The Frog 3 learning platform is fully supported on:

Internet Explorer (latest version)

Internet Explorer (version previous to latest release)

Firefox (latest version)

Google Chrome (latest version)

 

As of writing this article that will be IE 10, IE11, Firefox 31.0, Chrome 36.0.1985.143 m

 

 

 

Browser

Safari isn’t yet fully supported - it works well with the majority of the bricks and widgets so compatibility depends on what you have used to construct the page you want to view, minor problems associated are broken links and windows not resizing - Firefox and IE are supported and available on Macs but as the iPad is a closed platform, you can’t install either of these until Apple yield to public pressure.

The Toolkit used to manage users, edit templates and build new areas etc is built using IE proprietary Javascript so your VLE administrator will need to use a PC or boot the Mac into Windows for this type of function (IE for MAC is not quite the same so still won’t work for this part of Frog) however this doesn’t apply to students as they won’t use the Toolkit.

The If Device brick has been introduced to Frog to allow users to partition their websites for mobile and tablet users. This makes it easier for users to construct mobile friendly sites.

Touch Pad

In addition to the above browser issues, you have the normal tablet and iPads problems due to the fact you are using a Touch device, (this is a problem for many web-based applications, not just Frog).

Many of the more complicated Frog functions rely on complex Javascript behaviours that are not supported by Touch devices.  Webfiles relies on 'click' events to execute certain behaviours, touch devices do not register this type of event so it doesn’t work.
 
Having said that there are potential work-arounds, “Shared Resources” in a Workspace allows you access to files directly (touch a file to select | Action | View on an iPAD or iPhone) but you can’t drill down into a folder structure - if you know this and plan construction of areas that Pupils will access so they don’t use folders there’s no problem.

Frog have also introduced single click network file functions which allow the Network Files brick to work with touch devices.

What are Frog doing about it?

Frog is investigating mobile templates using the current Frog page building system that will allow content to be displayed correctly on mobile devices. We hope to have a way to detect the type of device you have come from when you hit a web page, then the system can re-direct you to a page which is designed specifically for that device.

The hope is that using nested pages we can achieve different views of the same content on multiple devices.  Even if we can’t automatically redirect, you could place an iPad button on the home page and users take themselves to the relevant ‘alternative’ areas built in Frog 3.

FrogLearn has a wider scope of compatibility with mobile devices so it may be worth investigating FrogLearn activation for your school if you wish to use mobile devices intensively.

Opening the Configuration Page

In order to configure the SIMS Extractor click on (Start-->Programs-->Frog-->SIMS Extractor-->Configuration).



This will open up the configuration page, not before running a check of your SIMS.net version in a small popup window.




Once the check has been completed the main configuration page for the SIMS Extractor will open. As you can see, the current Extractor version you are running is displayed at the top left of this window.





Information Required

• SIMS Server --> The names of your SIMS server then the share name (e.g. SIMSSERVER\SHARE)

• SIMS DB --> The name of your SIMS Database

• SIMS Location --> The location of SIMS on this machine that the extractor is installed upon

• SIMS Username --> The username of the account created and placed within specific groups in order for the Extractor to have access to the SIMS data (See Configuring SIMS for further information on this)

• SIMS Password --> The password of the account created and placed within specific groups in order for the Extractor to have access to the SIMS data

• Frog Server --> The hostname or internal IP of your frog server (this not include any http:// prefix -- typically for schools this will be "frogserver")

Validate Frog Server

Once you are happy your server settings are correct, click on "Validate Server" in order to ensure that the Extractor can connect to your Frog Server. If this is unsuccessful the box will turn red if it cannot connect to your Frog server but if successful, will turn green. An example can be seen below.




If your school has purchased the Frog Parental Engagement Platform (PEP), additional data options are available to extract information used by PEP when clicking validate Frog Server. If these options are not available after clicking the Validate Frog Server link then please contact Frog Support immediately who can ensure that these options become available for you.


SIMS Export Data

There is a variety of data available to export from SIMS into Frog, each with a check box labelled retrieve beside it. Below is a list of this data, some of which is required. Any required data is greyed out so you cannot deselect it.

