Set up TraceLink applications

Many different apps work together to support compliance with US saleable returns requirements. This topic includes instructions for setting up apps specific to US saleable returns. For information on setting up the apps already necessary for US serialization, see the Administration Online Help and the Management Online Help.

Applications that must be owned or linked to for US saleable returns

  • Serialization apps that TraceLink must activate on behalf of your company:
    • Master Data Exchange
    • Serialized Operations Manager
  • TraceLink must link your company to the TraceLink-owned Product Information Manager network application as a Producer.
  • US saleable returns apps that TraceLink must activate on behalf of your company:
    • Product Information Exchange
  • TraceLink must link your company to the TraceLink-owned Product Information Manager network application as a Consumer.
  • US saleable returns apps that TraceLink must activate on behalf of your company:
    • Smart Event Manager
    • Product Information Exchange
    • Smart Inventory Tracker (optional)

Configure applications

When Administrators register Smart Inventory Tracker devices, they set the default target market that displays automatically when warehouse operators verify a product. Smart Inventory Tracker Managers can then restrict the Market field in the mobile app so that warehouse operators can only verify against serial numbers within the default market for that device. Managers can choose to restrict the market at a particular location, or across the entire company.

This process is only for Consumers who choose to use Smart Inventory Tracker to verify product and who also want to restrict the target markets available to warehouse operators. It is optional.

  1. Hover over the User profile in the top right of any screen, and then select Management.
  2. Select Applications from the Management landing page.

    or

    Expand the Management Navigation in the header of any screen, and select Applications.

  3. Select the Search icon () on the left to reveal the search fields.

  4. Search for the Smart Inventory Tracker app by filling in the following fields:
    1. Select Smart Inventory Tracker as the Application.
    2. Select one of the following for My Company's Role:
      • Owner – To configure Smart Inventory Tracker at the company level.
      • Partner – To configure Smart Inventory Tracker for an individual location.
  5. Select Search.
    • Owner – The company that owns the app.
    • My Company's Role – Indicates the company's role within TraceLink.
      • Owner – Apps in which the user's company is the Owner.
      • Partner – Apps in which the user's company is a Partner.
    • App Name (Application) – The name that the Owner assigns to their app, followed by the application type.
    • Description – The Owner's description of the app (displays as -- if the Owner did not enter a description).
    • Linked Entity Type – The entity type of the linked Partner (displays as -- if My Company's Role is Owner).
      • Company – Partners linked to the app as a company.
      • Location – Partners linked to the app as a location.
    • Partner – The name of the linked Partner (displays as -- if My Company's Role is Owner).
  6. Select the Configure Company icon or the Configure Location icon in the Actions column.
  7. If configuring the location, select the Override Company Configuration checkbox to enable the configuration options for this location. When selected, the location's configuration options take precedence over the company configuration.
  8. In the Event Reporting section:
    1. Select a Restrict Market? radio button:
      • Yes – Warehouse operators cannot change the Market value when entering serial numbers in any function.
      • No – (default) Warehouse operators can change the Market value when entering serial numbers in any function.
  9. Select Submit.

    The Applications screen displays, and TraceLink applies the saved configuration the next time a user opens a Smart Inventory Tracker function.

Register devices

Devices must be registered with TraceLink before Smart Inventory Tracker can be installed on them. This process is only required for Consumers who choose to use Smart Inventory Tracker to verify product. Complete the following steps to register a device:

