Items requested in Order.
Create a button on frmOrders and attach a macro to get desired functionality.
4. A form was created to track Inventory, as shown in the Fig. below. Attach a macro to the Calculate button
that should make an auto entry to the field Order and Available. The order field should be set to Yes if sum
of Quantity in Stock and Quantity on Order is less than Reorder Point. The Available Point should be set to
Yes if the sum of Quantity in Stock and Quantity on Order is greater than Quantity ordered in Orders table.

Inventory Form

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 MACROS AND SWITCHBOARDS

5. Consider the Inventory form created in previous example, create a macro to ensure that Category and Sub
Category of an Item should not be left blank and Quantity on Order should not be less than Reorder
Quantity. Display customized message if the validation is not followed.
6. The operations manager wishes to have the application customized for the users of Operations
department. The operations manager asked the developer to create a switchboard form that should contain
the link to open Inventory table, also it should display the Sales Orders along with their Invoices. Create a
switchboard for the purpose.
7. Modify the above created switchboard so as when users selects inventory option another switchboard must
be opened. This switchboard gives user option to display the entire Inventory, Inventory from a particular
category and Items for which Quantity in Stock is more than 100.
8. Set the Switchboard created in Question No. 6 to the startup option of database so that it opens
automatically as user opens the database.
9. Add a button to the Inventory form created in Question 4. The button should display all the orders from
Sales Order Description table that were placed for the particular item. The item must be the item that is
displayed currently in the form. (Attach a macro to the button for the purpose).
10. Edit the switchboard in Question No. 7. Add a button to the switchboard that should open the Inventory
form.

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