Build the Master Schedule

On this page:

After you prepare the master schedule, validate the build scenario you want to use, build the master schedule, and then optimize the master schedule. For information about data validation, see Validate Build Scenarios. For information about optimization, see Optimize the Master Schedule.

Note: It is recommended that you do not use Safari when building your master schedule.

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Processing, choose Build from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Select the Build master schedule option.
4. Select the Use locked master records checkbox if you are rebuilding the schedule after fixing an issue with a particular item, such as a course, room, or teacher, or if you manually entered any sections using the Sections link on the PowerScheduler menu. The system restarts the build at the course it was scheduling when the build stopped, leaving where they were originally scheduled all of the courses it had scheduled before the build stopped. For more information about locked course sections, see Unlock Previously Scheduled Courses.
   Note: Do not select the checkbox if you are building the master schedule for the first time or optimizing a completed master schedule.
5. Click Execute. The engine starts to run and the PowerSchool Scheduler page appears. See Understand the PowerSchool Scheduler Page.
6. Click (Q) next to Build on the PowerScheduler menu to view the results of the build. 
   Note: Each time you run a build, a new result appears on the Build Master Schedule Queue page.

7. Use the following table to enter information in the fields:

   Field	Description
   Build Type	The function performed (either Build or Optimize) appears.
   Started	An indication of whether the function started (either True or False) appears.
   Success	An indication of whether the function was successful (either True or False) appears.
   Completed	For events where the Success is "True," the date and time at which the function completed appears. The date and time is according to the server's settings.
   Results Log	Click View to see the results of the build. For more information, see Build Results Log.
   Results	Click Import to import the results of the build from PowerScheduler Engine into PowerSchool. For more information, see Import the Master Schedule. Note: The Import link does not appear if only validation was performed.
   Build Log	Click View to see the build log. For more information, see Build Log.
   Comment	Enter a comment for the build, such as First Attempt.
   Delete	Select the Delete checkbox to clear the build information from the queue.

8. Click Submit to save your changes if you entered a comment or selected the Delete checkbox.

Understand the PowerSchool Scheduler Page

After you click Execute on the Build Schedule page, PowerSchool prepares the information and notifies the scheduling engine on your computer that it is ready to begin the build process. The engine downloads the files necessary for the build and begins to build the schedule.

Note: With Internet Explorer, you can add a File Helper for the PowerScheduler engine application so that you're not prompted to save the engine each time you build. However, if you then work outside the network on which your PowerSchool server resides, you must change the IP address for the engine by modifying the Preferences in the engine application.

It is normal for the engine to immediately quit. The first build attempts cause the engine to do more validation. To proceed, you must eliminate all validation errors. For more information, see Build Results Log.

Once all of the engine validations are eliminated, the engine begins scheduling each course in the course catalog in the order defined in the course rank. The build process can take a long time. You may want to monitor the system's progress to troubleshoot if the build stops.

For each course, the system displays the following:

• Course number
• Course name
• Number of sections
• Number of courses that have been successfully scheduled
• Percentage of courses that have been successfully scheduled

The PowerSchool Scheduler page contains the following buttons:

• More Information: Select this option to view additional information about the course the engine is scheduling. Click Faster Scheduling to viewing less information so that the engine runs faster.
• Stop: Click this button to stop the build. Then, click Yes when asked if you are sure you want to stop scheduling. The system saves the schedule it created before you click Stop, but does not schedule the course it is currently reviewing. For example, you start the build process on Friday afternoon but want to stop the build before you leave for the weekend. On Monday, restart the build where the system left off on Friday afternoon. For more information, see Restart the Build.
• Skip: Click this button to force the system to move on to schedule the next course. You should wait until at least 10% of the combinations are tried before skipping the course. Then, click Yes when asked if you are sure you want to skip this course. You may want to click Skip if the system has tested one million of more than two million combinations for a course and is beginning to slow while attempting the final million combinations. The system then schedules the course in the best combination it has already attempted.

While the engine runs, you may notice that it sometimes slows down. This is because with thousands of scheduling possibilities, the engine must cycle through them to produce the most optimal schedule possible while taking into account student requests, courses, and the constraints upon them. The engine must sort through more and more information as it proceeds with the building or loading process. For example, when the process first begins, it is easy to find a section for a student's request; however, as more sections fill up and fewer sections are available, the engine must work through a student's schedule to attempt to fulfill all course requests. Thus, you may notice periodic slow points as the engine proceeds.

