“This guide is provided by the WVNET Teaching and Learning Commons. Information and screenshots presented have been adapted from Ellucian’s library of proprietary documentation and training resources. This guide is made available for the exclusive use of the WVNET user community and shall not be duplicated, published or disclosed for other purposes without written permission.”
This document covers fundamentals such as standard layouts of pages, using buttons or keyboard shortcuts for navigation and how to most effectively use searchers and filters to find specific data.
Banner is the Ellucian’s ERP (enterprise resource planning) system, which is a fancy way of saying it is the centralized system that most colleges use to support the business of running their institution. Everything from awarding financial aid, helping a student register for classes, or paying the college’s bills is done in Banner. Ellucian, a company that focuses on higher education software, provides Banner to college campuses. You may also hear the terms “SSB (or Self-Service Banner or Banner Self-Service)” or “Application Navigator (or App Nav)”; these are just two different ways Banner has of presenting information to the user. Generally, most people are working in SSB when they are using Banner, but staff and faculty who have higher-level access to college data will use Application Navigator.
Application Navigator #
Accessing Banner #
Log on to Banner by using your unique User Name and Password.
Banner Dashboard (Home Page) #
Upon successful login, the Banner Dashboard will display and will look similar to the below example. The Dashboard mainly consists of a search field and a global navigation menu available throughout Banner. The table that follows the example provides a brief description of each numbered area.
Toggle Menu and Home #
Click the Toggle Menu button (1) to hide or display icon descriptions in the global navigation menu. Click the Home (2) to display the Dashboard Welcome page again.
Search Bar #
The search bar provides two methods for accessing Banner pages. If the Search option 1 is enabled, results will display as you begin typing in the name or description of the page. If the Direct Navigation option 2 is enabled, Banner will access the page name as typed, no search is performed.
Applications Menu #
Clicking the Applications icon in the navigation bar (or Ctrl-M on your keyboard) will display the Banner main menu at the top level. See the below menu navigation example.
The Application Menu provides user access to Banner systems and pages through a series of folder levels, based on user job responsibilities and locations.
General Steps:
- Click on the Banner title to display the available Banner modules.
- Click on a module title (Student, Finance, etc.) to view module section.
- Click on a category title to view the available Banner pages.
- Click on a Banner page title to display
A Banner page can also be to the Favorites list by clicking the star icon next to the page name. See the Favorites section later in this document for more details.
Also included in the Applications menu is My Links, where you can create custom links. The customizable links can directly access other Banner pages or web addresses. Select Manage My Links link in the My Links menu to for more information and settings.
Global Search Bar #
A search bar is also available in the global navigation bar. This search bar performs in a similar manner to the main page search field.
Recently Opened Pages #
Click the folder icon in the global navigation menu to display a list of recently opened pages. Point and click on a page in the list to access. This icon appears after the first page is opened during the current session.
At the bottom of the listing, there is an option to manage open pages by clearing those not needed anymore.
The Clear link will remove any previously closed pages. A message will display if there are no closed pages. To close an open page, navigate to the page and click the X button in the top left corner.
Help Page #
Online help is available on most Banner pages by clicking the ? icon in the global navigation menu. The Banner General Online Help page will open in a separate web browser tab and displays the available help information for the page/screen that is currently active.
Keyboard Shortcuts (App Nav Icons Only) #
To view the available keyboard shortcuts, click on the Application Navigator Keyboard
Shortcuts link in the Help menu. These shortcuts are available anywhere in Banner.
Favorites #
Click the Favorites icon to display a list of Banner pages that are currently favorited. If no pages are favorited, the icon will be grayed out.
Follow these steps to favorite a Banner page:
- Click on the Applications icon in the navigation menu
- Using the menus, navigate to the specific page you wish to favorite
- Locate the star icon next to the name of the page and click on it (also see note below)
- Close the Applications menu and click the Favorites icon to verify the page appears in the list
Note: If the star icon is already white, no further action is necessary. The page is already in Favorites.
The keyboard shortcut for Favorites is CTRL+D. The shortcut is only available with the Dashboard displaying. The same shortcut within a Banner page will bring your web browser’s Bookmark Page feature.
Banner Log Out #
Click the Sign Out button located near the bottom of the global navigation menu to securely log out of Banner. A message will display once logout is complete. You can close your browser at this point.