Basic Data

Note that this is required information and cannot be excluded from import.

• SIMS Information
• Version Information
• Classes
• Class Members
• Pupils
• Rooms
• Subjects
• Teaching Staff
• Lesson Codes

Timetable Data

Note that this is required information and cannot be excluded from import.

• Class Periods
• Timetable Days
• Period Events
• Period Instances

Attendance

• Attendance Summary
• Attendance Lessons*
• Attendance Registration*

Assessment Data

• Grades*
• Gradeset History*
• Gradesets*

(the 3 below appear after a succesful validate of the server which checks if you have PEP enabled)

• Aspects*
• Results*
• Templates*

SEN

• SEN (Special Educational Needs) (this appears after a succesful validate of the server which checks if you have PEP enabled)

Behaviour

• Negative Behaviour
• Positive behaviour* (this appears after a succesful validate of the server which checks if you have PEP enabled)

Misc Data

• Registration Groups
• Non-Teaching Staff
• Parents

(the below options are required information and cannot be excluded from import ONLY if the main parents check box is ticked)

• ID
• Child ID
• Child Relationship
• Parental Responsibility
• Court Order
• Title
• Forename
• Surname
• Addressee

(the below options are optional information and can be excluded from import ONLY if the main parents check box is ticked)

• Home Email
• Work Email
• Home Telephone
• Work Telephone
• Mobile Number

• Pre Admin Parents
• Addresses
• Guest Pupils
• Pre Admin Pupils

There are three options available on the bottom right hand section of the Extractor:

• Un Check All --> When clicked this option simply deselects all available checkboxes for the different data types.

• Check All --> When clicked this option simply selects all available checkboxes for the different data types.

• Save & Exit --> When clicked the extractor configuration page will close and save any changes you have made.

Running Test Connection
This is where you can test the connection to your SIMS.Net system that you set in the previous section. When you click Run Test the application will attempt to connect to SIMS.Net using the username and password supplied. A dialog will be shown to indicate the test is running.




You will also see test results showing alongside the data options to indicate the success of the test run and the amount of data that is available for extract.





This test may take several minutes as it checks all the selected data options as well as the connection to SIMS.Net. This test does not check if the location of the Frog Server has been entered correctly. If there are any difficulties connecting to your SIMS Server from the Extractor, it will notify you in the bottom left corner of the Configuration screen. This test will check the username and password as well as installing any required reports into SIMS. If the test fails at any point, this will be reported in the dialog box.





You can view the specific issue by clicking "View Test Report" to open up a small report of the Test Log. This will display the report from the test, where you can investigate the settings used and the error reported.







Additional Settings & Options

These options give access to a variety of sub-menu options. The three main options are:

• File - Access to sub-menu options that allow you to save the settings and exit

the configuration utility.

• Tools - A variety of tools to further help with extracting the SIMS.Net data
• Help - Information about the Frog SIMS Extractor and a documentation link.

File

The File menu option has three sub-menu options:

• Save - Saves the current settings.
• Save and Exit - Saves the current settings and exits the configuration utility.
• Exit - Exits the configuration utility without saving any changes you have made.

Tools

The Tools menu option has four sub-menu options:

• Photos - Opens a dialog that allows photos to be extracted from SIMS.Net.
• Documents - Opens the document import area
• Settings - Opens a settings dialog where you can change some basic configuration options
• OAuth - Connects your SIMS extractor to your frog server and sets up the trust relationship between the two. This is used for importing SIMS linked documents.

Overview

The Frog SIMS extractor is a utility that a school will install either on their SIMS server or any machine that has the SIMS client installed on it. It allows you to extract data from SIMS and send that data to your Frogserver for import. 

The current version of the Frog SIMS extractor is 2.9.18 and has been designed to work with SIMS version 7.144 and above. Please note that if your SIMS version changes (due to an upgrade for example) you may need to update the SIMS extractor - please check with Frog Technical support if you are unsure.

