Posted: December 21, 2020
Author: Federal Student Aid
Subject: Patch File Available for Direct Loan (DL) Tools for Windows, Release 20.0 to Resolve Rebuild Issue
We are pleased to announce the posting of a Direct Loan (DL) Tools for Windows, Release 20.0, patch file that resolves an issue with Rebuild functionality. The patch file is available for download on the Software and Other Tools page of the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) website (https://ifap.ed.gov/software-and-other-tools).
This patch file resolves an issue we recently identified in DL Tools that caused the Rebuild function to recreate Direct Loan disbursements in incorrect sequence number order in EDExpress for Windows databases.
You must have DL Tools, Release 20.0 installed on your PC before running the patch file. You can download Release 20.0 from the Software and Other Tools page of the IFAP website.
Note: If you do not use DL Tools or the EDExpress for Windows Direct Loan module, you do not need to load the patch file described in this message.
See the sections below for guidance and tips on downloading and running the patch file on PC workstations running DL Tools, Release 20.0.
Downloading and Running the DL Tools Patch File
The DL Tools, Release 20.0 patch file (DLT_Dec2020_Patch.exe) is posted to the Software and Other Tools page of the IFAP website. You should run the patch file installation on all PC workstations in your office that have Release 20.0 installed.
To download the patch file, go to the Software and Other Tools page, select the “Direct Loan Tools” link, then select “Release 20.0” under the By Release Number section of the page. Under Software on the Release 20.0 page, choose the link that is labeled “DL Tools for Windows Release 20.0 Patch.” On the “DL Tools for Windows Release 20.0 Patch” page, you can initiate the download of the patch file by clicking the link under the “Attachments” section.
When you run the DLT_Dec2020_Patch.exe file, you are prompted to select the program directory for DL Tools, Release 20.0 on the PC workstation. For most users, this is the default directory of C:\Program Files (x86)\EDESuite\Direct Loan Tools for Windows (unless you changed this location during the installation process). If you do not have a Program Files (x86) directory, the default is C:\Program Files\EDESuite\Direct Loan Tools for Windows. Click OK to initiate and run the patch file installation.
You do not need to reboot your PC(s) once the copy procedure is complete in order to resume using DL Tools, Release 20.0.
Additional Tips and Guidance
Note the following additional tips when loading the patch file to your PC workstation(s):
- Be sure to close DL Tools, Release 20.0 on your PC(s) before performing the download and copy procedure.
- Microsoft Windows users must have admin rights to the PC workstation(s) running DL Tools, Release 20.0 in order to run the patch file installation.
- If you receive a message indicating you cannot overwrite the file (usually due to a “sharing violation”), restart your computer and try again. Windows may think the file overwritten by the patch file installation is in use until you restart.
- If your DL Tools, Release 20.0 database is installed on a network drive, and you have multiple PC workstations accessing that database, you must run the patch file installation on EACH workstation.
Contact Information
If you have any questions regarding loading the DL Tools, Release 20.0 patch file to your system, contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 1-800-330-5947 or by email at CPSSAIG@ed.gov.
You can also post questions regarding DL Tools on FSATech. FSATech is an electronic mailing list for technical questions about Federal Student Aid systems, software, and mainframe products. For more information on subscribing to FSATech, go to https://ed.gov/offices/OSFAP/services/fsatechsubscribe.html.