  1. Hover over Company Administration on the User Profile drop-down in the top right of any screen, and then select Devices.
  2. Select Add Device.
  3. Enter a Name for the device, which must be unique across all names defined for a single location. Maximum 50 characters. TraceLink accepts alphanumeric characters with no spaces in addition to the following special characters: _ . , @ / : # -
  4. Enter the Identifier, or unique Media Access Control (MAC) address of the device. Must be 6 sets of 2 characters separated by colons or hyphens (e.g. 00:23:68:CF:A4:D8 or 00-23-68-CF-A4-D8). Acceptable characters are numbers 0-9 and letters A-F.
  5. Select the Type of device to register:
    • Handheld
    • Smartphone
  6. Select the Make (i.e. brand) of the device:
    • Zebra
    • Honeywell
    • Google
    • Samsung
  7. Select the Model of the device:
    • MC3300
    • MC3300x
    • MC9300
    • TC70x
    • TC72
    • TC77
    • TC8300
    • TC51
    • TC52
    • CN80
    • CK65
    • Pixel2
    • GalaxyS9
  8. Select the firewall Port that the individual device uses to communicate with the TraceLink Track & Trace Services:
    • 8883 – (default) The standard port that the device uses to communicate with the TraceLink Track & Trace Services.
    • 443 – An alternate port that companies can use to communicate with the TraceLink Track & Trace Services if the company blocks port 8883.
  9. Enter the name or identifier of the Location where the device is used. The location identifier must be unique across all locations at the company, so only identifier types that can be set as the primary identifier display in the type-head. See Identifier and Item Code Types for more information.
  10. Enter the ISO Alpha 2-digit Country Code of the default US market that Smart Inventory Tracker verifies serial numbers within.
  11. Select one of the following Serial Number Event Managers that Smart Inventory Tracker must integrate with:
    • Default - Serialized Operations Manager – The device can integrate with Serialized Operations Manager or Smart Event Manager, and Serialized Operations Manager is the default integration when logging in (i.e. users with applicable permissions can access both Warehouse Operations and Event Reporting, and Warehouse Operations displays by default after log in).
    • Default - Smart Event Manager – The device can integrate with Serialized Operations Manager or Smart Event Manager, and Smart Event Manager is the default integration when logging in (i.e. users with applicable permissions can access both Warehouse Operations and Event Reporting, and Event Reporting displays by default after log in).
    • Smart Event Manager – The device can integrate with Smart Event Manager only (i.e. users can access Event Reporting only).
  12. Select the Active checkbox to allow users to log in to the device (optional).
  13. Select the Repeat function again checkbox to refresh the screen after selecting Submit to register another device (optional). All fields except for Name and Identifier default to the same values entered for the current device.
  14. Select Submit.
    • If the Repeat Function Again checkbox is not selected: The Devices screen displays, and the new device displays in the table.
    • If the Repeat Function Again checkbox is selected: The screen refreshes with blank fields.

Tips

  • To edit a device's details, select the Edit icon in the Actions column on the Devices screen.
  • To permanently remove a device from TraceLink, select the Remove icon in the Actions column on the Devices screen, and then select Confirm in the dialog box.

Download the APK file that contains Smart Inventory Tracker.

  1. Hover over Company Administration on the User Profile drop-down in the top right of any screen, and then select Devices.

  2. Select an APK link above the results table (e.g. Zebra-[version number].apk, Zebra-Proxy-[version number].apk).

    If Smart Inventory Tracker must communicate through a proxy server, download one of the APK files that supports proxy servers, otherwise download an APK file that communicates with the Track & Trace Services directly.

    The file downloads.

Download the file that contains all of the configuration information for this environment.

  1. Hover over Company Administration on the User Profile drop-down in the top right of any screen, and then select Devices.

  2. Select Environment Configuration File above the results table.

    The file downloads.

See Install the App in the Smart Inventory Tracker Installation Qualification Document for instructions about how to transfer the files to the devices and use them to install the app.

Give users access to applications specific to US saleable returns

To use the UI, users must be added as members or Managers of the various apps that support US saleable returns.

For Producers

To access... Add users as...
Product Information Exchange – Product Directory function A member of both Product Information Exchange and the company's Link to Product Information Manager.
Product Information Exchange – Verify Product function A member of both Product Information Exchange and the company's Link to Product Information Manager.
Product Information Exchange – Verification History function A member of Product Information Exchange.
Management – Product Information Manager Data Rules function A Manager of both Product Information Exchange and the company's Link to Product Information Manager.

For Consumers

To access... Add users as...
Product Information Exchange – Verify Product function A member of Product Information Exchange, the company's Link to Product Information Manager, and Smart Event Manager.
Product Information Exchange – Verification History function A member of Product Information Exchange.
Smart Inventory Tracker – Serial Number Verification function

A member of either the Smart Inventory Tracker app or an internal location's Link to Smart Inventory Tracker and a member of Smart Event Manager.

Smart Inventory Tracker users must also be assigned a role that gives them permission to access the Serial Number Verification function.
  1. Hover over the User profile in the top right of any screen, and then select Management.
  2. Select Applications from the Management landing page.

    or

    Expand the Management Navigation in the header of any screen, and select Applications.

