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Manage Imports Tool

Use the Manage Imports Tool to import documents from:

Importing Documents from Scanning Applications (QSP)

Use the Manage Imports tool to bring scanned documents via an XML import file into FileHold in the FileHold Desktop Application (FDA). Once files have been scanned they can be imported automatically into the document management system along with any Zonal OCR'd text. If you have captured Zonal OCR information on the scanned document, this information is captured in the XML file which can be mapped to metadata fields in a schema. The metadata fields will be automatically populated once the import into the document management system is completed. The tool can also automatically send the imported file to a destination folder within the FileHold Library. You can create an import for each type of scanned document.

Sharing Imports from Scanning Applications

Shared Imports can be used when two or more users share a local computer and have differing Windows user accounts. When Shared Imports and Shared Inboxes are enabled, any documents that are imported into FileHold will be “shared” between the Inbox of all users. This allows different users to file the documents after they have been imported into FileHold.

For example, User Mary and User John both work at a scanning station on the same computer during various times each day. Each user has a separate Windows user accounts that they use to log into the scanning station. User Mary logs into the computer with her user account and scans a bunch of documents. These documents are imported into FileHold using the Import tool. User Mary then logs off the computer. User John then logs into the same computer using his Windows user account and opens FileHold. The imported files that User Mary scanned in are in his Inbox and can now be filed into the Library. Note that in order for User Mary to share her imports, she will need to share her Inbox so User John can see them.

NOTE: The Shared Imports option is only available to users who have at least the Write permission to the common application data folder (usually “C:\ProgramData”), which normally defaults to members of the Administrators group only. See Shared Inboxes for more information.

To import files from scanned documents (such as documents from QuickScan Pro)

  1. In FDA, go to Tools > Manage Imports and click Add.

  2. In the General tab, enter an Import Name and Description.

  3. In the XML Filepath field, click Browse to locate the XML file that was created during the Zonal OCR scanning process.

  4. Click Retrieve XML Fields. You should receive a message saying that XML fields were successfully retrieved.

  5. To share the import with other users on the local machine, select the Share this import with other users check box. This will allow any imported documents to appear in the other user's Inbox as well as your Inbox for filing.

  6. In the Job Automation Settings area, select the following check boxes if applicable:

  • Watch for new files to be imported and automatically tag and bring them into the Inbox - When enabled, the documents scanned into the import folder will be automatically tagged with metadata values and brought into the Inbox. If disabled, then the import has to be run manually using the Start button.

  • Delete input files after they have been successfully added to the FileHold Library - The folder where the documents were imported from will be deleted automatically. This keeps the import folder clean and reduces storage space needed.

  • Move input files to the selected folder - After files have been imported into FileHold, they can be moved from the file location from which they were imported from to another location on the local computer or network. If a file with the same name exists in the destination folder, a unique number will be appended to the file name.
    NOTE: This option cannot be used in conjunction with the "Delete input files after they have been successfully added to the FileHold Library" check box.

  1. In the Field Mapping tab, select the schema to map the imported XML fields to from the Select Destination Document Type drop-down list.

  2. Once a schema is selected, map the corresponding Zonal OCR index fields to the metadata fields in the schema.

  3. In the Database Lookup tab, you can map metadata fields to a SQL database. Read more information on how to setup the SQL database lookup. This allows you to validate metadata fields captured at scan time and then potentially fill in related index fields automatically.

  4. In the Autofiling tab, you can select the location for the imported documents. Select from the following options:

  • Auto-filing off - Documents will be sent to the Inbox for processing.

  • Automatically send files to a single folder in FileHold - You can set the destination folder for all the documents in the import to a single folder location. Click Browse to select the folder in the Library.

  • Automatically detect / create destination folder for files based on Auto-filing rules - You can select an auto-filling script to create the folder location in which the documents will be sent. See Automatically Filing Documents into the System (Auto-Filing).

  1. In the Job Automation Settings area, select the Automatically "Send Files" to the FileHold Library with an Inbox Status of "Ready to Send" to completely bypass the Inbox and go directly to the folder location set above. This way you do not have to go to the Inbox and click Send or Send All; the documents will be sent automatically to the set folder location.

