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Summary: Availability of EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008, Release 2.0

Publication Date: April 13, 2007

Author: William Leith, Acting General Manager, Application, Operations and Delivery Services, Federal Student Aid

Summary: Availability of EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008, Release 2.0

Posted on 04-13-2007

The U.S. Department of Education is pleased to announce the posting of EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008, Release 2.0, on the Department's Federal Student Aid Download (FSAdownload) Web site, located at http://fsadownload.ed.gov.

Release 2.0 adds Pell and Direct Loan functionality for the 2007-2008 award cycle. The Pell module includes 2007-2008 origination and disbursement functionality for the Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG) and the National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent Grant (National SMART Grant).

In addition to the Release 2.0 software, the following EDExpress 2007-2008 documents are now available on the FSAdownload Web site:

  • The EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008, Release 2.0 Cover Letter
  • The EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008, Release 2.0 Desk Reference (covers Pell and Direct Loan processing functionality) and Addendum (covers changes related to the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005 [the HERA], Pub. L. 109-171, such as ACG and National SMART Grant processing)

These documents, along with the Installation Guide for EDExpress for Windows 2007-2008 (also available on the FSAdownload Web site), contain important information and guidance regarding EDExpress 2007-2008 functionality that you should review, including details on 2007-2008 software enhancements related to provisions of the HERA.

2007-2008 Federal Pell Grant Payment and Disbursement Schedules

As noted in an Electronic Announcement posted on February 27, 2007, the Revised Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2007, (P.L. 110-5), establishes the maximum Federal Pell Grant award for the 2007-2008 Award Year at $4,310 and, with the minimum award continuing to be $400, sets the maximum Expected Family Contribution (EFC) that a student may have to be eligible to receive a Pell Grant at 4110.

We began processing 2007-2008 application and correction records using the updated Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules on March 15, 2007. On March 22, 2007, we reprocessed 2007-2008 ISIRs for all students who applied for aid prior to March 15 and who, under earlier formulas, were not designated as being "Pell Grant Eligible," but who are now eligible for a 2007-2008 Pell Grant.

Note: Because EDExpress 2007-2008, Release 2.0, uses the earlier Pell tables, Federal Student Aid will be providing an updated version of EDExpress 2007-2008, Release 3.0, on May 18, 2007. Release 3.0 will include the updated Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules.

The Packaging and Pell modules in EDExpress 2007-2008, Release 2.0, continue to follow the 2006-2007 maximum Pell Grant award of $4,050, as in Release 1.0.

Release 2.0 Packaging users should note the following guidance:

  • The Package and Repackage processes will not be updated for 2007-2008 Pell Grant changes until Release 3.0. However, EDExpress users can manually adjust Pell Grant awards on 2007-2008 Packaging records at any time by following Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules published in Dear Colleague Letter P-07-01.


  • If you create Packaging records by importing ISIR data, you should reimport ISIR data for student records impacted by the March 22 reprocessing. This will ensure the Pell Eligibility field on the Packaging record is set correctly, though they will still be calculated at the earlier maximum award of $4,050. You must unpackage student records at a Packaging Status of P (Packaged), M (Manually Adjusted), or H (Hand Packaged) in order to import new ISIR transactions. You may wish to print the Packaging Record for impacted students before unpackaging so you have a record of the funds you originally awarded to them (in case you wish to recreate the awards).


  • We will publish an updated version of the 2007-2008 Packaging Technical Reference in May 2007 to revise the valid field content for the Low Tuition field in the External Add Import record layout and the Import Field Change Number table.

Release 2.0 Pell users should note the following guidance:

  • As noted in an Electronic Announcement posted on March 6, 2007, the COD System will begin accepting 2007-2008 Pell Grant origination and anticipated disbursement data after its May 11-12, 2007 system upgrade, which will account for the new Pell maximum, is complete. Any 2007-2008 Pell Grant data submitted prior to the system upgrade will be rejected by the COD System.


  • You should delay creating or submitting Pell Grant origination records in EDExpress 2007-2008 until you have upgraded to Release 3.0. The Release 2.0 Pell module does not calculate Pell awards according to the updated Pell Grant payment and disbursement schedules.


  • We will publish an updated version of the 2007-2008 COD Technical Reference, Volume III (Pell Grant, ACG, National SMART Grant and Direct Loan Combination System Supplement) in May 2007 to revise the valid field content for the Low Tuition field in the External Origination Add/Change Import record layout.

You can create and submit 2007-2008 ACG, National SMART Grant, and Direct Loan origination and anticipated disbursement data using Release 2.0. The COD System will begin accepting ACG, National SMART Grant, and Direct Loan data for the 2007-2008 Award Year after its April 13-14, 2007 system upgrade is complete.