Basic Navigation #
Key Block and Page Header #
Only the page’s key block displays initially. Enter required information, then click Go to activate the page. The page header provides easy access to key functions including:
➢ X icon: Close the page
➢ ADD / RETRIEVE icons: Used with Banner Document Management.
➢ RELATED icon: Displays a list of pages related to the open page. Select from the list
or Search for a specific page.
➢ TOOLS icon: Perform standard actions and options for the page currently displayed
(formerly the Options menu in Banner 8.)
Page Elements #
The key block collapses and Go is replaced with Start Over (formerly Rollback in Banner 8).
➢ Tabs: Organize information by content area. Tabs are active unless grayed out.
➢ Sections: Sections (denoted by gray bars) provide details about the ID/Code in the
key block. When active, actions such as Insert, Delete, Copy, and Filter can be
performed.
Note: If Supplemental Data Engine is enabled, a More Information icon displays.
Page Footer #
The page footer provides access to additional navigation tools and information.
➢ Next Section / Previous Section icons: Known as Previous Block or Next Block in
Banner 8, use these icons to move between sections or tabs on a page.
➢ Save icon: A major difference between Banner 8 and Banner 9, the Save button is
located at the bottom of the page.
➢ Record Count: Indicates the number of records displayed.
➢ Table/Field Name: Displays at the very bottom of the page for quick reference.
Notification Center Messages #
You may see four message notification component types when working in Banner 9:
➢ Error Notification – Will display a “!” in a circle when message is displayed.
➢ Info Notification – Will display an “i” in a circle when message is displayed. May
display an OK button that you must select to continue.
➢ Success Notification – Will display a checkmark in a circle when message is
displayed.
➢ Warning Notification – Will display a “!” in a yield sign when message is displayed.
Will also display two buttons, Yes/No, that must be selected to continue.
Data Display Options #
Required Fields #
An asterisk (*) displayed next to a field name indicates that the field requires a value before you continue on the page. The system uses the definition of the field as it is used in the application to determine if it is required. For fields that have conditional logic that determines whether they are required, the asterisk (*) is not displayed. If you leave a section or a page without entering information in a required field, the page notifies the individual in the Notification Center, requiring the user to perform some additional action.
Sort Order #
In a grid layout, values for a field can be sorted and, if you have chosen to sort the data, an up or down arrow next to the field name indicates the current sort order for the field. You can click the field label to reverse the sort order.
Dates #
You can either enter the date directly or use the calendar icon for date selection. The date format is mmddyyyy. To enter the current date, type any letter and [TAB].
Performing a Lookup #
The Lookup icon allows you to quickly search for a value for a field. Note that not all fields have Lookup icons.
- Click the Lookup icon in the selected field.
- A list of values displays. To narrow the results, type a value in the Criteria field, then press Enter.
- To return a value to the selected field, highlight the correct value and click OK. Or, double-click on the correct value to return it to the field.
Filtering Data #
You can query data in a section by clicking the active Filter icon in the section header. Note that in some cases, when you click the Lookup icon, you will be presented with the Filter window as well.
There are two filter types: Basic and Advanced.
Basic Filter (default): Use the Basic Filter to specify search criteria using pre-defined search fields.
- In the fields that display, enter or select a value for each field on which you want to search. To return all records in the system, just click Go without entering any filter criteria, You may add basic operators when entering data in text fields (see below).
- Click Go to display the results.
- Click the Filter Again button (on the Search Results window) to further refine your search.
Advanced Filter: Use the Advanced Filter to specify filter data using SQ type operators.
- For each field on which you want to search, click the Operator drop-down arrow and select the appropriate operator. The available operators depend on the type of field selected (numeric, alphanumeric, date, check box, or other).
- Enter a value for the field you selected (in the blank field to the right of the Operator field).
- Repeat steps 1 – 2 until all filter criteria are entered.
- Click Go to display the results.
- Click the Filter Again button (on the Search Results window) to refine your search results.
Related Menu #
Searching for a Person #
Provided you know the name of the person, there is another person search option.
- Click in the ID field and press Tab on your keyboard.
- In the blank field that displays, enter the person’s last name. Press Tab again.
- The ID and Name Extended Search window displays. You can narrow your search results by entering additional information in the fields provided.
- Click the Press to See Results button. 5. Select the correct record, then click OK.
Appendix #
Buttons #
Banner admin pages include several buttons.
Banner Keyboard Shortcuts #
