RITS
Reserve Bank Information and Transfer System
RITS USER INTERFACE PROJECT: MEMBER INFORMATION PAPER No. 4
Welcome to the fourth RITS User Interface Project: Member Information Paper. This
edition details the activities that Members must undertake before migration to the
new interface and outlines the user training that will be available. As noted in
Information Paper No. 3, the first Member migration window for the new interface is
June/July 2006; the final window for cutover will be October 2006.
In this edition:
™
Overview of Member migration process
™
Connectivity testing
™
Migration activities
™
Contact details
Attachments:
•
Checklist for Access to the New User Interface.
•
Nomination of Implementation Window Form.
•
Training Timetable and Booking Form.
•
User Access Request Form.
•
Checklist for Activities in the Pre-Production Environment.
This Information Paper and the attachments noted above are available on the RBA
website (www.rba.gov.au/PaymentsSystem/RITSOperationalNotes/) and in the RITS
Information Facility, which is found on the internet (the URL is being advised to your
RITS User Interface project contact). It will later also be available in the PreProduction environment of RITS (from May 2006).
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RITS USER INTERFACE PROJECT: MEMBER INFORMATION PAPER No. 4
1. OVERVIEW: TRAINING AND MIGRATION STRATEGY
The point of contact at the RBA for training and migration is the User Interface Project
Co-ordinator, Planning and Client Relations Section of Payments Settlements
Department. Contact details are shown at the end of this paper.
This section describes the steps that Members must progress through to obtain access
to the new RITS user interface.
Members provided business and technical contacts for this project to the RBA late last
year. Members should ensure that this contact information remains current. The RBA
will co-ordinate Member activities through these contacts, including provision of a test
certificate on a token for initial verification of connectivity.
To assist in tracking progress the Checklist for Access to the New User Interface is
provided with this paper.
The migration process for Members to move to the new user interface includes the
following key steps:
1. Members prove basic connectivity (from a single PC) to the new RITS interface
(by 31 May 2006).
2. Members nominate their preferred start date for ‘live’ use of the new RITS
interface (by 31 May 2006).
3. Users attend training presentations at the RBA (available from late April) and
conduct any additional internal training activities (timing determined by
preferred migration window).
4. Users obtain RITS digital certificates.
5. Minimum required software is loaded onto users’ PCs (timing determined by
migration window).
6. Users undertake a set of mandatory activities in the RITS Pre-Production
(formerly Industry Test) environment.
7. Member confirms to the RBA that it is ready to use RITS Production.
8. Users commence activities in RITS Production (first migration window is
June/July 2006).
The first step in the process is to confirm basic connectivity to RITS from at least one
PC. (The user undertaking this needs not be a production user of RITS as only test
certificates will be used.) This connectivity trialling will assist in early identification of
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any environment issues specific to a Member which might require rectification.
Accordingly, this should be undertaken as early as practicable and must be completed
by the end of May.
Members will be able to nominate when they would prefer to start using the new
interface by choosing from four windows between June/July and October.
A nomination form is provided with this paper.
The commencement month
determines the timing of prerequisite tasks to allow a Member to use the new RITS
interface.
Training will cover the functionality that is being implemented in Phase 1 of the
project. This includes most of the day-to-day operational functions that are frequently
used e.g. cash transfers, queue management and user administration. Less frequently
used functions that will be delivered in Phase 2 of the interface project (e.g. reports)
will continue to be accessed via the existing interface until the implementation of
those functions later in the year.
Training and migration windows are listed in section 3.1 of this paper. In addition to
general user training, at least one user must attend a detailed session which will cover
the roles of Password/Certificate Administrators.
After the user has attended training, the Password/Certificate Administrators can
commence the process of obtaining a RITS digital certificate for that user.
Once users have successfully enrolled for a digital certificate the required software can
be loaded onto their PCs and the user may then access the RITS Pre-Production
environment to familiarise themselves with the new interface. All users are required
to complete a set of activities in this environment that accords with the roles that the
individual user has been allocated. Password/Certificate Administrators are expected
to monitor their staff in these tasks.
Members will be required to confirm to the RBA that the required training and
migration activities have been successfully completed. The Member and the RBA will
then agree on a date from which users can commence using the new interface
functions. Not all of the users need to commence on the same date.
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2. CONNECTIVITY TESTING
The purpose of connectivity testing is to ensure that Members can establish basic
network connections to RITS and identify, at an early stage, any particular issues
(e.g. firewall settings) that are relevant to their environment.