When the System Stops the Build

PowerScheduler may stop the build process for one of several reasons, including the following:

• The engine has encountered validation errors. View the build results log.
• The system has encountered a course for which it cannot schedule all of its sections due to constraints that cannot be respected, data entry mistakes, or some other problem. View the build log.
• The build process is complete.

If the system stops immediately, the PowerSchool Scheduler page displays the following message: "No longer listening for incoming connections." This means that your data has uncorrected validation errors. Use the build log to correct these errors. For more information, see Build Log.

Build Results Log

To see the results of the build or if the engine stops immediately after starting, check the build results log. This log displays any new validation errors the engine discovered.

View the Build Results Log

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Processing, choose (Q) next to Build from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click View in the Results Log column of the appropriate build. 

If the build stops because of validation errors, the results log displays details about these errors. There are three types of errors:

• Info: These messages are informational, such as "Course [x]: Rescheduled [x] students out of [x] (leaving [x] unscheduled)." These do not prevent a successful build.
• Warning: These are "red flag" messages, such as "The teacher's preferred room is not suitable for the course the teacher is teaching." These do not prevent a successful build.
• Error: These messages are validation errors that must be corrected in order for the engine to run, such as "Invalid valid term found in the Course file (does not match the term length)." These do prevent a successful build.

For more information about validation messages, see Build Validation.

Build Log

The build log displays the possible reasons the engine stopped the build while scheduling a particular course. It also displays information about course attributes, teachers, and rooms.

View the Build Log

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Processing, choose (Q) next to Build from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click View in the Build Log column of the appropriate build. 

Interpret the Build Log

If PowerScheduler completes the build, the build log displays a quick summary of the build. If the build stops because of a problem scheduling a course, the build log displays details about the course for which it stopped the build. Determine how to resolve the issue based on the following information the system lists for the course:

• Summary of the course parameters, such as whether facilities are needed
• Rooms in which the system already scheduled the course
• Names of teachers assigned to teach the course and their parameters, such as max-in-a-row
• Availability of the required facilities and rooms
• List of possible reasons for stopping

Once you have this information, make adjustments to eliminate or work around the problem. The system will not schedule any additional courses until you correct the issues.

Import the Master Schedule

Each time you build a schedule, you must import the results of that build unless you want to rebuild from scratch. Importing the master schedule flags the sections as locked. If you rebuild from this point forward, you must select the "Use locked master records?" option when building. For more information about locked course sections, see Unlock Previously Scheduled Courses.

If the engine stops the build before all courses have been scheduled, you can import the master schedule to view the schedule information in PowerSchool.

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Processing, choose (Q) next to Build from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click Import. 

4. Use the following table to enter information in the fields:

   Field	Description
   Master Schedule?	Select this option to import the master schedule without student schedules.
   Master Schedule with Student Schedules?	Select this option to import the master schedule with student schedules.

5. Click Submit. 

Review Course Rank

Before you restart the build, you may need to rebuild or update your course rank if you made significant changes to a course or to student course requests.

PowerScheduler uses the course rank to determine the order in which it schedules each course. If you make changes to a course or student course requests, those changes may affect when the system should schedule the course during the build process.

Update the course rank if you add a new course to the course catalog. When you update the rank, the system fits the new course into the rank without moving or recalculating the rank of all the other courses. Rebuild the course rank for all courses if you add or drop sections from a course. The system deletes the previous course rank file and recalculates the rank for every course. For more information, see Build Course Rank.

If you rebuild the rank, do not lock previously scheduled courses when you build the schedule again. Rebuilding the rank places all courses, including those that were scheduled during the last build, in a new scheduling order. To allow the system to create the most successful schedule with the new rank order, build the schedule again by deselecting the "Use locked master records?" checkbox on the Build Master Schedule (Step 2) page.

Restart the Build

If you made significant changes to a course or student course requests, review your course rank before restarting the build. For more information, see Review Course Rank. After you solve all issues with the course, click Build on the Scheduling page to build the schedule again.
When you restart the build, you can do one of the following:

• Build the schedule again from scratch, which overwrites any courses that the system scheduled before the last build stopped. For more information, see Restart the Build from Scratch.
• Restart the build and lock all or specific courses the system successfully scheduled during the previous build. The system reschedules only courses you do not lock. To unlock sections of courses, see Unlock Previously Scheduled Courses.

