The majority of nShift customers have some kind of integration between nShift Ship and their ERP, WMS, or other systems. The filedrop integration (Import Setup) in On-premises has a lot of advanced possibilities and can be configured to fit almost any setup.

This article will explain how to set up a basic filedrop integration in nShift On-premises. Please contact our customer service if you need help configuring your integration or if you have questions regarding the advanced configuration possibilities.
 

Content in this article:

• Concept and workflow
• Activating the Import Setup
• Specifying the file content
• Adding and deleting fields
• Configuring carrier presettings

Concept and workflow

Ship On-premises can import orders from any system that can generate a file. The system must be able to create a file and place it in a shared folder accessible to both systems. Ship On-premises will monitor the folder, and as soon as it detects a recognizable file in the import folder, it will import and read the file, then either delete it or move it to a backup folder after processing. 

 

We have used a CSV file in the examples below. This format is easy to work with, but nShift Ship supports almost any format, including flat text files, standard field length, Excel, and XML. If you are using XML files, the import transforms the files based on an XSLT stylesheet that you must specify.

Activating the Import Setup

1. Go to Setup and select where you want to place the import setup. It can be placed on either Installation, Location, or Actor level. Right-click on the right-hand side of the screen and select New > Import Setup.
   
   
    
2. To get started, check Import Active. The integration is only active when this checkbox is checked, and it must be active to make any changes.
   
   
    
3. Click New and specify a Source Folder where On-premises will pick up the files from your system. It is possible to add multiple source folders.
   
   
    
4. Specify the file name and extension.
    
5. Threads are used to process several files simultaneously. The number of threads corresponds to the number of files that can be imported simultaneously from the same source folder. Multiple sources will be processed one by one. 
    
6. Click OK to save.
    
7. In the After Import section, you must select what should happen after On-premises has processed a file. You can choose to automatically delete it, move it to the recycle bin or move it to a specified folder. Click OK to save your settings.

Specifying the file content

You must tell On-premises how to read the files from your system by specifying the character separator and how to map the fields in the file to fields in On-premises. The Import Setup tab contains a lot of functionality. This article explains the settings needed for a basic import setup.   

1. Go to the Import Setup tab.
    
2. Specify the Character separator used in your files. In this example "," is used. (To use XML files, you must click the Select button and specify an XSLT file.)
   
   
    
3. Different systems use different units, so it is important to specify the units used in your files. Click the Unit button to specify your units and click OK.
   
   
    
4. Now you must map the fields in your files to fields in On-premises. This is easier if you have a sample file from your system. Choose Select file, locate a file, and click Preview to see a list of all the fields in the file.
   
   
    
5. Map the fields by clicking on each line in the Shipment Field column and selecting the matching On-premises field from the drop-down list. You can search in the drop-down list by typing. 
   
   
    
6. In the screen below, all fields have been mapped. If you have a field in your file that should be ignored by On-premises, you can keep the value Unknown->Unknown. 
   
   

Adding and deleting fields

You can add or delete fields by clicking the Fields button.

When adding a field, you must choose the field type. Choose between a normal field and an expression. The fields in the example above are of the type Field.

 

Adding expressions to your import setup gives you the possibility to set up different rules and compare and switch values in different fields. To learn more about using expressions, please go to the article: Using expressions in your import setup.  

Configuring carrier presettings

In the Carrier PreSettings tab, you can specify codes from your ERP system that can be used to select a specific location, actor, subcarrier, product, and services to produce a shipment. 

1. Select the Location and Actor that the configuration should apply to. If the Import Setup is added on Location or Actor level, you will not be able to choose another location other than the current one.
   
   
    
2. Click the New button.
    
3. Enter a Carrier code and, if applicable, an Actor alias. The actor alias can be used to select a specific actor in the files. 
   
   
    
4. Select Carrier, SubCarrier, and Product. The content of the Enabled Carriers reflects the Location and Actor selected in step 1.
    
5. Select Services if relevant. You may select multiple services or leave the services unchecked unless you are creating a carrier code for a product that has mandatory services.
    
6. Select a Stack if you want the shipments to be sent to another stack than the default stack for the product.
    
7. If you check Autoprint labels, any shipment matching the carrier presettings will automatically be submitted after import.
    
8. Mappings can be used to translate different codes. For example, you could be able to use the same code for a pallet on all your carriers even though they may use different codes.
   
   
   In this example, we have mapped the goods type code "BOX" to the "PA-BOX-Parcel" goods type on carrier DHL Express.
   
   
    
9. Click OK on the Carrier PreSettings page when you have configured all settings. You can now use the carrier codes in your files to produce shipments with the specified products and services.

More articles about filedrop integration

• Standard file for filedrop integration (import setup)
• Configuration of filedrop import in Ship (Drop Zone)
• Adding a service to a carrier code in Import Setup

See all our articles about Filedrop integration here.