Dropbox Connector

Use the Dropbox Connector node to connect to a Dropbox account, including a Dropbox Business Standard or Advanced account, to distribute documents to Dropbox. Dropbox is a file hosting service that offers Cloud storage and file synchronization. Using the Dropbox Connector node, you can distribute documents to Dropbox accounts and also view Personal, Team, and Shared folders at the MFP panel.

Dispatcher Phoenix workflows that contain the Dropbox Connector node can:

• Collect files from various input sources. For example, you can use the Dropbox Connector index form to dynamically select an account/folder path. You can also use metadata for the folder path in the Dropbox Connector configuration.
• Perform powerful image processing operations and complex routing logic on these files.
• Distribute the files to Dropbox folders.

You can share Dropbox files directly from the MFP control panel via email and control editing access to the scanned document via email addresses.

Notes:

• To use the Dropbox Connector, you must have a Dropbox account and you must set up your Dropbox Account in Dispatcher Phoenix Web.
• The maximum file size for uploading documents to Dropbox is 149 MB.

Configuring the Dropbox Connector Node

To open the Dropbox Connector node, drag-drop a Dropbox Connector node from the Distribution panel to the workflow and then double-click on it. The Dropbox Connector Properties window opens.

Configure the following:

• Enabled - To enable this node in the current workflow, check the box at this field. If you leave the box blank, the workflow ignores the node and documents pass through as if the node was not present. Note that a disabled node does not check for logic or error conditions.

• Node Name - The node name defaults into this field. This name appears in the workflow under the node icon. Use this field to specify a meaningful name for the node that indicates its use in the workflow.

• Description - Enter an optional description for this node. A description can help you remember the purpose of the node in the workflow or distinguish nodes from each other. If the description is long, you can hover the mouse over the field to read its entire contents.

Buttons

• Help - To access Dispatcher Phoenix Online Help, click this button.
• Save - To preserve your node definition and exit the window, click this button.
• Cancel - To exit the window without saving any changes, click this button.

Dropbox Authorization

Use the Dropbox authorization area to configure the following settings:

• Account - Click the drop-down to view a list of authorized Dropbox accounts. Select the Dropbox account containing the documents or folders you want the workflow to collect. If no accounts appear, be sure the Dispatcher Phoenix Web logon user account that was used to authorize the Dropbox account is the same as the current Dispatcher Phoenix logon user account. The logon user accounts must match for any Dropbox accounts to appear in Dispatcher Phoenix.
• Connection timeout (in seconds) - Specify the number of seconds you want to elapse before a network connection times out (i.e., for login or logout operations).

Dropbox Explorer Area

Once the connection with Dropbox has been established, the right side of the Properties window displays the Dropbox Explorer area containing a tree-view of your Dropbox folders, sub-folders, and files. Use this area to browse through your Dropbox folder structure and choose a folder in which to store your documents.

The current folder path displays next to the folder icon at the top of the Dropbox area . You can use this folder path to navigate back through your folder structure. The Folder Path field below the explorer area also displays the current path.

In the following illustration, the folder path displays and the Dropbox area shows the Tree view as well as the files in the selected folder, as per the current selections from the Options menu:

Folder Types

The following folder types may appear in the Dropbox Explorer area, depending on your Dropbox version:

Dropbox Personal folder

Dropbox Team folder

Dropbox Team Member folder

Dropbox Shared folder

Options

Use the Options button in the upper-right corner of the Dropbox Explorer area to configure the folder view or add a new folder. The drop-down menu includes a shortcut key for each option:

• Show tree view - To view the complete folder structure in a tree view, select this option.
• Show files - To show files within the folder browsing view, select this option.
• New folder - To create a new folder in the currently selected folder path on Dropbox, select this option. The Create New Folder window appears.
• Refresh - To refresh the folder browser view (Show tree view or Show files) in Dropbox Explorer, select this option.

File Name Restrictions

The following restrictions apply to file names:

• File names cannot start with a space or end with a space.

• You cannot start a file name with two period characters (..).

• Non-printable characters cannot be included in a file name (tabs, newlines, etc.).

• Do not use any of the following:

  <  >  :  "  /  \  |  ?  *

Folder Path

The Folder path field below the folder tree auto-populates when you make your folder selection in the Dropbox Explorer area. If you do not want to navigate the file explorer, you can manually enter the folder path in the field instead.

Creating a Dropbox Connector Index Form

You can create an index form that enables you to log into Dropbox automatically at the MFP. Do the following:

1. Make sure you are logged into Dropbox from the Dispatcher Phoenix Web Account Manager.

2. Make sure your workflow includes a MFP Panel node and a Dropbox Connector node.

3. From the MFP Panel node, open the Index Form Builder. The Dropbox Connector button appears under the Workflow Index Fields area.