  3. Select the Search icon () on the left to reveal the search fields.

  4. Search for the correct app or Link by filling in one or more of the following fields:
    • Keywords – Part of an app name or Owner name.
    • Application – Apps available (defaults to All and options only include apps where the user is the Manager).
    • My Company's Role – Indicates the company's role within TraceLink.
      • All 
      • Owner – Apps in which the user's company is the Owner.
      • Partner – Apps in which the user's company is a Partner.
    • Linked Entity Type – The entity type of the linked Partner.
      • All
      • Company – Partners linked to the app as a company.
      • Location – Partners linked to the app as a location. Only available if My Company's Role is Partner.
  5. Select Search.
    • Owner – The company that owns the app.
    • My Company's Role – Indicates the company's role within TraceLink.
      • Owner – Apps in which the user's company is the Owner.
      • Partner – Apps in which the user's company is a Partner.
    • App Name (Application) – The name that the Owner assigns to their app, followed by the application type.
    • Description – The Owner's description of the app (displays as -- if the Owner did not enter a description).
    • Linked Entity Type – The entity type of the linked Partner (displays as -- if My Company's Role is Owner).
      • Company – Partners linked to the app as a company.
      • Location – Partners linked to the app as a location.
    • Partner – The name of the linked Partner (displays as -- if My Company's Role is Owner).
  6. Select the View Company Members icon in the Actions column.
  7. Select Member.
  8. Enter the new member's Email address in the dialog box.
  9. Select Submit.

    The dialog box closes, and the company member receives an email with the Link invitation. The member must accept the Link invitation to join the app.

Tips

  • Owners can add their company members to apps they own.
  • Partners can add their company members to an app that the company or location links to.
  • To remove an active member from the app, and select the Remove icon in the Actions column for any row with an Active Status, and then select Remove in the dialog box.
  • To resend an invitation, select the Resend Invitation icon in the Actions column for any row with an Invited Status, and then select Submit in the dialog box.
  • To cancel an invitation, select the Cancel Invitation icon in the Actions column for any row with an Invited Status, and then select Yes in the dialog box.
  1. Hover over Company Administration on the User Profile drop-down in the top right of any screen, and then select Services.
  2. Fill in one or more of the following search fields:
    • Keywords – Filters the results to apps that contain the entered Keywords in the Service Name, Publisher Name, Subscribing Entity Name, or Service Administrator fields.
    • Service Type – Only apps of the selected type return in the results table.
    • My Company's Role – Indicates the company's role within the app.
      • All
      • Publisher – Only apps that the company owns display in the results table.
      • Subscriber – Only apps that the company links to display in the results table.
    • Subscribing Entity Type – Indicates whether the company links to an app as a company or as a specific location. Available if My Company's Role is Subscriber.
      • All
      • Company – Only apps that the company links to as a company return in the results table.
      • Location – Only apps that the company links to as a location return in the results table.
  3. Select Search.
    • Publisher – The company that owns the app.
    • Service Name – The name of the specific app.
    • Service Type – The type of app.
    • My Company's Role – Indicates whether the company is a Publisher or Subscriber for that service.
    • Subscribing Entity Type – If the company links to the app, this indicates whether they link as an external company or as an internal location. If the company owns the app, this field is blank.
    • Subscribing Entity – The name of the company or location that links to the app. If the company owns the app, this field is blank.
    • Service Administrators – The number of Managers assigned to the service.
  4. Select Configure Published Service Settings or Configure Subscription in the Actions column.
  5. On the Service Administrators tab:
    1. Select Add Another Service Administrator in the header of the tab.
    2. Enter the User (Email) assigned to the app as a Manager.
  6. Select Submit.

    The Manage Services screen displays, and TraceLink saves the updated configuration.

Smart Inventory Tracker users must be assigned a role that gives them permission to access specific functions. This process is only required for Consumers who choose to use Smart Inventory Tracker to verify product.

  1. Hover over Company Administration on the User Profile drop-down in the top right of any screen, and then select Roles.
  2. Select Create New Role.
  3. Enter the Name of the role in the text field.
  4. Enter a brief Description of the permissions allowed with the role.
  5. On the Permissions tab:
    1. Select the Serial Number Verification Function for Smart Inventory Tracker for Event Reporting (only Full Access allowed).
  6. On the Users tab:
    1. Select Add User to Role.
    2. Enter the first and last name of the User.
    3. Repeat the previous step for any other users that need to be added to the role.
  7. Select Submit.

    The Manage Roles screen displays, and the new role is saved.

Tips

  • The Serial Number Verification permission can also be added to an existing role.
  • To add multiple users to the role at once, select Upload List of Users on the Users tab.
    • The file format for a list of users is "user@domain, Add / Remove" (one row for each):
      • ldavies@trace​link.com, Add
      • spowell@trace​link.com, Remove
      • sford@tracelink​.com, Add
    • If a row specifies Add for a user that is already assigned the role, TraceLink skips the line but continues processing other users.
    • If a row specifies Remove for a user that is not assigned the role, TraceLink skips the line, but continues processing other users.
  • Administrators can also assign roles to users on the View User Details screen.