After completing one of the above steps, analyze the build to determine if you need to adjust it. For more information, see Analyze the Built Master Schedule.

Restart the Build From Scratch

You may want to rebuild the schedule from scratch if either of the following are true:

• Adjustments you made to the course impact courses that were successfully scheduled during the previous build before it stopped.
• You rebuilt the entire course rank file.

For example, if you corrected a teacher conflict by defining a Teacher Part-Time constraint, the correction is likely to affect any other courses that the teacher was previously scheduled to instruct. Therefore, PowerScheduler must reschedule those courses, too.

Unlock Previously Scheduled Courses

When you rebuild the schedule, PowerScheduler automatically selects the Locked Section checkbox on the Edit Section page to lock sections that were successfully scheduled in the previous build. The purpose of locking sections is to save time when rebuilding the master schedule.

Unlock all sections for a course when you want to rebuild that course in the master schedule. The sections are locked as the build runs successfully. If the build partially finishes and then you later rebuild, the system starts where it left off. To have the system rebuild sections of a certain course and then jump to where it left off, you must unlock the sections of the course and select the Use Locked Master Records checkbox when rebuilding. For example, unlock sections of a Biology course. When rebuilding, select the Use Locked Master Records checkbox. The system starts rebuilding with Biology and then skips to where it left off in the previous build.

If you do not select the Use Locked Master Records checkbox when rebuilding the master schedule, the system rebuilds all sections, locked or not. For more information, see Build the Master Schedule.

Unlock an Individual Section

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Schedule, choose Sections from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Choose the course from the courses menu for the section you want to unlock. 
4. Click the number of the section you want to unlock in the Section # column.
5. Deselect the Locked Section checkbox.
6. Click Submit. 

Unlock More Than One Section

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Tools, choose Functions from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click Update Selections. 
4. Choose ScheduleSections from the Current Table pop-up menu.
5. Choose Course_Number from the pop-up menu under Search ScheduleSections.
6. Enter the numbers of the courses you want to select, separated by commas, in the blank field in that row.
7. Click Search all [number] records in this school. 
8. Click Modify Records.
9. Choose LockedSection.
10. Ensure that the next pop-up menu displays = and that the following field is blank.
11. Click Modify Selected Records. 

Schedule Sections

A section is an occurrence of a course. Each course can have several sections that meet in different rooms at different times and are taught by different teachers. Using the Sections page, you can view, add, edit, and delete sections for a selected course.

Note: The Sections page can be accessed using the Sections link under Schedule or the Courses link under Resources.

Add a Section on the Master Schedule

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Schedule, choose Sections from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Choose the course for the section you want to edit from the courses menu.
4. Click the Sections tab. 
   Note: Click the number in the Size column to view the class roster for the section.
5. Click New. 

6. Use the following table to enter information in the fields:

   Field	Description
   Course Name	The name of the selected course appears.
   Course Number	The number of the selected course appears.
   Term	Choose the term in which the section is offered from the pop-up menu.
   Schedule	Select the checkboxes for the periods for the appropriate days on which this section is taught. Note: This creates the schedule expression that appears next to the section on several pages.
   Teacher	Choose a teacher from the pop-up menu.
   Room	Enter the room name or number in which this section is taught.
   Section Number	Enter a unique section number for this section. Select the Locked Section checkbox if the section should not be rescheduled during the next build.
   Close Section at Max	Select the checkbox to not accept more enrollments than the maximum number of enrolled students.
   Section Type	Choose the type of section, such as Bilingual, from the pop-up menu (optional).
   Grade Level	Enter the grade level of this section.
   Current Enrollment	The current enrollment of students in this section appears.
   Maximum Enrollment	Enter the maximum number of students that can enroll in this section.
   Team	Choose the team associated with this section from the pop-up menu.
   House	Click Associate to select a team to which this section belongs.
   Where Taught	Enter the school ID if the section is taught at a different school.
   Dependent Sections	Enter any dependent sections for this section. Separate multiple sections with commas.
   Scheduling Program Restrictions	Choose one of the following options: Include to only include students of specified special programs in being scheduled into specified sections. Exclude to exclude students of specified special programs from being scheduled into specified sections. If the Include option was selected, specify which special programs to include by doing one of the following: Select the Select All Programs checkbox to select all programs. Select the individual checkbox of each program. The Evaluated as of [Date] defaults to date entered in Evaluate Programs as of this date field. See Define Program Balancing.
   Exclude From Attendance	Select the checkbox if you do not want to include this section in the student ADM/ADA counts.
   Grade Scale	Choose the grade scale from the pop-up menu.
   Maximum Load Status	Use the pop-up menu to indicate whether the section should be exempt from counting towards a teacher's maximum student load: Exempt: Students enrolled in this section do not count towards a teacher's maximum student load. Lab: Includes the students enrolled in this section in the calculated average of the number of students scheduled into all lab sections assigned to a teacher. This average is then applied to the teacher's maximum student load. Non-Exempt: Students enrolled in this section count towards a teacher's maximum student load.
   Exclude from GPA?	Select the option to either include or exclude the grade from the GPA calculation.
   Exclude from Class Rank?	Select the option to either include or exclude the grade from the class rank calculation.
   Exclude from Honor Roll?	Select the option to either include or exclude the grade from the honor roll calculation.