4. Drag and drop the Dropbox Connector button to the Index Form work area. A Scan to Dropbox index form appears, as in the following illustration:

   

5. Save and close the Index Form Builder.

6. The Dropbox Connector node properties window populates automatically with the variable names of the fields on the Index Form. Although you cannot edit the fields on this window, you can click on the wrench tool button to go to that section or field in the Index Form Builder. See the following illustration:

   

Dropbox Index Form on MFP

At the MFP, take the following steps:

1. Select your workflow - If only one Dispatcher Phoenix workflow is currently running, that workflow appears. However, if multiple workflows are running, the Selection screen appears and you must select a workflow. See the following illustration:

   

2. Select the index form - When your workflow appears on the screen, select the index form.

   

   Note: If you have multiple Dropbox accounts registered and none are configured as the primary account in the Dispatcher Phoenix Web Account Manager, the Account Selection screen appears where you must select the account containing the folder you want to process.

3. Select your File Destination - When you select the index form on the Selection screen, the Select Your File Destination screen appears. Use this screen to select a destination folder and/or share the file with team members. See the following illustration:

   

   The Folder Path field displays the current folder path of the destination folder.

   1. Browse and select your folder path - To change the folder path, click on a filtering option at this field to access the Folder Path screen. The filtering option you select here restricts the list of folders that displays on the Folder Path screen, shown below. The All Folders option applies no restriction.

      On the Folder Path screen, click the + and/or - boxes in the folder tree structure until the desired destination folder appears. Be sure the folder is highlighted, then click the Checkmark button to return to the Select Your File Destination screen where the selected folder path displays in the Folder Path field.

      

   2. Folder Path - The current folder path of the destination folder displays.

   3. Share - Share a file or folder with one or more team members, if desired. The Sharing Options screen appears:

      

   You have the following options:

   • Email(s) - Enter one or more e-mail addresses, separating each address with a comma delimiter.
   • Permissions - Specify View or Edit access for the team members. Note: Not all file types are editable. If you select “Can Edit” for a file type that cannot be edited, Dispatcher Phoenix will log an error regarding the permission, but will upload the document as expected.
   • Custom Message (optional) - Enter a custom message to include in the email, if desired.

4. Once you have made your selections, initiate the scan. The scanned documents are sent to the Dropbox destination folder and shared to the specified team members (if any).

The Search Field

When specifying a folder path on the Folder Path screen, you can use the Search field to narrow the list of folders.

This field features type-ahead functionality to help you quickly filter the folders displayed on the screen. You can begin entering characters into the field and the folders will be filtered accordingly. The search operation will be conducted on any folders and sub-folders within the root directory.

Notes:

• Wildcard characters (*, %) are not supported in this search.

• The Search attempts to produce results as soon as you begin entering search criteria.

• If a folder name is a compound word using CamelCase (e.g., “MyFolder”) or the folder name contains spaces (e.g., “My Folder”), the search will be conducted on the separate word components (e.g., “My” and “Folder”). Otherwise, the search will be conducted on the entire name (e.g., a search on “folder” will not return the “Myfolder” folder).

  

  Once the folder list is filtered per your search, you can do the following:

  • Use - To select a particular folder, tap this button.
  • View - To return to a directory structure view of a particular folder, tap this button.
  • X - To release the filter, tap on this button next to the Search field.
  • Search - To submit the search criteria again, tap this icon next to the field.

Database Browsing - Dropbox Configuration

You can also manually configure a query to retrieve data (e.g., list of folders, validation, etc.) from Dropbox.

Using the Index Form Builder, do the following:

1. Add a new field, such as a drop-down list.

2. Define an On Load event for the field. Then, add a Query.

3. Choose Dropbox Data Source from the Query drop-down list.

4. The Dropbox Data Source Configuration window appears, which allows you to perform specific actions in order to retrieve data from Dropbox.

   

   Do the following:

   • Friendly Name - Enter an identifying name for the Dropbox data source configuration.

   • Action - In this area, you can choose what kind of action to perform on the Dropbox data source. Options include:

     • Get Primary Dropbox Account – This option returns the primary Dropbox account for the user.
     • Get Dropbox Accounts - This option returns all the Dropbox accounts for the user.
     • Get Dropbox Folders - Use this action to display a list of folders within a specific Dropbox folder path. When you select the Get Dropbox Folders item, new fields will appear for configuration, as in the following illustration:
       
       

   • Folder Path – Enter the folder ID of the Dropbox root folder that you want displayed at the MFP panel.

     • Show new folder option – Check this option to allow the user to create a new Dropbox folder at the MFP.
     • Show files - Check this option to display files in Dropbox folders at the MFP.
     • Enable folder search - Check this options to enable folder search at the MFP.