Configuration

List and description of the main configuration settings and features

• System Configuration
• Plugin Management
• Time Periods (Course credits)
• Codes
• Event Manager
• I/O Tasks Connectors
• Question Category
• Additional Fields
• Privacy Policies
• Manage Menu
• Language Management

System Configuration

Main system configurations are available under:

Admin > System configuration > Settings

From each tab panel, you can access a different configuration section with different groups of options

Most of the options are self-explaining, we will describe the most important and critical.

Main Options

General Settings

This group of options includes the main basic configurations for your Forma LMS installation

Page Title

The name that appears in the user's browser;

Default Template

The default template assigned to the installation;

Website URL

The web address of your platform (must finish with a /)

Default language

The default language for the platform labels, if a user specific language isn't defined

Sender email for alerts

The e-mail address from which notifications are sent to users

Visual HTML Editor

The visual editor used for text formatting

Site Owner

Text to be shown as custom footer credits in your template

Email Options

 Set-ups for the general email settings for the platform

Prefix for helpdesk

Enter a text to prepend to the helpdesk email subject. 

Add CC or CCN Addresses

All the emails sent by the system will also be sent to these addresses. If you want to use multiple email addresses in those fields, please use a comma (,) followed by a space as a separator.

User

General Settings

Main settings for user related configurations:  from this section, it is possible to edit:

Password

Main settings for password related configurations

Register

Settings for platform registration modes and features

Registration Types

Free self registration

Users can self-register directly to the platform, receiving just their credentials if a notification event is enabled (Check Event Manager for notification settings)

Free registration with double OPT-IN

Users will receive an email with a confirmation link upon self-registration

Moderated self registration

User registration must be approved by an administrator

Only administrators

Only administrators can register new users. Registration link on login page is disabled

Advanced Registration

Select the option “Use advanced registration form” to:

1. Split registration for custom fields: users will be asked first to fill the main registration fields, while all the custom fields will be prompted on a following page
2. Enable self registration to Groups: upon registration, users will be prompted with a list of groups and will be automatically added to the selected groups

Registration Code Usage

This feature extends the registration form, asking the user to select or insert a code.

This will:

• automatically insert the user in an orgchart node
• automatically enroll the registering user to some course
• both of the above

Other Options

Limit the user to only one node

Select to avoid users to be registered in multiple nodes

Mandatory customfield

mandatory customfields will be required also in administration user edit

E-Learning

This section includes some configuration options for frontend LMS and courses

General Settings

Home Page

Select the page to be shown to users after login

Send user to catalog if not enrolled

Redirect user to catalog if MyCourses page is set as home page but is empty

Hide Empty category

In the catalog page, empty categories are not listed in the side tree categories listing

Show login catalog

A button to the courses catalog will be shown on the login page

 

Ecommerce

Settings for the ecommerce features. You just need to enter your PayPal account and, if you actually want to sell courses, unflag the “sandbox” option. The sandbox would be used to run tests without actually completing the transaction, obviously when you are ready to sell your courses you don't need a sandbox anymore. 

Important: if you want to use the ecommerce functions, you also have to do 2 more things

• enable the course catalog
• flag the “sell course” option when you create or edit your course, and put a price on it.

Main

 Enable the “Labels” Feature

Videoconference

Advanced

General Settings

Session

The period of inactivity, after which a user is disconnected (session length)

Domain template assignment

Set the template to be assigned to specific domains. Add one domain per row, like: [www.yourdomain.com],[template]

File uploads

 Set the default folders for different types of asset.

Caution. Changing these paths may lead to link and display errors.

Twig Cache

 Use this button to empty the Twig Cache folder in case of visualization problems after plugin install or template changes.

Debug Options

 Options to enable code and language debug features

Google

 Settings for Google Analytics integration

Newsletter

Settings to avoid blacklisting and antispam issues when sending emails with the newsletter feature

 

Report Settings

 Use these settings to configure automatic report sending conditions

Security Related

Some security related options:

IP control

If this option is selected and the user changes connection during the same login session, he will get an error

Disable simultaneous access

The same user cannot be logged from different devices at the same time

API & Authentication

Check the API & Integration documentation for details

SMS

You can also send SMS from Forma. We have an integration with the popular Skebby service. Just create an account with them (click on the button), purchase credit from them and fill the required fields with the account information you will receive from Skebby.

Then you'll be able to send Forma notifications with an SMS instead of an email. Every automatic event can be configured with email or SMS from the event manager. For the manual communications, you can decide what to use from time to time.

Of course, you need to have the mobile phone number of your users in an additional field, and you need to set the correct field for the mobile number in this section.

SMTP settings

If you want to send trusted and authenticated emails with one of your email accounts, remember to set these 2 parameters as “on” during the installation of Forma Lms

$cfg['use_smtp_database'] = 'on';
$cfg['use_smtp'] = 'on';

If you select that you will use the SMTP, a new tab will appear in your general settings, and you'll be able to insert your account information in your User Interface (host, port, password, username, security…).

