How to create and publish a main category for Oracle Simphony STSG2

Pontus Ridderström
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Overview

A main category is the menu building block that holds products and sub-categories and is shown in the first menu view of the guest journey for Oracle Simphony STSG2 Masterdata. Creating and publishing one spans three phases: building the category building block in Oracle Simphony EMC, importing the menu and verifying the building block in Rule Manager, and publishing it with an Enable Category rule.

Prerequisites

Steps

This guide creates and publishes one main category for Oracle Simphony STSG2 Masterdata. The platform terms and datafields used in the steps below — for example FO_IsCategory, FO_IsVisibleOnCategoryLists, FO_Index, FO_LinkedToDefinition and the Enable Category rule — are described in full, with their definitions, allowed values and constraints, in the linked Category feature article and in the linked Menu item configurations and Rule Manager articles.

Phase 1 — Build the main category building block in Oracle Simphony EMC

This phase creates the main category as a menu building block in EMC. The EMC Sequence number follows the customer's existing EMC POS menu setup and is not specific to Future Ordering.

  1. Navigate to Menu Item Maintenance on the configuration level where the menu is maintained, and create a master record for the category without a template, then set the following datafields:
    • Name — an internal name your organisation will recognise (example: Burgers category).
    • Major Group — anything other than 0 - None.
    • EMC Sequence number — the sequence number the category is created under; create categories within a dedicated range so they are easy to manage (example: a 9000–9999 range reserved for categories).

    [SCREENSHOT: the EMC master record creation dialog with Name, Major Group and the Sequence number set]

  2. Open the definition record for the category and set the following datafields:
    • Consumer Item Name — the category name shown to guests (example: Burgers).
    • Consumer Item Description — the description shown in the menu (example: Our flame-grilled burger range.).
    • FO_IsCategory — Checked.
    • FO_IsVisibleOnCategoryLists — Checked.
    • FO_Index — the sort position among main categories; the lower the number, the higher and further top-left the category is sorted (example: 1).
    • FO_LinkedToDefinition — the EMC IDs shown in the category, comma-separated (products and/or sub-categories only); the products and sub-categories are sorted in the order the IDs are set, so the first sequence number is the top-left product or top category shown (example: 9101,3100, where 9101 is a sub-category and 3100 is a product).
    • FO_ProductDisplayMode — Regular.
    • FO_UniqueIdentifiers — the category's unique identifier (example: 9001 - Burgers category).

    [SCREENSHOT: the definition record data extensions, showing FO_IsCategory and FO_IsVisibleOnCategoryLists checked and FO_Index, FO_LinkedToDefinition and FO_ProductDisplayMode set]

  3. Open the image configuration for the category and set the following datafields:
    • Image 1 — the image used for the online/app category view (upload limited to 1 MB, or an external URL).
    • Image 2 — the small image shown at the top of category choices in the kiosk order flow.

    [SCREENSHOT: the image configuration panel with Image 1 and Image 2 set]

  4. Save the menu item.

Phase 2 — Import the menu and verify the building block

This phase imports the STSG2 menu and confirms the main category reached Rule Manager.

  1. Open the Orchestrator navigator app and run the STSG2 menu import flow, or wait for the scheduled run to complete.
  2. Confirm the run finished with a status of Finished; if it shows Failed, resolve the import before continuing (see Troubleshooting).

    [SCREENSHOT: the Orchestrator latest runs table showing the STSG2 import run with status Finished]

  3. Open Rule Manager and select Add Rule +.
  4. Select Select Rule Type, choose Enable Category, and select Continue.
  5. In the Categories field, search for the main category by name or by its FO_UniqueIdentifiers value (example: Burgers) and confirm it appears in the results.

    [SCREENSHOT: the Enable Category rule Categories field with the main category found by search]

Phase 3 — Publish with an Enable Category rule

This phase publishes the main category by selecting it in an Enable Category rule. Because an online menu is built by enabling stores, categories and products, the products inside the category must be selected in an Enable Product rule and the store in an Enable Store rule for the category to appear with content.

  1. In the Enable Category rule started in Phase 2 (or an existing Enable Category rule), set the following fields:
    • Name — a name for the rule (example: Enable main categories).
    • Index — the order in which the system reads the rule.
    • Publish start/stop — the active period for the rule.
    • Order classes — the order classes the category is enabled for (all or specific).
    • Stores — the stores the category is enabled for; prefer Specific over All.
    • Categories — select the main category created in Phase 1; prefer Specific over All.

    [SCREENSHOT: the Enable Category rule with Stores and Categories set to Specific and the main category selected]

  2. Save the rule.
  3. Confirm the products listed in the category's FO_LinkedToDefinition are selected in an Enable Product rule, and that the store is selected in an Enable Store rule. For sub-categories listed in FO_LinkedToDefinition, confirm each is also selected in an Enable Category rule.

Additional Options

These are optional and not required for the main category to appear online:

  • Schedule availability — restrict the category to set times or days using Schedule start/stop and Schedule days on the Enable Category rule (for example, a breakfast category shown 06:00–10:00). See Rule Manager.
  • Emphasized display — set FO_ProductDisplayMode to Emphasized to change how products render in mobile view. See Menu item configurations.
  • Order the main categories — adjust FO_Index across your main categories to control which appears first (lower value shows earlier). See Menu item configurations.
  • Cross-sell from the category — promote the category's products with an Upsell/Cross-sell rule. An Upsell rule does not publish content, so the Enable Category and Enable Product rules are still required. See Rule Manager.
  • Translations and short titles — add translated names and short titles for the category. See Menu item configurations.

Expected Outcome

The main category appears in the first menu view of the guest journey with its configured image and contained products, in the position set by FO_Index. Guests can open the category and add its products to the basket.

Verify the Configuration

  1. In Rule Manager, confirm the Enable Category rule is active and lists the main category in the Categories field, and that the products inside are covered by an Enable Product rule.
  2. Run the STSG2 menu import in Orchestrator (or use the latest completed run).
  3. Open the Frontend for a store covered by the rule and confirm the main category appears in the first menu view with its image and products.

    [SCREENSHOT: the Frontend first menu view showing the main category with its image]

  4. Open the category in the Frontend and confirm the linked products and sub-categories are shown in the order set in FO_LinkedToDefinition.

Known Limitations

  • Images are only used by main categories; an image set on a sub-category is not shown.
  • FO_Index ordering applies only to main categories; it has no effect on sub-categories.
  • The Hero product limit (FO_HeroProductLimit) does not function on main categories — it applies only to sub-categories.
  • A main category only shows content for products and sub-categories that are themselves published; an item listed in FO_LinkedToDefinition that is not enabled by a rule will not appear.

Note: This list reflects the limitations identified as of 26 June 2026. Additional limitations may exist that have not yet been identified.

Troubleshooting

  • Category does not appear online — confirm an Enable Category rule selects the category, and that the store and the category's products are also published (Enable Store, Enable Category and Enable Product all apply).
  • Category hidden even though enabled — a Disable rule with a higher Index overrides the Enable rule; check the Index values and adjust.
  • Import failures — see Known Menu import issues and solutions and Existing menu issues.