Concurrent with this Information Paper, the RBA will be seeking confirmation of which
nominated project contact (technical or business) is to be sent a RITS token with a
test certificate for the purposes of initial connectivity testing.
Members are being provided with a Guide to Connectivity Testing to follow during
connectivity testing. This guide is also available from the RITS Information Facility.
Any technical enquiries regarding connectivity testing should be directed to David
Noble (see contact details at the end of this paper).
After successful completion of the tasks outlined in the guide, the Member should
promptly notify the RBA’s User Interface Project Co-ordinator in Planning and Client
Relations.
Members are also required to confirm connectivity from their secondary site before
final migration to the new interface.
3. TRAINING AND MIGRATION
Following connectivity testing, the steps in the training and migration process are:
3.1 Step 1: Member nominates implementation window
Members must confirm the timing of when they would prefer to start using the new
user interface in RITS Production by completing a Nomination of Implementation
Window Form.
The choice from four windows provides flexibility to Members. Members are
encouraged to choose the earliest practicable implementation window.
Implementation windows and timing of other prerequisite activities are shown in the
following table.
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RITS USER INTERFACE PROJECT: MEMBER INFORMATION PAPER No. 4
Implementation Windows
Window
Connectivity
Testing
General
Training
Obtain
RITS
Digital
Certificates
Mandatory
Activities
in PreProduction
Go live in
RITS
Production
1
April/May
April/May/June
May/June
June/July
June/July
2
April/May
April/May/June
June/July
July/August
August
3
April/May
July/
August
July/August
August/
September
September
4
April/May
July/
August
August/
September
September/
October
October
Nominate the preferred implementation window by returning the Nomination of
Implementation Window Form before 31st May 2006, to allow for adequate planning
to take place.
Please complete and return this form by fax to the User Interface Project
Co-ordinator, Planning and Client Relations (Fax: 02 9551 8063).
3.2 Step 2: Training
As the new interface project does not change the underlying functionality of RITS,
users are expected to quickly adapt to its use and only limited training will be
required.
Starting in late April, general training sessions will show users how to navigate
around the new interface, perform basic RITS functions and how to obtain digital
certificates for access to the system. The roles of Password/Certificate Administrators
will also be covered at high level.
These sessions will take the form of a PowerPoint presentation, which will be
supplemented by a demonstration of the new screens in the RITS Pre-Production
environment
It is strongly recommended that all users of RITS attend one of these sessions to
familiarise themselves with the new interface.
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The schedule for the general sessions is included in the Training Timetable and
Booking Form, which is included with this paper and is also available from the RBA’s
website. Bookings will be taken on a first come first served basis. Members may wish
to spread their staff over a number of sessions to relieve the impact of staff absences
from the workplace.
User guides covering all of the aspects of the new interface are available from the
RITS Information Facility. It is recommended that users read the guides relevant to
their activities in RITS.
Nominate the training sessions that your staff will attend by returning a completed
Training Timetable and Booking Form by the appropriate deadline, to allow for
adequate planning to take place.
Please complete and return this form by fax to the User Interface Project
Co-ordinator, Planning and Client Relations (Fax: 02 9551 8063).
In addition to the general training there will be more detailed sessions provided for
key experienced users, including Password/Certificate Administrators. These sessions
will be arranged at times convenient to the Member and the RBA as required. It is
mandatory that at least one user from each Member attend a detailed training
session.
3.2 Step 3: Obtaining digital certificates and tokens
Once training has been completed, the user can move to the next step, which is
obtaining a digital certificate.
To begin the process, each Member’s Password/Certificate Administrators
arrange for the RITS Help Desk to supply the tokens on which the RITS
certificates will be stored. One token is required for each user. Supplies of
can be obtained from the RBA by filling in the relevant section of a User
Request Form and sending it to the RITS Help Desk.
should
digital
tokens
Access
A separate User Access Request Form is also required to be completed and lodged
with the RITS Help Desk for every user. The form requests the RITS Help Desk to
pre-enrol the user to obtain a RITS digital certificate. The forms must be signed by
two RITS authorised signatories.
A copy of the User Access Request Form is included with this Information Paper and is
also available from the RBA’s website.
On receipt of the form, the RITS Help Desk will pre-enrol the user for a RITS
certificate. Detailed instructions covering the remainder of this process are contained
in the RITS Access and Security User Guide, which is available from the Information
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Facility. Once users have obtained a digital certificate they can load the required
software onto their PCs and then access the Pre-Production environment to familiarise
themselves with the new interface and complete the list of mandatory tasks. These
tasks are listed in the Checklist for Activities in the Pre-Production Environment, which
is attached to this information paper and is also available on the RBA’s website and
the Information Facility.