Plugin Management

Plugin Manager

From this page, you can manage available plugins and install new ones

ACTIONS

Settings

Edit plugin settings, if available

Install

Here you can install or uninstall available plugins

Purge

Completely removes the plugin from the installation

Activate

While installed, a plugin can be activated or deactivated. When deactivated, plugins will be ignored by the system

Priority

In case of conflicts here you can set the load priority for the plugins

 Install a new plugin

The steps to add new plugins are:

1. Upload: upload a plugin package directly from your computer. After upload the new plugin will be added to the available plugin list
2. Install: this will actually install the plugin features
3. Activate: to make the plugin features really effective

Time Periods (Course credits)

Forma allows the creation of time periods related to course credits:

Admin > Settings > E-Learning Configuration > Time periods

Click add button to insert a new period: 

The period is shown in the list:

In order to use time periods, enable Credits  

Admin > Settings > E-Learning Configuration > User area in LMS

Click on 'Credits' and be sure that the tick is green:

Insert credits in a course:

Elearnig > Courses > Courses > Edit a course

In the section 'Details' you can assign the number of credits

Users can check their credit balance in the log in frame in the tab 'Time Periods'

Codes

Forma allows the creation of subscription codes:

Admin > Settings > System configuration > Code

Click add button to insert a new Code: 

Code features

1 - Code list: Administrator can add new codes and set an unlimited use.

Code list shows used codes, username and unlimited use. Used codes cannot be redeemed anymore.

2 - Generate new codes : Administrator can generate new codes, insert the number and selecting unlimited use, 0-9, a-z or A-Z

3 - Import code from a CSV file

4 - Course selection

5 - Code assignment: Administrator can assign code to the users using the organization chart and company roles

6 - Administrator can edit code title and code description

7 - Administrator can delete the codes

Once the code has been created and assign, the user can redeem it from the login frame:

Event Manager

Forma LMS allows notifications to be automatically sent to users.

Notification events can be set from:

Admin > Settings > System Configuration > Event Manager

Notifications Settings

This is the list of available notifications:

Platform

Part of the system where the notification is generated

Name

Description of the event that will generate a notification

Not Used

Notification won't be sent

Mandatory

The selected notification will be sent to involved users, based on event type

Email / SMS

Define whether the notification should be sent by email and/or SMS.

Note: for SMS to be sent, a dedicated service must be configured. Check SMS configuration

Recipients

Description of the type of recipients for each notification

Notification Text

The text of automatic notification events can be modified through the Language Management feature:

Admin > Settings > Language Management

Just search for part of the text you need to edit

I/O Tasks Connectors

The I/O (Input Output) system allows Forma LMS data to be exported to and imported from other applications.

It is available under:

Admin > Settings > System Configuration > I/O Tasks

It provides the functionalities to configure and schedule a set of tasks for reading and writing .csv or .xml files to be exchanged in a shared FTP folder.

Basic workflow for managing import/export of data in automatic mode:

• Activities are scheduled in the administration area using the I/O (input/output) module, which is located in admin/main/configuration/IO task
• .csv files are placed in the files/common/iofiles directory by Forma or third-party applications through FTP access
• Import or export tasks are performed using Cron or a similar scheduler

Examples of usage

• Importing user lists (e.g. filename users_aaaammdd.csv) User ID, Passwords (e.g. “john.doe”, “pippo”). Many other cataloguing fields can be added. If these are to be managed through “drop-down menus” then the fixed fields must be “preloaded” in the LCMS system. If authentication is managed through systems such as LDAP, it is not necessary to import the passwords.
• Importing course lists (e.g. filename courses_aaaammdd.csv) Course code, Course name (e.g. “001”, “Maths”). Other fields can be added to the .csv file, such as: Difficulty, Course status, Subscription policies, Course language, Start date, End date, Course duration and Estimated time.
• Importing a list of users to be enrolled in courses (e.g. filename AAAMMDDusercourses_data.csv) User ID, Course code (e.g. “john.smith”, “001”). An optional field may also be added for the user level in the course. If this is not specified, the user will be listed as a student. 1 Ghost, 2 Guest, 3 Student, 4 Tutor, 5 Mentor, 6 Teacher, 7 Administrator.
• Export a list of users and their status on courses

Tasks configuration

Three steps to create a task and automate some activity:

1. Create a CONNECTOR
2. Create a CONNECTION
3. Create and schedule a TASK

NOTE
Here below a brief general description of the three features, for further details and examples please refer to the Extended Connectors Guide

Connectors

Creating a connector means to activate it and make it operational (there is a file that manages a certain type of data)

There are pre-programmed tasks files that perform the following activities:

• Import/Export organization chart structure (connector.doceboorgchart.php);
• Import/Export organization chart structure from a XML file (connector.xmlorgchart.php);
• Import/Export user-course relation (connector.docebocourseusers.php);
• Import/Export course list (connector.docebocourses.php);
• Import/Export SAP HR-compatible course list (connector.coursesap.php);
• Import/Export course report (connector.docebocoursereport.php);
• Import/Export CSV file (connector.csv.php);
• Import/Export Docebo users(connector.docebousers.php);
• Import/Export users report (connector.userreport.php);

Connections

Creating a connection means to assign a certain task to a connector, namely where to write or retrieve certain data, whether these are read from a file or stored in a DB.