  2. Click OK to save the Import settings. 

  3. CAUTION: IN FILEHOLD 12, YOU WILL NEED TO RESTART THE FILEHOLD DESKTOP APPLICATION.

  4. To delete an import, click the red X next to the import name in the List of Document Imports.

Note: Users can also edit, start an existing import wizard or show the log files from the List of Documents Imports.

Importing Documents Previously Exported from a FileHold System

In FileHold 12, you can also use the Manage Imports tool to import documents into the document management system that were exported using the Export function or using the FileHold Instrumentation Tool. This is useful when exporting and importing documents between a demo and production systems.

A checkbox labeled "Import files which were formerly exported from a FileHold system" on Field Mapping tab allows for importing FileHold compatible XML files and documents back into the document management system along with their metadata and library location when enabled. During the import, the document schema is automatically selected for each document based on the XML file and all metadata fields are automatically mapped based on their name. Prior to importing the documents, the schemas and metadata fields need to exist in the system that you are importing into in order to capture the correct schemas and metadata fields. If the "Import files which were formerly exported from a FileHold System" is enabled for the document import, it is not possible to select a fixed destination or an auto-filing script. Instead the destination location will be determined for each document based on the library path field in the XML file. All cabinets, drawers and folders must exist in the library before importing the documents; the Manage Imports tool does not create the library structure.

TIP: Use the FileHold Instrumentation Tools > FileHold Library Setup to export and import out your library structure and schemas/metadata fields between systems.

You can enable the ‘auto-send’ feature for document imports using the FileHold compatible format so all documents are automatically sent to the library without using the Inbox; however, you can still send the documents to the Inbox in order to review the metadata.

WARNING: When importing in documents that were exported from FileHold, only the actual files, their metadata and library location will be preserved for the imports and exports in the XML file. Document information such as the owner, creation date, and version history will not be preserved during the export and import process.

To import files previously exported from a FileHold System

  1. In FDA, go to Tools > Manage Imports and click Add.

  2. In the General tab, enter an Import Name and Description.

  3. In the XML Filepath field, click Browse to locate the XML file that was created during the export process.

  4. Click Retrieve XML Fields. You should receive a message saying that XML fields were successfully retrieved.

  5. To share the import with other users on the local machine, select the Share this import with other users check box. This will allow any imported documents to appear in the other user's Inbox as well as your Inbox for filing.

  6. In the Job Automation Settings area, select the following check boxes if applicable:

  • Watch for new files to be imported and automatically tag and bring them into the Inbox - When enabled, the documents scanned into the import folder will be automatically tagged with metadata values and brought into the Inbox. If disabled, then the import has to be run manually using the Start button.

  • Delete input files after they have been successfully added to the FileHold Library - The folder where the documents were imported from will be deleted automatically. This keeps the import folder clean and reduces storage space needed.

  • Move input files to the selected folder - After files have been imported into FileHold, they can be moved from the file location from which they were imported from to another location on the local computer or network. If a file with the same name exists in the destination folder, a unique number will be appended to the file name.
    NOTE: This option cannot be used in conjunction with the "Delete input files after they have been successfully added to the FileHold Library" check box.

  1. In the Field Mapping tab, select the Import files which were formerly exported from a FileHold System check box. The rest of the tab is disabled since it will take the mapping information from the XML file.

  2. The Database Lookup tab is disabled.

  3. In the Autofiling tab, the Auto-Filing settings are disabled. The documents will get their file path from the XML file.

  4. In the Job Automation Settings area, select the Automatically "Send Files" to the FileHold Library with an Inbox Status of "Ready to Send" to completely bypass the Inbox and go directly to the folder location set above. This way you do not have to go to the Inbox and click Send or Send All; the documents will be sent automatically to the set folder location.

  5. Click OK to save the Import settings.

Import Log

You can view the import log for the imports.

To view the import log

  1. Click Show Log File. The Import.Log file opens in Notepad.
 
See Also:

Manage Imports Tool - SQL Database Lookups

The Inbox

Shared Inboxes

Watched Folders