System Requirements

The following minimum specifications are required to run this application:

• Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 (at the time of writing this document 25/07/16)

• SIMS.Net

Installing the SIMS Extractor

Install this version by double clicking the executable file to being this process. Click next on this popup to continue.





Enter the location of where you would like the SIMS Extractor to be installed. The typical location is left to default by schools (C:\Program Files (x86)\Frog\SIMS Extractor). Once you are happy with your location, click next to continue.




Next, click the install button to begin the process.





The installation will then begin, as indicated by the progress bar. This may take a few minutes depending on the specification of your system.





Providing the installation is successful you will then be asked to click the finish button to end this process. There is a checkbox you can tick to automatically open the SIMS Extractor upon exit if desired.

You can normally open your SIMS Extractor configuration page by visiting the following location from the start button on your taskbar:

• Start-->All Programs-->Frog-->SIMS Extractor-->Configuration

You will see that three options have been installed, these are:

• Configuration – This is a utility to configure the data to be extracted and set up the information to allow the extractor to log into SIMS.Net.
• Run Manual Import – This option begins a manual run of the Frog SIMS Extractor which pulls data from SIMS and places it into an XML file on your Frog Server.
• Run Assessment Import – This option begins the extract of assessment data from SIMS. 

The installation is now complete. Next you have to configure the extractor correctly to ensure you have access to your SIM data.

Using the Extractor

Usage of the tool is similar for all information systems, however configuration will differ slightly.

Create a School
The first time you start the extractor you will be required to create a default school. If a school has been added previously, then the main configuration screen will display, populated by the default school data.
To open the “Add School” dialogue from the main configuration screen, click the Schools button in the top left corner of the screen. This will open the Schools dialogue that lists all the schools currently configured for this extractor.
To create a new school, click the "New" button along the bottom of the screen. From the school dialogue, you can enter the schools basic details as well as proxy information if applicable.

The available fields for the basic school info, as of v1.0.1, are:

1. GUID: A unique id created by the extractor to identify your school. This is automatically created and cannot be edited or deleted.
2. Name (Required): The name of your school.
3. Description: This field can be left blank.
4. LA Code (Required): The old DfE Local Authority code for the school. 
5. School Code (Required): The DfE code for the school.
6. End Point: Frog 3 or FrogOS.





It is also possible at this point to specify whether to send the data to your Frog server.
If you’re sending the data over the internet then it is highly recommended to turn on the SSL option.





On the right hand side of this page you will see it is asking for Proxy information. If you know that the school uses a proxy, then please enter the Hostname and Port number (Username and Password shouldn’t be needed).
If you are unsure if the school uses a proxy, then please ask someone at the school who might know, and we can come back to this if we run into any problems that could be caused by skipping this step.
Once you have entered the details you can click the Save button, this will return you to the Schools dialogue. To open the schools configuration settings, highlight the school, the row should turn blue, and then click the Select button in the bottom right hand of the screen.






Authentication
Now you should see the main screen with your selected school name at the top.
For the MIS extractor to be able to send data to your Frog server you will need to authenticate the MIS extractor with your Frog server to confirm access permission.





To authenticate your Frog Server, enter the hostname or internal IP of your Frog server, this must not include the ‘http://’ prefix. For example, “yourschool-leeds.frogos.net”.





When you click authorise, you may run into an error script, just click ‘Yes’ and it should then let you continue as normal.
You should be presented with a Frog login window. All you need to do here is enter your Frog administrator logins, and click login. You should have received these logins from the Customer Implementation Manager. If you have been passed responsibility for setting up the extractor only, then check with your colleague who is the main contact for Frog, as they should already have it.






You may run into another script error message, if so, just click yes.
The extractor will then take you directly to a screen saying ‘SIMS extractor would like to use your Frog ID’ where you need to click ‘Allow’.
*If after you clicked login, the login box just turned a dark grey colour, and didn’t take you to the screen with ‘Allow’ or ‘Deny’ option, just close that window (using the red ‘X’) and then click ‘Authorise’ again.
You should now be faced with ‘Authorisation successful’ and a green tick to the left of it.