Tasks

To create a task means to associate the source connector to a destination connector and explain where to store (importing or exporting) certain data. For instance, writing data on a CSV file or a database beginning with data in another database or CSV file.

Question Category

You can create an unlimited number of categories that can be used globally to categorize any question in any test or in the question bank.

This feature is available for administrators under:

Admin > Settings > Elearning Configuration > Question Category

Additional Fields

Additional fields can be associated to users, or to other platform entities such as org-chart nodes, courses and learning objects

Additional Fields (Users)

User additional fields can be created and managed under:

Admin > Settings > Additional Fields > Additional Fields

Different field types are available:

• Text Field: create a standard text input field
• Free text Field: create a textarea
• Date: allow inserting a date
• Dropdown: create a list of options the user can choose from
• Upload: user will be able to upload a file upon registration
• Textlabel: add a static description text inside the registration form
• Fiscal Code: text field for Italian fiscal code
• Yes/No: creates a radio button select field

Tip:
You can assign different fields to different orgchart nodes, and create custom registration forms using the advanced registration

Custom Fields (Other items)

Can be configured under:

Admin > Settings > Additional Fields > Custom Fields Manager

Two kinds of field are available:

• Text Field: create a standard text input field
• Dropdown: create a list of options the user can choose from

You can associate custom fields to different platform items to extend their configurations:

• Courses
• Learning Objects
• Organization Chart Nodes

These fields will be then available in reports

Privacy Policies

Default Privacy Policy

By default, users will be required to accept a privacy policy statement both on login and registration.

The default privacy policy text is defined in language management:

Admin > Settings > Language Management

This option can be disabled from:

Admin > System configuration > Settings > User > Register

Privacy Management

Alternatively, you can set a new Privacy Statement from the Privacy Management:

Admin > Setting > System configuration > Privacy Policy

Edit the default page and flag it as default:

Multiple Policies

It is possible to manage different Privacy statements and assign it to one or more orgchart nodes:

Manage Menu

You can create and manage menu templates from:

Admin > Settings > Elearning Configuration > Manage Menu

Menus are “templates” applied upon course creation, so changes applied here won't affect existing courses. To apply changes to existing courses use the course management features

It is possible to edit menu configurations also from within each course, affecting only the course specific menu: this will give you maximum flexibility with menu management and customization.

TIP: create just the menu template that you most commonly use to differentiate coure types, i.e. you coud have a menu for elearning and another for classroom courses, and only when needed add further customizations directly in the course

Manage Menus

Manage Areas

Menu items are grouped in “areas”, that you can create, order, rename and delete:

Assign Modules

Within each area, you can assign or remove modules.

At the bottom of the page, you can see the list of available modules to assign to the selected area.

When you delete a module from the menu, it will appear again in the available modules list.

Set role permissions

Click on the edit icon for each module to:

1. Edit the menu item name
2. Assign the available permissions for all the user subscription roles

View Permission for administrators

Some modules presenting a list of users have a special “view all” permission checkbox, that applies only for users of level “administrator”:

• Unchecked: the administrator will see only his assigned users
• Checked: the administrator will see all the subscribed users

Superadministrators and standard users will see all users in any case.

Language Management

Language manager

You will find the language management features under:

Admin > Settings > Language Management

Here you will find a list of the available languages in your platform

From this panel it will be possible to:

1. Edit existing languages
2. Import language files
3. Add new languages

Edit existing languages

To edit existing language translation keys, click on the highlighted icon in the previous image to get to the language editing page:

In this page you will find a list of all the available translation keys 

1. Filter the language keys:

• Module: the area or feature of the platform where the language key is user
• Key: the code placeholder for the language key to be translated
• Plugin: select the language keys created by a specific plugin
• Only untranslated: shows only keys without local translation

2. Search language translations: search any text in all the listed key translations (doesn't search in key names)

3. Edit any translation, just by clicking on the translation text

4. Add a new translation key for all the available languages

Import language files

Import Modes:

• Import from core:  select from a list of the available languages 
• Import from file: import an XML language file exported from another format installation

Options:

• Overwrite existing words: if the language is already installed in the system, it will override all the customizations
• Do not add missing labels: if the language is already installed in the system and some translation key is missing, it will leave it empty 

Add a new language

Create an empty new language