Before You Install Release 2.0

If you are upgrading from Release 1.0 to Release 2.0, ensure you have a valid, reliable backup copy of your current production EDExpress 2007-2008 database (expres78.mdb).

You must also make sure there are no record locks on the database and that no user IDs are logged in by following the steps listed below:

1) To check for record locks, select Tools, Utilities, Clear Locks from the menu bar. If you receive the message "No records selected," there are no record locks. If the Clear Locks dialog box appears, click Select All, then OK to clear any record locks.

2) To check for logged-in user IDs, select Tools, Setup, Global, Security Users from the menu bar, and then click Retrieve. The user ID you are currently using should be the only ID with a "Y" displayed in the Logged In column (you can disregard the Locked column). Select any user ID displayed as logged in and click OK. Clear the Logged In? checkbox and click OK. Repeat the process for each logged-in user ID except the one you are using.

After clearing any record locks and logging out any user IDs, run the Compact and Repair Database and Verify Database utilities by selecting Tools, Utilities from the menu bar before installing Release 2.0. You should run Compact and Repair Database first, then Verify Database, and lastly run Compact and Repair Database again.

Release 2.0 Download/Installation Process

Release 2.0 is available on the FSAdownload Web site in two formats. You can download the entire software in one file, called express78r2.exe, or you can download the software in separate "disk" installment files, which can be copied to a Local Area Network (LAN) drive or CDs. Review the download and installation instructions in the Installation Guide for further information.

You are required to have Windows 2000 or Windows XP as your PC workstation operating system to run Release 2.0.

Note: At this time, Federal Student Aid has not certified the Microsoft Corporation's recently released Windows Vista as a supported operating system for EDExpress or its other PC software products. This guidance also applies to the Local Area Network (LAN) or "server" version of Windows Vista, due for release later in 2007. We will provide additional information as it becomes available.

You must also adhere to either the minimum or the optimal hardware and software configuration requirements outlined in the September 2004 Federal Register Notice, available on the IFAP Web site at http://ifap.ed.gov/fregisters/FR09142004.html. Additional details and frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding system requirements are also available on IFAP at http://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN0408.html.

Important Installation Note: You must be an Administrator on your workstation to install EDExpress 2007-2008 in the Windows 2000 or Windows XP operating systems. If you are not an Administrator, you will receive a warning when you try to install EDExpress. After an Administrator has installed EDExpress, you can run it as a member of the Power Users group. If your database is on a network server, you must be a Power User or higher on the network (or "domain") as well as on your workstation. There are no workarounds for these Windows rights issues. Consult with your school's technical department if you receive a warning that an Administrator must install the EDExpress software.

Release 2.0 can be installed as an upgrade to Release 1.0. You must have Release 1.0 installed in order to run an upgrade (or "Custom") installation of Release 2.0.

To upgrade to Release 2.0, select either the Stand Alone Custom or Workstation Custom option during installation, depending on your EDExpress operating environment. Do NOT mark the "Database" checkbox unless you are performing a first-time installation or want to overwrite your EDExpress 2007-2008 database. If you choose to overwrite your database, all data previously entered will be lost.

Note: If you have not installed EDExpress 2007-2008 on your system, you can proceed directly to a Stand Alone Full or Network Server/Workstation Full installation of Release 2.0. Remember, a Stand Alone Full or Network Server/Workstation Full installation will load a completely new, blank 2007-2008 EDExpress database to your system. If a database already exists for 2007-2008 on your system, a full installation of Release 2.0 will overwrite it and all data previously entered will be lost.

If you receive any prompts during the Release 2.0 installation indicating an existing file was found and asking if you want to overwrite it, click Yes.

After you upgrade from Release 1.0 to Release 2.0, reboot your PC, then log on to EDExpress 2007-2008 to allow the software to perform a one-time only database update. This update loads important changes to your database structure.

If You Have Questions

If you have any questions regarding downloading, installing, or using EDExpress 2007-2008, Release 2.0, contact CPS/SAIG Technical Support at 800/330-5947 (TDD/TTY 800/511-5806) or by e-mail at CPSSAIG@ed.gov.

You can also post questions regarding EDExpress on FSATECH. FSATECH is an electronic mailing list for technical questions about Federal Student Aid systems, software, and mainframe products. For more information about FSATECH, including how to subscribe, go to fsa4schools.ed.gov, click "Listserves/Mailing Lists" on the left menu, and click the "FSATech" link.

If you have questions regarding the COD System, contact the COD School Relations Center at 800/4PGRANT (800/474-7268) for ACG, National SMART Grant, and Pell Grant or 800/848-0978 for Direct Loan. You may also e-mail CODSupport@acs-inc.com.

For policy questions about the HERA, contact Federal Student Aid's Research and Customer Care Center (RCCC) by phone at 800/433-7327, by fax at 202/275-5532, or by e-mail at fsa.customer.support@ed.gov.