7. Click Submit. The Sections page for the selected course appears.

Edit a Section on the Master Schedule

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu.
2. Under Schedule, choose Sections from the PowerScheduler menu.
3. Choose the course for the section you want to edit from the courses menu.
4. Click Sections. 

5. Use the following table to filter information:

   Field	Description
   Filter	To narrow the list: Enter search criteria in the Search field. To filter by columns: Click +. From the first pop-up menu, choose one of the following: Expression Max Students Room Section # Section Type Teacher Term

6. From the second pop-up menu, choose the appropriate comparator:

• contains
• contains all
• contains any
• does not contain
• is empty
• starts with
• starts with any

• Enter search criteria in the search field.

Note: Use a comma-separated list for multiple values. If contains is selected, only one value may be entered. If is empty is selected, no value may be entered.

1. Click Apply. The page refreshes and display filtered results.

Note: The Filter (0) header refreshes and displays the number of applied filters. In addition, the header displays the fields being used to filter results.

Note: Click the name of a column to sort by that column in ascending order. Click again to sort in descending order.

To add another filter:

1. Click +.
2. Repeat Step 1 through Step 5.

Note: The + appears shaded if all filters have been added.

To delete a filter:

1. Click - next to the filter.

Note: Click the arrow to expand this section. Click the arrow again to collapse this section.

• Click the number in the Section # column for the section you want to edit. The Edit Section page appears.Note: Click the number in the Students column to view the class roster for the section.
• Enter information as needed. For field descriptions, see Add a Section.
• Click Submit.

Delete a Section From the Master Schedule

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Schedule, choose Sections from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Choose the course for the section you want to edit from the courses menu.
4. Click Sections.
   Note: Click the number in the Size column to view the class roster for the section.
5. Click the number in the Section # column for the section you want to edit. 
6. Click Delete. 
7. Click Delete.
8. Click Confirm Delete. 

Add a Section from the Courses Page

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu.
2. Under Resources, choose Courses from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click the name of the course you want to work with from the courses menu.
4. Do one of the following:
   
   • Choose Sections from the pop-up menu.
   • Click the Sections tab.
5. Click New. 
6. Enter information as needed. For field descriptions, see Add a Section.
7. Click Submit. 

Edit a Section from the Courses Page

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Resources, choose Courses from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click the name of the course you want to work with from the courses menu.
4. Do one of the following:
   
   • Choose Sections from the pop-up menu.
   • Click the Sections tab.
5. Click the number in the Section # column for the section you want to edit. 
6. Edit information as needed. For field descriptions, see Add a Section.
7. Click Submit. 

Delete a Section from the Courses Page

1. On the start page, choose PowerScheduler under Applications in the main menu. 
2. Under Resources, choose Courses from the PowerScheduler menu. 
3. Click the name of the course you want to work with from the courses menu.
4. Do one of the following:
   
   • Choose Sections from the pop-up menu.
   • Click the Sections tab.
5. Click the number in the Section # column for the section you want to edit.
6. Click Delete. 
7. Click Delete.
8. Click Confirm Delete.