Now you should see something that resembles the screenshot below:





The ‘Supplier Scope’ and ‘API Address’ fields can be obtained from G2, you will need to let them know you want G2 access to Frog and they will set up the connection and send us the details.
For ‘Username’ and ‘Password’ this is where you will need to enter login details for an Integris administrator. Once you have filled in all boxes (Supplier Scope, Username, Password and API Address) just click ‘Test Connection’ at the bottom. If everything is okay, you will see the message go from ‘Connection failed’ to ‘Checking’ (with a yellow circle to the left of it), then to ‘Connection successful’ with a green circle once the extractor has established then connection to your Integris database.
Now that the extractor is connected to your Integris database, you just need to choose what data you would like to bring across into your FrogLearn platform. You do this by ticking the checkboxes on the right hand side of the page.
However, first of all, we will just test that the Integris user that we entered previously has the correct permission to extract this information. To do this we will choose a field that we know there will definitely be data for in Integris – ‘Active Students’.
What you need to do is just tick ‘Active’ underneath where it says ‘Students’ in grey. Ensure that this is the only checkbox that is ticked. Then near the bottom right of the extractor, just click ‘Run Test’. You will see a yellow circle appear next to ‘Active’ under students, and this is the extractor finding what is available from Integris to pull through. This is just a test, and isn’t actually importing anything yet.





If everything is okay, you will see a green tick and ‘Success’ next to it now, and a number of rows that looks like the amount of students you have at your school. For example, in the screenshot below there are ‘1027 rows’, meaning 1027 active students.





Now that you have established that the SIMS user has got the correct permissions, you need to tick all of the other boxes for the data you want to be pulled into your platform. The easiest and quickest way to do this is to click the ‘Select All’ tick box near the bottom of the extractor.





Once you’re happy with the data that will be pulled through, click ‘Run Test’. This will start testing the data that is available for you to bring through into FrogLearn, and will take a few minutes.
You should see a Green tick with success next to all of the ticked boxes, with a number of rows to the left to signal how much information there is for that specific field.
For any that come back as ‘0 rows’ with a green tick, just untick these as it means there just isn’t any information in Integris for this field. For any that come back with a red cross and ‘unsuccessful’ make a note of these and untick that box.





Once all the test have finished, click ‘Save and Exit’ at the bottom right. The reason for this is to let the extractor refresh before we start the actual extract.
Open the Extractor again, there should be a shortcut in your Start Menu, and if not just navigate to the start menu, then ‘All programs’ and there should be a Frog folder in there containing the extractor.
With the extractor open again, you now need to go to the Extract/Export screen, so click on ‘Extract/Export’ at the top left.





On this page, you simply need to click ‘Run Now’ at the bottom right hand corner. This will start the Extractor, which will open a log box to show you the progress of the extraction.
If you leave the extractor for 2 – 3 minutes, and then look at the log box, you should see something along the lines of ‘Extraction Completed’.
That means that the extraction has taken place, and has sent information to the server that your platform sits on.


Create a scheduled task
Finally, we need to set up the scheduled extractions that will keep your platform updated whenever a change takes place in Integris (new students / staff etc).
At the top right of the ‘Extract/Export’ page in the extractor, click on the blue button ‘Create Schedule Task’.





Then give the task a name, something along the line of ‘Daily Extract’. Make sure the ‘Daily’ button is selected, and then before clicking ‘Create’, make sure to choose a time of the day for the extractor to run. It is important that you select a time of the day where the PC / Server you have installed this will be turned on. If it isn’t turned on, then the extractor will not be able to run, and your platform will not be kept up to date with changes made in Integris.
The reason for choosing ‘Daily’ rather than weekly, is because if for some reason the PC / Server is turned off when it tries to run, you’ve only got to wait another day for it to be updated, rather than a whole week.





Once you have clicked ‘Create’, this will take you back to the previous ‘Extract/Export’ screen. Where it says ‘Scheduled Tasks’ click on the box with the drop down arrow next to it, and you should now see the scheduled extractor that you just created somewhere on that list. If you don’t see it appear on this list, then close the extractor, open it again and try creating the extractor again. Let the Customer Implementation Manager know if you have any trouble with this.