How to use IBM App Connect with IBM FileNet Content Manager

IBM FileNet Content Manager enables you to streamline and automate business processes, access and manage all forms of content, and automate records management for compliance.

Availability:
  • App Connect Enterprise as a Service connector
  • A local connector in a Designer instance of IBM App Connect in containers (Continuous Delivery release)Local connector in containers (Continuous Delivery release)
  • A local connector in a Designer instance of IBM App Connect in containers (Support Cycle 2)Local connector in containers (Long Term Support Cycle-2 release)

Connecting to IBM FileNet Content Manager

Restriction: Currently, only the IBM FileNet Content Manager hosted on the cloud is supported, and the IBM FileNet Content Manager setup on IBM Cloud Pak for Data is not supported.

Complete the connection fields that you see in the App Connect Designer Connect > Applications and APIs page (previously the Catalog page) or flow editor. If necessary, work with your IBM FileNet Content Manager administrator to obtain these values.

IBM FileNet Content Manager connection fields:

FileNet GraphQL URL
The Content Services GraphQL server URL of your IBM FileNet Content Manager
  • Required: True
Note: IBM App Connect uses the GraphQL API to communicate with IBM FileNet Content Manager. The core installation does not have the GraphQL setup; if you need to add the GraphQL setup to your IBM FileNet Content Manager, see Content Services GraphQL API in the FileNet P8 Platform documentation.

For details about deploying the Content Services GraphQL API, see Configuring the Content Services GraphQL API.

Username
The username for the Content Services GraphQL account
  • Required: True
Password
The password for the specified username
  • Required: True

To connect to a IBM FileNet Content Manager endpoint from the App Connect Designer Applications and APIs page for the first time, expand IBM FileNet Content Manager, then click Connect. For more information, see Managing accounts.

General considerations

Before you use App Connect Designer with IBM FileNet Content Manager, take note of the following considerations:

  • (General consideration) You can see lists of the trigger events and actions that are available on the Applications and APIs page of the App Connect Designer.

    For some applications, the events and actions depend on the environment and whether the connector supports configurable events and dynamic discovery of actions. If the application supports configurable events, you see a Show more configurable events link under the events list. If the application supports dynamic discovery of actions, you see a Show more link under the actions list.

  • (General consideration) If you are using multiple accounts for an application, the set of fields that is displayed when you select an action for that application can vary for different accounts. In the flow editor, some applications always provide a curated set of static fields for an action. Other applications use dynamic discovery to retrieve the set of fields that are configured on the instance that you are connected to. For example, if you have two accounts for two instances of an application, the first account might use settings that are ready for immediate use. However, the second account might be configured with extra custom fields.

Post connection considerations

Take note of the following considerations after you've connected to IBM FileNet Content Manager:
Updating permissions

Permissions in IBM FileNet Content Manager control access to and modification of documents and folders within the system. Each document and folder in FileNet Content Manager has its own set of permissions, which determine the actions that specific users or groups can perform. These permissions are organized into arrays, providing detailed control over access and operations. Currently, in the App Connect UI, the system directly adjusts permissions through the UI instead of using the array-based permission structures.

The following are the types of permissions that are supported in FileNet Content Manager:
  • Access permission: Determines who can access and update a document or folder.
    Note: Newly created documents or folders are automatically granted Access permissions, ensuring initial access rights for users.
  • Delegated access permission: Allows users to delegate their access permissions to others.
  • Role permission: Grants access permissions to static or dynamic roles.

    When modifying the permission type for a document from Access Permission through the App Connect UI, it's important to note that switching the permission type to Role permission or Delegated permissions can make documents effectively read only. If you need to assign multiple permissions to a document, you can do so through the FileNet Content Manager UI.

For detailed information on IBM FileNet Content Manager security and security policies, see Security

and Security policies on the IBM FileNet P8 Platform Documentation page.
Inheritable depth field
The inheritable depth field specifies the level at which permissions should be inherited in the folder hierarchy. The supported values include:
  • OBJECT_ONLY: Only the object itself.
  • OBJECT_IMMEDIATE_CHILDREN: The object and its immediate children.
  • OBJECT_ALL_CHILDREN: The object and all its children.
  • ALL_CHILDREN_NOT_OBJECT: All children except the object itself.
  • IMMEDIATE_CHILDREN_NOT_OBJECT: Immediate children but not the object.
Access mask field
Every securable object in the Content Platform Engine has a security descriptor, which includes an Access Control List (ACL). The ACL is made up of Access Control Entries (ACEs), also known as permissions. Each permission identifies a security principal (user or group) by using a SID and specifies an access mask for that SID. The access mask defines the specific operations that the grantee (identified by the SID) is allowed to perform. Each bit in the mask corresponds to a specific operation, and if the bit is set, the security principal is authorized to perform that operation.

Events and actions

IBM FileNet Content Manager events

These events are for changes in this application that trigger a flow to start completing the actions in the flow.

Note: Events are not available for changes in this application. You can trigger a flow in other ways, such as at a scheduled interval or at specific dates and times.

IBM FileNet Content Manager actions

Your flow completes these actions on this application.

Documents
Retrieve documents
Create document
Retrieve documents with ACL
Update document
Delete document
Cancel document check out
Check in document
Check out document
Download content
Folders
Create folder
Retrieve folders
Retrieve folders with ACL
Update folder
Delete folder
Group members
Retrieve group members
Role members
Retrieve role members
Users
Retrieve users

Examples

Dashboard tile for a template that uses IBM FileNet Content Manager

Use templates to quickly create flows for IBM FileNet Content Manager

Learn how to use App Connect templates to quickly create flows that complete actions on IBM FileNet Content Manager. For example, open the Templates gallery, and then search for IBM FileNet.

Learn more