The Password/Certificate Administrator can then give users access to the
Pre-Production environment by making the user’s status Active in the User
Privileges function.
3.3 Step 4: Detailed training sessions
At least one experienced key user from each Member will be required to attend a
more detailed training session.
These sessions will cover Password/Certificate
administration in detail and provide an opportunity for specific questions to be
addressed and to obtain guidance in the set up required in the Pre-Production
environment.
A “train the trainer” approach will be employed.
each Member should attend these sessions.
No more than three persons from
There will not be a published schedule for these sessions. Instead, the Member and
the RBA will liaise to find a convenient time to schedule a session. Enquiries can be
made to the User Interface Project Co-ordinator, Planning and Client Relations
following the completion of key users’ general training.
3.4 Step 5: Load Software onto RITS user PCs
The software that is required to run RITS is available for download via the internet
(the URL for this site is being advised to your RITS User Interface project business
contact) or on a CD. Please liaise with your IT staff to ensure that this is rolled out to
appropriate PCs as part of your own formal processes.
Users will need to download both the RITS software and the RITS Launch Page before
they can proceed.
3.5 Step 6: Pre-Production environment activities
After completing training, all users are expected to engage in a set of specified
activities in the Pre-Production environment. The Checklist for Activities in the PreProduction Environment is provided for this purpose.
The Password/Certificate
Administrator should provide a copy of the checklist to all users.
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The Password/Certificate Administrator is expected to ensure that each of the users
has satisfactorily undertaken all of the tasks that are relevant to the roles that are
allocated to the user. The satisfactory completion of these tasks is one of the
prerequisites to using the new interface in RITS Production.
Members are also expected to engage in cash transfer test transactions. The RBA will
prepare test transactions for Members to view and match with the RBA. The RBA will
also facilitate Members teaming up to exchange test transactions if they wish to test
with other banks.
Familiarisation with the new CHESS batch facility is being handled separately. CHESS
batch participant banks will be contacted when familiarisation and migration activities
are about to commence.
3.6 Step 7: Production readiness
When all of a Member’s users have completed the required tasks in the Pre-Production
environment, the Member and the RBA will agree on the date when the Member can
begin using the new interface. Before this can occur the Member will be required to
confirm that:
•
Users are aware that guides, training material and forms are available from the
Information Facility and they know how to access that material.
•
Users are aware of the need to safeguard their RITS access credentials, including
the token and passwords.
•
Users have attended a general training session at the RBA or have been trained
by a key user, who has undergone more detailed training at the RBA.
•
Users have completed the Checklist for Activities in the Pre-Production
Environment.
•
All of the PCs used for RITS have been correctly configured and can connect to
RITS from both the Member’s Primary and Secondary sites.
A Production Readiness Confirmation Form will be provided to Members for this
purpose. It must be signed by two RITS authorised signatories and sent to the User
Interface Project Co-ordinator.
3.7 Step 8: Commence live use of the new interface
Following confirmation by the Member that the required tasks have been completed,
the Member can commence use of the new interface in Production. Not all of the
users need to commence at the same time and may choose to begin at a time most
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convenient to them. Users will be able to continue to access the current interface to
RITS (in a parallel fashion) for a period of time.
RBA CONTACTS
If you have any questions about any of the material in this Information Paper, please
contact:
RITS User Interface Project Co-ordinator
(For notification of connectivity, training bookings, return of forms etc)
Ben Debney
Senior Analyst (Planning & Client Relations),
Payments Settlements
Telephone: (02) 9551 8943, Email: debneyb@rba.gov.au
Fax: (02) 9551 8063
Business questions
Peter Gallagher Senior Manager (Planning & Client Relations), Payments Settlements
Telephone: (02) 9551 8941, Email: gallagherp@rba.gov.au
Bob Howe
Manager (New Projects), (Planning & Client Relations)
Payments Settlements
Telephone: (02) 9551 8921, Email: howeb@rba.gov.au
Technical questions
David Noble
Senior Manager (RTGS Systems), Payments Settlements
Telephone: (02) 9551 8981, Email: nobled@rba.gov.au.
RITS Help Desk
Telephone: 1800 659 360
Fax: 02 9551 8063
Email: rits@rba.gov.au
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