Connections
Where files arrive from - a folder, an SFTP drop, or an S3 bucket - and where paper goes: a printer. A schedule points at a connection, so this is what a recurring import actually reads, and a print batch names the printer it goes to.
Who Can See It
Section titled “Who Can See It”Administrator only, when the client is licensed for connections.
The List
Section titled “The List”| Column | What it shows |
|---|---|
| Name | The connection |
| Transport | Filesystem, SFTP, Amazon S3 or Printer. A printer says whether it Sends to printer or Prints from the browser |
| Active | Whether schedules may use it |
A connection has no file list of its own. Which files a run takes is set on the
Import Data task’s Files parameter, on Tasks and Schedules:
pick files, or type wildcard patterns such as *.edi that are matched at run time,
or leave it empty to pull everything.
Credentials are stored encrypted and are not shown back after saving. Leaving a password or secret blank keeps the saved one only while the connection still points at the same place: the SFTP host, port, username and host key; the printer address and username; the S3 endpoint, bucket, region and access key ID. Change any of these and the field asks for the secret again, because “the connection now points somewhere else”.
Host Key takes the server’s public key as a known_hosts line, such as
ssh-ed25519 AAAA…. Ask the clearinghouse for it. ClaimPod will not save an SFTP
connection without one, and refuses to deliver to a server whose key no longer
matches: “The SFTP server’s host key doesn’t match the one saved on this connection.”
Remote Path for SFTP and Prefix for S3 are the root folder: files are picked
up from its input/ subfolder, and deliveries land in output/.
Printers
Section titled “Printers”A printer is where CMS-1500 forms come out. Printer Address (optional)
says under it what leaving it blank means: the printer only names the device
billers print to from their browser, and the PDF they download is aligned for
it. With an address, ClaimPod sends print jobs straight to the printer, so the
ClaimPod server must be able to reach it, and Username (optional),
Password (optional) and Form Tray (optional) appear. The address must start
with ipp:// or ipps:// and must not carry the user name and password; those go
in their own fields. The tray’s helper says to name it as the
printer does, for example tray-2; blank uses the printer’s default tray.
Alignment moves every value on the form to match the printer’s feed, in steps of a twentieth of an inch, as direction words rather than signed numbers. Print Test Page prints a filled sample form with the values currently on screen, even unsaved, so you can hold it over a red form against a light and nudge until the text sits inside the boxes. Alignment belongs to the printer: fixing it here fixes every reprint.
Browsing a Source
Section titled “Browsing a Source”Browse Files lists what is on the source right now, so you can pick specific
files rather than waiting for a schedule. Each file shows where it stands:
New, Imported, Changed, Partial, Failed, or Importing…
while one is in flight. It is also the quickest way to tell a
connection problem from an empty folder: an empty source says No Files in
This Connection, with Refresh. A filesystem connection picks files up
from the input/ folder inside its configured folder, or input/ itself when
no folder is set. Browse Files creates that folder the first time, and the
empty state names it.
To import from the list, choose the mapping in Apply Mapping, select the files, and select the import button, which counts them, such as Import 3 Files. The status filter offers New, Changed, Imported and Failed. Changing the search or the status filter unselects the files it hides and keeps the ones still listed, so the import only ever takes files you can see. Picking files that already imported unchanged asks first, at Re-import Unchanged Files?, and the button reads Re-import with the count instead. If the source cannot be listed, the dialog shows Couldn’t List Files From This Source.
A scheduled pull skips a file whose identical copy has already imported, so a source that keeps its files does not import them again on every run. Uploading the file or retrying its import still runs it again. One pull takes at most 500 files and 1 GiB, and no single file over 100 MiB; past that the pull is refused with a sentence naming the limit.
When an SFTP or S3 source cannot be reached, Test Connection, Browse Files and a scheduled pull report a plain sentence rather than the provider’s raw error, such as “The SFTP server refused the login.” or “The storage bucket doesn’t exist.”. An address ClaimPod will not dial says so, for example that the server “is on a private network this installation doesn’t allow. Ask your administrator to allow it.” A printer that cannot be reached reads “Couldn’t reach the printer at” its address with the reason, and a refused login reads “The printer refused the username or password.”
Actions
Section titled “Actions”| Action | What it does | When it is greyed |
|---|---|---|
| Test Connection | Confirms ClaimPod can reach the source and reports how many files it sees, such as “Connected · 4 files visible”. For a printer it reads “Connected ·” and the printer’s model, says when the printer reports it is stopped, and lists the printer’s trays when the Form Tray (optional) you entered is not one of them. A missing field is flagged when you select it, and the result clears when a field it tested changes | While a test runs. Hidden for a printer without an address |
| Print Test Page | Prints the alignment page on the printer, or downloads it for a browser printer. Offered on every printer, saved or not | While a test page is printing |
| Browse Files | Lists what is there now. Missing for a printer | - |
| Create / Edit / Delete | Manage the connection. Delete warns that import files already tagged with the connection keep their tag | - |
If someone else saved the connection after you opened Edit, your save is refused with a notice above the form, and Reload refills it with their version (A Save Was Refused).
States
Section titled “States”- Empty - a client with no connections says so and offers Create.
- Blocked - without the connections module the screen is not in the sidebar, and a saved link to it says the module is not part of your plan.
Related: Import Mappings · Import Batches · Set Up a Connection