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Travel and Satellite

In this article

    Note about using Travel function or Corporate version

    SuperOffice makes it possible to update databases in different locations using transaction logs. This functionality is sold under the names Travel, Satellite and Area Management.

    The logs are updated when a SuperOffice user changes data. They will not be automatically updated by the database when inserting, updating or deleting from outside SuperOffice. NOTE! They are updated when data manipulation is done through SuperCOM, SuperOffice OleDB provider or NetServer to SuperOffice. We therefore recommend that you use our tools to make updates to the database.

    Purpose of the log
    The table traveltransactionlog (also referred to as the "log") is used to keep track of all updates, that is, insertions, deletions and changes to all data records in SuperOffice.  It is used by the update functions in Travel (local update, async update, central update) and Satellite (up, down files) to determine what to send.

    The log contains one record for each change.  The record does not actually contain the data that was changed, only a reference to the table and record id of the changed record.

    Prefix on travel

    Below all tables in the database manual, you will find e.g. “Prefix on travel: 0x0000007e”. This is the ID that SuperOffice CRM adds to new records on travel. Take the last byte, and move it 24 bits to the left, and you have the number added to the allocated next_id from sequence during travel. It’s restored to normal low ID’s when the traveller performs a homecoming. For remote travel users the mapping between high travel id's and low central ids are kept in the database TravelIdMapping.

    The record definition looks like this:

    C++ DataType C++ Name DB DataType DB Name
    Longid id int traveltransactionlog_id
    date_t time datetime ttime
    longid mode int prev_record_id
    Ushort type smallint type
    LongId assoc_id int associate_id
    Ushort tabno smallint tablenumber
    LongId rec_id int record_id

    Use of fields

    This field identifies the record in the traveltransactionlog (not the record changed).  Its value is taken from sequence, using sequence row 39.  The standard SQL statement used to get new id's is:

    UPDATE so.sequence SET next_id = next_id + 1 WHERE id = 39
    SELECT next_id - 1 FROM so.sequence WHERE id = 39

    If an application requires new ids for several tables it will be able to group all the update statements inside a single begin/commit transaction block; it is also legal to increment a sequence row by more than 1 if you need more than 1 new row in one table.  Do not change the order to select/update as this would not be multi-user safe.  Note also that the actual new id is not the next_id in the table, but next_id - 1.

    This is a standard SuperOffice date/time value, i.e., number of seconds since 1.1.1970 00:00.  The PC's local clock is used, which may introduce some inaccuracies in the update logic if two users make near-simultaneous updates to the same record and their PCs do not have synchronised clocks.  Ideally, the PC clock should be synchronised with an external source when using Travel functions.  The time field is a timestamp that shows when the record update (or insertion or deletion) was done (i.e. when the traveltransactionlog record was created).

    This field is now used for additional information. It is normally set to “0”, except in these situations:
    Type = 5120 kTrtRecUpdateOwner (see below).  In that case, the mode field contains the previous owner id. 
    The owner id is an associate id that contains the owner of a record; it refers to these tables and fields:

    Table Field
    Contact associate_id
    Project associate_id
    Appointment associate_id
    Sale associate_id

    The logic is:

    prepare and write normal traveltransactionlog record

    if operation = update
       if associate_id is changed and table in (contact, project, appointment, sale)
             mode = previous associate_id
             type = kTrtRecUpdateOwner
             set id, time, tabno, rec_id
             write traveltransactionlog    end


    This functionality is only relevant if you are using Area Management. Area Management uses the owner associate id as one of the criteria for determining which area a record belongs to.  If the owner id is changed it might trigger the transfer of that record from one area (satellite) to another, translating an update operation into a delete/insert pair on separate areas.

    The extra traveltransactionlog record contains the previous owner id (which is not available anywhere else) so that the area management system can determine what to do.

    Type = 5888. User (Associate_id) removed from Area user inclusion

    Type = 6144. User (Associate_id) deleted from Area user assignment

    Type = 6400. Prev_record_id= version of user defined fields that’s been published (udeffield.version).
    Tablenumber: contact = 7, person = 8, project = 9, sale = 10.

    Type = 8192 -> 8200. Used with Field level replication. It’s a bit mask of which fields in the record that has been changed, 1 means fields been changed. This means if the second field in a record has been changed, then pref_record_id=2.

    This is the type of update the log record refers to.  Valid types are:

    kTrtRecNew 0x1100 4352 New record
    kTrtRecUpdate 0x1200 4608 Updated record
    kTrtRecDelete 0x1300 4864 Deleted record
    kTrtRecUpdateOwner 0X1400 5120 owner changed on contact, project, sale, appointment
    kTrtRecUpdateContact 0X1500 5376 contact changed on appointment, sale
    kTrtRecUpdateProject 0X1600 5632 project changed on appointment, sale
    kTrtRecDeleteAusri 0X1700 5888 area user inclusion deleted
    kTrtRecDeleteAusra 0X1800 6144 area user assignment deleted
    kTrtRecPublishUdef 0X1900 6400 Publish user defined fields (tablenumber = 7, 8, 9 or 10 (check table udeffield)
    kTrtRecUpdateContactNew 0X2710 10000 event 0x1500 with bug-fix
    kTrtRecUpdateProjectNew 0X4E20 20000 event 0x1600 with bug-fix
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart1 0x2000 8192  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart2 0x2001 8193  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart3 0x2002 8194  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart4 0x2003 8195  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart5 0x2004 8196  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart6 0x2005 8197  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart7 0x2006 8198  
    kTrtRecUpdateFieldPart8 0x2007 8199  


    An updateowner is always preceded by the corresponding update record.

    The associate_id of the user actually performing the update (not an associate_id from the record being updated!).

    The table id of the table being updated.  Show all tables will give you these values.

    The record id of the record being updated.  tabno and rec_id together uniquely identify the record that is being updated, and the synchronisation/replication mechanism in SuperOffice can use these ids to look up the actual record values.


    Any updates to the database that are not logged in traveltransactionlog will not be replicated to/from travel users and between satellites.  An application should generally either log all updates or none.  If a record in SuperOffice refers to other records (often the case), and not all of the records involved are logged, travel users may end up with an inconsistent database.  Not recommended.