Define a connection to an ECM system and map the ECM fields

You can define the connection to the ECM system, the document fields and properties to be used and the templates for displaying the corresponding ECM data in the Dynamics 365 forms under edoc plugin ecm > Setup > Systems > Systems.

Recommendation

Only configure and activate a single ECM system.

Although you can activate several ECM systems, this situation can lead to a document first being searched for in the "wrong" ECM system.

To establish a connection to an ECM system and prepare the corresponding document fields and document types for mapping, you need the following data:

Base address of the server with the ECM system.
Repository ID of the ECM system.
Search route with the corresponding parameters (e.g. OpenSearch functionality) for the URL template.
ID and name of the properties, fields and document types in the ECM system.

Things to know

Depending on which ECM system you have specified under ECM type, you must define the search route for the URL template accordingly.

For information about the search parameters and the structure of a URL see the corresponding documentation from the software provider.

Establish a connection to an ECM system and behavior when opening

In the Overview section, enter an ID and a name for the ECM system and select the ECM type. The data is displayed in the overview of connected systems. You can enter any ID and any name for the ECM system. You also define the ECM system per behavior when opening the edoc plugin ecm function.

System ID: Enter an ID for the ECM system. You can enter any ID (short form), e.g. d.3one for a separate d.velop repository or SP for a SharePoint site. You can no longer change the ID.
System Name: Enter any meaningful name for the ECM system. The system name is uniquely assigned to the system ID. You can change the system name at any time, unlike the system ID.
ECM type: Select the corresponding ECM application:
- d.3one: Establishes a connection to the document management in d.velop documents (on-premises).
- Sharepoint: Establishes a connection to Microsoft SharePoint.
- Shareflex: Establishes a connection to the Shareflex add-on in Microsoft SharePoint.
- User-defined: Establishes a connection to any ECM system, e.g. to any website.

You define the respective URLs for opening the ECM application for each document type (document type, category). Make sure that the browser allows third-party cookies: System requirements for edoc D365 FO plugin ecm

Opening type: Select the method for opening the ECM application:
- Embedded in the current window tab: The ECM application is integrated directly into Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations as a dialog (in-place). In this way, your users remain in the main application.

Changed security guidelines at Microsoft for HTTP headers

If you activate the option Embedded in the current window tab, you must add the URL (domain) of the involved applications, e.g. Microsoft Dynamics for Finance and Operations or d.velop documents, in the security settings or integration settings for web applications.

Enter the URL of the application in the Content-Security-Policy parameter.

For more information see the manufacturer's documentation.

New window tab: The ECM application opens as a separate tab in the browser. Your users can switch between the ECM application and Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations in the browser using the tabs in the browser.

Then check whether the connection to the ECM system has been established by clicking on Test Connection.

For example, if you want to provide edoc workplace as an embedded dialog, you can find an example here: How do I integrate edoc workplace (In-Place) into Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations?

Establish a connection and creating a route for the URL template

In the Base Connection section, enter the data for establishing a connection to the ECM system:

Server Name: Enter the server URL without HTTPS.
ECM Repository ID: Enter the unique application ID of the repository. You can find out how to determine the ID in the manufacturer documentation for the respective application. Only visible for d.3one connections.
URL Template: Enter the complete connection string (URL with https://) with which you want to establish a connection to the ECM system. The placeholders (variables) in curly brackets are automatically replaced by the properties of the documents, folders, files (dossiers) or search. For how to determine the connection string with the corresponding properties see the manufacturer documentation for the respective application.
Pattern: Only visible for Shareflex and user-defined connections. Specify the search pattern for the index fields with index values.
Field separator: Only visible for Shareflex and user-defined connections. Specify the field separator between search index fields and values. For your environment, check which character is the separator between fields, e.g. comma, ampersand.

The variables in the connection string for the URL template are replaced by the values you enter in the fields at runtime.

The variables have the following meaning:

Server: Is the value in Server Name.
RepositoryId: Is the value in ECM Repository ID. Only applies to d.3one connections.
DocumentType: Is the value from the field Field Value String under Indexings > Indexings > Mapping Fields.
SearchString: Is the composite string of all fields (return value) that you have defined under Indexings > Indexings > Mapping Fields.

Examples and details of the URL templates and SearchStrings variables per system can be found here:

Map document fields to ECM document types

In the Document Fields section, you first define the document fields (property fields of the ECM system) and the index (field ID) in order to then map these fields to the ECM document types.

Use Add line to enter each field that you want to find with the URL template and display for your users. Finally, activate each line that you want to use.

Field ID: Enter a meaningful ID of your choice. The value entered is used for the index of the field mapping for the documents.
Field Name: Enter a meaningful name of your choice. The value entered is used for the name of the field mapping for the documents.
ECM Field Index Number: Enter the ID of the field (index ID).

In the document type section, define the categories (document types) from the ECM system that you want to use in the Dynamics 365 forms. For each document type, enter the fields that you want to use as search properties. There may be several fields per category in the ECM system. You can only activate the fields that you consider useful for your purposes.

Document Type ID: Enter a meaningful ID of your choice. The value entered is used for the index of the document type mapping.
Document Type Name: Enter a meaningful name of your choice. The value entered is used for the name of the document type mapping.
ECM Document Type ID: Enter the ID of the document type (category) that this document type has in the ECM system.

Once you have specified the document type, you can activate the fields you require under Document type fields. Only the activated fields are displayed in the linked index definition.

Field ID: Displays the document field ID of the property in the ECM system.
Field Name: Shows the name of the document field in the ECM system.
Active: Indicates that the field has been activated.

Instead of displaying all document types and their fields, you can get an overview of only the active document types and fields of document types at any time by moving the sliders to Yes.

Activate entire configuration

Once you have completed the configuration, move the slider in the Overview section to Active. The configuration is then activated for your ECM system.

In the next step, you define the mapping of the index entries. With the index definition, you determine which ECM properties (property fields of the ECM document type) you use as search properties.

For more information about indexing, see: Configure the index definition for the Dynamics 365 process