MDA Property Manager ©
Technology
The system has been developed with Microsoft's mainstream business systems development tools and a few other best-of-breed components. Each of these components benefit from huge and on-going research and development spend. MDA maintains a disciplined and risk-aware programme of staying technologically current and seeking compelling new benefits.
- Front end is developed in Visual Basic .Net from Microsoft using Windows Forms.
- Database is Microsoft SQL Server®. The complexities of the underlying data model are depicted in an entity relationship diagram maintained in Microsoft Visio®.
- Reports are developed in SAP Crystal Reports®.
- Grids and other specialist building blocks are from ComponentOne.
- Tightly integrated with Microsoft Office® automation tools, including Excel, Word and Outlook.
- Highly scalable deployment options - single computer; client-server on a local area network i.e. system on the workstation and database on a shared server; multiple remote applications running on one or more Windows or Citrix servers connected to a dedicated database server - accessed over the Internet or any other network.
- A customised MDA Data Administrator tool handles upgrades, backup schedules etc. and obviates the need for a specialist database administrator in most environments.
- Webservices are used to communicate with e.g. bulk SMS/text message service providers, advise of upgrades, communicate errors and usage information to MDA's support desk.
- System and database upgrades are packaged for easy installation with InstallWise® and are downloadable from MDA's website.
- All change management, including source code control, is managed according to the best practises as supported by Microsoft's Team Foundation Server.
- Disaster recovery plans include backups of servers and development workstations to virtual machines that can be quickly re-created. Key data and source code is automatically backed up to a remote location on a daily basis.
