# psLens for Business Analysts > How business analysts use psLens to understand PeopleSoft configuration, research components, and make informed decisions without developer tools. --- LLMS index: [llms.txt](/llms.txt) --- ## The Gap You need to understand how something works in PeopleSoft. Maybe you are writing requirements for a customization. Maybe you are trying to understand why a process behaves a certain way. Maybe you need to know what data a page collects and where it goes. But the tools for answering these questions — App Designer, SQL Developer, PeopleSoft's technical pages — are built for developers. They require licenses, training, and technical knowledge that is outside your role. So you ask a developer. They look it up and get back to you later. Or you wait. ## How psLens Changes This ### Self-Service Research psLens gives you a web browser interface to explore PeopleSoft configuration without needing developer tools or database access. Search for any object by name and see its definition, structure, and relationships. You don't need an App Designer license, SQL skills, or a developer's time. This also means you do not need App Designer access just to research metadata. App Designer is a full development tool: it can modify objects, run SQL, and connect directly to the database. Granting it for research gives people far more access than they need. psLens provides the research capabilities without that risk. See [Reducing App Designer Access](/docs/use-cases/reducing-app-designer-access/) for the full picture. ### Understand Page and Component Structure Need to know what fields are on a page? What record drives a component? Which menu path leads to it? Search for the component or page name in psLens and see: - The pages within a component - The records and fields on each page - The menu navigation path - The security (permission lists and roles) that control access ### Research Security Configuration When you need to understand who can access what: - Search for a user and see their roles - Search for a role and see its permission lists - Search for a permission list and see what it grants access to - Trace the full chain without asking anyone for help ### Share What You Find psLens deep links let you share a direct URL to any PeopleSoft object. Include links in your requirements documents, Jira tickets, or emails. When someone clicks the link, they see exactly what you are referencing, no instructions needed. Export to Markdown for inclusion in documentation, presentations, or analysis. ### Bridge the Communication Gap One of the hardest parts of working with PeopleSoft is the gap between business needs and technical implementation. psLens helps bridge that gap by giving non-technical team members visibility into the technical side: - Understand what fields exist on a record before writing requirements - See how components are structured before requesting changes - Review security configuration before requesting access changes - Cite "PS_PERSONAL_DATA, field BIRTHDATE" in a Jira ticket and paste the psLens deep link, so the developer does not have to guess which page you meant ## Common BA Tasks in psLens | Task | What You See | | -------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Research a component | Pages, records, fields, menu path, security | | Understand a record | All fields with types, keys, descriptions, and labels | | Check who has access | User > Role > Permission List > Component chain | | Document a process | Export object definitions to Markdown | | Write requirements | Reference exact field names, record structures, and component layouts | ## Get Started
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